You know how the cliché goes, resolutions, healthy eating, dry Januarys. So after a December break, the Freightlink health series is back (You can find part 1 here), and conforming to type has decided to follow the trend and go down the route of providing you with a general January health update in the interest of helping you achieve those new year goals.

Eat Healthy

Eating healthy can improve your health straight away. Getting more vegetables and fruits into your body and eating less processed foods can help you lose weight, boost your immune system, and help you get a better night sleep. Within Fruit and Veg, there are vitamins and antioxidants that help protect you from a cold or flu. Within vegetables, you will find germ-fighting vitamins that come from vitamin C. Foods such as berries, broccoli, kale, tomatoes, and many other fruits and vegetable. We know it can be difficult to find these foods when out on the road, but check the next Marks and Spencer’s food outlet you stop at when on the road.

Get Adequate Sleep

Upping your sleep levels is important for your health, it is scientific fact that sleep plays such an important part in restoring the body and helping you recover, it also plays an important role in memory and learning. Anyone who is deprived of sleep has been shown to have an inability to focus and learn new tasks efficiently.  Driving longer distances requires focus, therefore for any truck driver sleep is very important. Trucks and hotels don’t always lead to a good night’s sleep, but there are tons of ways to get better sleep. Buying the correct pillow, or even a white noise machine can aid you when getting a full night’s sleep, and will allow you to stay fresh or energised on the road.

Quitting Smoking

We don’t feel we need to lecture much on this topic, cigarette smoking is the number one cause of preventative disease and death in the world. Over 100,000 Britain’s die each year from smoking-related diseases every year. By quitting smoking, you can decrease your risk of heart disease, cancer, and other smoking-related diseases.

Drink Lots of Water

Back in August, when the UK was in the middle of a heatwave we did an article on the importance of staying hydrated while driving. You can read this here

Drinking water is an everyday essential to good health, water helps your body to regulate your temperature, lubricate and cushion joints. You can also get rid of excess bodily waste though sweat and urination. When people drink water they can lose weight because water makes people feel fuller and as a result, less calories are consumed.

Exercise More

Everyone knows that being ‘healthy’ usually involves some sort of exercise to contribute to this, in the new year it’s not uncommon to hear lines “I am going to smash the gym and get fit”. But there is obvious logic behind exercising more. Exercising helps you control your weight, and lowers your risk of cardiovascular dieses and diabetes. You can strengthen your bones and muscles, and better supported muscles can help your posture when on the road for long periods of time. Strength training can help reduce arthritis, fractures and other diseases linked to bone density loss. If you do start to exercise, start small and work your way up to longer periods of time. You can do exercise in many forms, such as biking, team sports, swimming, walking, running. Find something you are good at or like and try your best to stick to it. If you are looking at joining a gym, and you are on the road up and down the country, join a chain where you can go to any gym in the UK.                  

Take a Holiday

You may have noticed, that the minute it hit January, you will have noticed all the holiday adverts on TV. Everyone needs rest time, whether it’s just a week at home, or sitting on a tropical beach having a relaxing drink. A break can help you catch up on sleep and reduce your stress. A holiday also allows you to discover new parts of the world, different cultures and spend time with your family and friends.

Spend Time with Loved Ones

In part 2 of this very health series, we touched on the importance of staying in touch with loved ones, being on the road for so long can leave you missing your friends or family. When you are not on the road and are back at home spend as much time with them as possible.

There are many ways to stay healthy in 2017 and beyond, however incorporating some of the tips from above will help you to stay healthy on the road.