Rucking in Airports: A Guide

Rucking in airports during layovers and waits is a great way to sneak in exercise. But people often do it wrong. Here’s how to do it better.

One idiot. One ruck. Many miles rucked across many airport terminals.

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I’ve been traveling a lot for this book tour. I’m usually in two to four different airports a week and will be until about mid-December.

Long travel and time zone changes make getting my regular amount of physical activity a challenge. I usually exercise five days a week and go on walks or rucks throughout the day to think and decompress.

So—and you’ll know this if you follow me on Instagram—I’ve been sneaking exercise in at airports.

I ruck through the terminals as I wait for flights.

This project is called 2% because of a study that discovered only 2 percent of people take the stairs when there’s an escalator available.

This figure isn’t really about the stairs. It’s a metaphor for living—it’s about becoming one of the rare breed of humans who choses the slightly harder path that delivers giant dividends over the long term.

Rucking around an airport instead of sitting at the gate is a great way to be a 2-Percenter. It will give you big health returns over time.

For example, a Mayo Clinic study found that this sort of every day, non-workout activity can burn an extra 800 calories across a day. That’s roughly equivalent to an 8-mile run.

You, too, should sneak in some rucking next time you’re waiting on a plane.

After rucking many miles across terminals around the world, I’ve found a few tricks that’ll help you do it better.

Let’s dive into five things you must do to optimize airport rucking.