How Your Commute Can Affect Your Wellbeing

Regardless of where you work, when you work or how far away your place of work is, you have to get there somehow. For most people, this means spending quite a bit of time commuting. Sitting in traffic isn’t a particularly popular way for people to spend their time, but there are some other negative aspects of commuting that you might not know about. Understanding how commuting can affect your health and mindset allows you to make good choices about how you get from point A to point B and how you can minimize the time you spend in your car.

What you might not know about commuting

You might already know that most people commute alone to work, but you may be surprised to learn how large the percentage of commuters who get to work this way really is. Approximately 85 percent of commuters drive alone to work, meaning that just 15 percent of all commuters get to work by walking, riding a bike, taking public transportation or carpooling. Although some commuters are fortunate enough to live just a few minutes from their workplace, about 8 percent spend two hours or more commuting.

Negative health effects

Long commutes have been connected to health problems in various studies over the years. Sedentary behavior can lead to obesity and various other health problems. Since people already spend so much time sitting down at work, it’s important for them to get exercise before and after their shift. Unfortunately, an hour-long commute in a car uses up two hours outside of work that could otherwise be spent walking, working out or simply standing and visiting with friends while preparing a meal. Commutes aren’t necessarily directly responsible for obesity, but they do contribute to habits and behaviors that cause weight gain and other related illnesses.

Sitting in traffic can have an effect on your mentality that only serves to exacerbate negative health outcomes. After being stuck in a car for an hour, you probably won’t be itching to work out at the gym or go for a run. What’s more, you’re less likely to prepare a meal at home if you spend much of your time commuting. After driving, it seems a lot easier to go through the drive-thru or order delivery. Unfortunately, those meal options are far more likely to cause weight gain and other health problems like high blood pressure and high blood sugar.

Call for roadside assistance in Visalia, CA

Even if you can’t avoid your commute, you can avoid the stress of a roadside breakdown when you get roadside assistance in Visalia, CA from Tom’s Body & Paint, Inc. We are here to help you with comprehensive services and 24-hour roadside assistance. We can help you with virtually any auto body repair, and we also provide RV and fleet maintenance. We are proud to have the largest paint booth in the area, so you don’t have to worry about getting service from a shop that can’t accommodate your needs. We can get your car back into great shape in no time—just stop by or give us a call for more information and to schedule your appointment!

Categorised in: Roadside Assistance

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