Stepping in instead of out for cardio health

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Got your own example of a do-it-yourself solution to a problem related to truck equipment or owner-operator business/lifestyle? Send your story to tdills@randallreilly.com with the “highway hacks” subject line to be considered for the monthly feature.Got your own example of a do-it-yourself solution to a problem related to truck equipment or owner-operator business/lifestyle? Send your story to [email protected] with the “highway hacks” subject line to be considered for the monthly feature.

Husband-wife owner-operator team Martin and Carolina Hill, based in Southern California and hauling in a 2016 Freightliner Cascadia, get a good bit of exercise on long walks to and from Catholic mass wherever they happen to be on the road with opportunity for it. “We go to mass every Sunday, and other days when possible,” Martin says, “which often requires walking long distances, usually at least a few miles each way.”

But early this year the pair found a good supplement to exercise needs for the time between that Martin calls a “better workout for strictly burning calories.”

Martin and Carolina Hill use a stepper machine for in-cab workouts on their team hauls. It and similar steppers offer a compact option for relatively high-intensity exercise where getting outside is not an option on the road. You’ll find the devices available via sporting goods stores and online at Target, Walmart, Amazon and others.Martin and Carolina Hill use a stepper machine for in-cab workouts on their team hauls. It and similar steppers offer a compact option for relatively high-intensity exercise where getting outside is not an option on the road. You’ll find the devices available via sporting goods stores and online at Target, Walmart, Amazon and others.

The Marcy MS69 Mini Stepper weighs about 15 pounds and utilizes hydraulic shocks to provide resistance, and comes with resistance bands for the upper body that can be utilized as well.

There are other steppers on the market that are similar, at a variety of price points. The Hills purchased theirs at Big 5 Sporting Goods, where it retailed for $55.

Find all of the installments in our “Highway Hacks” series of reader fixes for common owner-operator issues via this link.

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