After breaking out with his emotionally driven folk-rock sound and viral success on songs like “Scared to Start,” rising singer-songwriter Michael Marcagi has quickly become one of music’s most talked-about new artists. But while his career is accelerating fast, Marcagi is learning that life on the road requires the same discipline and endurance as any athlete.
For Marcagi, touring life looks a lot different these days than it did growing up in Ohio. Now based in Boulder, the Midwest native says the move has completely reshaped the way he approaches health, fitness, and recovery while balancing a demanding performance schedule.
Between hiking, running, and spending more time outdoors, Colorado’s lifestyle has been a welcome adjustment.
“Coming from the Midwest, where winters are cold and gray, I’m just having a good time being outside almost every day,” Marcagi tells Muscle & Fitness. “It’s been really nice.”
Before music became his full-time career, Marcagi was a competitive golfer in college, and while touring has limited his time on the course, he’s still playing at an elite level.
“My handicap has probably gone up a tiny bit,” he says with a laugh. “But I’m probably still around scratch, which I’ll take.”
That competitive background, however, still shapes the way he prepares for performances today.
Touring Is ‘Hard on the Body’
Marcagi says one of the biggest misconceptions about touring is how physically demanding it can be.
“A lot of people don’t talk about it, but being on tour is hard on the body,” he explains. “Especially for me, I have to sing every night. You have to find ways to take care of your voice, whether that’s what you eat or how much sleep you’re getting.”
Marcagi admits it can be easy for artists to fall into unhealthy routines while traveling. Especially when your “workday” doesn’t really begin until the afternoon and adrenaline keeps you awake long after a show ends.
“It’s very easy to fall into the ‘2 a.m. Uber Eats’ cycle,” he says. “Your whole schedule gets thrown off because your day starts later than most people’s.”
Instead, the singer has become increasingly intentional about creating structure while on the road. That includes being selective about backstage catering requests, prioritizing real meals over snack food, and trying not to let his sleep schedule completely spiral while touring.
“There’s only so many nights in a row you can eat potato chips,” he jokes.
The physical preparation also extends to protecting his voice, something he says has become a major priority over the last year and a half. Marcagi revealed he no longer drinks while touring and instead focuses on routines that help him stay consistent from show to show.
“I just try to eat normal meals and take care of myself,” he says. “Once you start taking care of your voice like that, the anxiety of the show actually goes down.”
That preparation has helped him mentally settle into performing night after night, especially as his audiences continue growing.
“You realize you’re never going to be perfect on stage,” Marcagi says. “Mistakes happen, and sometimes those become the most memorable parts of a show.”
Full Swing with a Healthy Community
Long before life as an artist, Michael Marcagi was competing on the golf course for the University of Cincinnati, where he played collegiate golf before ultimately pursuing music full-time.
Even now, with a rapidly growing touring schedule, the sport remains a major part of his lifestyle. The singer is already eyeing plenty of future rounds during his upcoming tour with Noah Kahan, who Marcagi says has recently become obsessed with the sport himself.
“He texted me already and was like, ‘We need to play golf every day on tour,’” Marcagi says.
Marcagi has also spent time golfing with Wesley Schultz of The Lumineers, describing the rounds as laid-back and easygoing, exactly the kind of environment he enjoys now that golf is no longer tied to competition.
“He’s super mellow, and we always have a really good time out there,” Marcagi says.
When asked to build his dream golf foursome, Marcagi didn’t hesitate. Alongside Kahan and Schultz, he says professional golfer Jason Day would complete the group.
“I’ve always wanted to play with Jason Day,” he says. “I feel like he’d have some incredible tour stories.”
These days, golf represents something much different for Marcagi than it once did. What used to be an intensely individual sport has become more about connection, conversation, and community.
“I’m definitely more extroverted,” he says. “It’s easier to motivate yourself and enjoy it more when you’ve got people around you.”
Why Running Became Essential for His Mental Health
While golf remains a passion, running has quietly become Michael Marcagi’s biggest wellness outlet on tour, something he says was heavily inspired by his girlfriend, Gabbi Jennings, who is a professional runner. What initially started as a way to stay active quickly evolved into an important mental reset during the chaos of touring life.
During a six-week European run earlier this year, Marcagi and his tour manager built a consistent morning routine centered around getting outside before the day became consumed by venues, buses, and performance prep.
“We’d try to run three to five miles every day,” he says. “When you’re touring, you’re either on a bus, in a green room, or on stage. You’re not always hanging out in the most beautiful indoor places in the world.”
For Marcagi, the runs became less about training and more about creating balance. Touring can often leave artists isolated indoors for hours at a time, operating on irregular schedules while carrying the mental pressure of nightly performances. The morning runs helped create structure in a lifestyle that rarely feels predictable.
He admits there was a period when the anxiety surrounding a performance would consume his entire day.
“I used to spend the whole day thinking about the show,” he says. “The entire day felt like work because I was solely focused on performing later that night.”
Now, he approaches touring differently.
“If I can get out and run, grab lunch, and clear my head a little bit, I feel way better mentally and physically,” Marcagi explains. “It helps me compartmentalize things instead of letting the show take over every thought all day.”
The routine has also helped him manage the emotional swings that naturally come with performing in front of thousands of people night after night. Marcagi says the adrenaline spike before walking on stage is real, and the crash afterward can be just as intense.
“You walk off stage completely amped up,” he explains. “Your body doesn’t really know how to process that adrenaline.”
Instead of staying overstimulated after shows, Marcagi and his crew have developed smaller ways to decompress and return to normalcy once the performance ends.
“Afterward, we’ll play video games, watch a movie, or just do something to calm ourselves back down,” he says. “You have to find ways to bring yourself back down to earth because you’re going to wake up and do it all over again the next day.”
That balance between movement, routine, and recovery has become one of the biggest reasons Marcagi feels more grounded on tour now than he did earlier in his career.
“It gives me a better mental space,” he says. “I feel like I have more energy and I’m not so one-track minded all day.”
Red Rocks Is Still the Dream
After performing at stadiums, including his hometown NFL venue for the Cincinnati Bengals, Marcagi says one bucket-list venue still stands above the rest: Red Rocks Amphitheatre.
“Now that I’m living in Colorado, getting to play Red Rocks would be incredible,” he says. “That’s definitely the dream venue.”
Until then, Marcagi continues balancing touring life with hiking trips, road adventures, and outdoor recovery whenever possible. Places like Rocky Mountain National Park and the Grand Teton National Park remain high on his list.
But beyond the music, fitness, or travel, Marcagi says his motivation always comes back to the fans showing up night after night.
“Tickets are expensive. People get babysitters. People have work the next day,” he says. “I never take for granted that people are putting effort into coming to a show.”
That mindset, he says, is what keeps him disciplined.
“I just want people to leave feeling like it was worth their time.”