IndyCar Series Champion Josef Newgardan Shares His Race-Ready Workout

JOSEF NEWGARDEN NEVER knows what type of gym he'll find himself in while he's on the road as an IndyCar Series driver. He's used to adjusting—he's a world-class race car driver, after all, with lightning-quick instincts honed behind the wheel—so finding himself in the MH gym during a recent visit in New York City was no problem. "We don't always get to work out at our own gym," he told the MH crew. Nevertheless, he was able to pull together a comprehensive maintenance routine he says is characteristic of his training plan.

Staying physically fit is incredibly important for Newgarden, even though he spends the entirety of his competitive life seated. The driver is constantly exerting a ton of effort to get his car around the track.

That starts with the moment he grips the steering wheel. "There's no power steering, which is unique to the top championships in the world," he said, pointing out that both NASCAR and Formula 1, two other premier racing series, use power steering. "IndyCar has none of that. So all of the load and all of the kickback is coming directly to the driver." That equates to about 35 pounds of torque, according to Newgarden. That's just like picking up a weight plate and using that to steer, he said.

The power steering is one thing, but the extreme forces the speed drivers achieve around the track creates a different challenge entirely. "When you're breaking or you're cornering, you're going to feel all the G force," Newgarden said. That adds up quick; the driver noted that if a 200 pound person takes a turn and is exposed to 5 Gs of force, he winds up feeling like he weighs 1,000 pounds in that moment. "All of that combined with a hot, difficult environment, it just taxes you muscularly, it raises the heart rate, and just makes you really have to focus in on the job at hand—which is difficult at 200 miles per hour."

That makes physical preparation a priority. Newgarden said he trains hard in the offseason to build muscle and maintain a high cardio base. Once the he gets closer to competition time—the IndyCar Series season runs from mid-March to mid-September—his focus shifts to muscular endurance with circuit-style training.

This has paid off for Newgarden, who was the IndyCar Series champ in 2017 and 2019 and notched wins at the Indianapolis 500 and 24 Hours of Daytona in 2023 and 2024, respectively.

The driver shared a quick example of one of his conditioning circuits with the MH crew, which he designed to help "top him off" to stay in top racing shape.

Josef Newgarden's Conditioning Circuit Workout

Renegade Row to Pushup

3 sets 10 reps

Farmer's Walk

40 yards or 30 to 45 seconds

Kettlebell Swings

3 sets of 10 reps

Barbell Clean

3 sets of 6 to 8 reps

Toes to Bar

3 sets of 10 reps

Med Ball Slams

3 sets of 10 reps

Weighted Russian Twist

3 sets of 12 to 15 reps

Want more celebrity workout routines? Check out all of our Train Like videos.

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