Healthy Trucking

Mindless dieting

We have all heard the expression, “If you want something done right, do it yourself.” Whose responsibility is it to take control of one’s own health? Is it the drug companies? The doctors? The government? The supplement industry? All of these entities try to capture our interest and many of our dollars in an attempt to convince us we need help.
Meanwhile, 70 percent of Americans remain overweight. A great number of them are obese, and many are morbidly obese. Those percentages are sharply higher in the transportation industry, but I’m not here to quote statistics. I’m simply pointing out that whatever is being done now isn’t working.
As drivers, we have an obligation to educate ourselves and put into practice solid, healthy living principles. Don’t rely on any product that makes claims that it will “fix” everything. Our bodies recognize everything that we put into them, good or bad. The body has an uncanny ability to reject what is bad and utilize what is good. But when overwhelmed by too many chemicals or “helpers,” our bodies become weakened and our immune systems are compromised.
It starts with being fatigued, because we are fighting off foreign combatants. Once fatigued, we begin to feel other symptoms of illnesses of various kinds. The more weight we carry around, the more these problems become compounded. Soon we lose the ability to properly heal ourselves. Our blood pressure rises. Our blood sugar is unstable. Injuries take longer to heal. And we are more likely to develop things like heart disease, cancer, osteoporosis and all kinds of infections.
The good news is that the solution is available right in the grocery store. Forget the notion that you don’t have the opportunity to get to a grocery store. Everyone can do it.
I’m a truck driver myself. I used to weigh 365 pounds, but I lost 180 pounds by utilizing classic principles of nutrition and movement, better known as exercise. As a driver, I have learned some things in the past few years, and what I learned has worked. Briefly, our bodies need a variety of nutrients from many food sources. Eating the same thing over and over reduces the body’s ability to harvest the nutrients from it. I eliminated all deep-fried foods because, simply put, batter makes you fatter.
I never cook my vegetables. I eat them raw because cooking kills the live enzymes in them that are necessary for digestion and immunity. I also cut my intake of processed foods like white bread, chips, and chopped and formed meats. Instead, I eat whole grains, raw nuts, brown rice, whole fresh fruits and low-fat cheese. I’ll eat a grilled chicken breast or steak, but not a burger. You can learn more at my Web site: safetythruwellness.com.

Jack Kelsh is an over-the-road professional driver and a certified sports nutritionist.