Courier Driver Road Tips - 3 Things to Stay Alert on the Road

As a courier driver you may often experience some stress in your working life, and you need to ensure you're on top of your game in order to avoid potential challenges, including road accidents. In order to remain focused and alert while accomplishing a job, any courier driver can benefit from these three tips.

Hydrate

You may have a beverage of choice like an ice-cold latte, black coffee, or a soda that you drink while driving in order to spike up your sense of alertness. The problem with these beverages is that many of them can actually be dehydrating. Soda’s high sugar content can get in the way of your body’s ability to hydrate itself, and drinking coffee can also be dehydrating, especially when you drink the high-caffeine variety. Dehydration can be insidious - you don’t actually feel it coming, you can only sense its consequences when it’s already too late. That’s why it’s very important to always have a bottle of good old water or an energy drink with you at all times, especially during hot days. Staying hydrated can keep you mentally alert and focused, no matter what time of day.

Circulate

By ‘circulate’, we specifically refer to blood circulation. As a courier driver your job can actually work against your cardiovascular health; you may often have to sit in traffic and your body can also be subjected to repetitive movements that can make for long-term health issues. As well, the stress of having to chase deadlines can significantly add to the entire cardiovascular load. To counteract these factors it is important to stretch regularly, especially your legs and arms. Also, remember to take deep breaths when you can. You can fit in a deep breathing routine after you make a delivery - stand by your van and do some quick stretching or jogging-in-place as well. It only takes a few minutes, yet, done regularly, it can protect you from any cardiovascular issues later in life.

Meditate

Yes, meditate! If this sounds a little 'New Age' for you, reconsider. The art of driving day in and day out can be very stressful for a professional courier driver, especially if you’re chasing a tight deadline and the day seems to toss one challenge after another in your path. Amid the high-blood-pressure-inducing stresses of the day, it’s important to remember what really matters: your health. Practising meditation, even for just a few minutes a day, can work wonders for your emotional, mental and physical well-being. It’s not difficult and you can do it whenever you’re safely parked at a pit stop, when you wake up in the morning, or even after a meal. The results of studies indicate that you can derive huge health benefits even from a five-minute meditation session.

Norman Dulwich is a correspondent for Courier Exchange, the world's largest neutral trading hub for same day courier driver jobs in the express freight exchange industry. Over 3,000 transport exchange businesses are networked together through their website, trading courier jobs and capacity in a safe 'wholesale' environment.

Writer and Online Marketing Manager in London.