EXERCISE
Page 21
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
The ‘Tommy the Trucker’ booklet encourages drivers to do 30 minutes of activity, such as mowing the lawn or kicking a football, at least five days a week. “The activity you choose should make you warm and breathe a bit harder than normal, but you should still be able to talk.” Finding time to exercise can be difficult, so Stobart encourages its drivers to exercise during working time. “You can stretch your arms as you come down the steps of the cab,” explains Neale Burdon. “You can also go into the trailer to do something like touching your toes.” Glenn Patterson of System Training warns that being seated for so much of the working day means drivers are particularly prone to backache. He suggests doing simple exercises that stretch the back muscles in the opposite way once they stop driving. These include lying on the stomach and raising the front of the body using the elbows.