CrossFit has made Ricky Stenhouse a fitter Nascar driver

It wasn't long ago that the thought of being a NASCAR driver Run the Los Angeles Coliseum stairs to get some exercise would have been considered crazy. For Ricky Stenhouse Jr., it's another way to work up a sweat.

Just a few years ago, training like this would have been a hard no for Stenhouse. The driver of the No. 47 Chevrolet for JTG Daugherty Racing had always done his own training here and there and even did some training with the pit crew when he was at Roush Fenway Racing to build team camaraderie.

In 2014 he started accompanying his friends CrossFit training and immediately fell in love with the competitive aspect. He even met CrossFit legend Rich Froning and the two became friends. Froning sent him some workouts and even connected him with Rogue Fitness, which outfitted the CrossFit gym Stenhouse built on his property in North Carolina.

“I liked the intense workouts to the beat of the clock,” Stenhouse said. “I learned a lot of movements that I had never incorporated into my training before.”

While Ricky Stenhouse was physically capable of handling the physical and mental rigors that come with being a driver, he knew there was another level he could reach and that's exactly why he turned to the trainer and founder of Second 2 No Fitness Ryan von Rueden.

Von Rueden previously served as Director of Fitness and Lifestyle for Kasey Kahne for nine years. Stenhouse's call came a day after the Coke 600 in 2018, NASCAR's longest event at 400 miles. Von Rueden said that Stenhouse had provided his key stats from the race and the heart rate readings were so high that it was a surprise that he was able to get out of the car.

“If you take one Look at a top-end marathon runner, They don't reach as high a number and their averages are much lower, Von Rueden said. "He wanted to find a way to do it differently because it doesn't feel good when the heart rate is that high. "The overall concept should just be in better shape."

How they attacked this was threefold. They started with Steady state cardio for an aerobic base. From there, they would do short one-minute intervals to help build Stenhouse’s Anaerobic endurance to increase his work capacity under this heart rate and at the same time better buffer the lactic acid. From then on, they extended these intervals to five to ten minutes. Stenhouse's heart rate is now average of what they both feel comfortable with.

Von Rueden has also incorporated CrossFit-style workouts into the programming, giving Stenhouse and the Camping World Truck and

Another important component of Von Rueden's programming was the data from WHOOP, which he uses as a check and balance system when pushing or backing up a rider. Normally, Cup Series guys like Stenhouse get drained on Monday after getting through the previous day's race. Von Rueden will make it an exercise day that includes light running, cycling and bodyweight exercises, cutting a 90-minute session down to 40 and only about 60 percent of the normal workload.

Ricky Stenhouse, who led this year's Daytona with eight laps to go before a multi-car accident knocked him out of contention, is feeling much better physically since that fateful call to Von Rueden and is looking forward to a playoff push.

“I’m definitely more of an all-around athlete now,” Stenhouse said. "I would feel comfortable going in with someone and doing any kind of workout. I used to not like running at all, and now it's not a big deal if we want to run 9 or 10 miles. He really instilled in me that running is one of the best ways to get your heart rate up and get a really good workout.

"I've gotten a lot stronger without gaining a lot of weight. When you gain muscle, you typically gain weight, and that's something you don't really want to do in racing. You want to keep things on the lighter side. The focus is on heart rate and getting my heart rate down in the race car. We've definitely seen a dramatic drop in that area."

Ricky Stenhouse Crossfit training

Warm up

• Schaumstoffrolle: 5 Minuten.
• Herz: 5 Minuten.
• Schulter- und Hüftmobilität: 5-10min

Train

• Laufen: 1 Meile
• RDL: 70 % Körpergewicht x 10
• Sauber hängen: 70 % Körpergewicht x 10
• Frontkniebeuge: 70 % Körpergewicht x 10
• Drücken pressen: 70 % Körpergewicht x 10
• Hochziehen: x 10
• Flachbank: 90 % Körpergewicht x 10
• Aufrechte Neigung: x 10
• Zehen an die Stange: x 10
• Laufen: 1 Meile

Directions:Run 1 mile, then perform 6-8 power sets with minimal rest, then run the second mile. Change the prescribed weight to suit each individual's abilities.