What do you get when you combine executive networking, personal growth, fitness and fresh air? For a growing group of Arizona business leaders, the answer is Rise & Ruck Phoenix — a monthly gathering that’s redefining what it means to connect with purpose.

The concept is simple but powerful: A one-hour walk with a weighted backpack through scenic desert trails, followed by coffee, snacks and authentic conversation. But behind the simplicity lies something much more meaningful.

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Rise & Ruck Phoenix was born in 2023 when a Valley entrepreneur Casey Strunk of Strunk Insurance Group was inspired Michael Easter’s book, “The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort To Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self.” Curious about Easter’s rucking adventures in Alaska, he picked up the book, read it and quickly felt a spark.

“I was already on a bit of a fitness journey,” Strunk explains. “I met a guy at a conference who owned a CrossFit gym in Cincinnati. He rucked with friends and clients once a month. I told him, ‘I’m stealing that,’ and he said, ‘Go for it.’”

What began as a personal experiment has grown into a community of driven individuals who come together not for sales pitches or business cards, but for genuine connection and personal accountability. 

“I was sick of lunches, sick of happy hours and I don’t do dinners,” Strunk says with a laugh. “But I still wanted to build relationships with people I care about — clients, friends, partners, new faces. Rise & Ruck gave me that space.”

Each Rise & Ruck takes place one Friday morning each month on low-elevation desert trails in Metro Phoenix. Participants carry 30–45 pounds — or not. It’s not a race. They walk and talk. Afterwards, there’s hot coffee and fruit waiting, with a table set up for continued conversation and community.

While business is not the main objective, it’s naturally part of the mix.

“There have been some powerful moments,” Strunk shares. “I know of investments that were made. There are guys who’ve lost weights, gotten sober or made major life changes — just because they found support in this group.”

The success of Rise & Ruck Phoenix, he says, is not about metrics. 

“There’s no real end goal,” Strunk says. “We might have 15 or 20 guys out. Some months, I get five new messages from people who saw the photos and want in. As long as we keep attracting good people with good energy, I’m happy.”

That authenticity is what makes Rise & Ruck special. There’s no charge to attend, no agenda, no pitch deck. Just movement, conversation and connection.

“It’s deepened so many relationships,” Strunk says. “You don’t always get to see people during the year — but if someone came to 10 or 12 rucks, that’s more time than you get with most friends.”

In a fast-paced, digital world, Rise & Ruck is a return to something timeless: Real people, real talk, one step at a time. And just in time for New Year’s resolutions, that might be the best business decision of all.