140 replies to this topic

[The Vulcan]

F1 drivers are presumably some of the fittest athletes - and to maintain their high level of performance these drivers would need to be super-fit. Would anyone have some inkling on what their fitness routine entails, what sort of regimented exercise they go through and what dietary prescriptions they follow?

[logic]

Originally posted by The Vulcan
F1 drivers are presumably some of the fittest athletes

[Oho]

Originally posted by logic

Ave !!!

Veit jalat suustani........


- Oho -

[Gemini]

Vulcan,

There was as good article on that here on Atlas some time ago...

http://www.atlasf1.c...10/fitness.html

[MortenF1]

Originally posted by Oho



Ave !!!

Veit jalat suustani........


- Oho -

Miksi?

[Enkei]

Originally posted by race addicted


Miksi?

Tutti Frutti?

[Buford]

Yaba Daba Doo

[Oho]

Ave !!!

My guess is that head to head to most professional endurance athlets the fitness level of any F1 driver is at best ordinary and quite frankly below par. Driving a round for two hours in an F1 is definately a picknick in comparison to skiing 50k's cross counry in heavy terrain in mere two hours, and thats just one example. The crapola one hears about Schumcaher having stamina to challenge professional cyclists in Tour is just that, for my taste the chances he made it through single mountain stage while making the cut are next to nil

- Oho -

[Gemini]

Originally posted by Oho
Ave !!!

The crapola one hears about Schumcaher having stamina to challenge professional cyclists in Tour is just that, for my taste the chances he made it through single mountain stage while making the cut are next to nil

- Oho -

true, but he also does not consult his 'Apotheker' as often as Tour boys do...if you know what I mean

[roadie]

the guys who drive these cars need to be seriously fit and strong. they need to deal with something that not many other pro sports people have to...namely g-force. when they are pulling the g's that they do under acceleration, braking and cornering the body is made to feel up to 5 times (i think that this is about the maximum g's that an f1 car can pull) heavier. if you are undergoing this kind of punishment for just two hours especially in the neck area you have to take a lot of training.

there was a post on this bb some time ago about a journalist/racing driver who was given the oppurtunity to drive a jaguar r3. he wrote of his experience and he had to have intensive training for months, and still felt worn out after just a couple of laps. i will try and find this and link to it, it was extremely interesting.

[Double Apex]

Originally posted by Oho

My guess is that head to head to most professional endurance athlets the fitness level of any F1 driver is at best ordinary and quite frankly below par. Driving a round for two hours in an F1 is definately a picknick in comparison to skiing 50k's cross counry in heavy terrain in mere two hours, and thats just one example. The crapola one hears about Schumcaher having stamina to challenge professional cyclists in Tour is just that, for my taste the chances he made it through single mountain stage while making the cut are next to nil

- Oho -

But how would a cross country skier or a cyclist cope with two hours in an F1 car?
And how would a cross country skier or a cyclist do if you would put either of them in a boxing ring to fight against Schumacher? (or any other F1 driver for that matter)

Different sports, different requirements.

[kenjafield]

Originally posted by Double Apex


But how would a cross country skier or a cyclist cope with two hours in an F1 car?
And how would a cross country skier or a cyclist do if you would put either of them in a boxing ring to fight against Schumacher? (or any other F1 driver for that matter)

Different sports, different requirements.

Wait for a month and we'll see this again as a great idea by Paul Stoddart for the sunday mornings

[HSJ]

Oho, although no doubt some things about the fitness of F1 drivers are exaggerated, I wouldn't be so sure about the general idea of them being very fit even compared to endurance athletes. First of all I'd like to know how many hours per day do F1 drivers train, and how many do, say, cyclists.

While it might seem like there's no way for a F1 driver to compare, actually it isn't so simple. There's a limit that the cyclists or any other sportsmen can train effectively. The body needs to recover, and quite a lot too. If you train beyond a certain mark it won't do you any good, quite the opposite. If the F1 drivers train close to that mark there really isn't much the cyclists can do to improve on that, unless they use drugs of course - which they do, a lot. (You can add pretty much all the "atheletes" on that drug list btw.)

Another point is, that although there's not much chance of a F1 driver to be competitive in cycling right off the bat, the opposite is true also. And I don't mean that the cars are hard to drive, I mean fitness. You see, even if in theory your body is fit enough to do something, in reality you get a nasty surprise when you switch from one form of sports to another. I don't know the theory behind it, but I do know that in practice each and every sport and excercise need to be trained for specifically and actually done before your body is really good at it. Like a cyclist should, in theory, probably be fit enough to last a F1 race, I seriously doubt he would if he tried. His neck would be busted many times over as well as other muscles. Just like a F1 driver might indeed not last even for a single stage in cycling, I doubt a cyclist would last 20 laps in a F1 car at a competitive level.

[Ross Stonefeld]

Well just compare the arms of an F1 driver to a cyclist. Then compare their legs. That gives you an idea of the difference focus of each training regime.

As it stands, topline racing drivers are *incredibly* fit and well balanced physiologically. They are well and truly clear of most 'professional' atheletes. Running a little bit then stopping for 90 minutes in a football match is hardly fitness, those guys are stumbling out of clubs half the time.

So racing drivers are definately up there, however after them there's a huge gap to the Triatheletes and the cyclists.

[Big Block 8]

How do you define "fitness"? It's defined by the sport you're competing in. Sumo wrestlers are apparently "fittest" for their sport, although the current model offered by western sport standards and physical "ideal" state, which we all should try to achieve, is somewhat different.

Question is, is "fitness" really defined by one's lung + cardiovascular potency / bodyweight -ratio?

[Big Block 8]

Originally posted by kenjafield


Wait for a month and we'll see this again as a great idea by Paul Stoddart for the sunday mornings

Main event - who's got a "glass jaw", MS or DC? Or both?

[Ross Stonefeld]

Basically, yeah. Id say fitness is a superior level of health. Sumo wrestlers are not healthy. Neither are most American football players. For all the glory they get, European Footballers arent *that* fit.

Fitness to me is in a lot of ways a measure of efficiency, maximising what your body has in it.

[Big Block 8]

Originally posted by Ross Stonefeld
Basically, yeah. Id say fitness is a superior level of health. Sumo wrestlers are not healthy. Neither are most American football players. For all the glory they get, European Footballers arent *that* fit.

Fitness to me is in a lot of ways a measure of efficiency, maximising what your body has in it.

But doesn't maximizing your strength decrease your endurance and vice versa?

Ultimately, I'd personally define health by life expectancy and quality of life. The longer and less sick you live, the better. The "ultimate" professional athletes later on often have lots of illnesses and die younger. Hard training and enhancing additives they most often take isn't what human body is built for, no matter how "fit" the person looks like when he's young. Some exercise - good, no exercise - bad, a bundle of exercise - the worst.

[Ross Stonefeld]

Originally posted by Big Block 8
But doesn't maximizing your strength decrease your endurance and vice versa?

No? Sure if you've got ridiculously huge muscles it makes your heart work that much harder, but you'd be surprised how strong you can be with a fairly lean body.

Hard training and enhancing additives they most often take isn't what human body is built for, no matter how "fit" the person looks like when he's young. Some exercise - good, no exercise - bad, a bundle of exercise - the worst.

Having been severely overweight, and now above average fitness, I can tell you which one I prefer and which one is better for my body. I dont think im going to die any sooner because ive gotten healthier. Doping is another aspect, we're just talking about fitness right now. If drivers doped, even something as minor as ephedra, they'd be thrown out.

[jdanton]

Doping wouldn't really help racing drivers anyway.

FWIW, the average European pro cyclist trains 25-35 hrs a wk. Most of the top guys in the US do 15-25 (our races are shorter, so we tend to focus more on intensity)

BTW, bike racers do have weak arms, but don't underestimate our neck strenth.

[Ross Stonefeld]

Neck?

I do cycling at a moderate intensity for my regiment, and ive never had any neck soreness. Some minor minor back pain if my posture isnt good, but the biggest annoyance is my palms getting a bit sore/numb even with padded gloves. Ive got a cheapo bike though so it might just be the vibration through the freaking solid steel frame.

[biercemountain]

I would imagine that LATERAL g loads are what make an F1 drivers "day at the office" the most difficult.

Everyone I've ever spoken to that has driven any kind of formula car has always talked about how rough it was on their neck and sides.

Fighter pilots don't really encounter the kind of G loads F1 drivers do. Theirs is mostly either pressing them into the seat or trying to throw them out of it (negative G's are apparently agonizing and quite sickening). F1 drivers might be pushed front to back due to acceleration and deceleration but it's a different environment for the most part.

As far as fitness goes, I'd say F1 drivers are VERY fit and MS especially so. Even after races in stifling heat, he never seems to be sweating or breathing hard.

I've heard MS's heart rate while racing is also suprisingly low which shows how well suited his body and mind have become to the task of auto racing.

[Big Block 8]

Originally posted by Ross Stonefeld


No? Sure if you've got ridiculously huge muscles it makes your heart work that much harder, but you'd be surprised how strong you can be with a fairly lean body.

Actually I've watched women's weightlifting championships. My oh my! But still - the bigger, the stronger. And getting big does harm your endurance capabilities.

Originally posted by Ross Stonefeld

Having been severely overweight, and now above average fitness, I can tell you which one I prefer and which one is better for my body. I dont think im going to die any sooner because ive gotten healthier. Doping is another aspect, we're just talking about fitness right now. If drivers doped, even something as minor as ephedra, they'd be thrown out.

Hopefully you'll enjoy a long and healthy life. Losing fat in reasonable margins is usually healthy, but that wasn't what I was talking about (like a person normally weiging 70 kg weighing 150 kg). What I meant, that if one is a bit on the chubby side, like 70 kg guy weighing 80 kg, one doesn't necessary live any longer nor healthier, if one tries to make oneself look like a poster boy and weighing 60 kg. It can even be the other way around. And if training as hard as professional athletes, it's simply poison for one's body.

[jdanton]

Originally posted by Ross Stonefeld
Neck?

I do cycling at a moderate intensity for my regiment, and ive never had any neck soreness. Some minor minor back pain if my posture isnt good, but the biggest annoyance is my palms getting a bit sore/numb even with padded gloves. Ive got a cheapo bike though so it might just be the vibration through the freaking solid steel frame.

You have to hold your head up while in a crouched racing position. I also get lower back pain not from the riding position, but when your going really hard (climbing or accelerating a lot) because you use those muscles. The other neck thing (which applies only to limited subset of bike racers) on the banked (anywhere from 24 to 50 deg) velodromes we race on you have to fight Gs to keep your neck up. It's not major (not like an F1 car, I'm sure) but similar to what I've felt when karting.

BTW, if you want a good deal on a newer bike, email me.

[Williams]

Originally posted by Big Block 8


But doesn't maximizing your strength decrease your endurance and vice versa?

Well there are two kinds of muscles, one type which are less bulky but which can operate quite efficiently for a long time, and the more bulky ones that can transmit large amounts of power for a short time. That's why marathoners are so skinny-looking, they have empahsized the development of the muscles required for endurance, which are less bulky, while weight lifters are the exact opposite. Most sports require some combination of the two muscle types. For example bicyclists need powerful muscles for hill-climbing, but also require endurance muscles for long level distances.

Where the compromise between strength and endurance comes in is the fact that the bulky power-producing muscles also consume a lot of energy even at rest, so to maintain a high energy level over a two-hour race, your driver is probably best off without too much bulk, and that in the right places i.e. arms.

[Big Block 8]

Originally posted by Williams


Well there are two kinds of muscles, one type which are less bulky but which can operate quite efficiently for a long time, and the more bulky ones that can transmit large amounts of power for a short time. That's why marathoners are so skinny-looking, they have empahsized the development of the muscles required for endurance, which are less bulky, while weight lifters are the exact opposite. Most sports require some combination of the two muscle types. For example bicyclists need powerful muscles for hill-climbing, but also require endurance muscles for long level distances.

Where the compromise between strength and endurance comes in is the fact that the bulky power-producing muscles also consume a lot of energy even at rest, so to maintain a high energy level over a two-hour race, your driver is probably best off without too much bulk, and that in the right places i.e. arms.

Info blast of the day:

Actually there isn't two types of muscles, but two types of muscle cells in a single muscle. They taught me long time ago in school, that with adults, the amount of muscle cells is a constant, only size changes when you exercise, same with fat cells. The quality of the muscle cells is also fixed (the portion which is fast and which is endurance), hence the natural "talent" towards power or endurance or being fat. You can only affect the size of the cells and with muscles, to the vascular system in the muscle tissue. Bigger cell size means more power, bigger vascular system in relation to muscle cells means more endurance. If it goes differently, both my teacher and textbook lied. Damn them if they did!

I still retain my previous statement, that "fitness" is eventually determined only after a person has passed away and we can evaluate his/her life length and amount of illnessess he/she had to bear.

[F1Johnny]

Originally posted by Ross Stonefeld
Basically, yeah. Id say fitness is a superior level of health. Sumo wrestlers are not healthy. Neither are most American football players. For all the glory they get, European Footballers arent *that* fit.

Fitness to me is in a lot of ways a measure of efficiency, maximising what your body has in it.

Footballers may not be at the level of triathletes and riders, but they are constantly moving up and down the pitch and you cannot walk. I always look at the NBA and wonder why these guys geto to take breaks. In a 90 minute football match you play 45 mins straight running up and down. I remember not playing for a long time and agreeing to play with a group of guys on not even a full size pitch. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. It is difficult.

[BRNDLL]

OK. I am a racing cyclist and an F1 enthusiast so I feel I must make some comments here.

Yes, two vastly different physical demands being placed on the body. Driving a car exerts heavy loads on a body but primarily it is the upper body. I have raced karts and driven lots of sports cars so I feel I can comment. The neck for sure gets pushed and the forearms take a toll for someone that doesnt drive for a living. There have been several mentions over the years that F1 dirvers neck size's will increase a shirt size or two over the course of a season because the neck gets stronger. All of this leads up to them being strong but not necessarily as "fit" as cyclist.

I currently do 200-250 miles a week training for the level of racing I am currently doing (US Cat 2) and I know that the professionals will train anywhere from 400-500 miles a week in the leadup to the Spring races. Think about that a minute... that is about 6-7 hours a day on the bike every week. Then when races start, the intensity takes over and the training becomes recovery between events.

F1 drivers, no matter how fit they look (and are), probably do not train 6+ hours a day. My guess is the dedicated ones probably train 3 hours a day. That will not get them over the Gavia or the Alp d'huez stage even one time, much less get them to the finish at the Tour of Flanders.
It is much to specialized to even conceive that someone with no formal specific training could compete.

bb

[Ross Stonefeld]

Originally posted by F1Johnny


Footballers may not be at the level of triathletes and riders, but they are constantly moving up and down the pitch and you cannot walk. I always look at the NBA and wonder why these guys geto to take breaks. In a 90 minute football match you play 45 mins straight running up and down. I remember not playing for a long time and agreeing to play with a group of guys on not even a full size pitch. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. It is difficult.

On its own yeah. But do 90 minutes without stopping on a bike at 105rpm and 250watts. Thats some movement.


F1 driver > Footballer

[F1Johnny]

Originally posted by Ross Stonefeld


F1 driver > Footballer

I couldn't say that. Different areas of focus. I would put them on the same level.

[Ross Stonefeld]

Id have to think for a few minutes to put them on the same level as a Formula 3000 driver. Footballers tend to be quite trim and have decent legs, but even Beckham's and Ronaldo's havent got much of an upper body. And id put any GP/CART driver's legs up against theirs any day. Tony Kanaan is a *tiny* little bastard, and he does 2 hours of biking every morning just to stay fit for racing.

[jdanton]

In terms of complete fitness...

Triathlete > Bike Racer > Footballer >= F1 Driver

A footballer could be as fit as an F1 driver or not. Both of those are sports where your aerobic power output is ultimate determination of you results. Being really fit helps, but is not the criteria on which you win (unlike bike racing or triathlons)

I think the determination of how demanding a sport is, is how many of the participants are doping. So bike racing and tennis are clearly the hardest sports

[100cc]

Originally posted by jdanton

The other neck thing (which applies only to limited subset of bike racers) on the banked (anywhere from 24 to 50 deg) velodromes we race on you have to fight Gs to keep your neck up. It's not major (not like an F1 car, I'm sure) but similar to what I've felt when karting.

You can reach 2-3g's in karting.... you get that much on a bicyle?

[Ross Stonefeld]

Id definately have to put footballers behind racing drivers then for complete fitness, if nothing more than just for the greater demand for upper body strength.

[jdanton]

Originally posted by 100cc


You can reach 2-3g's in karting.... you get that much on a bicyle?

Okay I'm probably off a bit then. On some of the 'dromes we race on (the ones where the bends aren't right) at speed (32-35 mph) you stuggle to keep your neck up in the corners and your ass gets compressed into the saddle, but I doubt it's at the 3g level..

[Ross Stonefeld]

Isnt a velodrome more of a constant held G as well? Holding a muscle in flex for a length of time wears it out quite quickly.

[mach3]

Originally posted by Ross Stonefeld
Id definately have to put footballers behind racing drivers then for complete fitness, if nothing more than just for the greater demand for upper body strength.

Sorry, but I would have to disagree completely. Soccer/football players have incredible mid body strength and lower body strength and endurance. I played a game or two in Brazil in 40C weather and after 85 minutes trying to chase down a lead pass, while holding off a defender, is probably the most physically demanding thing I have ever done in my life. Nothing in racing has ever come close including the training regimen. I am not pulling the same G-load as F1 drivers but then again I'm not playing in the World Cup final either.

[jdanton]

Originally posted by Ross Stonefeld
Isnt a velodrome more of a constant held G as well? Holding a muscle in flex for a length of time wears it out quite quickly.

If the track is built right yes, but a lot of the tracks we race on don't have the right design to the bends (they're too tight for the banking) so you pull G loads. The good tracks don't have this issue...

[Ross Stonefeld]

Originally posted by mach3


Sorry, but I would have to disagree completely. Soccer/football players have incredible mid body strength and lower body strength and endurance. I played a game or two in Brazil in 40C weather and after 85 minutes trying to chase down a lead pass, while holding off a defender, is probably the most physically demanding thing I have ever done in my life. Nothing in racing has ever come close including the training regimen. I am not pulling the same G-load as F1 drivers but then again I'm not playing in the World Cup final either.

The difference is whether you're playing Nation Wide Division 1 in the UK, or the World Cup, the physical difference isnt that great. Nor s te length of the game. What changes is the competition level. The difference between a 30 minute race in an F3 car vs a 90 minute GP in an F1 car is massive.

Ive never felt tired in a race car, partly I think because you're so distracted (I even pulled my back once without knowing it) but once you get out of the car, or bette yet the day after; you realise you got a good thumping.

[John B]

Prost was in exceptional condition and did all sorts of training including skiing, running, strength training and the like. I think his heart rate was in the 40s or low 50s. During the 1980s Lauda and John Watson with McLaren were on pretty high power regimens with a world class trainer and they often get acknowledged as being at the forefront of the driver fitness movement IIRC.

Loosely related note, Lauda used to disguise Winstons as Marlboros after he signed for McLaren, sometimes not very convincingly.....

[John B]

There's also a couple old threads in the RC archive about Trulli running marathons; I remember the posters were less than impressed by his times, though I felt during his training to drive F1 cars probably didn't involve many 26 mile runs

[BRNDLL]

Originally posted by Ross Stonefeld



On its own yeah. But do 90 minutes without stopping on a bike at 105rpm and 250watts. Thats some movement.

Ross,
Pretty impressive guess with the numbers... I am guessing you are a bit of a cyclist. Most people dont have any idea about the wattage needed to race a bicycle. Your good.

bb

[Ross Stonefeld]

No...I just know how far I am from being in shape

[jdanton]

Dude if you can do 250 for 90 min you're fit. You might not be bike race fit, but you're still pretty fit. Do you have a power meter or are going by the exercycle?

[jdanton]

Originally posted by BRNDLL



Ross,
Pretty impressive guess with the numbers... I am guessing you are a bit of a cyclist. Most people dont have any idea about the wattage needed to race a bicycle. Your good.

bb

Brndll,

where are you from?

[KenC]

Every sport has sport-specific requirements. Being fit for one is not the same as being fit for another. And, why hasn't anyone even tried to define fitness? Are we talking aerobic fitness or anaerobic? F1 is more of an anaerobic sport, while cycling is more of an aerobic sport unless you are doing track racing.

F1 really has two fitness requirements, that is strong leg muscles to press the brakes hard enough to generate the 4+Gs needed, and strong neck muscles. These are anaerobic requirements and working out on a leg press machine and a nautilus neck machine are enough to satisfy those requirements. As far as aerobic requirements, F1 drivers only need to be moderately fit. There has been a monkey see monkey do attitude in F1 this past generation as Schumi is the most fit driver in the sport's history, so everyone emulates him. However, one does not need to go back too far in history to see how unfit F1 stars used to be, and they still were great drivers. The point being that fitness is good, but not absolutely necessary for F1 success, just look at Monty!

If you watch the EPL, you will know these guys don't just "walk around", the EPL is known for its fast and frantic pace. Footballers need a compromise of good aerobic fitness to last 90 mins as well as anaerobic fitness to have the strength to sprint with the ball and take a crack at a shot from outside of the box. Of course, footballers have strong necks as well, for headers.

Cyclists are like rowers, x-country skiiers and marathon runners as they tend to have the largest aerobic capacity in any sports, between 6 and 8 liters, where the average male and F1 driver will be about 4 liters. For those aerobic sports, it's all about the legs, and any excess musculature, say in the arms, is wasted efficiency, in that you have to carry extra weight, and you have to burn more oxygen in those larger muscles.

I've played a whole host of sports, and each one's fitness level is specific to that sport, but while I could easily imagine racing an F1 car, as I've got great anaerobic strength, the idea of racing the TdF or rowing or running a marathon at an elite level require that you be born with lungs twice the size of the average human.

I vaguely recall that Lance produces 600 watts. I produce 600 watts on my ergometer for a 2000yard piece, of course that lasts about 8 minutes.

[Ross Stonefeld]

Really my only soccer reference is PL or World Cup. I dont think its even as demanding as a hard NBA or NHL match. Though American sports arent the best examples either for 'falling down out of clubs' the night before.

I think part of the reason guys werent fit in the past was because no one else was and racing wasnt considered to be that physicaly demanding, or that at the very least there wasnt a thought to train for it. But as one guy became more fit and found an advantage, they all had to. Same with any sport throughout its history really. You dont need to be monstrously fit to race F3 successfully, but it would certainly give you an advantage, though at a diminishing return just because the cars and race distance arent that demanding. I think JPM is pretty fit, he seems to keep the pace up, however he could use a nutritionist. He looks more rugby fit than anything.

As for Lance, what id seen once from Carmichael said his max power at V02 was 600ish but average over enduro rides was 250-275

I think he had a time trial heart rate of close to 200 at 100rpm, which is pretty scary.

[BRNDLL]

Originally posted by jdanton


Brndll,

where are you from?

I am in Texas (...er USA). Sorry, I sometimes forget that this is a world forum.

I live in Austin and the race season has already started.

You?

bb

[checkonetwo]

Originally posted by KenC
Every sport has sport-specific requirements. Being fit for one is not the same as being fit for another. And, why hasn't anyone even tried to define fitness? Are we talking aerobic fitness or anaerobic? F1 is more of an anaerobic sport, while cycling is more of an aerobic sport unless you are doing track racing.

F1 really has two fitness requirements, that is strong leg muscles to press the brakes hard enough to generate the 4+Gs needed, and strong neck muscles. These are anaerobic requirements and working out on a leg press machine and a nautilus neck machine are enough to satisfy those requirements. As far as aerobic requirements, F1 drivers only need to be moderately fit. There has been a monkey see monkey do attitude in F1 this past generation as Schumi is the most fit driver in the sport's history, so everyone emulates him. However, one does not need to go back too far in history to see how unfit F1 stars used to be, and they still were great drivers. The point being that fitness is good, but not absolutely necessary for F1 success, just look at Monty!

If you watch the EPL, you will know these guys don't just "walk around", the EPL is known for its fast and frantic pace. Footballers need a compromise of good aerobic fitness to last 90 mins as well as anaerobic fitness to have the strength to sprint with the ball and take a crack at a shot from outside of the box. Of course, footballers have strong necks as well, for headers.

Cyclists are like rowers, x-country skiiers and marathon runners as they tend to have the largest aerobic capacity in any sports, between 6 and 8 liters, where the average male and F1 driver will be about 4 liters. For those aerobic sports, it's all about the legs, and any excess musculature, say in the arms, is wasted efficiency, in that you have to carry extra weight, and you have to burn more oxygen in those larger muscles.

I've played a whole host of sports, and each one's fitness level is specific to that sport, but while I could easily imagine racing an F1 car, as I've got great anaerobic strength, the idea of racing the TdF or rowing or running a marathon at an elite level require that you be born with lungs twice the size of the average human.

I vaguely recall that Lance produces 600 watts. I produce 600 watts on my ergometer for a 2000yard piece, of course that lasts about 8 minutes.

good post. i agree with that.

i does take me by surprise how little respect soccer players get. 90 minutes on a regular field in a higher league is one tough call, and i would place it far above anything a f1 driver has to achieve from a physical point.
since it seems logical that one of the most important things for a f1 driver would be absolute concentration and the ability to totally focus for almost two hours, i´d assume that something like long distance running or cycling might fit the bill well, keep the heart rate as low as possible, along with some overall upperbody training, special attention to shoulders and neck maybe, i don´t know. schumacher and webber, maybe trulli seem to be very fit, kimi has also gained some muscles.

otoh, when you look at some of montys photos at the williams launch, he´s the living antithesis to all that superfit-talk regarding drivers. but hey, when i think about it, monty especially seems to be prone to small concentration blurs and maybe some kind of fitness-induced cerebral dysfunctionality.

i have never sat in a race car. the sports i did practise over the years were soccer, running, basketball and skiing. from these, basketball probably seemed to have the easiest requirements (no pun intented, i love basketball). about american football or baseball i can`t say anything as i don´t even understand the rules. american football seems to have different fitness requirements for different positions, but they hardly ever play, so i don´t know...

overall i´d say it helps to be fit as a driver, not superfit or anything, and shure nothing in the league of top-line swimmers, cyclists, runners, skiers, footballers (soccer), insert more.

[Ross Stonefeld]

Originally posted by checkonetwo
i does take me by surprise how little respect soccer players get. 90 minutes on a regular field in a higher league is one tough call, and i would place it far above anything a f1 driver has to achieve from a physical point.

I think thtas because people can play football recreationally and think "100 times harder than this is probably what league play is like" but driving a road car is nothing. The leg strength of carbon brakes is not to be understimated, and the upper body strength needed for a GP car is greater than any shoving match you get into on the pitch. When they have overall fitness competitions, racing drivers do very very well, when they dont win outright.