Schumachers träningspass , som du sa, 2 till 3 timmars cykling(Tack Bernie)
Strength, Stamina, Coordination
Michael Schumacher does not leave anything up to coincidence while fighting for the championship title. Not just on the test-track, but also outside of the cockpit the Ferrari-star prepares meticulously. The World Champion’s daily routine takes up to six hours. “Michael Schumacher trains harder than any other driver, even though he has a solid physical foundation to begin with,” Dr. Johannes Peil, orthopaedist and director of the “Bad Nauheimer Sportklinik” reveals.
Peil started looking after Michael four years ago. Ever since then, the Ferrari driver is accompanied on a daily basis by a physiotherapist from Peil’s team; even on holidays he comes along and monitors the World Champion’s training programme. At the races Balbir Singh, who also confers with Peil, looks after Michael. Strength, stamina and coordination exercises are all a part of the 35 year-old’s daily schedule. “Michael Schumacher spends two to three hours cycling every day, coping with an altitude measuring up to 1,000 – 2,000 meters,” Peil tells. This pays off during the races: even in extreme situations Michael stays below his physical limit.
„Even during critical situations, like for instance a crash, his heart rate remains below 140,” Peil has noticed – as a comparison: some fans exceed this while just watching a risky overtaking-manoeuvre take place. Another plus is Michael’s extraordinary ability to regenerate quickly. “He recovers extremely quickly. After an extreme strain, his heart rate comes back down to the resting rate of around 50 within ten minutes,” says Peil. “Schumacher’s physique is that of a 25-year old high-level competition athlete.”
Of course, not even Michael Schumacher can stop the hands of time, but he does everything he can to slow down the natural process of reduction in physical performance that sets in during the late twenties. This includes his diet, which was specially developed by a dietician from Peil’s team to suit the Ferrari drivers needs. Also, Michael works out in the gym on machines that were especially constructed to simulate the centrifugal forces (up to four times of the acceleration of gravity) that strain the muscles of his neck and torso during races.
Physiotherapy and Soccer to compensate
The training programme is accompanied by a specific physiotherapeutic treatment. “Weight training results in the muscles being shortened, the treatment stretches them again. You could say the physiotherapist gets the body back into balance. This is highly important to avoid problems resulting from one-sided physical strains,” Peil explains. That is why the treatment and training routines are always tailored to the current requirements: deficits are analysed, evaluated, and then corresponding counter-measures are integrated into the training programme.
Michael is a complete professional regarding this as well. “We have never looked after an athlete that is as in touch with his body like Michael Schumacher is,” says Peil, who has been working with top athletes for many years. “If he has to, he even puts in an extra work-out before going to bed at night, even if he’s tired.” And so, the Ferrari driver will even absolve exercises in coordination after an exhausting stretch of cycling in order to correct disbalances und hone the interaction of muscle-groups. This pays off on the race track: the better the coordination of shoulders, arms, and hands, the more precise the steering-movements are. Balance is generally a big part of Peil’s training philosophy. That’s why climbing, archery, and playing soccer are also included on Michael’s schedule.
„Michael loves nothing more than a recreational game of soccer – no matter who it’s with,” Peil says. „Being a team-player is especially fun for him, because it is the complete opposite of what he does on the race track. That’s why he plays soccer whenever and wherever he can.”
None of the other drivers work as hard to stay physically fit as Michael Schumacher. “If he has to, even in the middle of the night,” says Peil. “’Not feeling like it’ is not an option for him”.
