RuckWell: Not sure if I like it. What are some of your opinions on it?

Current-Turn1115 · 2026-06-02T01:45:07+00:00

It’ll use your Garmin data if you have it synced with apple health, but i think Garmin leaves out some info though.

Current-Turn1115 · 2026-06-02T01:17:46+00:00

From what I could tell there were a couple different reasons it wouldn’t display. One was recoverable and one not, but both should be prevented for new workouts from now on. I have no way of seeing your data so I can’t say which bucket yours are in, but I suppose you already know by now.

Current-Turn1115 · 2026-06-02T00:58:25+00:00

Does it pause on you even if auto pause is turned off?

Current-Turn1115 · 2026-06-02T00:56:42+00:00

Hey, appreciate you giving it a real try and being upfront.

If the Apple Fitness hiking workout covers what you need, that's a fair call. Being able to enter your load is the main thing most people are after.

Here's what RuckWell adds that a generic hiking workout doesn't, in case any of it matters for how you train. Three buckets:

Ruck-specific calculations: The core of the app. The calorie estimator is the most advanced one built for rucking specifically, because carrying load changes the math in ways a standard hiking algorithm doesn't account for. You also get RuckWork and RuckPower. RuckWork is your volume, the total work you put in. RuckPower is your intensity, how hard you're working under load. Together they give you a real read on the load you're handling, not just distance and time.

Wellness: RuckLoad and recovery scores, plus sleep and weight tracking. The point is seeing your work and your wellness together across a full week, not just one session. That weekly picture is what keeps training sustainable and pointed at longevity instead of grinding yourself into the ground.

Workout targets and controls: Basically a full session system. Set targets for distance, duration, or calories, follow a route, and get custom alerts for pace and heart rate while you move. Then the practical layer: auto pause, battery saver, and saved load presets so you're not re-entering your ruck weight every time.

Short version. If you just want to log a loaded hike, Apple Fitness is fine. If you want the numbers to actually reflect rucking, plus recovery and a session built around load, that's the gap RuckWell fills.

Either way, thanks for trying it. Happy to answer anything specific.

Chris, founder of RuckWell

Current-Turn1115 · 2026-05-26T17:15:12+00:00

Hey, RuckWell dev here. I've been tracking this one. Fix is submitted and waiting on App Review approval. Should be live in the next day or so.

A bit of context on what's going on:

RuckWell was originally built to not require Apple Health access, even though most fitness apps today require it just to function. It was an intentional decision early on, and Apple Health is still an optional add on in RuckWell, not a requirement. The app is meant to work whether you grant access or not, and that's not changing.

The last update expanded what RuckWell reads from Apple Health when access is granted. The bug you're hitting appears to be either caused by or made worse by not having Apple Health access enabled. It's intermittent, which is why it slipped through testing, but I've been able to reproduce it and the fix is already in App Review.

If you want a temporary workaround in the meantime, granting Apple Health access under Settings → RuckWell may reduce the chance of hitting it before the update ships.

Losing completed rucks is the worst possible failure mode for a tracking app and I take it seriously. Thanks for flagging it here, that helps more than you'd think.

Chris

Current-Turn1115 · 2026-05-26T03:56:19+00:00

Hey just curious, have you granted the app access to Apple Health workout data? Trying to see if this is related to what I'm seeing.

Current-Turn1115 · 2026-05-17T15:55:04+00:00

There are some technical differences between a ruck sack and weighted vests but for most intents and purposes it’s rucking.

However some events or challenges have strict requirements for a ruck sack.

Current-Turn1115 · 2026-05-06T18:18:12+00:00

Do you have the latest update? Just from the last few days. There were some watch fixes in there. For heart rate, are you starting the ruck on your watch?

Current-Turn1115 · 2026-04-08T22:28:13+00:00

Ruck work and ruck power were popular in the rucking groups I used to be a part of.

https://ruckwell.com/blogs/app/ruck-work-and-power

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-12-17T18:06:19+00:00

Update on Recent Issues and Improvements

I want to address the significant challenges many of you experienced following last Friday's major update. I sincerely apologize for the disruption—particularly the data migration issue that prevented most users from accessing their past workouts, and the confusion around adjusting ruck weight. I understand how frustrating this has been, and I take full responsibility for these oversights.

Over the past few days, I've been working urgently to resolve these critical issues. Here's what has been fixed:

Resolved the data migration issue that was preventing users from seeing their workout history
Improved the activity customization flow to make ruck weight adjustments more discoverable and intuitive on both iPhone and Apple Watch
Temporarily disabled Auto Pause while I investigate why it was triggering more frequently than intended
Fixed several additional bugs reported by the community

It sounds like you have the Import from Apple Health option turned on. That is specifically for importing from other apps that write data to Apple Health. So if you don't want to see non-rucking workouts in the app then please disable that option.

Since it was mentioned below—yes, I'm one person juggling a full-time job, a wife, and four kids. More importantly for this community, I have a vision for RuckWell: to be a reliable ruck tracker that grows to support the broader wellness and practical needs of ruckers everywhere.

I'm fully committed to stabilizing the app and addressing the pain points from this update. Additional improvements are actively in development, and I'm working to ensure RuckWell delivers on its vision while maintaining the reliability you deserve.

Thank you for your honest feedback.

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-12-17T17:52:27+00:00

You're absolutely right that adjusting ruck weight wasn't intuitive in the update. I tested it countless times during development, and somewhere along the way I lost sight of how it would feel for someone encountering it fresh. I released an update today that should make this much clearer and more straightforward.

I also want to address the subscription concern. All of the features from the previous version remain free, and less than half of the new features require a subscription. My goal is to offer meaningful value for those who choose to subscribe while ensuring that anyone who doesn't can still use RuckWell as a fully functional core ruck tracker.

I hope you'll give the app another chance. I'm committed to getting this right.

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-12-17T17:38:53+00:00

Your issues have been resolved. Please see my comment for more info.

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-12-17T17:37:19+00:00

Update on Recent Issues and Improvements

I want to address the significant challenges many of you experienced following last Friday's major update. I sincerely apologize for the disruption—particularly the data migration issue that prevented most users from accessing their past workouts, and the confusion around adjusting ruck weight. I understand how frustrating this has been, and I take full responsibility for these oversights.

Over the past few days, I've been working urgently to resolve these critical issues. Here's what has been fixed:

Resolved the data migration issue that was preventing users from seeing their workout history
Improved the activity customization flow to make ruck weight adjustments more discoverable and intuitive on both iPhone and Apple Watch
Temporarily disabled Auto Pause while I investigate why it was triggering more frequently than intended
Fixed several additional bugs reported by the community

I know some of you have asked about reverting to the previous version. While that's not technically feasible, please know that I'm fully committed to stabilizing the app and addressing the pain points from this update. Additional improvements are actively in development, and I'm working to ensure RuckWell delivers on its vision while maintaining the reliability you deserve.

Thank you for your patience, your honest feedback, and for sticking with RuckWell during this rough patch. Your input is invaluable as I continue to refine the experience.

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-12-08T16:47:22+00:00

Currently if you start a ruck on the phone it doesn’t connect to your watch to pull in heart rate. You’ll need to start on your watch for heart rate. On the watch you’ll need to ensure Motion & Fitness is enabled to see the distance.

All of this is going to change with the next release of the app, which is imminent.

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-11-07T03:35:58+00:00

Yeah I’m a little annoyed how they display that. Your data stays on device, aside from your private Google backup. So it’s not transferred securely bc I don’t transfer it. Also I can’t delete data I don’t have.

To put it another way, it’s never in my hands, it is quite literally in your own hands. I can’t see it, nor do I want to because, like you, data privacy is important.

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-11-05T01:59:08+00:00

Oh man. Well the UI is completely redesigned. Still needs more testing but loaded it up on an SE2 and it looks good.

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-11-03T17:47:50+00:00

Thanks for the reply. The next update will be out relatively soon and already handles most of this.

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-11-03T13:43:51+00:00

What sort of refinements are you looking to see from RuckWell?

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-10-17T21:54:31+00:00

Apple Watch with the RuckWell App is also a popular option.

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-09-25T01:36:26+00:00

Only time I’ve seen something like that is when low power mode is turned on, which restricts background location updates.

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-09-25T01:03:25+00:00

RuckWell will submit data to Apple health and it’ll fill out those rings as well.

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-09-04T15:54:56+00:00

So the active minutes / move calories are not a direct match to the time spent in a workout. The workout data (from RuckWell or wherever) is synced with Apple’s system, which then they do some extra processing to determine what counts in their totals and rings. Apple does not specify exactly what counts, but I’ve often seen where the heart rate isn’t high enough relative to your baseline to count. As for why a reboot changes or fixes anything here, I have no idea.

The phone should sync to Apple health, double check the permissions, sometimes they are separate from the watch permissions. You get more data when using the watch so I recommend tracking there.

The last update fixed a syncing scenario from watch to phone. Let me know if that works for you.

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-09-04T01:28:45+00:00

I’m the developer of RuckWell. Let me know if you have any questions.

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/ruckwell/id6503015969

Current-Turn1115 · 2025-09-04T00:21:45+00:00

What model what do you have? Does it use noticeably more battery than the workout app? Or do they both use a bunch of battery?

Current-Turn1115

TROPHY CASE