It’s that time of year again when we start thinking about — you guessed it — your New Year’s resolutions. Soon your email inbox will be filled with all kinds of solutions from people and companies that believe they know what’s best for you: Eat this, don’t eat that, exercise, exercise and more exercise.
This time of year, the most frequent questions I get — either via email, during radio interviews or at family gatherings (which will not be happening this year) — are: Which program is best? Low fat or high fat, or low carbs? Plant-based or vegan? Low-impact cardio or high-impact cardio?
In the end, these are all lifestyle-changing approaches, and to stop the crazy roller roaster ride, you need to first examine your own personal lifestyle and your willingness to commit to a new lifestyle approach to manage your health and well-being.
First, I suggest you re-examine previous programs you have attempted. What were your likes and dislikes? Why do you think they failed to produce the results you wanted? We are all different, but most any structure programs can work. It’s a question of one’s ability to embrace and maintain the new lifestyle.
In the life of a professional driver, your options are limited — which maybe a good thing. Sometimes, when we have unlimited options, we tend to jump around from one workout routine to another if we don’t see instant results. Drivers have limitations living on the road, but make no mistake, successful diet and exercise programs are always 75% nutrition and 25% workout. For drivers, it’s about preparation and prevention.
Invest in tools needed to make sure you have good nutritional sources to reach for, such as a fridge, a microwave, a blender and a portable lunchbox stove (that’s the preparation). Next, make sure you have healthy, nutritious foods available to help keep you from making bad choices (that’s the prevention).
Now, about that workout.
Keep this in mind: It’s not about the exercise you SHOULD do; it’s about the one you WILL do. This where your creativity comes into play. Find an exercise you enjoy and will maintain on the road — walking, running, bicycling (some drivers invest in bike racks), exercise bands, using 1-gallon water jugs for weight-resistance training and so forth.
For driver-friendly workout routines, download the Fit to Pass App or email me at [email protected].
Bob Perry is a regular contributor to The Trucker. He has spent nearly the past four decades on a mission to educate professional drivers and share life-changing products and services to help them live healthier lives while on the road. Recognized throughout the transportation industry, from bus drivers to over-the-road professional drivers, Perry has played an important role in creating a paradigm shift helping regulatory agencies, private and public sector entities, and consumers understand the current health challenges of the professional driver. He has participated as a wellness advocate in several roundtable discussions, large audience groups and small forums as well as going “curbside” through a national truck stop tour.
Bob’s articles have been featured in The Trucker and a number of other national transportation industry publications and is the host of a weekly wellness call produced by Rolling Strong. Bob has been a regular guest on RedEye Radio and Land-Line Radio, and is often an invited guest on Sirius radio shows. He has been featured in the New York Times, Men’s Health Magazine, Drug Store News, American Road Magazine, WSJ, NPR, ABC National Radio, as well as hundreds of daily newspapers. He has appeared on television news shows across the nation, including a featured TV segment on ABC NightLine News.
