Founder Emily McCarthy Rucking
GORUCK
Rucking—walking while carrying weight in a backpack or weighted vest—has roots in military training. But its newest converts look far different from the Special Forces soldiers historically associated with the practice.
Women are increasingly embracing rucking as an accessible middle ground between an ordinary walk and an intimidating strength-training program. It allows participants to add resistance without mastering barbells, joining a gym or committing to a high-intensity workout.
Emily McCarthy, co-founder of GORUCK, says women are now the company’s fastest-growing cohort. Their participation reflects a broader shift in fitness: More women want to build strength, but many are looking for a moderate, social and approachable way to begin.
Strength Training Without The Gym
McCarthy describes rucking as “strength training without the gym.” A rucker places weight in a specially designed backpack—or wears a weighted vest—and then walks. Depending on the equipment, the load may rest primarily across the back and shoulders or be distributed more evenly across the torso.
The added resistance engages the legs, core, shoulders and back. It can also make an existing habit, such as walking the dog, more challenging without requiring a separate trip to a fitness facility.
That simplicity may be one reason rucking is gaining attention. It does not require a complicated routine or much instruction. Beginners can start with a relatively light load and increase it as they become more comfortable.
“You don’t have to belong to a gym,” McCarthy says. “You don’t have to lift super heavy. You can just get started where you’re at.”
Some people begin with purpose-built plates, but McCarthy has also heard from newcomers who put a bag of rice or sugar in a backpack. The point is not to carry the most weight. It is to add a manageable amount of resistance to an activity people already know how to do.
Why Rucking Appeals To Women
For years, strength training was often marketed to men through bodybuilding, powerlifting or military imagery. That positioning did not always speak to women who wanted the health and functional benefits of resistance training without adopting an extreme fitness identity.
That is changing. Women are hearing more about the value of maintaining strength as they age, yet the traditional weight room can still present a barrier for some beginners.
“We’re having all these conversations about women needing more strength training and how to get more accessible strength training to women,” McCarthy says.
Rucking offers a relatively low-friction answer. It can be done outside, alone, with friends or as part of an existing walking routine. The weight is adjustable, allowing experienced CrossFit athletes and fitness newcomers to ruck together while carrying different loads.
McCarthy leads a weekly women’s rucking group in Florida that includes new mothers, single women, mothers with older children and grandmothers. Participants typically carry loads ranging from approximately eight to 20 pounds.
The group demonstrates why rucking can be inclusive without becoming easy. Everyone can walk at the same pace, but each woman can select a weight suited to her fitness level.
A Workout That Remains Social
Many fitness activities separate people according to speed or ability. Faster runners pull away, while people lifting different weights often follow entirely different workouts. Rucking allows participants to scale difficulty while staying together.
“I could put 20 pounds, you could put 30 or 45 pounds in your backpack, and we could stay at the same pace and have a conversation,” McCarthy says.
That social element matters. For many consumers, consistency is less about finding the theoretically perfect workout and more about finding one they enjoy enough to repeat.
GORUCK’s early community grew through demanding group challenges inspired by Special Forces training. Those events combined loaded walking with team activities and physical tasks. While that military heritage remains part of the brand, McCarthy says participants are increasingly gravitating toward events centered more directly on rucking and community.
The activity has also found a natural audience among CrossFit participants. Some want additional endurance work but would rather ruck than run. Rucking lets them adjust the load while preserving a group dynamic familiar to CrossFit.
Helping Women Rediscover Their Strength
McCarthy is also building women-focused experiences, including an event called Ruck and Flow. At a previous gathering in Costa Rica, the participants ranged from advanced CrossFit athletes to women returning to exercise after having children.
The stronger athletes carried more weight, while those at an earlier point in their fitness journey carried less. The women could still hike and complete activities together.
For McCarthy, the outcome went beyond calories burned or pounds carried. Some participants said the experience gave them the confidence to travel without their families, attempt unfamiliar challenges and restart a fitness routine after time away.
“I love hearing the stories of women saying that they’ve discovered how strong they are,” she says.
This may be rucking’s most compelling proposition. It makes resistance training feel less like a specialized discipline and more like an extension of everyday movement.
The fitness industry often promotes dramatic transformations, punishing workouts and advanced metrics. Rucking offers a simpler message: Put on some weight, walk with purpose and progress gradually.
For women who want to become stronger but do not necessarily want to lift heavily or train at high intensity, that moderation is not a compromise. It may be precisely what makes the habit sustainable.