Typical health and wellness programs target white collar employees who sit in a cubical all day, said Mark Manera. Manera founded Offshift, a digital health platform tailored for blue collar truck drivers, as a physical therapist who observed in his patients what 20 to 30 years behind the wheel of a semi can do to a driver’s body.
Those typical programs don’t fit into a truck driver’s lifestyle, Manera said.
“An industry agnostic solution might give a driver an hour-long workout they have to find a gym to park their truck at, then go in and spend an hour doing it. Offshift gives drivers a five- to 10-minute workout they can do in the back of their cab anywhere they park,” he said. “Most programs hand people a meal plan and expect them to flip their whole life upside down and change everything they eat tomorrow. Offshift gives drivers small habits they can do anywhere they drive/stop, then educates them on how to complete that habit at the truck stop or McDonalds attached to it.”
Now, Offshift has joined Project 61, a nonprofit that addresses the trucking industry’s driver health crisis. Truck drivers, with the highest rates of obesity and diabetes of any occupation in the U.S., have a lower average life expectancy – 61 years – than the general population.
Project 61 recently acquired Offshift to expand the two organizations’ mutual mission of improving driver health and longevity.
Jeremy Reymer, founder of PROJECT 61, said investing in driver health is the smartest way to reduce risk in trucking because when drivers are healthy, they’re safer, more alert and more engaged, leading to better safety scores and retention. When drivers are unhealthy, he said healthcare costs, workers comp claims, crash rates and disability payouts go up.
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"This is a game-changer for the movement. If we’re going to address this industry-wide health crisis at scale, technology has to lead the way," said Reymer, who also founded DriverReach, a recruiting and compliance management system for carriers that was recently acquired by Tenstreet. "With the acquisition of Offshift, we're turning awareness into action through a proven solution that empowers drivers to take daily steps toward a longer, healthier life."
Project 61 was recently founded with a focus on raising awareness and providing education and resources to help drivers. Offshift started as a for-profit employee benefit program sold to trucking companies. With this acquisition, Offshift is now free.
Reymer said he realized there could be no real solution at scale without leveraging technology and making it available for free. He said it made more sense to acquire Offshift than to build that technology itself.
“Nearly every driver has a mobile device to download an app that they can engage with to improve their health. It’s critical to leverage that ubiquitous avenue in order to connect with all the drivers who truly want or need help,” Reymer said. “In addition to the mobile app, leveraging technology through wearable activity/fitness trackers will help track progress and provide a better experience.”
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Offshift’s software is a mobile app that provides each individual driver with a trucking-specific health program that address nutrition, movement and sleep. It educates drivers about how to exercise in their trucks and how to eat healthier on the road and tracks sleep with a wearable. It also provides a driver-led community, giving drivers the ability to engage with each other in the app and participate in group challenges designed to foster community between drivers, companies and families around shared health goals.
The workouts and habits progress weekly and give drivers a program they can follow that fits into their life on the road, said Manera, who will serve as president and chief health officer of Project 61 going forward.
