At 44 years old, after five years away from the game, Philip Rivers came back to football. Not for money. Not for headlines. Not to prove Twitter wrong.
He came back because it felt right. Because there was still something in him that wanted to compete. And because, as he put it, the safe option was to go home. The other option was to go for it and see what happens.
That alone would be a cool story. But what Rivers said about why he did it is what really matters for dads.
(AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)
“Coach Wasn’t Scared”
Rivers talked openly about doubt. About fear. About the temptation to choose the guaranteed safe bet. To stay home. To not risk embarrassment or failure. He also talked about his sons. And his players. He wanted them to be able to say, “Coach wasn’t scared.”
That line hits harder than any motivational quote on Instagram. Because kids are not listening to what we say nearly as much as they are watching what we do.
The Example Is the Point
Rivers did not come back because he thought it would be easy. He came back knowing there was real doubt. Knowing there was a chance it would not work out. That is the part worth paying attention to.
Our kids are going to face uncertainty. They are going to doubt themselves. They are going to have moments where the safe choice is to quit, to stay comfortable, or to avoid the risk altogether.
What they need is not a speech about courage. They need to have seen it.
They need a reference point that says, “I watched my dad go for it when it would have been easier not to.”
Age Is a Lazy Excuse
One of the quiet lessons in this story is that age is rarely the real reason we stop trying. Comfort is. At 44, Rivers could have said, “That chapter is closed.” No one would have blamed him. He had already done enough.
But fulfillment does not care about résumés. There is no finish line where effort is no longer required.
The question is not “Am I too old?” The question is “Am I still willing?” That applies to fitness. Careers. Relationships. Parenting. Personal goals we keep pushing off for “someday.” Someday is not guaranteed. Effort is optional.
Safe Is Not the Same as Right
Rivers said the guaranteed safe bet was to go home.
That is true in a lot of life. It is safe to stay in a job you hate. It is safe to stop training. It is safe to never start the thing you keep thinking about. Safe keeps you protected. It does not make you proud. Going for it does not guarantee success. It guarantees something better. Self-respect.
And kids can feel that difference.
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What Our Kids Actually Learn
Our kids will not remember most of what we tell them.
They will remember:
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Whether we took chances
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Whether we handled doubt honestly
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Whether we avoided hard things or leaned into them
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Whether we chose comfort or courage when it mattered
They are building their own internal rulebook by watching us. Philip Rivers did not just return to football. He handed his kids a living example of how to face uncertainty.
The Real Takeaway
This is not about football. It is about what kind of example you want to be when no one is forcing you either way. You can go home. Or you can see what happens. That choice shows up over and over again in small, quiet ways. And every time you make it, someone younger is watching.
If you’ve ever seen a photo that made you want to quit your job, buy a Sprinter, and chase cold waves until your eyelashes freeze, chances are Chris Burkard took it. The world-famous photographer and filmmaker from Pismo Beach has turned remote landscapes into a global calling card. But behind the wild adventures is a dad with two boys who is still figuring out the playbook like the rest of us.
And that is exactly why this Q&A hits.
Who Is Chris Burkard (Beyond the Screensavers)
Burkard is the guy brands call when they need a shot of someone doing something incredible in a place most of us only see on postcards. His images show the edges of the world, but his life at home is surprisingly grounded. He is a surfer, a husband, and a dad trying to raise two boys with wonder instead of worry.
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The Q&A
When you ask Chris Burkard about the hardest part of parenting, he barely pauses. This is a man who has stood on icebergs and photographed storms, yet fatherhood still brought him to his knees in a way the Arctic never could. He told us the real challenge was accepting that he had no idea what he was doing and learning, slowly, that the early years he once feared were unappreciated were actually the moments that mattered most.
Chris grew up without a father, so he had no blueprint to follow. Every chapter he is writing now, he is writing for the first time. And the thing he learned early is this: showing up is the job.
Ask him about the rewards and his shoulders drop a little, the way people soften when they talk about the good stuff. For Chris, the payoff is watching his boys find joy. Not achievements or polished milestones.
Pure, unfiltered joy. Laughing together. Losing themselves in awe, even when the house feels chaotic. Coming from a guy who has chased awe across continents, it says something that the best version of it still happens in his living room.
If he could go back and tell his younger self something, it would be this: your kids might become your best friends.
It is a truth no one tells you when you’re knee deep in diapers, but it hits like a warm wave once you’re there.
One piece of advice stuck with him through the years. Someone once told him that being a dad is not an old man’s job. He carries that line like a compass. You don’t wait for the perfect moment, the perfect bank account, or the perfect career arc. You learn to parent in the mess. And sometimes the mess ends up being beautiful.
A typical day in the Burkard house reads exactly how you hope it might. He drops off his oldest son at school, then sneaks in an hour-long surf before the emails and projects take over. His wife handles the younger one’s school run. Midday is work. Afternoon folds into pickup, food, sports, more food, and the nightly wind-down.
For all the airports and expeditions, the rhythm at home is familiar to every dad. It is proof that even the world’s most adventurous photographer still spends half his life in the same cycle the rest of us do.
Balancing work, life, and family for Chris starts with a simple practice: knowing what he needs each day to show up well. Some days that means sleeping in. Other days it is a three-hour bike ride. The point, he says, is to advocate for your needs and communicate clearly with your partner. Burnout is real, and the best way to fight it is honesty.
His reset button is easy to imagine. The ocean. Even a few minutes in the water recalibrates him. It reminds him what matters.
The one non-negotiable in his dad life is time with his kids doing something that costs nothing. Teaching them how to have fun in nature. Passing down the kind of joy you cannot buy.
And when he is solo on the road, he laughs at himself a little. He admits he spends way too much on boujee snacks and great coffee. Every dad has a weakness. His just happens to taste better.
THE TAKEAWAY
Chris Burkard travels farther than most of us ever will, but his parenting philosophy is simple. Show up. Keep wonder alive. Invest in the moments that cost nothing and matter most. The world will always pull, but the real adventure is at home. Follow Chris here.
The dads who stay in shape are not more fired up. They are just better at starting. They train in cold garages. They run in bad weather. They walk when it would be easier to sit. Not because they love it, but because they made a deal with themselves a long time ago. Conditions do not decide. They do.
Why Training Anyway Matters for Dads
How to Train When Everything Says Do Not
- Motivation Is Not the Problem
Most guys think they have a motivation problem. They do not. They have a starting problem. Motivation shows up after you begin, not before. It is a byproduct of action, not the fuel for it. Waiting to feel ready is like waiting for traffic to clear before merging. It never happens.
The people who stay in shape are not more disciplined by nature. They are just better at starting when conditions are bad.
- Bad Conditions Are the Point
Cold runs, hot garages, rain-soaked walks, dark mornings. These are not obstacles. They are the training.
Anyone can move when it is seventy-two degrees and life is calm. But when the elements push back, you are no longer just training your body. You are training your standards. You are teaching yourself that you do not need perfect conditions to keep your word.
That lesson carries far beyond fitness.
- Lower the Bar Until You Step Over It
When everything says do not, lower the bar until you cannot talk yourself out of it. Tell yourself you are just showing up for ten minutes. No pressure, no expectations, no heroics. Ten minutes slips past resistance. And once you are moving, the body wakes up, the mood shifts, and momentum often takes over. Even if ten minutes is all you do, you still win. Consistency beats intensity every time.
- Remove Friction Before It Shows Up
Most missed workouts are lost hours earlier. You make it easier to quit when your gear is buried, your plan is complicated, or your environment is uncomfortable. Good layers matter. Gloves matter. Shoes by the door matter. A hoodie you actually like matters more than you think. Comfort is not weakness. It is compliance. When friction is low, action is automatic.
- Make the Decision Once
If you decide every day whether to train, you will eventually decide not to. Same time, same place, same general plan. This is not about rigidity. It is about eliminating debate. Training should feel boring in the best way.
- Keep the Work Simple
Bad weather kills complexity. You do not need variety, you need basics. Push, pull, carry, walk, run. Simple movements survive tired minds and ugly conditions. Save the fancy stuff for good days. Earn consistency on the bad ones.
- Remember the After
No one finishes a workout and wishes they had not done it. The relief, the calm, the quiet pride are always there. Learn to trust the after more than the mood before.
- This Is Bigger Than Fitness
This is not about personal records or aesthetics. It is about proving something to yourself. That conditions do not dictate your behavior, that excuses do not get to vote, and that you can keep promises even when it would be easier not to. That confidence shows up everywhere else long before it shows up in the mirror.
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If you know country music, you know Midland. The retro-leaning, tequila-toting, Grammy-nominated trio built their whole brand on style, swagger, and storytelling. And behind the bass, and behind the camera for many of their videos, is today’s RAD Dad: Cam Duddy.
Cam lives in that rare overlap where creative careers, family life, and school schedules all collide. One minute he’s on stage or directing a shoot. The next he’s at the bus stop. It’s a very specific kind of juggling act, and he makes it work without pretending it’s glamorous.
Parenting’s Hardest Part
Staying consistent with the school routine. This is the universal dad battle. The spelling lists, the reading logs, the forms that magically regenerate every week. Even rockstars have to track homework.
Parenting’s Best Part
Watching his kids become their own people. No crafting them into performers, no forcing the family business. Just observing two young humans figure out who they are.
What He Wishes He Knew Before Fatherhood
That it goes fast. The kind of fast where ages 5 and 9 arrive before you figured out where the toddler years went.
Dad Advice That Stuck
Try everything. Give kids as many experiences as possible. Not to manufacture prodigies, but to help them build range, confidence, and curiosity.
A Day in the Duddy Household
- Wake up
- Coffee
- School drop-off
- Work
- Bus stop pickup
- Dinner
- Focus on the kids until they’re down for the night
This is the blueprint. Routine as an anchor, no matter how unpredictable the entertainment world gets.
How He Handles the Pile-Up
He schedules his days. Not in a productivity-guru way. More in a “this is how things don’t fall apart” way.
His Reset Button
Sauna time. Sweat, quiet, heat. A simple ritual for recalibrating when life gets loud.
His Non-Negotiable
Dinner is family time. Everyone present, even if dinner looks like a half-chopped rotisserie chicken and baby carrots.
When He Finally Gets Time Alone
He reads. And he does not want to be interrupted. Every dad deserves a sanctified hobby.
Where to Find Him
Dad Day Takeaway
Cam proves that being a great dad isn’t about slowing life down. It’s about keeping the parts that matter steady, even when the rest of your world is moving at tour speed. Family time, real presence, shared meals, repeat. That is the craft.
If you are a dad, you know the feeling. Life gets loud. Work deadlines. Kid schedules. A garage that looks like a Home Depot had a meltdown. Most of us are not short on things to do. We are short on intention.
Which is why Jesse Itzler hits so hard.
He is an entrepreneur, ultra endurance athlete, co founder of Marquis Jet, early partner at Zico Coconut Water, owner of the Atlanta Hawks, bestselling author, and creator of the famous Big Ass Calendar (worth a look if you have never seen it: ). He also happens to be a guy who built a big life while staying highly present as a husband and father.
His recent video titled If you want 2026 to be the best year of your life is basically Jesse handing you his entire operating system. It is simple, practical, and built to snap you out of autopilot.
Below is our hot take on it: useful, and written for dads who want a year they can actually remember living.
Why This Video Matters for Dads
Dads drift. It happens slowly. School pickups, work sprints, coaching soccer, a weekend Costco run. You look up and the whole year evaporated.
Jesse’s system stops the drift. It forces you to pause, reflect, clean house, and design a year instead of reacting to one.
This is not a vision board. It is a blueprint.
THE BIG IDEA: Play 2026 on Offense
Jesse’s philosophy:
If you do not plan the year, the year will plan itself. And you probably will not like the result.
Most dads live on defense. We respond to whatever hits our inbox, our calendar, or our kitchen table. Jesse flips it. He wants you attacking life, not absorbing it.
His method has three parts:
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Close out the year with intention.
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Identify what needs fixing.
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Schedule the good stuff first.
1. Close Out 2025 Like a Pro
Before you build 2026, Jesse wants you to clear the runway. Think of this as the dad version of cleaning the garage before starting a big project.
Do a What Worked and What Did Not Audit
Two columns. Be honest. What actually moved your life forward. What drained you. What you tolerated instead of solved.
Declutter Everything
Physical clutter. Digital clutter. Emotional clutter.
Clean the closet. Empty the junk drawer. Delete files you know you will never use. A clear environment creates momentum. A messy one steals it.
Handwritten Thank You Letters
This is Jesse’s superpower. He writes thank you letters to people who impacted his year.
It is old school. It is rare. And it builds real connection.
More important for dads. Your kids see you modeling gratitude and relationship building. That lines up perfectly with our Dad Day principle of creating a life worth copying.
Write five to ten letters. Keep them real and specific.
2. Run Your Life Through the Blender
Jesse’s Life Blender exercise is simple and brutally clarifying.
Rate the major areas of your life from one to ten.
- Health
- Marriage
- Parenting
- Fun
- Career
- Finances
- Community
- Personal Growth
Pick the two or three categories that need the most attention. Not everything should be a priority. Most dads score lowest on fun, health, marriage time, and personal adventure.
That is the signal. Those are your 2026 levers.
3. Build Your Year With Jesse’s Offense Trifecta
Here is where the magic happens. Jesse organizes his entire year using three tools that create momentum instead of waiting for it.
A. Mogis
These are your year defining accomplishments. The big wins you will remember years from now.
Examples:
- Run a half marathon
- Take a one on one trip with your kid
- Start guitar lessons
- Launch a side business
- Repair a relationship
- Complete a 75 day challenge
Pick two to four. No more.
B. Kevin’s Rule
Every sixty days you schedule one new experience. Something you have never done before.
This is the antidote to the dad rut.
Ideas
-Go to a jujitsu class
-Go to a concert with your teenager
-Take a cooking class
-Camp in the backyard with your kid
-Visit a city you have never seen
Newness keeps you awake. It also shows your kids that adulthood is not a slow fade into routine.
C. One Winning Habit Per Quarter
Not ten habits. One habit every ninety days.
Examples
Q1: 10,000 steps per day
Q2: Phone free bedroom
Q3: Weekly date night
Q4: Strength training
Stack four habits and you are a completely different dad by next December.
4. Use the Big Ass Calendar to Schedule the Fun First
This is Jesse’s signature move.
Most dads plan the year like this:
- Work
- Kids’ activities
- Random obligations
- Maybe a little time for yourself if anything is left
Jesse plans it like this:
- Fun
- Mogis
- Adventures
- Family experiences
- Then work fills in the remaining space
It is simple. If you do not aggressively schedule the life you want, someone else will.
That is why his Big Ass Calendar is so effective. You can see the entire year at a glance. You cannot hide from blank space.
Color code it
-Blue for family adventures
-Red for personal Mogis
-Green for health habits
-Yellow for work
-Black for personal reset days
When you schedule the meaningful stuff first, life gets better instantly.
The Takeaway: Build a Year Your Kids Will Remember You Living
This system is not about productivity. It is about presence.
Your kids do not need a perfect dad. They need a dad who is awake. A dad who is intentional. A dad who takes action. A dad who builds a life worth copying. (Our past Dad Day newsletters echo this exactly. Kids watch the pattern. Not the perfection. )
Jesse’s method is your blueprint.
- Audit the past.
- Plan the future.
- Put the fun on the calendar early.
- Live on offense.
Your kids are watching. Give them something worth imitating.
If you’re a dad trying to stay in shape, you know the rhythm. You’re not chasing elite-athlete status. You’re chasing the ability to carry your kid and a car seat at the same time without pulling something. You’re squeezing in workouts between meetings. You’re trying to build a future where your joints still work and you don’t feel like a wreck every Monday.
That is the spirit of the Dad Day training routine. A few strength sessions each week. Some mobility. A little yoga. Maybe a HIIT class that immediately makes you regret saying yes.
So when Gnarly Nutrition sent us a stack of their essentials, we put them into our very official, extremely scientific Dad Day testing loop:
Does this make training simpler, and does it help us feel like better versions of ourselves?
Here’s what we learned.
Baseline Omega-3: The Habit We Actually Stuck To
Most of us on the team fall into the same category with fish oil. We know we should take it, and then two days later we forget it exists. Gnarly’s Omega-3 stood out because it was simple, clean tasting, and didn’t add any mental friction.
It paired well with heavier training days and mornings after broken sleep. If you’re trying to build one small, reliable daily habit, this one fades into your routine in the best way.
Vegan Protein (Golden Milk): The Unexpected Favorite
None of us expected this to be the winner. Some of us aren’t even golden milk people. But this one hits different. Smooth, warm, not too sweet, and honestly kind of comforting. It became an easy nighttime recovery drink, a lighter option on off-days, and a secret weapon in overnight oats. This was the one several of us said we’d buy again without hesitation.
Grass-Fed Whey (Chocolate): The Classic That Does Its Job
You want whey to be simple. No sludge. No weird aftertaste. No “I immediately regret drinking this” aftermath. Gnarly’s grass-fed whey checked the boxes. Perfect post-lift, clutch on mornings when breakfast was optimistic thinking, and just easy to mix and move on with your day.
If you’re trying to increase protein without overthinking it, this one fits into real life effortlessly.
Electrolyte Powder: The Sleeper Hit of the Week
Here’s the quiet MVP. Gnarly’s electrolytes are light, refreshing, and not syrupy like most sports drinks. They helped after cardio, during sauna sessions, in the mid-afternoon slump, and on those mornings where dehydration hits harder than your toddler jumping on your stomach at 6 a.m.
This one made several of us feel noticeably better fast, which is a rare win.
The Real Test: How It Works as a System
The individual products worked well, but the real strength showed up when they were used together.
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Omega-3 for recovery
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Whey on strength days
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Vegan Protein on lighter or evening training
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Electrolytes for hydration and energy regulation
No supplement replaces sleep, whole food, or actually stretching, but this lineup helped smooth out the peaks and valleys of a dad’s weekly routine. More consistency. Less guesswork. Less feeling wrecked.
So Is Gnarly Worth It for Dads?
Short answer: yes.
What we liked most is that Gnarly isn’t trying to sell you a fantasy. Their stuff is clean, uncomplicated, and built for people who want to stay healthy without adding extra chaos to their day. That feels aligned with what most dads actually want: steady progress, stronger bodies, and habits that don’t fall apart the moment life gets busy.
If you want a simple upgrade to your current routine without becoming the guy who travels with a pill organizer the size of a suitcase, this lineup is a great place to start.
We’ve been talking about this for a while. Guys Being Dads is live.
This podcast is about fatherhood, life, and everything that comes with it. No experts. No scripts. No pretending we have it all figured out. Just real conversations between dads who are in it right now.
Some episodes are just two guys talking through parenting, marriage, work, and friendships. Other episodes bring in fellow dads to share stories and lessons they’ve picked up along the way.
That’s it. That’s the show.
Now Streaming on Spotify and Apple Podcasts
You can listen to Guys Being Dads now on:
Whether you’re driving to work, folding laundry, or hiding in the garage for ten minutes of quiet, this podcast is meant to feel like a conversation you’d actually want to be part of.
Why We Started It
Fatherhood can feel isolating. Most of what’s out there either feels preachy or way too polished. So we started Guys Being Dads to talk honestly about what it’s really like. The good. The hard. The in-between.
From Dad Day, For Dads
Guys Being Dads is presented by Dad Day, a newsletter and community built by dads, for dads. If you’re figuring it out as you go, you’re in the right place.
Go listen. Subscribe. And come hang out with us.
Donald Scott is the kind of dad who makes you sit up a little straighter. A world-class triple jumper from Ft. Lauderdale. A coach. A trainer. A guy who built a career on speed, grit, and gravity-defying hops, yet says fatherhood is the real gold medal event.
If you follow track and field, you have watched him fly. If you follow fatherhood, you will want to hear him talk. Scott’s journey is not the polished, perfect dad story. It is the real kind. The kind built on long-distance parenting, purpose, and a six-year-old girl who changed everything.
Below is his story, crafted for our RAD DAD series. We highlight men who build a life worth copying.
The Hardest Part: Loving From a Distance
Donald does not sugarcoat it.
“Parenting from a distance was the hardest part.”
For years, he lived states away from his daughter. Flights, calls, and constant wondering if he was doing this parenting thing right. That question haunts a lot of dads, especially the ones who care the most.
But the second they are together?
“Everything clicks. I enter dad mode.”
Presence over perfection. It is the Dad Day way.
The Reward: Watching Her Grow Up Close Again
After three years away, Donald moved back.
You can feel the relief in his voice. School mornings. Homework. Lunch dates. Practice runs. Bedtime stories. The whole beautiful grind.
“The most rewarding part has been watching her development. Being back is so fulfilling.”
In the end, fatherhood is not about doing everything. It is about being there.
What He Wishes He Knew Before Becoming a Dad
This one hits hard, especially knowing Donald grew up without parents present.
“I wish somebody would have told me the kind of love that comes with a child. It is deeper than anything I can explain.”
He did not have the model. So he became one.
The Best Advice He Ever Got
“Do not be so quick to grow your child up. Allow them to be a child.”
Simple. True. A truth we repeat often: kids need space to be kids. They need patience, not perfection.
A Typical Dad Day for Donald Scott
Nothing fancy. Nothing curated. Just real dad life.
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Breakfast
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Dog out
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School drop-off
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Donald trains like the elite athlete he is
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Pickup
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Lunch
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Homework
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Dog time, play time, or something fun
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Sports practice now that she is getting started
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Dinner
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Shower
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A book
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Bedtime
It is the rhythm of a dad who shows up everywhere that matters.
How He Handles the Juggle
His answer says everything:
“My daughter goes wherever I go.”
-Track practice
-Physical therapy
-Coaching
-Meets
-Work
-Life chaos
She is not an obligation. She is part of the mission.
His Grounding Practice
Donald keeps one simple mantra on repeat.
“Remember your purpose.”
Purpose does not erase stress. Purpose organizes it.
His Non-Negotiable
“When my daughter needs me, whatever it may be, I am there.”
Family first is not an idea for him. It is a lifestyle.
When He Finally Has a Minute to Himself
He decompresses with simple joys.
-DJing
-Bowling
-A bar with good music
-Quiet time alone
A reminder that dads need hobbies too. Recharge equals better fatherhood.
Where to Follow Him
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IG and Twitter: @donaldscott_ll
Rad Dad Takeaway
Donald Scott reminds us that fatherhood is not about flawless execution. It is about fierce love, intentional presence, and rewriting the script you were handed.
He did not grow up with parents. His daughter is growing up with a great one.
Weighted vests have been creeping into more of my workouts lately. Morning runs. Garage circuits. Even quick backyard laps with the kids. It is an easy way to crank up the intensity without adding more time, which is a win for any dad trying to fit fitness into real life.
But here’s the thing. I didn’t want to spend $140 on a top-tier weighted vest before I even knew if I would stick with it. I just needed something simple to get the rhythm down. Something that would let me test the waters before committing to a legit Ruck (we see you GoRuck).
That is what led me to the Cross101 20lb Weighted Vest. Current price: about $36. And honestly, it surprised me.
First Impressions
The vest showed up fast, and the setup took seconds. No weird adjustments. No over-engineered buckles. Just a straightforward vest that fits well, feels stable, and does exactly what it is supposed to do.
The weight is fixed, which makes it ideal for anyone who just wants a grab-and-go vest for runs or quick conditioning sessions.
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How It Performs
For a budget piece of gear, it checks every box:
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Comfortable enough for shorter runs and metcons.
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Doesn’t bounce more than expected.
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Sturdy stitching that feels like it will last.
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No hot spots or rubbing that makes you want to toss it mid-workout.
If you are starting out with weighted training, twenty pounds is a sweet spot. Enough resistance to make basic movements harder, but not something that wrecks your body on day one.
The Best Part
There is really nothing bad to say about it. At thirty-six bucks, the Cross101 vest delivers ridiculous value. It is the perfect starter vest for dads who want to build some extra grit into their workouts without committing to the higher-end stuff right away.
When you are ready to level up and spend more, go for it. But if you want something that lets you start today, this is the move.
Who This Vest Is For
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Dads getting into weighted vest training.
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Runners who want a simple way to increase load.
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Anyone building a garage gym on a budget.
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Beginners who do not want to overthink it.
Final Takeaway
If you are looking for the most cost-effective way to add a weighted vest to your routine, the Cross101 20lb vest is a no-brainer. It is simple, comfortable, and crazy affordable. For dads building momentum in their fitness, this vest is the perfect first step.
If you want more dad-tested gear reviews, sign up for Dad Day and follow along as we build stronger dads in real life.
We came across this video on IG the other day. Two guys talking about what actually turns boys into men and men into stronger men. Not motivational fluff, not chest-thumping. Real stuff. The stuff you feel in your gut.
Scott Galloway, who talks like your brutally honest uncle who happens to teach at NYU. Chris Williamson, the ex-club promoter turned philosopher-podcaster who has made self-development cool without making it cringe.
Different lanes. Same take. Men grow through risk. The right kinds. The kinds we avoid as adults because life gets comfortable.
And as dads, this hit a nerve. Our kids are watching how we deal with risk. Not the big dramatic stuff. The daily stuff.
Watch the Video
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Why This Conversation Matters for Dads
Somewhere between your first paycheck and your first kid, life gets padded. You stop doing things that scare you a little. You play for safe decisions, safe routines, safe circles. Before you know it, you are living the same year on repeat.
Galloway and Williamson basically say: that is how men shrink.
The fix is simple. Put yourself in places that stretch you. Not crazy risk. Just uncomfortable growth.
And your kids notice. More than you think.
The Big Idea
Galloway kicks things off with a strong hit. Young men should intentionally walk into rooms where they feel outmatched. Better schools. Better jobs. Better people. Go where you are slightly unqualified and grow into the version of you who belongs there.
Williamson adds that you really are the average of the five people closest to you. Not just your friends but also the voices you let into your earbuds.
For dads, this is a quiet reminder. Kids copy what they see. If you only choose safe rooms, they will too.
The Process: The Risks That Build Men
These are the hits from the convo. Think of them as reps you can actually do.
1. Get into rooms where you feel behind
Not because you like feeling behind. Because it forces you to level up.
2. Choose high-character friends
Not rich guys. Not impressive guys. Men you genuinely admire. The kind who make you want to be better.
3. Be the person who lifts others
There is a study in the video. Turns out high school popularity was about who made others feel good, not who had the best jawline or fastest 40. Appreciation is a superpower.
4. Train confidence like a skill
Compliments. Conversations. Taking small chances. Williamson calls it evidence. Confidence comes from doing the thing a little before you feel ready.
The Sauce
A few things the video hints at, even if it does not say them outright:
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Initiate instead of waiting for permission
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Surround yourself with men who sharpen you
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Use podcasts, books, mentors as your “five friends”
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Treat relationships like training partners
These are small, repeatable acts. They build character the same way steady workouts build strength.
The Takeaway
Risk is not a one-time act. It is a muscle. It grows from small, daily decisions. Every time you choose the harder conversation, the scarier opportunity, the uncomfortable room, you build a little more confidence.
Your kids do not need you to climb Everest. They need to see you stretch. They need to see you try. They need to see you get uncomfortable on purpose.
That is how men grow. And that is how dads raise kids who are not afraid of life. Be the kind of man who keeps walking toward the hard things. Not to show off. To grow. Your kids will feel that energy. They will copy it. And that might be the most important thing you pass down.