As a trucker, you spend the better part of the day behind the wheel of your rig. As a result of being rather sedentary, having access to convenience foods, and other factors, you may not be as healthy as you would like to be. While there are some aspects of your life as a trucker that you cannot change, there are several opportunities to improve your health. What can you do to be healthier while you are on the road?
1- Take Walking Breaks
After spending hours sitting down behind the wheel, you may have sore, stiff muscles. Your blood circulation may be poor, and your mental health may suffer. These are only a few of the health concerns that can be alleviated through regular exercise. Hitting the gym regularly may not be in your cards, but you can enjoy great health benefits by walking. Each time you stop for a break, food, or gas, spend several minutes simply walking around. Get your heart rate up, and stretch your muscles.
2- Choose Healthier Meal Options
Fast food restaurants and cheap diners may be your primary food options on the road. While these types of restaurants have notoriously unhealthy menu options, there are ways to eat healthy while traveling away from home. For example, you could order a grilled chicken sandwich rather than a bacon cheeseburger. You could also switch to water rather than soda and opt for green veggies over fries or chips when available.
3- Take a Multivitamin
Your body requires a robust variety of vitamins and minerals for optimal health. It is often difficult to consume all of these vitamins and minerals in your regular diet. With this in mind, taking a vitamin supplement may be one of the easiest steps available to boost your health as a trucker.
4- Get Adequate Sleep
When you are pressed to follow a schedule as a trucker, sleep may take a backseat. However, sleep impacts both your physical and mental health. It also can affect your ability to drive safely. Make an effort to sleep at least seven or eight hours each night. Consider improving your bedtime routine so that you can fall asleep easily and maximize the amount of time available for rest.
5- Listen to Beneficial Podcasts
As you navigate through traffic under deadlines, your stress level can rise quickly. Rather than listening to invigorating music that may contribute to a rise in adrenaline, change the tune. You could listen to more relaxing music, or you could fully optimize your time by listening to beneficial podcasts. For example, you follow a podcast on mental health, career development, financial literacy, and other topics.
6- Focus on Self-Improvement
Beyond podcasts, you can use your many hours behind the wheel for other types of self-improvement. For example, you could learn a new language. There are a seemingly endless number of audiobooks available as well that can expand your mind.
While it may initially seem like you do not have a significant ability to be healthy as a trucker, you can see that there are opportunities around the clock that can boost your mind and body in exciting ways. Make an effort to work at least one or two of these ideas into your daily routine today.