Life Expectancy 15 years shorter than average?

Lots of great advice from all. Dont get suckered into thinking that trucking will ruin your body. It only will if you let it. Granted, i do LTL and daily i get a workout from my deliveries. However, by eating the right food, getting some exercise when you shut it down for the day plays big. Even just taking a 30 min. walk around the truckstop or industrial park will help. Absoultely get rid of Soda pop. It is the worst garbage for your body. I stopped drinking coca -cola 4 years ago. Weight came off real fast, energy level is off the hook. Snack on something decent while on the road. get decent sleep, you will be fine. I'm 56 and i am now in better shape then when i was on active duty in the mid 80's. poeple that meet me think i'm 10 years younger than i actually am. I dont consume alchohol and dont smoke. Take care of your body and trucking will be an easy gig.

 

Drink plenty of water drivers often have kidney problems because they dont drink enough fluids its easy to get in the habit of drinking less so you have to stop less to pee but thats the wrong thing to do.Also get out of. The seat every couple of hours I wLk to and from the rest area and around it to stretch my legs getting a pet to walk has also shown to be healthier.

 

I'm not saying to go out and be self destructive here, I pull a tank, I stop a few times every trip and get out and walk around a few minutes, I have a couple of weights in my truck that I use, I eat healthy, and I don't drink or smoke but I live my life to the fullest and I'm not sitting in my truck sweating about being a truck driver shortening my life! I'm not sitting around stressing about things out of my control.

 

You can go to a truck stop and observe and see there is a problem. Like the video above there are a combination of things. Bad health doesn't happen overnight but for some truckers they slowly evolve into a trap that comes with the profession. Being stuck in a seat 11 hours, jarred around all day, leg circulation reduced and then you throw in fatigue and a bad diet mixed with smoking and your health will turn for the worse in 10 years or so of the repetitiveness. When your day starts before most people get up and ends after they go to bed, many don't feel like doing anything. Each year it slowly gets worse if you let it. A driver has to avoid or break the cycle. DOT rules are changing where drivers aren't as fatigued. Awareness is helping some.

But to see several drivers overweight and obese there is a higher that average problem in the industry. I've known many drivers that croaked in their 50's and 60's. More than I've known in their 70's.

Get that daily 20-30 minute exercise. Take regularly scheduled breaks.

Stop snacking going down the road because you are bored or your main meal is McDonalds. It's almost impossible to eat healthy out of a truck stop yet that's what many drivers do every day because it's convenient.

Don't smoke. On average smoking will knock 10-15 years off your life. My mom passed from lung cancer at age 71. Both of her older sisters that didn't smoke are still alive today and are in their upper 80's. Some have the mentality that they smoked all their life quitting won't help. Yes it will. Lungs start the healing process 20 minutes after your last cigarette. Though there might be scarring they will heal over 5 years.

Stress is another problem in the industry. Experienced drivers know how to battle the stress of the job and take things in stride. Younger drivers have to learn the hard way.

I've maintained my health for my first 10 years of trucking before things sneaked up on me. It's not going to get me! Then I spent the next 5 getting worse. My thyroid dying didn't help. Now that I've been off the road 2 years I'm slowly reversing the process mainly because it's more convenient to eat better and get active.

Then you'll hear the stories from skinny truckers with a natural high metabolism rate. They think they are healthy but clogged arteries can get anyone. Don't let your weight fool you, high cholesterol can get anyone.

But don't let all that deter you. With proper knowledge and effort a trucker can live a normal life. You just have to avoid all the negatives. Pretty much like playing an instrument and singing you are either born to truck or you are not. You'll know when you get there.

 

I didn't know how bad I felt, until I quit smoking.
3 packs a day for 21 years; then wised up and quit cold turkey & that was years ago.

 

You are ahead of the game by simply realizing that this is a special challenge for drivers. You've already gotten some good advice. 1.) Carry your own food. Eat veggies, fruits, lean meats, whole grains. Avoid a steady stream of high fat snacks. Abolish sugary drinks from your diet. 2) Get a Planet Fitness membership and have at least one good workout a week. Carry small weights or some of those stretchy bands for on the road workouts. 3) Move. Take a brisk walk whenever you have some down time or can can spare 30 minutes to stop in a nice rest area. I am a 61 year old driver, 5"10", 168 lbs. This is a battle we can win!

 

That plays a big role too, fighting genetics. My father died at 46 from a heart attack and 156 lbs. Both my brothers had multiple bypasses at 46 and repeat heart attacks since then. None of them smoked. I'm going on 52 and only had a stent put in two years ago and smoke. Go figure? :smt102

The only thing I can figure is I always worked physical jobs most of my life and ate better, up until trucking. My last stress test this past August was okay so knock on wood!

 

I know one driver in his 90s several in their seventys and one in his 80s still driving they didn't smoke for the most part . They say 75 percent of drivers smoke and most I know will drink high sugar drinks as well avoiding those two habits will go a long way towards extending your health . Also look into ltl food service or what Ido delivering to dollar stores because you will get exercise as part of your job .

 

Put down that minnow bucket full of Mountain Dew. I eat at a buffet almost every chance I get and I have lost 30 pounds since last November. Buffets usually have a salad bar, soup, a meat choice or two and vegetables on them. Have a piece of fried chicken, just take the skin off of it. It is all about the food choices you make.

 

man ive lost 72lbs sice i went from local to otr last year...aint that somethin'...