Life on the Road – Trucking News Blog

The weather has warmed up and the ice has melted, the excuses keeping you sitting inside the truck have come to an end. There are so many reasons to get out and walk around and you’ve heard them all before, but a little reminder that you will feel better if you get out and walk. Don’t call it exercise if you really don’t want to.

There are several health challenges going on, I’ve looked at  few and have taken what would be best for truckers. Full Disclosure: I’m not an exercise expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I am going to be out there getting off my butt and trying to lose the ginormous weight I’ve gained this winter.

Walk

Park in the back row instead of the fuel island to walk to the truck stop. You’re not in that big of a hurry and you’ll feel better and more refreshed.

Water

Drink only water for one week. If you go one week, go for another week. One coffee if you really need it. Stay away from juice and sodas with corn syrup. Drinking water will help flush out toxins. Caffeine and corn syrup are so bad for us on so many levels. Not only the calories but corn syrup is processed by the liver where real sugar is processed differently by your body and has been linked to several major health problems.

Eat Less

Drink a glass of water before eating, it helps many people feel fuller sooner. Make an effort to eat less. Cut your plate in half and save it for later. Eating small amounts more often is better for your metabolism. Eat slower, take a book and take your time while you eat. You need to pay attention to your body and stop eating when  you’re not hungry, not when you’re full, if you can’t do that, at least stop eating when you feel full.

Take a walk around the entire truck stop before going in to eat. Take an MP3 player and listen to music, a podcast or an audiobook while you walk. It makes a big difference if you’re thinking on something else besides walking.

Only snack on nuts and fruit instead of Slim Jims and chips.

Do pushups in your truck or trailer if there’s room.  Start at one and work up to a hundred at Hundred Pushups.com

Support

Habit changes like this require some sort of support system. Use those blackberrys and iphones to use twitter and facebook to support each other. Any cell phone can send text messages. Get some sort of support group going, help each other out with stuff like, “I walked around for an hour before dinner, what are you doing”? Or if you get a message like, “I don’t have time for dinner, just getting the buffet”. That’s when you call the guy and yell, “STEP BACK FROM THE BUFFET!” Grab a Subway and no chips if you don’t have time for dinner.

For extra credit on your next supply run, grab a jump rope and some dumbbells. If you need some routines, just search for dumbbell routines, there are plenty on the internet.

You don’t have to make major diet changes, just eat less and do more. Feeling better and looking better will boost your self-confidence and self-esteem and will help your moods by getting more endorphins flowing so we’re not so depressed by what’s going on around us.

I’m not going to create a big group or anything formal like that, but if you want to follow me on twitter or facebook click on the links or leave a comment and I’ll put out a list or an email so we can all get connected and help each other out.