Food Junkie for Trucking Industry
A guide to what to eat while driving a truck or any vehicle with a little side dish of humor mixed in! The real issue at hand, and we are all guilty of it, is eating while driving. The question is…is this a distracted driving behavior? Of course, the answer is yes from most points of view while driving any vehicle, but especially when operating a truck. If you must indulge in eating while driving, because you believe your optimizing your time (similar to you reading a book by an executive who thinks multi-tasking is the impressive way to the executive wing), please take note of the common sense do’s and don’ts of effective eating while driving. The safe smart driver always does a proper pre-trip and that includes diet and prepping and packing food for the trip properly.
Please take note: your significant other with thank you and so will your clothes, not to mention the wear and tear on your washer.
What to eat while driving a truck or any moving vehicle:
1. Bite size anything that does not drip.
2. Vegetables – carrots, celery, cut-up small florets of broccoli, etc. – sorry no dipping into hummus or dips, since it adds calories and you get distracted by having to find the dip.
3. Apples – the ultimate choice – fills you up and you can throw it out the window due to my made up sustainable environmentally friendly rules of disposable food items. Bananas are another good throw away fruit as long as peel does go through the open window of an opposing vehicle. Yes, that has happened to me – once. While I get credit for hitting the bull’s eye, the other person was not very happy I assume.
4. Beef Jerky – its macho and has lots of protein, especially if its venison jerky. Hunting season just around the corner.
5. Protein bars – watch the sugar content guys, if you want those close to 6 pack abs.
6. Cheese sticks, chucks, etc. – easy to digest and packed with protein
7. Hard boiled eggs – protein -shells should already be off prior to beginning of trip – proper pre-trip here.
8. A pre-made bagel with cream cheese or peanut butter already spread in between. Proper Pre-trip prep again.
Foods to avoid because of spilling, dripping hazard, makes driver tired, and health concerns, not to mention the great photo opps of your messy shirt and pants at the warehouse or receiver:
1. Taco’s or burritos – I hope this one is obvious
2. Juicy hamburgers – a close second on the obvious meter
3. Salad – while healthy – guess what, you need a fork, unless you inhale your food.
4. Soups and chili’s – Same thing, guess what you need a spoon, at least most of us.
5. Gyro’s – tastes great but messy and spills in your lap
6. French fries – greasy – hands can slip off the steering wheel. It amazing where those little fries end up.
7. BBQ or marinated anything – sticky on hands and then gets everywhere, not a good look.
8. Jelly filled or powdered donuts – if jelly drips or powder goes all over – looks bad at a roadside inspection and you got lots of explaining to do.
9. All American favorite – hot dogs while then are easy to handle in theory, the toppings tend to spill into your lap again.
10.Fried chicken without bun – its messy, greasy and you are tempted to wipe your hands often-typically on shirt or pants. You are distracted and it’s a poor diet choice while driving to heavy on system.
11.Anything you need to grab from a bag – chips, crackers, peanuts, etc. You tend to look over and then are distracted away from looking ahead on the road and proper defensive driving techniques.
12.If not in a closed container with an appropriate opening for drinking – please no hot drinks that can spill on your lap, or spill with a stop, sudden turn and cause major issues of pain and discomfort in the wrong places. Afterall you can’t sue yourself for being negligent or absence of all common sense.
13.While creamy, tasty and a light snack – no yogurt or pudding, again guys watch the sugar content – think 6 pack abs. Once again -you also need a spoon!
14.Ice cream cones – they melt, they drip when they melt and leaves you sticky on your face and lips. Again, not a good look or photo opp.
Probably missed a few, but you get the idea. A messy truck is never good at a roadside inspection. Unfortunately, perception is reality for some. Stay clean, stay alert and know your ELD system to retrieve proper data , eat healthy, exercise and enjoy the driving experience.