Last year, we introduced you to Hope Zvara and her Mother Trucker Yoga videos, designed to help truck drivers maintain a healthy body, healthy mind, and less-stressed lifestyle while on the road. Since then, Hope has written a book about yoga for truckers that includes more than just yoga poses. The book shares insight on common truck driver health issues, simple life changes with a big impact, yoga poses, and overall wellness.
In part one of “Trucking Yoga,” Hopes explains that our bodies are designed to move. Movement “jump-starts your heart and every major system and organ in your body.” That’s why intentional movement and exercise is so important for truck drivers and anyone who spends hours on end in a seated position. Hope also explains that movement boosts the “feel-good chemicals and hormones in your brain,” leading to a healthier and happier you.
If you’re just getting started on your trucker fitness journey or aren’t even sure where to start, “Trucking Yoga” even includes a checklist to determine your health goals, a list for a daily check-in, and more. The book even mentions comparisons between the human body and truck components to help every trucker fully understand the importance of taking care of their body—just as they would take care of their truck.
YOGA POSES
Part two of “Trucking Yoga” features its yoga poses in chapters based on the driver’s position in and near the truck. Learn poses from the seat of the cab, such as a neck stretch and nerve glides. These poses even include stretches for your hands and arms and use the steering wheel as a prop.
For drivers of sleeper cabs, the book offers more poses. Some poses include variations for both a seated and laying position, while others focus on full body stretching and must be performed while the body is fully reclined. For the majority of our readers in day cabs, these poses can be done on a bed at home before sleeping to prepare your body for rest.
The last set of yoga poses are for when the driver is parked and can step out of their truck. The majority of these poses use a truck step or grab handle as props to stretch legs and feet. Some poses are even more familiar, such as squats and lunges.
Each pose includes a written explanation and an illustration to help drivers get into the poses and maximize the poses’ benefits.
SIMPLIFYING HEALTH
Hope concludes her book stating that a healthy lifestyle doesn’t have to come through complicated programs. Just a few simple changes to a daily routine—stretching, movement, and rest—could lead drivers on the road to a healthier body and a less stressed mindset. Reading “Trucking Yoga” can place key movements into a truck driver’s daily movement arsenal. Additionally, as previously mentioned, Mother Trucker Yoga’s videos on Youtube can also help those requiring visual demonstration of the poses. With Mother Trucker Yoga, your drivers will have ample resources to make movement a regular practice. Find Hope’s book, “Trucking Yoga” online and in bookstores.
Find out more, visit www.mothertruckeryoga.com.
