One of the most popular excuses that people give for not devoting time to fitness is that they don’t have the time to devote. That may draw sympathy from some people, but Sean Hannity is not one of them.

Hannity, who hosts both a radio and television show five days a week, is one of the busiest media personalities in the business today. Yet, he commits to training and working out at an MMA dojo regularly, and he feels it plays a big role in him thriving professionally and personally.

“For the last 12 years, I have been doing it four days a week. Every day, I do a minimum of 150 sit-ups and 150 pushups.”

Work Ethic Is In His Genes

Even back when he was a kid growing up in Franklin Square with his parents and three sisters, Hannity was always grinding and working hard to earn money and achieve newer and higher levels of success. So, working hard was never the issue for him.

Hannity’s drive and work ethic was developed throughout his childhood and well into his early years behind the microphone, but a part of the credit can also go to his family. His father lost his mother at a young age and was shuffled to different family members while his dad worked to provide.

A child of the Depression, Hannity’s dad grew up working multiple paper routes and other jobs to help contribute. Like most men of the Greatest Generation did at that time, he joined the military during World War II and was stationed in the Pacific. Hannity’s father never spoke much about his military experience.

“It was just something he was never going to talk about,” Hannity recalled. He does have his father’s Navy knife, which he treasures to this day.

His father went on to work as a family court probation officer and waited tables on the weekends. His mother was a prison guard at the Nassau County Jail and often worked double shifts. Both worked in careers that served the public and committed many hours to provide for their four children.

“They both worked really, really hard.”

That work ethic and ability to carry on was passed down to young Sean, who developed an entrepreneurial mindset at an early age. Hannity said it also made him fiercely independent. He started his own paper route at 8 years old, which afforded him a way to go to the local deli or pizza place to buy something to eat when he wanted.

“Not the best diet in those days,” he joked. When he wasn’t working, he was staying active playing whatever sports he had a chance to play and riding his bicycle. The two he was best at was baseball and hockey.

“Ice hockey, street hockey, roller hockey, we played them all.”

Sean Hannity’s Rise To Stardom

As Hannity grew up, he found other jobs and kept working to support himself. He recalled working at a restaurant as a dishwasher as a teenager and randomly being assigned to go behind the grill after a cook quit. Despite having no experience, his manager taught him how to prepare all the meals within a week.

“I learned how to cook a lot of great food such as fettucine alfredo, shrimp scampi, steaks. I loved it and still love cooking to this day.”

Once Hannity grew up, he moved to Rhode Island and began painting houses. That was until he fell off a roof in winter and broke his arm. A friend got him another job while he was trying to rehab his arm because he had no insurance. Eventually, he did recover and moved to California.

From there, he found his way behind a microphone and started laying the foundation for a career in radio. That foundation began at UC Santa Barbara in 1989. His career would take to other places like Huntsville, AL, and eventually Atlanta, GA.

“From that point on, my life was over. There was nothing else I wanted to do.”

He was also getting opportunities to contribute to television shows on networks like CNN and CNBC. Hannity developed a relationship with Newt Gingrich, who went on to become Speaker of the House. Hannity managed to secure a one-hour interview with Gingrich and pitched it to Roger Ailes. Ailes was impressed with Hannity’s work and offered a chance to come work at FOX in October 1996.

“That was it. I started working for FOX when they started and have been there since.”

A Commitment to Being Active

Hannity’s radio show is syndicated to over 760 stations in America, and his show on FOX News Channel is still one of the pillars of the network. Even though he has been experiencing great success in his career, his health may have been suffering from it. It hit home for him when he was at a doctor appointment and was told point blank that he had to start working out.

“I told him I didn’t have time to work out. He said, ‘I don’t care. Make time. Get up out of bed every day and work out.’”

Hannity’s doctor invited him to try mixed martial arts training at the dojo he went to, and he was immediately hooked. Since then, he has also added lifting to his regimen, and he does boxing training and biking multiple times a week as well.

“I found functional training to be very beneficial,” he stated, which includes situational street fighting, including working with sticks, blades, and firearms. He does not call himself a martial artist, but he does feel the training has benefited him.

“It includes a variety of multiple arts, and it is eclectic in that way. It helps me stay interested.”

His diet is also a far cry from the sandwiches and pizza he had in his younger years as well. Hannity now follows a more keto-friendly diet.

“I mostly eat meat, fish, and eggs, but not too much fish. I still like to cook my own food too.”

Hannity’s doctor’s mandate to make the time turned out to be a gift to him, and he feels that his personal commitment to himself makes him better prepared for his commitments to his media partners, viewers, and listeners. He has dived deeper into wellness by interviewing experts on his podcast such as Jillian Michaels, Tony Robbins, and others. The more he hears, the more intrigued he gets.

“I get more energy when I work out than when I don’t. I do it four days a week but will likely go up to five now.”

If someone as busy as Hannity is has found a way to incorporate fitness and wellness into his life on a regular basis, then obviously lack of time is not an excuse he buys, and he hopes to serve as an example that everyone can find a way to make the important commitment to bettering themselves.

“Stop making the excuses. You just have to make yourself do it, and you will feel a sense of accomplishment that I can’t even describe.”

For more on Hannity, go to his website. Hannity airs weekdays on Fox News Channel at 9 PM Eastern time.

M&F Military Editor Rob Wilkins contributed to this article.

The 2025 HYROX World Championships took place in Chicago, IL, and the Windy City was buzzing with all the fitness racing action taking place. Athletes from throughout the world gathered to celebrate fitness and compete for individual records and possible championships.

Matt Choi was right in the middle of all the action, competing in both singles and doubles action as well as doing his own coverage of the event for his followers and subscribers. Even as busy as he was, Choi found time to enjoy the moment and be present while pushing himself to chase new PR’s. He felt that the way the event was run helped as well.

“It was special,” he said. Choi compared the feeling of being at HYROX to being at the world’s major marathon events. The energy is contagious and he couldn’t help but embrace it.

“I think HYROX did a very good job of organizing a top class event.”

Choi’s single time was 1:05:57, which was impressive considering he is not at experienced in this sport as he is running. Unfortunately for him, there was an issue with the turf that affected some of the competitors, including him. Nonetheless, Choi kept in mind that all he can control is what he can control and not to let any negativity take over.

“I think when you look at the things that are out of your control, it’s not allowing those things to dictate how you talk to yourself and how you treat yourself in the moment.”

The big takeaway for him was his doubles time of 54:25 with partner Mason Stevens. Stevens was not his planned partner, but his original teammate was not able to compete. Considering he and Stevens had not competed together before and they had competed during the singles events, and they finished in the top 40 at the World Championships, he was proud of the effort and result.

“I felt like me and Mason did a really good job, even though we weren’t partners,” he shared. “I felt like it was a really enjoyable experience.”

Then there was the media aspect of his job. While most athletes were either resting or mentally preparing, Choi was grinding in another role. Nonetheless, he made the most of his opportunity to contribute and promote the sport. His experience with creating content served him well while juggling the roles of athlete and reporter.

“I still want to make sure I’m showing up as an athlete. If I do those things, then I think it’s easier for me to show up from the media side because I think it’s just it’s it comes pretty natural to me in that sense.”

What Lies Ahead For Matt Choi

Successful people don’t waste much time looking back because there is usually something ahead, and Choi is no different. With the HYROX World Championships in the rearview mirror, he is now focused on running and preparing for multiple races, including the Marine Corps Marathon for the Kyle Peace Foundation and the 2025 Berlin Marathon. He has run marathon-length sessions on his own, but racing is a different animal, and even though he has competed in races in the past, he is looking forward to the challenge of setting a PR.

“Running is just for completion. You’re just covering the distance of 26.2 miles,” he explained. For these races, he has a chance to dedicate a full training block to improving his time, and that excites him.

“I think that is something that is really on my heart. My goal is to break sub 2:50.”

How Matt Choi Prepares For Event Races

The Berlin Marathon is set for Sunday, September 21, over three months post his HYROX events. That is plenty of time to prepare, but there is more to racing in an event of that magnitude than simply running and running more. It will be a different season in a different climate, and there is a seven-hour time difference between Berlin and where he is training in Texas.

Running in the heat of summer will be different than racing in the fall, but Choi explained why that is actually a good thing for him. It gives him an opportunity to make the training harder so the race will be easier for him to complete.

Choi explained, “Progressively overloading, such as in a gym context, in running is similar. You’re increasing volume and intensity, increasing pace. I think on a week-to-week basis, that is a piece of training.”

He continued, “If I am able to hold my paces that I need to in the heat, it should only build my confidence going into a colder climate.”

The thought of dedicating a period just to prepare for a race excites him, but he won’t be shutting down his role as a content creator. He plans on taking his followers and subscribers on the ride with him by sharing his training leading up to the race.

“I’m going to be pretty open in terms of like showing the training and the behind the scenes because I’m going to be doing a YouTube series around breaking 2:50.”

The weekly episodes will provide a unique perspective on how Choi trains and prepares for the big race in Berlin. This is a new creative direction for Choi, but it is one that he feels the fans and followers will get to enjoy. The goal for Choi is not to only entertain and inspire them, but he also wants to conclude it with a new PB.

“I’m excited about it. I’m excited about this challenge.”

To see Choi’s content and episodes, subscribe to his YouTube channel. You can also follow him on all major social media platforms @mattchoi_6.

Chelsea Green is a highlighted grappler in Netflix’s new documentary series, WWE: Unreal, but to stay on top of the larger-than-life world of professional wrestling, this fit female has learned that you can’t always rely on a fully equipped gym while on the road.

Instead, the charismatic Canadian tells M&F that she can get a full workout in, by exercising with just the basic equipment, and here’s how you can try it too.

In WWE: Unreal, Chelsea Green, who was WWE’s first ever women’s United States Champion, can be seen wrestling with both the action in the ring and the creative direction that is put her way by the company’s bevy of producers, writers, and agents. Fortunately, the sensational star has found that the best way to shine in the world’s biggest pro wrestling league is to “say yes to everything,” as she told the documentary crew on the show.

Give Green a chance to entertain, and she’ll always find a way to come up with the goods. Her investment in the art of pro wrestling is clear. Not only does Green work hard on cultivating her obnoxious and yet loveable character, but then there’s the financial investment put into her eye-catching ring gear, and a constant desire to level up even further in the ring. Of course, the grind doesn’t come to a halt when the cameras stop rolling. In fact, that’s when it’s time to get an all-important workout in. But as WWE travels the globe, touring multiple shows per week in far flung locations, a reliance on a state-of-the-art gym or a great hotel workout space could lead to serious disappointment.

Chelsea Green’s Road Warrior Workout

“A lot of the hotel gyms will only have light free weights and a treadmill. Maybe a bench if you’re lucky,” explains the WWE Superstar. “So, I’ve become very good at doing a dumbbell workout and now at this point I can do anything with dumbbells depending on my energy.” Energy levels and wear and tear on the road is an important point, because staying buff in the gym must not mean derailing her performance in front of thousands of wrestling fans, or pushing herself too far and causing an injury. Instead, Green focuses on stationary plyometric movements for her lower body using her bodyweight or a dumbbell and sculpts her upper body with dumbbells too.

WWE Chelsea Green’s Workout

Warm up

• Inclined Treadmill Walk: 20-30 min.

Workout. 3-4 Rounds:

• Skater Squat: 10 reps each leg
  superset with
  Bicep Curl: 10 reps each arm
• Dumbbell Sumo Squat: 20 reps
  superset with
  Bench Assisted Triceps Dip: 20 reps
• Side Lunge: 10 each leg
  superset with
  Pushups: 20 reps

Chelsea Green’s Road Warrior Workout Breakdown

Green explains that this session is specifically designed to work around her wrestling matches, but it can also be used by other athletes and regular gym goers who want to put in a solid workout that also allows for adequate recovery without risking injury.

“I’m doing less jumping right now and more stationary moves,” says the WWE Superstar. “We’re not going to do jumping split squats or jumping lunges or anything like that, as that puts pressure on the knees while already being tired from the ring. Especially as a female, there’s been a lot of studies linked to knee injuries during the menstrual cycle and as a wrestler, we have a lot of knee injuries, so I want to make sure that I’m not putting added pressure on my knees while I’m exhausted.”

Because Green is expected to lift larger foes above her head as part of the day job, there’s no need for her to go too heavy in the hotel, instead opting for bodyweight or lighter dumbbells to tax the muscles without the risk of tearing anything. “You’ve got yourself a good sweat on, if you continue at a good pace and you keep it low weight, high reps,” explains Green, who says you can tailor this training to your own fitness level by reducing or adding the number of rounds, adding more weight to each move, or simply adjusting the number of reps.

Back on camera, Chelsea Green’s fans were sorry to see her lose the United States title recently, having established the new championship as a beneficial force in pro wrestling programming, but never fear, because this gutsy gal is already looking ahead to even bigger belts. “I would absolutely love to chase it again,” she says of the US title, but Green has other gold on her mind too. “I would love to maybe shift my focus to one of the tippy-top, or “Tiffy”-top titles, or maybe the Intercontinental, maybe the NXT women’s title. I would love to face Jacy Jayne!”

Once you’ve tried this workout, you’ll have earned the right to step inside the WWE writer’s room for yourself and hang outside of the ring with your favorite pro wrestlers, where the drama is just as intense offstage as it is under the spotlight! All five episodes of WWE:Unreal are available to stream on Netflix from July 29. Are you ready?

To follow Chelsea Green on Instagram, click here. 

For the last four years, retired US Air Force Technical Sergeant Chris Ferrell has worked as an Air Force Special Operations Combat Training Specialist. His job is to facilitate live scenarios with Foreign and Domestic Special Operations OPs teams, so they are prepared to protect themselves and others in case the situation calls for it.

Whether it is training servicemembers, speaking on behalf of wounded veterans, or even being a part of the Warrior Games, Ferrell feels that he owes his efforts to those that came before him and helped him throughout his own life and time in service.

“I’ve had fantastic leadership throughout my career.”

Ferrell’s current position (one of several he has chosen to take on) is one that he has pride in, not only because of what it does for those he trains, but because of how close he came to losing his own life.

Service Was the Life He Chose

The native of Bossier City, Louisiana was a high school senior when the September 11th attacks occurred, and the son of a Navy lineman knew immediately what he was going to do later in life.

“I knew then I was going to live a life of service.”

After one year in college, he felt like it was time to make his move. Ferrell enlisted in the United States Air Force, where he became an Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician.

“I wanted to be a pararescueman or combat controller, but I failed my eye exam. They told I could do EOD, and when they explained what it was, I said,‘cool, sign me up.”

By 2005, he was on his first of several deployments, traveling to Afghanistan. Throughout his career, he had found and disarmed several Improvised Explosive Devices (IED’s) to help his teammates carry out their operations.

Ferrell’s career and life changed dramatically on Dec. 15, 2009, when one of his teammates stepped on an IED during a kill or capture operation in conjunction with British forces. The teammate was killed, and the force propelled Ferrell and the other teammates 10-15 feet away. Ferrell recalled that the teammate, Tony Campbell, was in a blast hole with his hand up, almost waving goodbye before taking his last breath.

“Fast forward, I cleared the rest of the area, we were able to get MEDEVACed out.”

Following a week stay in a hospital, Ferrell could have went home but opted to stay and continue serving.

Two months later, he along with teammates and British Infantry forces would encounter another IED explosion incident. He was approximately 15 feet away, but it still killed one person and injured three others. Ferrell’s efforts helped the injured and clear the site. As a result, he was awarded a British Commendation from the Kandahar Airfield Commander for Heroism. By the time he was medically retired in 2017, he received many other honors from his own country as well, including a Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

Being Fit Literally Saved His Life

The physical injuries that came with Ferrell’s incident were obvious, but as he found out, they could have been worse. He grew up small but was strong for his size and started weight training while playing football. Little did he know that his commitment to the iron would save his life. Once he started working as an EOD tech, he committed even more, especially to running, which he admitted he was never a fan of.

“Running was miserable and still is to this day, but I became very good at it.”

Ferrell knew he had to be in the best shape possible, and that decision paid off for him. During a mission in 2005, he had to run to help three teammates that were affected by an IED. One teammate suffered an amputation and two others were injured. Ferrell had to run a half mile to get to them and started casualty care. All three of them were saved.

“That was my introduction to the military at war. I realized that I had to be in shape so I could save guys. My training drastically changed.”

Fast forward to his own incident in 2009, and it turned out that passion for fitness saved him again. He was told by his doctors that his muscle mass and bone density literally saved him from taking extra damage from the explosion.

“I couldn’t be a hindrance to the team. I had to be an asset,” he explained. “The doctor came in and said that if we hadn’t been as dense as we were, our injuries would have been far more severe.”

Mental Tolls and Overcoming Them

The toll on Ferrell was far beyond his body, though. His mental, emotional, and spiritual health was also affected, but it wasn’t obvious to him until long after the incident occurred.

This was confirmed when he went to get his brain evaluated after noticing changes in his behavior and even attempting self-removal multiple times. Doctors told him that he had 32 dead spots in his brain. He also dealt with bilateral hearing loss and other issues he was not previously aware of.

Ferrell went through several different forms of treatments, was on medication, and even therapy, but he concluded that there was a difference between what he called “living” versus “existing.” Something was missing, and he found it while he was on his road to recovery.

“I realized that post-service, I needed to find a way to still serve.”

As he was getting involved with the Warrior Games, he saw there were many people that were in comparable situations to his. He also realized that he had a new way to serve and contribute. He could help his fellow heroes that were dealing with the same tolls that he was.

“Let me help those that are struggling just like I was.”

Ferrell became a public speaker and advocate with a personal mission to reach and connect with servicemembers facing their own adversities. He also focused on what he could do with training, which led him to Lynn Coffland and Catch-A-Lift.

“Lynn Coffland found me at my lowest point,” he recalled. “Fitness was the catalyst. That was the only thing I didn’t have to think anything about.”

Ferrell also credited Air Force Wounded Warriors, who have helped him personally and that he has worked with as well. He travels and speaks on leadership and trauma. Those endeavors and others have given him the incentive to keep going, keep serving, and enjoying making a difference.

As the husband and father concluded throughout his journey, if a bomb couldn’t kill him, and he couldn’t even do it himself, he should make the most out of the life he has, and that includes helping others make the most of theirs. He has lost many teammates both in battle and through other avenues. In Ferrell’s eyes, each life he can help save is one that is worth all the time he can commit.

“Once it gets dark, it can be very hard to see the light,” he shared. “Advocacy is a necessity. That is what gives me purpose now.”

Chris Ferrell’s Century Workout

Over 20 years ago, Ferrell found a system that helped him train hard for strength and endurance, and he credits it for saving his life. He calls it the Century Workout program and invites you to take it for a spin. You pick a weight for each exercise that could be estimated at 65 percent of your one rep max. The goal is 100 total reps for each exercise, regardless of how many sets it takes.

“You do every exercise until you reach 100 reps with a 30-45 second break between sets,” he said. If you perform 15 reps on the first set, start the next with 16. Keep that count going until you reach 100 reps. You then move on to the next exercise. Ferrell stated that he still does this in retirement so he can keep proving himself when he trains other operators.

“The workout should last between 50 min to 1 hour and 10 min depending on the pace you use.”

Ferrell shared a sample push day workout that feels would be a challenge worth trying to any lifter, regardless of the fitness discipline they follow. Perform 100 total reps of each exercise on the list below.

• Flat Barbell Bench Press
• Incline Barbell Bench Press
• Cable Crossovers
• Dips
• Pushups
• Rope Extensions
• Seated Overhead Dumbbell Presses
• Skull Crushers
• Straight Bar Tricep Extensions
• Close Grip Pushups

M&F Military Editor Rob Wilkins contributed to this article.

It’s easy to admire IndyCar from the outside: The speed across both street courses and ovals, and the lightning-quick reflexes of the drivers. What most don’t see is the work happening inside the cockpit, which is a battle against heat, gravity, and the limited of physical endurance over the course of two grueling hours.

There’s no power steering, airflow, or break in intensity. In a lot of ways, it’s not just racing—it’s survival. For Kyle Kirkwood, one of the sport’s rising stars, preparation for that kind of suffering doesn’t begin at the track. It starts in the gym, the kitchen, and even weeks in advance of the next race.

Jeff Richter knows this terrain well. As the strength and conditioning coach for 2024 Indy 500 champion Josef Newgarden, he’s seen firsthand how the extreme demands of IndyCar tailor the training for the drivers to be hybrid athletes—ones who can lift, sprint, endure, while remaining mentally sharp in searing heat for hours. His gym, located in Indianapolis, operates without air conditioning by design. When the temps climb into the 90s and the humidity sets in, that’s when the real work begins. “Sweat equity,” Richter says, is more than a mindset—it’s a prerequisite to performing at a high level.

Both Kirkwood and Richter approach the sport from different roles, they share the same mission: to build and maintain elite physical output when cockpit temperatures soar above 120 degrees and every tenth of a second matters. Whether it’s race simulation in a heated room, building cognitive resilience under stress, or managing recovery between back-to-back IndyCar race weekends, they’ve developed systems to push the limits while recovering from them immediately and smartly.

Whether you’re an athlete chasing the next milestone or simply looking to train smarter this summer, there’s plenty to learn from the paddock. M&F caught up with both Kirkwood and Richter to learn how they train to beat the heat while staying sharp when every second matters.

Acclimating to the Heat

When cockpit temps hit 120 degrees and the race stretches past the two-hour mark, IndyCar drivers don’t get a water break, let alone a timeout. That reality shapes how Richter approaches training with Newgarden. His gym doesn’t just tolerate heat—it utlizes it. Located in the heart of Indy, the space is kept deliberately uncooled for training. “We actually do believe in both the physiological and mental adaptations that can take place from undergoing a training environment that has a high degree of heat,” Richter says. “They’re making a physiological adaptation that they’re going to be able to cool their bodies better because they’ve trained in this.”

Drivers do complain at first, but eventually, they become accustomed to the sweat. Just like the conditions they face during a hot race, there’s nothing they can do to change the circumstances. “You do have the mental side as well,” says Richter. The two are interconnected. If you physiologically are acclimated to the heat, you’re gonna have a better mental outlook and they learn to fight.”

Kirkwood agrees with this sentiment. While he’s not training with Richter, the Florida-based Andretti driver builds heat exposure directly into his weekly prep—especially during the summer stretch of the IndyCar calendar. “I’ll do a couple of hours a week in a heat room around 120 degrees, usually staying in that Zone 3 or 4 range,” he says. “Being outside in 95- to 100-degree temperatures with the humidity, that’s almost plenty enough to just train outdoors for a couple of days a week.” For both Richter and Kirkwood, these training sessions are controlled discomfort with the purpose of making the heat a setting they perform in rather than a deterrent when it comes time to race.

Both coach and athlete agree that you can’t half step that level of conditioning, especially when you add in the fact that drivers also have to wear fire-resistant racing suits made of Nomex that are designed with multiple layers of fire-retardant material. “If you’re just training in 60-degree temps every day of the week, it’s not going to be sufficient enough,” says Kirkwood. Whether it’s the weightroom or on a road course, training where you sweat can literally help your body adapt, raise your mental conditioning to make race day feel less like a shock and more like second nature.

Both athlete and coach agree on this: You can’t fake this kind of conditioning. There’s no supplement, sauna session, or cold plunge that can fully prepare you to perform in extreme environments without consistent exposure. “If you train in 60 degrees every day, you’ll melt when it’s 90,” says Kirkwood. “It’s that simple.” Whether it’s in the weightroom or on a road course, training where you sweat—literally—helps your body adapt, raises your mental ceiling, and makes race-day feel less like a shock and more like second nature.

The Importance of Hydration

For IndyCar drivers, the cost of under-fueling is more than just a bad workout. It can also cost them a chance at a podium finish or worse. That’s why hydration is more than just a habit—it’s a strategy. Richter approaches it like a math equation. Drivers can lose up to eight pounds of body weight in sweat during a race, making fluid loss less theoretical and more measurable. “If they drink every drop of their in-car hydration system, that’s about 3.3 pounds of fluid. But if they’re losing eight, there’s a gap,” Richter says. “And once they lose more than two percent of body weight, we know performance drops. That’s when mental errors creep in.”

Richter’s approach to bridging this gap is data driven. There are pre and post-session weigh-ins, electrolyte balance, and pre-race fluid loading. Alcohol is something most, if not all, drivers flag during the season because of its diuretic effects. Even a few casual drinks to celebrate a victory can create a hydration deficit that lingers into preparing for the next race. “These are grown men that have to make grown choices to be able to be at the top of the level,” he says.

Kirkwood takes a similarly disciplined approach that is built around consistency and personalization. Hydration often starts a full week before race day, with a combination of water, electrolytes, and sweat testing. “Everyone’s different,” he says. “I use a electrolyte mix called The Right Stuff to preload early in the week, then I’ll switch to Liquid IV or DripDrop two hours before the race for added glucose.” Kirkwood knows that once the race begins, it’s too late to fix a hydration issue.

Rehydration doesn’t stop when the checkered flag waves. Kirkwood doubles down post-race with tart cherry packets, protein shakes, and electrolyte blends—not just to bounce back, but to stay ahead of the next grueling stint. “Even when you feel like you’re rehydrated, your body is still catching up,” he says. “Eating is also critical. Just as many of the right calories as you can intake post-event is crucial.” For drivers and gym goers alike, the less is the same: hydration isn’t just about the bottle in your hand, it’s about knowing your needs, and building your recovery just as you do your weekly workouts.

How to Stay Sharp When It Gets Hot

The physical toll of IndyCar racing is only half the equation. With speeds reaching past 230 mph, a lapse in focus isn’t just costly— it can be catastrophic. That’s why Richter doesn’t just train the body, he tests the brain under stress. Newgarden has to be able to do more than just hit a power number on a machine, he has to be able to react at a moment’s notice when his heart rate is elevated and his core temperature is spiking. Richter builds in cognitive drills—reaction lights, color-coded catches, and decision-making games—after brutal intervals on the rower or assault bike. This helps simulate the same high-stress, overheated chaos of a race.

Kirkwood backs this approach. From experience, he knows the real cognitive breakdowns come after the physical fatigue sets in. “You’re in a fire suit, pulling four G’s into corners, and you’re trying to stay mentally perfect,” he says. To replicate that pressure, Kirkwood also incorporates mentally taxing drills into his heat training, such as reaction games, hand-eye coordination drills, and screen-based cognitive tasks when his heart rate is in zone four and five. “You’re physically and mentally exhausted, and trying to stay sharp is important. So doing a combination of those things while you’re physically exerted is crucial for a sport like this.”

The pairing of physical strain and mental sharpness creates a hybrid approach that everyday athletes can adapt, too. Whether it’s running circuits in the heat and testing reflexes mid-rep, or tracking how your focus shifts as fatigue builds, mental toughness isn’t built in comfort. It’s forged when your body is working overtime. If you want to own your heat training, you need to be just as precise between the ears as you are under the bar.

Recovery Starts Before the Workout Ends

Waiting until the workout is over to think about recovery usually puts you behind. For the IndyCar athletes Richter trains, recovery begins before the first set even begins. “Training is just the stimulus,” he says. “The training is the deposit that you put into your body’s account. You’re not going to realize the ROI until you take care of yourself by eating a good meal afterwards, by rehydrating yourself, and sleep. That’s when the progress happens.” He helps lay a foundation of the recovery protocol should be just as dialed-in as the training plan.

This is also a week to week reality for Kirkwood. After the checkered flag, he’s dialed in on recalibrating his body. That begins with structured eating, rest, and sticking to his routine that helps him bounce back for the next event. “You pretty much beat yourself down to nothing,” he says. “Then you’re right back into another event the following weekend.” For IndyCar athletes, the stress of a race weekend taxes every system of their body in a way that the regular everyday person will never experience. A driver’s recovery plan has to match the flight or fight state stress that is placed on each race day. “They got to be able to recover because in training, if we’re just going focusing on maintaining what we have,” Richter says. “Unfortunately, when they get in the race car, they’re compromised before it starts.”

For the rest of us, the lesson is simple: the recovery has to match your effort. Don’t just chase intensity—support it. Whether you’re pushing through an outdoor HIIT workout in 95-degree heat or grinding reps in the gym, what you do immediately after the session will either help build momentum or burn you out. In the heat, recovery isn’t options—it’s necessary.

Follow Kyle Kirkwood on Instagram @kyle_kirkwood

Follow Jeff Richter on Instagram @richterstrength