Does That Truck Make Me Look Fat?

By: Ellen Voie

It’s no secret that many lifestyle and mental health issues were exacerbated when the COVID-19 lockdowns were in place.  Challenges include access to personal protection supplies and cleaners, finding facilities open for rest stops and showers,  and mental health concerns related to keeping families safe.

Many drivers gained weight at an alarming rate during these stressful times. That hasn’t gone away. Many of the reasons for the weight gain then were due to the closing of restaurants that provided inside seating, even truck stop dining areas.  Professional drivers were suddenly forced to look for alternatives. However, a fast food restaurant drive-thru is certainly not an option for a tractor-trailer even now. Without truck stop restaurants, drivers not only lost some healthy food options (salad bars, etc.), but they also lost the chance to relax with their peers in a familiar environment. Then, lounges and workout rooms were closed. Now even with these options open, they see far less traffic due to the hectic driver lifestyle. These situations all add to the strains of an at-risk but very essential group of people.

A WebMD poll cited in a blog by Norman Winegar, the Chief  Clinical Officer of ESPYR, found that 47 percent of women and  22 percent of men said they had gained weight during the pandemic. Those people didn’t have near the amount of challenges that professional drivers faced while making their deliveries in our current culture of “need it right now” mentality.

At the time of the original writing of this article, the Women In  Trucking Association partnered with ESPYR to provide free counseling to their CDL members. ESPYR offers easy access to mental health professionals through TALKNOWTM, a telemental health solution that provides immediate support for driver mental health and work-life-related issues. Drivers and their family members can speak with an ESPYR mental health professional without an appointment and without waiting.

To help drivers ensure their ability to pass their CDL physical,  they were provided with Fit to Pass, a customized coaching program designed to improve the health of professional drivers and help them meet the physical requirements of the DOT  recertification exam. 

The number one reason drivers participated in the program was to lose weight. The average weight of these coaching clients was 230 pounds, and these were all women! They recognized the need to drop pounds to lower cholesterol,  decrease the stress on their hearts and bodies, and just to feel better and look better.

The response was truly remarkable for those who took advantage of the program. “I’ve been doing really good since  I started with the program … I’ve gone from a size 16 to a size  14. I’m happy that it’s working out…Thank you so very much for your help,” wrote Candy. 

“Before I started working with [my health coach], I was depressed and felt there was no hope of losing weight. My biggest struggle was trying so many different diets and weight loss pills. None of these worked for me. I was afraid of getting a health coach because I was afraid of failure and letting my coach down … with a little hard work and a lot of confidence,  losing weight is possible,” said Donna. 

Although the rough situations brought on by the time in lockdowns and isolation are over, the physical and mental health crises are anything but over. Any fitness program or mental health therapy is only as good as the community created by the people working through these challenges. That team, made up of the clients or customers and the healthcare professionals, has everything to do with successful changes in lifestyle.