{"id":64648,"date":"2017-06-20T12:54:32","date_gmt":"2017-06-20T17:54:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/?p=64648"},"modified":"2026-10-09T13:22:59","modified_gmt":"2026-10-09T18:22:59","slug":"podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/","title":{"rendered":"Podcast #314: Building Better Citizens Through Rucking"},"content":{"rendered":"

Back in 2012, the owners of Huckberry<\/a> introduced me to a guy who owned a company called GORUCK<\/a>. Besides making high quality ruck packs, I also learned that they put on all-night events in which participants haul a 40-lb weight in their backpack while being led through a series of physically and mentally grueling exercises like push-ups, bear crawls, and carrying an 800-lb log with their teammates. That\u2019s how I found myself in downtown Oklahoma City at 12AM, sitting in a pond next to my brother in below-freezing weather. Nine hours, hundreds of squat thrusts, and 12 miles later, I finished my first GORUCK Challenge. <\/span><\/p>\n

Since then, I\u2019ve done several other events and have learned a lot about resilience, leadership, and teamwork in the process. Today<\/span> on the show, I talk to GORUCK founder Jason McCarthy, who started the company after serving as a Green Beret in Iraq. What began as a backpack company has morphed into a tight-knit community of people looking to push themselves through what Jason calls “<\/span>Good livin.” Today<\/span> on the show, Jason and I discuss where the idea for the GORUCK events came from and what a man can learn about leadership, teamwork, and community by doing hard things with other people.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Back in 2012, the owners of Huckberry introduced me to a guy who owned a company called GORUCK. Besides making high quality ruck packs, I also learned that they put on all-night events in which participants haul a 40-lb weight in their backpack while being led through a series of physically and mentally grueling exercises […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":195630,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[230,156,42380],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-64648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fitness","category-podcast","category-strength"],"featured_image_urls":{"large":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/314-538x280.png","medium_large":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/314-768x432.png","aom":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/314-372x230.png","reactor-320":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/314-320x180.png","reactor-640":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/314-640x360.png"},"yoast_head":"\nThe Benefits of Rucking \u2014\u00a0Jason Fitzgerald Interview | Art of Manliness<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I talk to GORUCK founder and former Green Beret Jason McCarthy about the benefits of rucking, and what he calls "good livin."\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Podcast #314: Building Better Citizens Through Rucking | The Art of Manliness\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I talk to GORUCK founder and former Green Beret Jason McCarthy about the benefits of rucking, and what he calls "good livin."\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Art of Manliness\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/facebook.com\/artofmanliness\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-06-20T17:54:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-10-09T18:22:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/314.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Brett\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@artofmanliness\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@artofmanliness\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Brett\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/strength\\\/fitness\\\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/strength\\\/fitness\\\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Brett\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/84a51044fb965564cde35d18f7e0a832\"},\"headline\":\"Podcast #314: Building Better Citizens Through Rucking\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-06-20T17:54:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-09T18:22:59+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/strength\\\/fitness\\\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":216,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/strength\\\/fitness\\\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/314.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"Fitness\",\"Podcast\",\"Strength\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"copyrightYear\":\"2017\",\"copyrightHolder\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/#organization\"}},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/strength\\\/fitness\\\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/strength\\\/fitness\\\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Benefits of Rucking \u2014\u00a0Jason Fitzgerald Interview | Art of Manliness\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/strength\\\/fitness\\\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/strength\\\/fitness\\\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/314.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-06-20T17:54:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-09T18:22:59+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/84a51044fb965564cde35d18f7e0a832\"},\"description\":\"I talk to GORUCK founder and former Green Beret Jason McCarthy about the benefits of rucking, and what he calls \\\"good livin.\\\"\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/strength\\\/fitness\\\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/strength\\\/fitness\\\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/strength\\\/fitness\\\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/314.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/06\\\/314.png\",\"width\":1280,\"height\":720},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/strength\\\/fitness\\\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Podcast #314: Building Better Citizens Through Rucking\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Art of Manliness\",\"description\":\"Men's Interest and Lifestyle\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/84a51044fb965564cde35d18f7e0a832\",\"name\":\"Brett\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/artofmanliness.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.artofmanliness.com\\\/author\\\/brett\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Benefits of Rucking \u2014\u00a0Jason Fitzgerald Interview | Art of Manliness","description":"I talk to GORUCK founder and former Green Beret Jason McCarthy about the benefits of rucking, and what he calls \"good livin.\"","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Podcast #314: Building Better Citizens Through Rucking | The Art of Manliness","og_description":"I talk to GORUCK founder and former Green Beret Jason McCarthy about the benefits of rucking, and what he calls \"good livin.\"","og_url":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/","og_site_name":"The Art of Manliness","article_publisher":"http:\/\/facebook.com\/artofmanliness","article_published_time":"2017-06-20T17:54:32+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-10-09T18:22:59+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1280,"height":720,"url":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/314.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Brett","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@artofmanliness","twitter_site":"@artofmanliness","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Brett","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/"},"author":{"name":"Brett","@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/#\/schema\/person\/84a51044fb965564cde35d18f7e0a832"},"headline":"Podcast #314: Building Better Citizens Through Rucking","datePublished":"2017-06-20T17:54:32+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-09T18:22:59+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/"},"wordCount":216,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/314.png","articleSection":["Fitness","Podcast","Strength"],"inLanguage":"en-US","copyrightYear":"2017","copyrightHolder":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/#organization"}},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/","url":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/","name":"The Benefits of Rucking \u2014\u00a0Jason Fitzgerald Interview | Art of Manliness","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/314.png","datePublished":"2017-06-20T17:54:32+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-09T18:22:59+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/#\/schema\/person\/84a51044fb965564cde35d18f7e0a832"},"description":"I talk to GORUCK founder and former Green Beret Jason McCarthy about the benefits of rucking, and what he calls \"good livin.\"","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/314.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/314.png","width":1280,"height":720},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/strength\/fitness\/podcast-314-building-better-citizens-rucking\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Podcast #314: Building Better Citizens Through Rucking"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/","name":"The Art of Manliness","description":"Men's Interest and Lifestyle","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/#\/schema\/person\/84a51044fb965564cde35d18f7e0a832","name":"Brett","sameAs":["http:\/\/artofmanliness.com"],"url":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/author\/brett\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64648"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64648\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/195630"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}