5 Health and Wellness Tips for HGV Drivers
Making healthier lifestyle choices is an important and yet often overlooked component in minimising driver error and improving reaction time. Investing in your health does not have to take a lot of time and effort; it can start with small commitments that contribute to improvements in your day-to-day life.
Although prioritising health and wellness will have a positive impact on your career, it is also likely that it will add value to your personal life.
Here’s some easy ways to make healthier choices while being out and about on the road:
- Find Ways to Keep Active
Maintaining an active lifestyle can be challenging but incredibly rewarding. Weekly activity goals can be a great way to ensure that you remain consistent and dedicated to your physical wellbeing. Exercising regularly is a great way to ensure you can physically keep up with the demands of your role without struggling with pain and aches. Moving palletised goods, pulling back curtains, and spending hours in a small cab can all have a physical impact which regular activity can help to negate.
- Fuel Yourself with Nutritious Meals and Snacks
Regular intake of nutritious meals and snacks is the best way to combat tiredness and to keep you alert while on the road.
- To avoid a sugar crash, try to avoid foods high in sugar and instead look for whole foods that are high in protein and grains.
- Meal prepping is a great way to ensure your nutritional requirements are being met while saving you time and energy. It is also budget-friendly as it means you’ll spend less money on expensive food from motorway service stations and truck stops! If you’re a tramper, or spend days on the road at a time, make sure you prepare a few healthy meals before you leave which you can easily re-heat and enjoy.
- Make water your drink of choice and consider reducing your coffee and alcohol intake to support better sleep patterns and decrease stress levels.
- Lower Your Stress Levels
Long working hours, difficult journeys sat in traffic, and extended demurrage times can be incredibly stressful on the mind and body. If you are experiencing feelings of being overwhelmed and irritable you may be suffering from stress. Identifying the causes of your stress can help you to determine the necessary steps required to make positive changes to your environment and routine. Listed are some small and accessible practices that can help you lower stress levels:
- Keep a clean and tidy cab. Uncluttered surfaces have been shown to alleviate stress.
- Learn a couple of breathing exercises and use them when you begin to experience stress symptoms.
- Get a good night’s sleep – to stay alert and keep your stress levels low, a good night’s sleep is essential.
Drive Personnel is a specialist driver recruitment agency based in Southampton. We support our drivers and help them maximise their earning potential by providing training and professional development including further HGV Driver Training, Driver CPC Training, ADR, Moffett, HIAB and other advanced training.
The team at Drive Personnel is expert in placing drivers in a range of temporary and permanent roles throughout Eastleigh, Southampton, Portsmouth, Fareham and Winchester. If you’re a driver looking for work or a client looking for a driver agency that can provide top-quality logistics staff, contact us today.