Race preparation including your body as well as your car: 

Racerchicks.com spoke with famous nutritionist Don Lemmon on how to keep in top form.

For background into how you should condition yourself for the challenge of racing I spoke with one of the top fitness gurus in the country: Don Lemmon, www.donlemmon.com nutritionist to many celebrities and pro athletes. Specializing in fat loss, obesity and body building, we posed the question to him "What should a female racer do to condition her body into top form?
Don:  Strength and flexibility is important. I have raced cars and grip, therefore, arm strength is of utmost importance. But so would be shoulder and rowing as opposed to pulldown work. Abdominal strength is something I have heard from NASCAR clients they found has benefited them most HOWEVER, conditioning comes from the sport itself. Training outside of a car is truly secondary. The best thing to do is ALWAYS eat correctly so the body adapts to higher thresholds.

Nika: What sort of foods are the best to eat before a race?

Don: A steak with a Caesar Salad w/o croutons with a cup of coffee and raw
cream. Without a doubt. Carbs digest too quick. The steak will just sit there and digest slowly. I have other tips but we'll save it for another question.

Nika: Who am I to argue Don that sounds like a good meal. I've heard of fluid loss a major problem during a long race temperature inside a car can be unbearable - how can we combat this problem?

Don: Drinking minerals in your water, not carbs or sugars, like too many do.

Nika:  Now is the off season for many racers - and with the holiday season approaching - how can we continue to keep ourselves running on high octane?

Don: Learn the 12 food groups discussed on my site. I eat like a pig and so do all my clients if you gauge by what society notes bad food to be. Yet, we are all muscular, lean, drug free, and major healthy!

Nika: Is there anything you would want to add about positive attitude and mental exercises for racers to do?

Don: Some people get nervous before an event. They call it a rush. I call it being scared. The best in the sport are arrogant because they beat this bug. Understand, win, lose, draw, no one in the stands are on that race course. They are not in the car. You are and you are an athlete and should be proud, not nervous. I say this because it is always the cause of negative emotions as well.

Nika: Many play video games to improve eye-hand coordination - Being a fitness expert in all areas - do you have any suggestions?

Don: I was taught a technique by a martial artist and I taught this to some baseball players and racers before. Use an ink pen. Hold it up in front of your face and focus in on the ball point. Focus hard on it without losing focus whether it is close or arms reach away for 30 seconds then close your eyes and relax. Do 3 sets. Next, focus on the ball point and without moving your head, only the eyes, follow the tip as you raise it high. When you lose focus, stop, gain focus, then raise it a little higher again. Go through three 'stops'. Rest with eyes shut then do this going down, left and right. I did it myself for one month as a teenager and haven't worn glasses in 14 years. Same was said for the athletes. Sport skills increased and so did eyesight. Eyes are muscles. Glasses do not allow them to focus on their own. They grow weak. Want an edge? Keep on top of ALL your skills!

Nika: Thanks Don for your time and super advice. Now if only I could get over this choclate addiction!!

For more information contact Don Lemmon at www.donlemmon.com

Racerchicks disclaimer: Racerchicks.com is not a customer of Don Lemmon nor have we gone through the program. He has come highly recommended to us but we cannot guarantee nor endorse his services or products.