Stayin’ Healthy on the Road: Tips for Truckers Lookin’ to Keep Their Bodies and Minds in Shape

As hard and physically demanding as it is to be a truck driver, it is still a job where you are living a sedentary lifestyle that can trick you into loading up on caffeine, sugary drinks, and salty snacks.

You don’t have to be a health nut like Joe Rogan to know that this is a combination designed for failure.

Healthy eating and a good exercise routine is necessary to not only being a successful truck driver for long, but also just living a good life and being sure that you are around for your family.

Avoid Fast Food and Develop a Meal Prep Routine

The first step is to avoid fast food and food from places like convenient stores and truck stops.

No matter how much you think you enjoy the greasy little hot dogs, if you follow a steady diet filled with veggies, fruits, and the right proteins, you will start to enjoy that much more and your body will thank you for it.

Control Snacking Habits

Meal prep and developing a routine is key to maintaining a healthy diet, whether you are on the road or at home. You want to eliminate your ability to make a decision on what you will eat.

Sandwiches can get you through most days, but they will end up becoming repetitive and you will start craving fatty and greasy foods, so be sure to have access to warm food.

I’ve found that rotisserie chickens are perfect for meal planning.

You can usually get about 5 meals out of one bird and it has enough fat and seasoning to satisfy your cravings, while still having very high nutritional qualities.

Canned tuna is also a very versatile meal, and most tuna companies sell ‘on-the-go’ style packages that make meal prep very easy.

The second step is getting in control of your snacking. Snacking is fine as long as you are snacking on the right stuff and portioning out.

Getting half cup sized bowls or spoons has helped me control snacking urges. I’m able to satisfy the craving, but I also don’t overdo it.

Nuts are a great way to snack healthily.

And no, I’m not talking about “honey roasted sugar glazed” planters, or nuts dipped in dark chocolate, I’m talking about good ole fashioned, healthy peanuts.

Alternatively, look for dry fruits and veggies. Plantain chips are my favorite.

 

The Best Time to Drink Coffee and the Dangers of Sugar and Energy Drinks

 

Coffee is somewhere that you have to be careful. Do you ever wonder why some people are unable to hold a conversation with another person before they have their morning coffee? Because they are so dependent on that coffee their brain no longer naturally produces the cortisol that is needed to wake you up.A neuroscientist and professor at Stanford by name of Andrew Huberman has found that waiting 90 minutes to 2 hours after waking up is the best time to drink coffee and prevent that late crash 6 hours later.

Now let’s talk about sugar. If you are the type to fill up a 32 oz mug with coffee and sugar, that will not only ruin your shift by making you feel the sugar crash, but that sugar and cream will add up. Black coffee can be beneficial and will do the job keeping you alert and focused, but again, you want to make sure you’re not drinking too much, and you want to also make sure you don’t drink coffee too late and have it disrupt your sleep cycle. A good rule of thumb is to make sure you don’t drink coffee 6 hours before you plan on going to bed.

Energy drinks need to be cut out completely. Even though they list a whole bunch of vitamins on their cans, these vitamins are often in low amounts and overridden with the fact that these drinks are full of sugar. There are enough alternative energy drinks out there, many containing B12 that will naturally allow you to wake up and stay energized through the day. Just like with coffee, you don’t want to be dependent on these drinks, but if you need a little extra boost in the mornings, a non-caffeinated, non-sugar energy drink is where you want to turn.

The best way to cut out caffeine and sugar from your diet is simply by getting more sleep. Sleep is a major factor in staying healthy and fit. A lack of sleep has been proven to affect hunger-regulating hormones, which will end up leading to more snacking, and deviating from your diet. The best way to get better sleep is to do your best to get rid of outside noise and light. To do this, make sure you invest in good earplugs/ear muffs, black out curtains for your windows and windshield, and do your best to avoid resting in major cities where there will be lots of traffic noise or the chance of you parking next to a loud venue.

Tips for Getting Better Sleep and Improving Overall Health as a Truck Driver

Getting better sleep at night also reduces the need to nap, which can increase your health tremendously.

Not only can naps throw off your sleep schedule, but if you’re not in a dark and quiet environment you don’t get any of the benefits anyways.

So if you spend your breaks pulled over on the side of a noisy highway trying to catch 30 minutes of sleep, you are actually just going to make yourself more tired.

That time you spend napping?

You can spend that time exercising and really improving your brain activity.

The best way to keep a consistent exercise routine on the road is investing in a few kettlebells.

If you buy 3 or 4 kettlebells ranging between 20-35 pounds, you can cancel your gym membership because you can now do any exercise you want, and if your sleeper is big enough, you won’t even need to leave your truck.

My biggest piece of advice here however: when you are driving, make sure your kettlebells are either strapped down or in a place where they cannot fly around in the event of an accident.

You’ve heard it a million times, but I’m here to reiterate it; being healthy isn’t something you do every now and then, it is a lifestyle.

Maintaining a Healthy Lifestyle on the Road: The Importance of Routine and Consistency
Nothing I’ve said here matters if you don’t stick with the program and change the way you think about food, sleep, and exercise.

That doesn’t mean you can never enjoy something unhealthy again.

Utilize cheat days so you don’t get burnt out, take a day off of working out if you’re starting to feel too sore, but ultimately, if you want to live a more healthy lifestyle, the key is a routine and consistency.

 

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