You know Preventative Maintenance (PM) on your truckwillpay off in the long run. Industry estimates say PM can cut your breakdown costs in half. Maintaining the health of your truck isimportant, but taking care of yourself is an invaluable part of being a successful driver. Here are Bob Perry, the Trucker Trainer’s, top three tips on how to use personal PM to be healthy — which means staying out of the doctor’s office and on the road.
 
1. Perform a pre-trip check of your refrigerator.
Just like you perform a pre-trip check on your truck; always inspect your fridge or your cooler before a trip to make sure you have healthy food packed. Foods like turkey wraps or all natural peanut butter and whole grain sandwiches are rich in protein and lean in fat. Have healthy meals packed to prevent you from stopping for unhealthy convenient food. Getting stuck in traffic or bad weather is inevitable, so be prepared with extra meals.
 
2. Utilize your truck as a piece of workout equipment.
You would never skip an oil change if you want the engine to last. A work-out is a routine form of maintenance that your body cannot go without if you want it to run longer. It’s true that working out when you’re on the road is not easy. Getting to a gym is not always convenient, especially when you are working long, odd hours. But a terrific piece of workout equipment is always with you. While waiting for a load or unloading, use your truck as a piece of work-out equipment. You can do “push-offs” off the fender to get in some exercise. The steeper the angle between you and the truck, the more weight you add to a push-off.
 
3. Stay hydrated.
Your truck stays hydrated with fuel; you constantly have to replenish fuel to keep it running. Your body is composed of approximately 70% water and needs to be hydrated to keep it running. That doesn’t mean drinking a lot of caffeinated liquids. (High doses of caffeine can cause anxiety and irritability, high blood pressure, and increase cholesterol.) If you are tired and think you need caffeine to stay awake, try drinking water first and wait 10-15 minutes to see if it wakes you up. If you’re still in desperate need of caffeine, try some of the new flavored green teas like Lipton’s berry flavored diet green tea. It has 1/3 of the caffeine a cup of coffee or soda has and still tastes great.

 

“Running your business with an unhealthy lifestyle is like running your rig down the highway with your lights out,” says Bob Perry. “It’s a disaster waiting to happen.”

 

Staying healthy is an essential part of running your business. Steer away from disaster and the doctor’s office by using PM to keep your body and your business running smoothly.

To get more health and wellness tips from Bob Perry, go to www.rollingstrong.com.

Comments (11)

Bob Perry

Bob Perry is on a mission to educate drivers and share life-changing products and services to help professional drivers while on the road. Recognized as the Trucker Trainer™ by professional drivers nationwide, Bob brings a unique perspective to the transportation industry. As the President of Rolling Strong™, Bob provides the transportation companies and drivers and owner operators with in-terminal and on the road wellness programs.

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Great tips Bob! Getting exercise as a team driver is tough as the truck is so often moving or we cannot get away from the truck in case we get dispatched

August 02, 2012 16:40:31 PM

The only problem I run into with working out in the morning is making sure I can find a shower to clean up at before delivering to my customers. Customers really don't like a stinky driver in the office. One solution is having some towelettes to clean up with if a shower is not availible.

July 31, 2012 18:16:53 PM

Stuart Hartman
Great tips to stay in shape on the road. I talk with drivers that try to walk whenever they can. Some even walk around the perimeter of a truck stop. Whatever activity that you do is helpful for staying in better shape!

July 27, 2012 13:57:54 PM

Grant, I have found that it helps to drink water more slowly and not 8 oz at one time. For instance, sometimes I try to make myself take a gulp of water every 15 to 20 minutes. Everyone is different though. Hope that helps!

July 27, 2012 11:26:42 AM

Using the truck to work out is a great idea. Just remember that exercising early in the trip rather than at the end of your run will help you sleep better. Studies show that exercising when you are ready to go to sleep can actually keep you up. But exercise earlier in the day will help you sleep more soundly.

July 26, 2012 18:20:50 PM

I heard you should drink half your body weight in ounces a day in water. It will keep you alert (there is no sugar or caffeine crash with water) and hydrated.

July 26, 2012 16:46:26 PM

Great article to help drivers make healthy choices while on the road!

July 26, 2012 15:31:25 PM

A good quick snack that I enjoy is a handful of almonds with a string cheese. I feel like it really fills me up and wakes me up too! Not too many almonds though. As with any nut, there's a lot of good fats and oils, but too much of anything isn't good for you. I've been really enjoying the Blue Diamond Oven Roasted Almonds. They have a lot of different flavors, like Butter Toffee and Dark Chocolate. Gives them a little something extra that's not adding extra salt. Plus the containers are very handy!

July 26, 2012 11:08:31 AM

Food portions are important as well! If you eat an appropriate serving every 3 hours, it helps to speed up your metabolism. Like Bob mentioned, keep healthy snacks and meals on hand to make it convenient.

July 26, 2012 10:08:41 AM

Bob, great article ... looking forward to bumping into you at GATS and seeing the latest in workout-out "stuff" in trucking!

July 25, 2012 17:09:50 PM

Keeping hydrated while traveling is a challenge...I hate having to make pit-stops. Not a fan of trucker bombs, either...

July 19, 2012 14:06:02 PM