I am a big fan of big rigs. My family has been in and around trucking for more than 70 years. Watching my grandfather, my dad, and myself all drive over the road and support their families was a joy and inspiration. From age seven through high school I changed tires, brake shoes, and washed and fueled rigs on and off the Mass Pike and NY Throughway. After that, I drove an 18-wheeler through my first years of college and pre-med studies. I will always respect and appreciate the unsung heroes who help to keep our country moving, fed, and supported with products and services.
My driving days are more than likely behind me now but the lessons learned behind the wheel have taught me many valuable things about health and living well as a dad, doctor, and driver. When it comes to driver health on the road, we could always do better. The long and unpredictable hours, the access to good and healthy food, and the ability to keep a positive outlook can all be challenging at times. But rather than provide a painful laundry list of all the things we should be doing, I think we should commit to doing the best we can with a few simple changes that will upgrade your experience on the road and in your life.
Posture. Simply shifting your sitting to a healthy posture can change the game in your daily performance. What would you give to have more energy, less stress, a better metabolism and bulletproof confidence?
How we sit dictates what kind of chemicals our brain and body produce. When our posture is strong and healthy, our body produces powerful compounds that fight stress, burn calories, give us the ability to stay focused and energized, help us fall asleep at night, and keep us optimistic.
Are there any “side effects” to sitting well? You bet! When you better manage your stress chemicals, you will crave less junk food, your temper will be less volatile, and—possibly the most powerful “symptom shift”—is less or no pain.
My dad and my grandfather shared a lot of similar habits from being on the road. The one they both would have loved to have let go of was chronic back pain. Long miles, poor sleep habits, and too much sugar and fat can all contribute to chronic back pain. Right along with those “habits”, poor posture is the leading cause of giving you a “bad back”. So how do you break the cycle?
Here are three things you can do now that will change your experience on the road ahead:
- Stretch at every fuel and food stop.
- Low back stretch. Stand with your feet together and lower your chest toward your knees. Reach your arms down and try to touch your hands to your toes. You should feel this stretch in your low back and hamstrings. Hold for 20 to 30 seconds.
- Hip flexor and calf stretch. Plant your left foot in front of the right foot in a slight lunge with the left knee bent. Hold for 20 seconds. Straighten out the left leg and reach your left hand to the floor. Hold for 20 seconds. Repeat on the other side.
- Upgrade your oils. Cut back on the saturated fats from fried foods, steak and dairy products and increase the healthy, pain fighting fats found in fish, nuts and seeds.
- Get some support. I love and recommend the seat support from BackJoy (www.backjoy.com). It’s functional, “breathable” on hot days, inexpensive and totally durable for the long haul.
Best of all—BackJoy is offering a 15% off discount to all Team Run Smart members for any purchase in their online store (www.backjoy.com). Just enter discount code TRS15 at checkout.
I know you drive to support yourself, to support your loved ones, and that it is not always easy to add one more thing to your “to do list”. However, your health and well-being cannot be added to the bottom of your “life list” in the hopes that you will get to it.
Courageously choose to place your self-care at the very top of the list and treat it with the utmost respect and diligence. If you do, all that you love about the road will be magnified. Be the hero of your own life and drive pain-free with passion and purpose!