One of the hardest parts about being a long distance truck driver is that the job requires sitting all day. You can get antsy after a while, and you need to get out and move around. Unfortunately, sitting all day takes its toll on your health, and as many of us know, when you stop exercising it is harder and harder to pick up the habit again. Fortunately, there are some ways to exercise while on the road without trying to hit up a gym. Some of the ways can actually be pretty fun.
Walking – Nearly 2,500 years ago the famed medical philosopher Hippocrates said, “Walking is man’s best medicine.” Those words remain true today, especially now with so many modern conveniences that enable us to not have to walk if we don’t want to. This easy exercise can be done nearly anywhere.
It can be tempting to maximize your time while on the road. You stop to fill up with fuel, you grab a quick bite to eat, and you jump back in the truck and you’re on the road again. Instead, try going for a little walk while you’re stopped. You don’t have to go far; in fact you could spend 10 minutes walking around your truck while the diesel pumps into it.
Use a Ball – A soccer ball works great for these quick exercises. Suppose you don’t have a lot of room to move about, so running, jogging, and walking are out of the question. Just toss a soccer ball into your truck, and pull it out at each stop. Here are a few quick exercises to help keep you lean:
- Hold the ball over your head and do squats. Put the weight on your heels, keep your back straight, and dip down until your hamstrings touch your calves (or at least try for that). Keep in mind that doing squats incorrectly can lead to injury, so you might want to check out a video before starting this one.
- Place the ball 12 inches or so in front of your feet, and then jog in place while you tap the top with alternating feet. Toe taps are a drill used by soccer players from the time they are pee-wees all the way up to the big leagues. It helps get your heart rate up, hones coordination, and best of all it barely takes any room to do it.
- Most people can do a pushup. But most people don’t know that having your hands at staggered heights gives you a better workout. Get in the pushup position and put one hand on top of the ball, and the other flat on the ground. The instability of the ball will help tone more muscles, and the staggered heights will give you a deeper workout. Do a few and then switch hands.
Seated Exercises – Sometimes you simply have deadlines and even spending 15 minutes dribbling a ball around the truck stop can set you behind. Don’t worry, you can still get your exercise. One often overlooked form of exercise is called isotension. That’s just a fancy way of saying, “flexing your muscles without moving.” While lifting weights will train your muscles, you can keep them in shape by flexing, holding, and releasing. As you drive down the road try this one out. Flex your quads as hard as you can, hold for 5 to 10 seconds, and then release. Keep doing it until you feel the burn, then move on to other muscle groups.
Maintain Your Heart, Weight, and Health
Staying active is hard to do when you’re buckled in and driving down the road. By maintaining a proper diet, and getting 10 to 15 minutes of exercise at each stop (and then 30 minutes at the end of the day) you can stay more fit than the majority of the country. Exercise doesn’t have to be hard, and it definitely doesn’t have to be boring. Find something you enjoy, and keep your muscles moving!
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