Heavy Duty Trucking, May 2018

HDT MAY 2018 64 WWW TRUCKINGINFO COM Recognizing that establishing a companywide health and wellness program could benefit everyone from its top management and 220 office personnel to its more than 1100 mostly company drivers Hirschbach Motor Lines decided in late 2015 that what it needed was an intensely practical program consistent with the rigorous demands of trucking The privately held company founded in 1925 deploys more than 950 power units and 1500 trailers to provide refrigerated truckload service nationwide as well as dedicated operations and specialized services including facility to facility highvolume moves and heavy hauls President and CEO Brad Pinchuk opted to consult with two health and wellness experts physician Patricia Novick and Sergio Rojas a former executive director of the Presidents Council on Fitness and Sports Together they designed a holistic approach that launched in 2016 tailored to managerial and other office staff It was built on a health promoter model that leveraged a 12 person team Next step A program for drivers Early in the programs rollout Rojas came on board as Hirschbachs full time wellness director Back in the 1990s when he was in his 20s Rojas got interested in improving his own health and fitness That led him to the field of physical training and eventually a successful career as a health wellness and motivational coach and speaker Along the way Rojas has worked with professional sports teams corporations and community organizations to develop and implement a variety of wellness programs and launched his own training gym He also has appeared as an expert on various television programs including the Dr Oz Show and the Today Show and spent 11 years as the fitness and wellness authority on NBC5 in Chicago At first I had wanted to stay on as a consultant for Hirschbach explains Rojas But he said Pinchuk sold him on taking the job by pointing out that the drivers need someone on staff they can interact with who knows what they are up against And I soon got to know drivers for the saltof the earth people they are Its rewarding to help them live better For the office staff program the members were drawn from various departments based on their leadership abilities They worked with the two consultants one onone over three months to learn key elements of wellness From there the health promoters took the program to the rest of the staff educating them on tracking health stats increasing physical activity and eating healthier Benefits were quickly realized in terms of fewer sick days reports of sustainable weight loss and development of a more positive culture among the office workers In the summer of 2016 Rojas started to ramp up a distinct program for drivers more challenging to design than one for a closed community like an office It began with 36 drivers volunteering to take part in a pilot centered on weekly wellness coach SPONSORED BY Putting drivers on the road to health Helping drivers help themselves is a challenge Sergio Rojas meets by meeting drivers where they are