Overcoming type 2 Diabetes

Hi all,

I know it's been a long time since I wrote here, I have been busy with other writing projects, and moving, and making a living. Writing is just a hobby for me to kill those long hours waiting on dispatches, receivers or on a reset like I am today.

At any rate one of those writing projects is done and now available on Kindle. You can get it here:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012Y7JLRE?*Version*=1&*entries*=0

This book is a short 42 page book that outlines my struggles and victories over this disease which is so common in our industry.

If you know anyone that has been diagnosed with this disease I would (and they would) appreciate your passing this book on to them.

If you prefer a printed edition, that is also available on Amazon or Createspace or just go down to your local bookstore and ask them to order it for you.

I have been winning the battle against type 2 Diabetes for about four years now by using this simple diet based method and felt that many more could benefit from my experience. I believe that most Type 2's will benefit from this simple to implement, life changing, method.

Keep the rubber side down and until next time God Bless.

PS you can also like to my Author Page on Face Book here:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Leslie-Auger/1642899265924230

Is excersise overated?

I have been doing a lot of thinking on this subject lately as I have had some weight return (about 45 lbs). Being a truck driver I dont get much in the way of excersise, then when I get home its a flurry of movment to get chores done and I am sore for the next two or three days.

Ever since basic training I have hated the very word excersise so I decided I would do a little research into it.

It takes burning 3500 calories to loose one pound of body fat.  Okay, so how much excersise would I have to do to do that?

The answear is, a lot!!!
Check out the chart on this web site:
http://www.choosemyplate.gov/food-groups/physicalactivity_calories_used_table.html

Not very engouraging.

But, its not just the burning of callories thats important.

I learned that excersise strengthens the heart, incresses blood flow, reduces bad cholesterol, uses excess sugar, improves resperation and incresse the basel metabolic rate wich in turn incresses the amount of calories you burn while sitting on your behind.

I have also found a web site that has exercise that are specific to truck drivers:

http://www.healthtrucker.com/good-workout-for-truckers.html

https://www.thehealthytrucker.net/in-cab-exercises-for-truck-drivers/?utm_source=Exact_Target&utm_medium=email&utm_content=10_In_Cab_Exercises&utm_campaign=Fit_Email

Now the real question is will I do it?

So far the answer is No!

I want to change that but how does one overcome a lifetime of hatred towards a healthy accctivity?

I' ll get have to get back to you when I get it figured out. Till then keep the rubbber side down.

Is trucking "Fun"?

I was asked recently by a young cashier at a truck stop, " Is trucking fun?" I told her it depends on what you mean by fun.

She countered with, "... you get to see a lot of the country".

I said, "yes that true, whatever is on the side of the road".

I think that is a comman misconception of our profession by the general public. They really belive somehow that we are professional tourist. Nothing could be fruther from the truth.

They just don't get it that in order for them to have all the great goodies they can get at Wallmart someone had to bring it from somewhere and in a timely manner.

They just don't get it that we don't have time to go see Mt. Rushmore (even if we could get the truck there). The job is drive from poinnt A to poinnt B as fast as possiable so we can wait while the reciver or shipper takes thier sweet time to take the product off or put it on.

Yep, drive, sleep,drive, sleep and drive some more. Who has time for fun?

And home time is for many of us a mad rush to get all the chores done that had been neglected while we were away.

Fun? who has the time?

But the human machine doesn't  work well without some kind of "fun". We have to relax and release the tensions of the day. For me I read or play computer games or write, but every once in awhile the bordom and stress builds up and I just have to stop and 'veg out'.

So driver, what do you do for fun? I would like to know. Leave your comment. Thanks.

Manageable bits and pieces

Out with the old and in with the new. A term usually reserved for New Years, but today I am going to use it to describe the beginning of our Kitchen remodel.

If you have ever thought that home time for a trucker is the same as for the rest of the world, you would be most mistaken. I had been out for three weeks, got home friday afternoon, mowed about 1/4 acre, and began the project pictured on the left the next morning.

Finished this counter top Sunday night and started packing for another two week run. I have an 10 hour drive ahead of me today to get my load unloaded tomorrow bright and early. I had asked for today off because today is my 14th wedding anniversary to the most patient, loving , tolerant woman, I have ever known.

What makes truckers home time different than the rest of the worlds is that we have to live our lives in bits and pieces. There is still one more counter to resurface but I cannot start a project over the weekend and continue it through the week should it take longer than I estimated so, manageable bits and pieces.

The same is true for our relationships with family and friends. Relationships take time to develop so as you might guess truckers have few real friends. I have been living were I currently reside for over eight years now and I know few people and have no friends. Family takes all of my time when I am not caring for the home they live in.

Home time is dictated by the freight, and your ability to tolerate the long hours, boredom and your need for money. Every time I go home it costs about two to three hundred dollars on the next paycheck so, as I have said in my book, "So You Want To Be A Truck Driver" this job is not a job but a lifestyle. Not all are cut out for it, buy my book before you ever invest a single dime in this way of life, many are fooled by the clever advertising of the truck schools and driver teaching companies.

 Anyway will be late if I don't put it in gear so, till next time keep the rubber side down.

Les

Coffee VS. Cola

Hi all, I have caught a lot of flak over the years for my serious coffee addiction. I am embarrassed to tell you how much coffee I drink, so, I won't.

I have noticed over the past five or so years that soda is quickly becoming the beverage of choice for truckers. I know neither drink is good for our bodies but really which one is worse? 

Just off the top of my head I would have to say soda is.

Why?

Because soda contains sugar as well as caffeine. Sugar is a drug much like heroin and contains a good deal more calories than coffee, empty calories that contain no nutritional value. An 8 ounces serving of soda pop averages about 120 calories, 8 ounces of coffee averages 1 calorie, big difference. It's no wonder I know people who say all they had to do was quit soda pop to loose 25 pounds.

In an article on WebMD sugar, "...not only makes us fat, it also wreaks havoc on our liver, mucks up our metabolism, impairs brain function, and may leave us susceptible to heart disease, diabetes, even cancer."

A lot of drivers have told me that they switched to soda because it seems to work better at waking them up, this doesn't surprise me, even when considering the fact that soda contains less caffeine than coffee, an average of 95 to 200 milligrams for 8 ounces of coffee, and 23 to 50 milligrams for a 12 ounce soda. What makes the difference is the sugar, it's all those calories being dumped into your system.

Caffeine of course is also a drug, it affects our nervous system and gives a feeling of wakefulness, it increases our heart rate and blood pressure and may even cause the heart to beat irregularly and can interfere with a good nights sleep. It is also a diuretic which explains why you have to pea more. It also has the added effect of becoming tolerated in your system meaning that you must drink more to get the same effect and it is addictive just like sugar. The FDA had put together an informative brochure on caffeine, you can get it at:
http://www.fda.gov/downloads/UCM200805.pdf.

So bottom line here. Neither drug is good for you. Soda Pop will put pounds on and coffee will mess with your nervous system. Both are addictive. Best choice, drink water.

What will I do? What do all addicts do...

Keep the rubber side down. Till next time.

Les

Make it Hot... To Go!

I do love my  Road Pro Portable Oven.

The Picture shows a lentil chili I made for dinner. Half a cup of dry lentils, half a package of chili seasoning, half an onion, a can of diced tomatoes and about 4 ounces of shredded roast beef plus about half a cup of water. I put all of that in the bread tray the put it into the oven, plugged it in, and headed down the road. About an hour later I had to pull over and eat it cause the smell was making me hungry!

I don't get paid for endorsements like this one and if you would like to encourage me to keep writing then buy my book, "So, You Want To Be A Truck Driver". or my other one "Ten Commandments a Guide to Holiness".
At the very least like my Face Book Author page, please.

Enough advertisement!

The company I currently work for doesn't allow inverters installed since they think their little 1500 watt inverter will run a microwave and the environmental air, so the portable oven has been a Godsend for me.

Pictured on the right is my average breakfast (when I don't oversleep). It is made of 3/4 cup rolled oats with about a cup of almond milk made overnight by adding the liquid and letting it sit. I did make my eggs in the portable oven by lining the bread pan with foil then adding two eggs whipped with about a quarter cup of water, poured onto onion and bell pepper, plugged it in for about 20 minuets and presto, scrambled eggs. I did find that adding about half a cup of water into the oven under the bread pan does speed up the cooking of any item, but be careful when you open it that you don't get a steam burn.

I have cooked potatoes by wrapping them like I would for a conventional oven and putting them directly into the portable oven. I have had better results by adding water to the bottom half of the oven and then putting in the bread pan and the potatoes in the pan. It take about an hour to hour and a half and the way I deal with the time issue is to put them in at one of my stops then plug the oven in about and hour or so before I stop for that meal.

I have steamed broccoli in the same way I cook potatoes, takes about 20 to 30 minuets.

I like hot meals and with this cool little item I get to eat fresh and hot while on the go.

Keep the rubber side down.

Les

NO TIME!!!

"I Don't have the time to eat healthy",I can't tell you how many times I have used and heard this truly lame excuse for not eating healthy while on the road! That excuse is especially lame now, since we must take the mandatory 30 minute break we are all complaining about.

Let's get honest guys, the fact is you do have time you just don't want to do it.

Look at the meal in the picture at the right. I guarantee it took less time to fix than standing in line at Mcdonalds. I can guarantee it because I made it. Half a 12 oz. bag of salad mix a few slices of onion and tomato, as well as a few slices of cucumber from our garden, a can of tuna and a can of green beans, all under 8 minuets, heck, took me longer to eat it than to make it. So don't give me that lame old excuse,"I don't have time to fix healthy meals while on the road". I have two words for you B.S..

Let's consider the long term situation.

Keep eating at Micky D's or getting those footlongs at Subway and the oversized sodapops and the bags of chips, cookies etc. at the truck stops and I guarantee you your body will rebel. Diabetes, sleep apnea, heart and vascular diseases are all from poor nutrition and a lack of exercise. Lets face it, our way of life is a formula for physical disaster. We aren't just sedentary we are Super Sedentary. Of course there are exceptions and if your one of them please pass this article on to a fellow trucker.

For years I said I didn't have time to eat right while working, I was lying. First came sleep apnea, the mandatory yearly sleep studies are expensive and require an overnight stay at a sleep lab. There is the nap study which takes just an afternoon but what a pain.

Then came diabetes. I then had to learn something about nutrition and controlled it for a few years with diet but the day came when the good old excuse was once again employed and I soon lost control again and couldn't get motivated to regain control, that in time lead to being put on insulin.

Truckers if you are put on insulin work is done until you get a waiver from the FMCSA.It took me 10 months to get that waiver, thats a whole bunch of time. The waiver procedure requires that you have an endocrinologist and optometrist and see them every three months, not cheap without insurance or an income. And, unemployment in most states will not cover you during this time. Disability, forget it if you can work doing something else like cashier at Micky D's or greeter at Wall Mart.

So for every dollar you spend at one of the fast food restaurants or the junk food isles at the truck stops you better save two dollars for you future medical needs or you can take the time to eat right now and avoid the future health problems of wasted time and loss of income.

Your choice, spend a few minuets now making a healthy choice or spend months or years paying for it.

Keep the rubber side down.

Les

Cooking on the road

Hi all. I know its been awhile since I posted last,I was on medical leave again. This time for emergency eye surgery.

I want to tell you all about this awesome fathers day gift I received from one of my daughters. Its the Road Pro portable oven 

I am sure you all have seen them in the truck stops. They sell for around 30 dollars and so far I am most pleased with it. 

The company I currently work for will not install my invertor so I have been without a microwave and hot meals the Road Pro portable oven has solved that problem.

So far I have cooked the stew you see in the photo,  poached eggs, hot dogs and baked potatoes. It does take a little time to heat up but once started it cooks!!

The stew took about an hour, the baked potato about an hour and a half and about 15 minuets for hot dogs.

You do want to use the trays or buy throw away bread pans to make clean up easier. For my eggs I line the inside with foil and put in about 1/2 cup water, some onions, eggs on top, plug it in and about 20 minuets Am ready to eat.

One draw back is you must be carful opening the lid as you can get a steam burn.

Enough for now. Keep the rubber side down.

Les

Life of a Truck Driver

Hi all. I have been home nearly a month recovering from emergency eye surgery. Kinda sucks but am enjoying being home.

The attached photo is from Meritor on Twitter and is a accurate representation of our work life.

As accurate as that graphic is there is a whole lot not said, such as the crappy work conditions, the crappy truck stop food, the isolation, bad attitudes, poor relations with significant others due to the long periods of separation. Then there is the other drivers, even other commercial drivers can sometimes be real jerks.

Also, there is the health issues. Long hours sitting, little to no exercise, inconsistent sleep patterns and poor quality foods leading to hypertension, diabetes,and heart disease.

I read recently that the average lifespan of a truck driver is 56.

So why in the world would you want to be a truck driver?

Truth is, if I had known it was going to be like this I would not have singed up, but, now I am trapped unless I am willing to give up all I have and start over, too old for that now.

You might be able to save some one from this horrible and way underpaid lifestyle if you buy a copy of "So, You Want To Be A Truck Driver" and give it to them. 

Keep the rubber side down

Les

Sitting

Just sitting waiting on another driver to do a trailer swap. Nearly as bad as sitting at a receiver waiting to be unloaded hours after your appointment that you were early for. Nearly as bad, but not quite, easier because he is a fellow trucker.

Just got the call from him so will be out of here and headed home in about an hour.

Life in a big truck gives one a lot of time for thinking and reading, but not a lot of time for family and freinds. I don't get lonely but often feel the emptiness of not having close freinds. And honestly even though I have been married now for 13 years to the same woman I don't feel like I realy know her. When I am at home it's a whirlwind of chores so we just don't really have time to be together. It's no wonder so many truckers are divorced.

I am just kind of rambling today so guess I'll call it quits and get off here.

Keep the rubber side down.
Les