Episode Highlights

00:00:00:00 - 00:00:21:18
Unknown
I heard one guy say, I. I work for 23 hours a day and sleep for one hour, and I'm like, that's actually, I wouldn't brag about that. That means that you don't know balance in your life and that you don't understand how to prioritize things in your life. Welcome to this Week in Tracking. I'm Amy. Today we're joined by Hillsboro Tracking Health and Fitness consultant, founder of Mother Tracker Yoga.

00:00:21:18 - 00:00:47:09
Unknown
And she's been featured in Forbes and is a contributor to HCA Women in Motion for the American Trucking Association. She specializes in helping drivers stay strong, mobile and profitable on the road. If you're running under your own authority, your health isn't separate from your business. It is your business. And today, we're breaking down how physical performance directly impacts your bottom line.

00:00:47:11 - 00:01:09:15
Unknown
Oh, thank you so much for joining me today. Thank you for having me. I'm excited for this conversation. And for those of you tuning in, I am excited to have you listening to take better care of your Health and really change lanes in your health and fitness after today. But for those who may not know you yet, can you tell us who you are, what you do, and how your work connects to the trucking industry?

00:01:09:16 - 00:01:34:04
Unknown
Well, for the last nine years I have been working in the trucking and transportation space. Really focused on owner operators, carriers, drivers of all different types that are burnt out, out of options, struggle with things like back pain, neck pain, walk into a truck stop and are like, there's nothing healthy for me here and don't know where to start.

00:01:34:04 - 00:02:01:09
Unknown
And I'm really helping them build that physical resilience. Create what I call lifestyle fitness or lifestyle wellness and show them small, simple changes that they can make listeners that you can make in just a few minutes a day, adding in some really simple things to improve your overall health and well-being. From your experience, what would you change? The biggest health mistake you see carriers making?

00:02:01:11 - 00:02:29:06
Unknown
Gosh, well, there's a couple of them. And I think the biggest one is for a lot of drivers I've worked with and I have spoken and helped and inspired and consulted with tens of thousands of drivers over the last nine years. And one of the biggest mistakes I see is because a driver is moving all day, because their truck is moving and they feel tired from that.

00:02:29:08 - 00:02:53:06
Unknown
They kind of have this frame of mind where it's like, well, I don't want to move more or I can't move more. And so really trying to help them see that just because your truck is moving doesn't mean you're moving. And that that sedentary lifestyle, whether we like it or not, truck drivers are glued to that seat. Really does impact that every area of their life.

00:02:53:08 - 00:03:16:03
Unknown
So it's not just about mobility. It's also about sleep cycle. It's digestion. It's elimination. It's mental focus and clarity. It's our emotional state. Everything is affected by this one key thing. So when drivers are starting to look at their health and like, oh, I have sleep issues or have this, so much of it comes back to the simplicity of lack of movement.

00:03:16:05 - 00:03:41:02
Unknown
Yeah. And that's one of, the important points I see now that I've been connecting with more people in the health part of the industry. We talk about physical health and mobility and physical pain, but that directly translates to mental health. Yeah. Just to give you like an example. More than 60% of truck drivers get less than seven hours of sleep a night.

00:03:41:04 - 00:04:00:06
Unknown
And yes, sometimes when you're a teen driver, that can be a little challenging or you're not in an ideal location. But also, if we think about our physical body like a cup of water, you start out the day with the cup full. And as the day goes on, you're supposed to be extending your energy to empty the cup.

00:04:00:07 - 00:04:19:10
Unknown
So when you go to bed at night, you're kind of exhausted, right? Like physically and mentally. A lot of drivers mentally are, but not physically. And then the cup gets replenished. But for a lot of drivers, because they're not physically exerting themselves as much as they should be. And I'm not talking about like lifting heavy weight at a gym or running ten miles.

00:04:19:12 - 00:04:38:04
Unknown
They're in restless at night. They're not getting into that deep REM cycle. And a big portion of that is connected to how much they're active and moving during the day. It's not necessarily just their environment or the stress they have on their mind, or the fact that the truck is still rolling. Those are pieces of it, but it's not the whole puzzle.

00:04:38:06 - 00:05:03:07
Unknown
And one thing we we like to focus on in, in this channel specifically is how can being stressed and being sedentary affect us in our profitability? Because if you can't move your truck, if you can't move yourself, you can't move your truck and then you can't make money. Yeah. So, I think the statistic is roughly about 40% of truck drivers report chronic stress.

00:05:03:07 - 00:05:21:07
Unknown
So what's chronic stress? Chronic stretch stress is like that repetitive stress that just never goes away. It's like if you have a as a sliver in your finger and you've lifted in there for weeks now, it's like festering. Now your whole hand hurts, not your arm hurts. Now you're sweating and now you feel nauseated, and now you're really sick.

00:05:21:07 - 00:05:49:17
Unknown
Like that's kind of chronic stress. And and when it comes to chronic stress, it really is affects your financial decision making because it impairs executive function decision making. So that means that's the part of your brain that can think logically and can make those big decisions. And when you're super stressed, when you're lacking sleep, when you're not at your physical best, you're going to be making impulsive, rash decisions.

00:05:49:22 - 00:06:14:16
Unknown
Sometimes people say, like, I felt like it wasn't even me. Like, I would never make that decision. And so that's a big part for a driver because you have such a high stress job. And then the physical component to it, the emotional, the mental health wise. Oh my gosh. Making big financial decisions, whether it's, a part you have to buy, whether to take a load or not.

00:06:14:18 - 00:06:44:11
Unknown
And negotiation, whatever it is, you want to be top of mind at your best. And so many drivers are not. Now, we know we we understand we need to be more, but we have to be doing something so this stress doesn't eat us up and we can keep on making decisions. If I'm a small carrier and I want to increase performance without spending a lot of money, can you give us three simple daily habits we can start implementing to get moving?

00:06:44:16 - 00:07:03:09
Unknown
Oh, I love this. I love this love of so much, Amy. Okay, so number one I call it the 15 minute wellness method. This is every day you are going to try to move for 15 minutes on purpose. So it's not like, oh, I wouldn't like loaded my truck. I love that you're doing that. But that's not what I'm talking about.

00:07:03:14 - 00:07:20:21
Unknown
So let's say you're doing your pre-trip check in the morning. You're going to walk two extra laps around your truck. It'll probably take you about five minutes or so when you're on your break. You're going to do 20 squats, maybe some heel raises, maybe a few stretches and maybe a 2 or 3 more laps around your truck.

00:07:20:23 - 00:07:43:02
Unknown
Then when you park for the night, you're going to maybe walk a lap around the truck stop parking lot. Or maybe you're going to do a little stretching in your sleeper. Or maybe you have dumbbells and you're just going to do some bicep curls for a minute straight. Like, it does not have to be fancy. Like we have a membership site with we have videos and tutorials, but you don't need that.

00:07:43:02 - 00:08:06:10
Unknown
Don't let anyone try to convince you that you need some fancy program to get healthy or fit. Turn on music and dance, but 15 minutes a day on purpose. So that's the first one. The second one is you have to start to choose to hydrate. Most drivers will say to me that, oh, I can't drink water. But then when you ask them what liquids they're drinking, it's 20oz of coffee.

00:08:06:10 - 00:08:27:06
Unknown
It's three sodas. It's a monster. It's, you know, whatever else it is, you're taking in a lot of liquid, but that liquid is dehydrating you rather than hydrating you. So my rule is always the night before you go to bed, I want you to put a bottle of water or a cup of water. If you sleep at home, whatever that is, you choose anywhere from 8 to 20oz.

00:08:27:06 - 00:08:48:00
Unknown
Okay? You decide what, what is reasonable for you. And when you wake up in the morning, before you even think about anything, you're going to sit up, put your feet on the ground, and you're just going to chug that bottle of water, because then right away you're going to be hydrating yourselves. You're going to help jumpstart digestion and elimination.

00:08:48:02 - 00:09:13:00
Unknown
You're going to bring hydration into your muscles, into your brain. Most people are. We talked about executive functioning, and we talked about stress before with the brain. Dehydration dramatically impairs your decision making. And it creates like brain fog throughout the whole day. It's kind of like, oh, I think this is just how I am. Know you're dehydrated. So one bottle of water in the morning every single day before you get going.

00:09:13:00 - 00:09:35:23
Unknown
That way, if you're out on the road once you do your pre-trip check, once you kind of get everything together, you're going to have to go to the bathroom. So it's not going to happen here. You're driving hours at all, but you already got a jumpstart on the day and the third one, the third one is you have to prioritize sleep like it is a load appointment, like you need to get somewhere by a certain time and yes, I know your schedule might change.

00:09:35:23 - 00:09:56:09
Unknown
For some of you, it might not be consistent every single day. But what I mean by prioritizing sleep for some of you that might be starting to add a sleep routine. So 5 to 15 minutes before you go to bed, you're going to turn the lights down. You're going to turn Netflix off and Facebook off. You're going to turn on some relaxing music.

00:09:56:11 - 00:10:14:02
Unknown
Maybe you're going to have a cup of tea, or you're going to put lotion on your arms and legs or whatever it is. Create a routine for yourself and why that's important. Think about babies. Babies need that routine to wind down well, so do adults. We haven't changed that much and so create a sleep routine for yourself if that you already have that.

00:10:14:04 - 00:10:32:22
Unknown
The next thing I want you to do is try to prioritize at least seven hours of sleep, even if you're just resting in bed, listening to relaxing music, your brain is still benefiting from that, and that's something that you can take to the bank. I love that because my my next question was, how can we get a bit more of a quality sleep?

00:10:32:22 - 00:10:55:00
Unknown
Or you just gave some amazing, amazing tips there. Is there anything else we would want to add in this, section of sleep before we close out? Yeah, so around 60%, I think of driver 60, 65%. Don't get seven hours of sleep. So if you're listening to this, like just think about last night and even these last two nights, like, how much sleep did you get?

00:10:55:01 - 00:11:10:14
Unknown
Well, let's look at it this way. When did you go to bed and when did you wake up and then how much of that were you actually getting good sleep? For a lot of people, it's like, man, I'm laying down, but I'm just tossing and turning, which goes back to the did you empty your cup during the day?

00:11:10:16 - 00:11:35:21
Unknown
But also when it comes to sleep, remember setting the mood, adding that sleep routine, but also looking at sleep as a nutrient. And so maybe for some of us listening, we just need to change our frame of thought and frame of mind when it comes to sleep. Some people are like, oh, I'll sleep when I'm dead. Well, you know, yeah, but what a crappy life you lived, not having that quality sleep.

00:11:35:21 - 00:12:02:15
Unknown
So just like you need vitamin D, just like you need calcium. Are you getting the S vitamin? And the S vitamin is sleep. And so rather than comparing yourself to someone else or the way you were 20 years ago, let's just focus on the reality of what you're facing right now. And the second we can look at our sleep situation through a clear lens and say, this is what I'm dealing with, instead of, oh, it must be nice, or oh, I never get to be at home at night.

00:12:02:15 - 00:12:30:21
Unknown
You know how we do that to ourselves to kind of keep ourselves from making changes. Take inventory today of your sleep and look at where it is that you can make some small changes and honor yourself with that. Don't beat yourself up and just one small change at a time to a more restful sleep. Speaking of like doing this to ourselves, because I know we if we're so used to operating on under stress, you don't even really notice that everything is open fire and burning.

00:12:30:23 - 00:13:06:23
Unknown
Could you maybe tell us some early signs of burnout that we can kind of pinpoint and say, I should start walking around my track, or maybe I should start prioritizing my sleep? Well, for some of you listening, your ears might be burning right now. Okay, so irritability over a little tiny issues. This is a big one. You kind of just lose your cool because someone looked like they cut you off, or you just feel like you're ready to scream at somebody because, you know, you felt like their tone was different on the phone than what it should be, even though rationally and to somebody of a sound mind and somebody that has good quality

00:13:06:23 - 00:13:26:23
Unknown
sleep and is thinking clearly, that wasn't interpreted at all, but irritability over small issues. Another one is we internalize everything. We think everything becomes about us, which is not one that's talked about a lot. But we think everyone is kind of attacking us when we're not in that kind of sound mind. And burnout is on the horizon.

00:13:26:23 - 00:13:45:00
Unknown
That's a really big one. We start to internalize, another one more physical is back pain and neck pain, and I'm talking about like, it doesn't go away and you don't know what you did. Now, I know for some drivers they're like, well, I've been driving for 20 years. Well, that's also your sign to start doing some exercise and taking care of yourself.

00:13:45:02 - 00:14:06:06
Unknown
But if you just have this random body ache, maybe your whole body just hurts. And it kind of came out of nowhere and it just keeps lingering. That's a huge sign of chronic stress and burnout. Waking up with muscle aches and pains. That's a really high sign of high cortisol, which is, a connection to burnout. And then maybe some other one.

00:14:06:07 - 00:14:25:20
Unknown
So let me think here, feeling like emotionally trapped and emotionally just like there's nothing you can do. Like, you just kind of throw up your hands and are just like, I feel like I have nowhere to turn. And that's usually kind of an end stage of burnout where you're at your wit's end and they're just you're kind of giving up hope a little bit.

00:14:25:22 - 00:14:51:15
Unknown
And then since this is kind of connected to finances, you might find yourself avoiding paperwork. You might find yourself avoiding paying bills. You might find yourself avoiding calling that person back, even though it's a super important phone call and you have to make it. Your job is on the line and you just won't do it. Those are all signs of burnout, and they need to be addressed because some of these are physical.

00:14:51:15 - 00:15:20:01
Unknown
Some of these are mental. Some of these are relationships. Some of these deal with your finances, your livelihood. Burnout is real. And I feel like a lot of people kind of throw it under the rug and try to puff their chest and say, yeah, I'll just get through it. No you won't. Burnout will only get worse. And so if some of these things sound like stuff you're dealing with, I want to really encourage you to hit the pause button and start to reevaluate where you can make some changes in your life before you're forced to.

00:15:20:03 - 00:15:47:23
Unknown
Definitely. And that's what I was saying just before the, before we started these questions. You can get so used to stress that pushing through is it seems like the only option. But there are options. And speaking of options, when drivers are negotiating rates, handling high pressure calls with brokers, are there anything, any tips or things that drivers can do to regulate that stress?

00:15:48:01 - 00:16:06:23
Unknown
Yes. This makes me think of one of the drivers I work with, Jim. Little on nudge, little spicy. Let's call him. And one of the things that I taught him was to take five deep breaths before he hops on any phone call. And so, you see, the phone rang. Okay. I'm going to take, you know, as many deep breaths as I can.

00:16:06:23 - 00:16:35:19
Unknown
I'm going to answer the phone. I'm going to keep breathing deeply so that I can drop that fight or flight response and kind of get into that parasympathetic nervous system, that rest and digest, where I can think logically and think clearly. So many people underestimate deep breathing, but when you're shallow breathing, that means like clavicle breathing, anxiety, stress, anger, frustration all just bubbled to the surface.

00:16:35:21 - 00:16:55:04
Unknown
When you start to breathe deeper into your belly and your diaphragm. So really getting that breath down, you're going to help regulate your nervous system. And that's going to send a signal to your brain to say you're safe. There's no fear chasing you like nothing bad is going to happen. This is just a phone call like you can do this.

00:16:55:06 - 00:17:10:05
Unknown
And so skipping that step can be really critical. And so for the driver that I was helping that made such a big difference for him. And he had a little reminder on the back of his phone that said just breathe. That was like a little sticker. So every time he picked up his phone, like that was a good reminder for him.

00:17:10:06 - 00:17:27:23
Unknown
A lot of times the drivers put a post-it note right on their dashboard that says, just breathe or take three deep breaths, just as that reminder that you really are in the driver's seat and you really are in control. Yeah. Other things that you could do if you're not driving is try standing up during the phone call.

00:17:28:01 - 00:18:02:06
Unknown
It just changes your blood pressure and it changes how you feel emotionally and when you can move a little bit. Sometimes that can get rid of that nervous tension or that anxious tension that you might be feeling. And then the last one is to relax the jaw, like, take your tongue off the roof of your mouth, drop your jaw, and just letting go of that tension in the face, it's amazing what that can do for you when you're on a difficult phone call or you're thinking about something, or you're about to call somebody, just letting that tension out of the face, it's like, well, I didn't realize I was holding so much of

00:18:02:06 - 00:18:30:15
Unknown
that in, and that can be a gateway for you to make better decisions. I know these tips might I know how they sound for people who are haters like me? Because I thought, you're telling me how to breathe, stop. And then I did it and I'm like, oh, okay, you're right. Yeah, it's true. Because even before, podcast interviews, I have to take those deep breaths because it it gives me anxiety and you think it's something so normal.

00:18:30:15 - 00:18:53:07
Unknown
And I know for grown adults, truckers and carriers who are making calls every day, that is maybe nothing. And maybe it does actually generate some stress and anxiety for you. And they don't even realize it's creating stress and anxiety because you're kind of out of your body because you are in fight or flight mode, and you've been operating like that for a really long time.

00:18:53:09 - 00:19:14:21
Unknown
And so if you're listening to this podcast right now, this is a really great opportunity for you to check in, because mental stress and emotional stress are real and they can create physical illness and physical symptoms that feel like they came out of nowhere. And it has nothing to do with your physical body, and it has everything to do with your mental and emotional state.

00:19:14:21 - 00:19:34:06
Unknown
So breathing is such a great way to connect the mind and the body together and to get you out of that fight or flight state that, like you said, Amy, I think our culture in general, just not tracking has normalized this like get or done, push through it. You know, I'm the strongest person in the world. Girl, look at me.

00:19:34:06 - 00:19:51:22
Unknown
I don't sleep or, you know, I hear one guy say, I, I work for 23 hours a day and sleep for one hour, and I'm like, that's actually, I wouldn't brag about that. That means that you don't know balance in your life and that you don't understand how to prioritize things in your life. Like, I would not brag about that at all.

00:19:52:00 - 00:20:15:15
Unknown
And so this is a really good opportunity for those of you listening to step back and observe and take inventory of where you're at in life and make some positive changes, knowing that the people who are listening to us are mostly small carriers. Do you have any tips for mindset shift that can help small carriers operate more like high performance business owners instead of just drivers?

00:20:15:17 - 00:20:42:10
Unknown
I think the first one is, you know, maybe a little self-help is sounding, but you have to make the decision mentally that you are worth it, and that everything that you know and all the skills that you have are enough to move you forward. And outside of trucking, a business coach told me many, many years ago she's like, nope.

00:20:42:12 - 00:21:05:03
Unknown
Most experts are really only like two weeks ahead of you. They're just bold and brave enough to put themselves out there and start educating others. And so I love that example and how to translate that for a driver or for for a carrier or owner operator listening that's maybe smaller, but wanting to play a little bigger. There's no better time than now.

00:21:05:05 - 00:21:24:19
Unknown
And so whatever it is that, you know, whatever it is, your expertise are, whatever it is you really feel good at, just lean into that and all the other things will fall into place. Never pretend you're someone that you're not. You don't have to try to act like you know what it's like to have a fleet with 50 trucks or, you know, be able to buy a truck with cash or whatever it is.

00:21:24:19 - 00:21:41:18
Unknown
Who cares? I'm just I'm just throwing stuff out there. But if you just lean into your expertise, not only is that going to build physical confidence, you're going to stand up straighter. Your shoulders are going to be more back. You're going to be happier. But that's going to really build that mental muscle for you to keep pushing through difficult things.

00:21:41:18 - 00:22:00:00
Unknown
So you're not behind. You're no one's smarter than you know. They just might have been around the block more. But quite frankly, what they're really doing is they're just willing to put themselves out there. And for a lot of us, we're just not like, Amy, you doing this podcast. You probably have a million reasons to not start the podcast.

00:22:00:02 - 00:22:15:21
Unknown
I'm tired. What if I wake up and I forgot to wash my hair? What if my internet goes out? Oh, what if my dog barks? How will I find someone to interview? What if they say no? What if I only have one listener? All. And I'm a failure? Like a million reasons to not do it.

00:22:15:21 - 00:22:35:06
Unknown
But the only difference is you did it anyways. And so for the drivers listening, just do the thing anyways. Period. You don't need more coaching, you don't need more consulting. You don't need more help. You don't need to ask 20 of your friends. You just need to do the next thing. And if you mess up, ask yourself, what did I learn from this?

00:22:35:09 - 00:23:04:19
Unknown
How can I not repeat that mistake and move forward again? That's it. That's the formula. I love this conversation. It's been really helpful for me, and I know it's going to be very helpful, helpful for our listeners. And to close out, if you could give one piece of advice to an independent owner operator who wants to maximize their profit, profits and their health, what would it be to protect your body like it's your primary income source?

00:23:04:21 - 00:23:33:07
Unknown
It's your biggest producing asset because it is. And if you don't protect that, it's not going to be a broken down truck that takes you off the road. It's not going to be, another carrier or the bank. It's going to be you. That all because you didn't decide to take 15 minutes a day to take care of yourself, to drink that one more bottle of water in the morning before you get up to prioritize sleep just a little bit more than what you have been.

00:23:33:09 - 00:24:01:09
Unknown
What if just those simple three things can make all the difference to where your physical body as your biggest asset, rather than your biggest liability? Hope. Thank you so, so much for breaking this down in a way that actually makes sense with actual actionable tips that we can implement day to day. Because I, as you just said, at the end of the day, just like your truck, your body is an asset.

00:24:01:09 - 00:24:29:06
Unknown
You are the asset, you are the tool. And when your body breaks down, your business slows down. That directly impacts profits and revenue for everybody watching. As always, remember, if you are looking to have better cash flow in your business, I will leave the link to Bobtail Drink service in the description of this video. And don't forget to take care of your mobility, because stress and sleep isn't just about releasing, it's about feeling better.

00:24:29:06 - 00:24:51:01
Unknown
It's about protecting your ability to run miles, your ability to negotiate clearly, and staying safe on the road, and also staying long term in this industry. If you got value from today's episode, don't forget to subscribe so you don't miss these conversations focused on helping you run smarter and more profitably. Thank you everyone for watching and drive safe.