The Power of a Daily Fitness Practice: Lessons from Rucking Every Day

A younger me used to think things in fitness were flashy. The perfect rep scheme, the perfect rest periods, the perfect program design. I still believe that doing things as optimally as possible is valuable, but there is also something deeply valuable in showing up in the mundane. The quiet, not flashy work that doesn’t shape you with mighty blows of a chisel but the sort of work that slowly polishes the parts of you that you can't alter with the flashy chisel. That is why there is something profoundly grounding about committing to a daily physical practice. It's not about training for a competition, or sculpting the perfect physique. It's about the discipline of showing up. Its about saying you’ll do something every day and doing it. Every day. Without miss.

My current daily practice is a daily ruck. I put my bag on and I go walk, even if its raining, hot, busy, almost midnight, I go. Doing something everyday isn’t about getting fitter. There are a lot of ways I could be using that time to improve my fitness better. However, It’s about a philosophy. A mindset. A method of self-mastery.

Rucking

For those unfamiliar, rucking involves walking with a weighted backpack. It was born from military training to improve soldiers ability to cover ground with heavy gear in battle. It is a great way to improve strength and work capacity and I particulary like it because it is a fitness practice that takes me on mini outdoor adventures everyday.

However, to me its not about improving fitness. It’s about ritual. 

Rucking is slow enough to think, but hard enough to challenge you. In the book Eiger Dreams by Jon Krakauer he describes a climber on a rock as not climbing but rather in a sort of kinisthetic meditation. Thats what rucking and a daily movement practice is becoming to be. It is a form of moving meditation.

Never Miss a Day

There’s magic in the mundane and power in repetition. Here is what I have learned from not missing a day. 

Discipline Over Motivation

Motivation is fleeting and a daily fitness practice doesn’t care how you feel. It only asks that you show up. And when you do, you train your mind to override excuses.

That’s discipline. And that bleeds into every area of life.

Your Word to Yourself Is Sacred

When you say, “I do this every day,” and you do, you reinforce trust in yourself. You’re no longer someone who tries. You’re someone who does. That inner reputation becomes a fortress. You learn to honor your commitments, even when no one’s watching. 

Especially when no one’s watching.

Space and Thoughts

Rucking has become a space to think. I spend most of my days talking to clients and writing programs. Walking in the woods allows space. It allows space to think and look far way and solve problems. Your brain best solves problems as 3 miles an hour.  

Raise your bare minimum

If you engage in a daily fitness practice you are setting that as your bare minimum. It has to be done every day. You minimally do that every day. My current full daily fitness routine is a daily ruck, push-ups, and jump rope. That’s my bare minimum. Most days have a full in the gym training session also. However, if I don’t train that day, I rucked, did push-ups, and jumped rope even if I didn’t workout. Raise your bare minimum.

Personal accountability and Weighted Walking

I once heard someone say that as a man, everyday you are handed a metaphorical backpack of weight and its your duty to carry that backpack to the top of the mountain the best you can. Some days the weight you carry is light, some days it is heavy, some days you are tired, some days you have a lot on your mind, but as a man it is your duty to carry it the best that you can. Without complaint, without asking for someone else to take your bag, you carry it. To the best of your ability. Everyday. My daily rucking practice is a real practice of that metaphor. The weight is different everyday. When I go check the ruck off then I am showing to myself that I can carry weight well. No matter how heavy. Or for how long. I can carry it.

Why Daily Practice Matters

This doesn’t mean everyone needs to start rucking. A thing I am starting to realize more and more is that your fitness and life should be authentic to you. It should be a truly authentic practice. Something that matters to you. Not something flashy that will impress others. I purposely never mention how much my bag weighs or how far I go on my daily ruck because thats not what matters. Numbers aren’t the point. The act of doing it is the point. Pick something that is truly you and do it every day. Your daily practice could be walking, lifting, yoga, mobility, cold plunges, push-ups, jump rope, squats. Daily matters more than intensity. 

Over time, the days stack. You become the type of person who doesn’t miss. You don’t break promises to yourself. You don’t wait for permission or perfect conditions.

You show up.

Final Thoughts

Mastery doesn’t come from grand gestures, it comes from showing up when it’s hard, boring, or inconvenient.

Do it every single day.

Raise your standard.

Expand your circle.

Don’t miss.