Sir Lewis Hamilton has shared a rare insight into his training ahead of the first race of the 2026 Formula One season. While Ferrari’s car remains to be tested, the man behind the wheel clearly isn’t easing off. If anything, he’s training harder than ever.
The Ferrari driver and seven-time world champion is known for his commitment to the sport. Since making his F1 debut in 2007, Hamilton has competed in more than 300 races and holds the record for the most podium finishes in F1 (202 at the time of writing). After disappointing results in 2024 with Mercedes, and again in 2025 during his first season with Ferrari, he’s once again chasing the title – and he knows preparation can make the difference.
‘This is the most I’ve ever trained between seasons,’ the 41-year-old revealed on Instagram. ‘I’m pushing hard every day to show up stronger than ever this year.’ He shared the message alongside four videos offering a glimpse into his off-season training.
Two of the clips show Hamilton jogging in the heat. Steady-state cardio strengthens his aerobic base, helping him sustain high-intensity efforts for longer before fatigue sets in.
But endurance is only one part of a highly structured programme. Resistance training is another major focus. The remaining videos reveal how Hamilton targets his core – essential for withstanding the extreme G-forces experienced during high-speed racing.
In both movements, he uses a Flex Disc abdominal roller to increase the challenge of plank-based exercises. In the first, he performs a variation of plank toe taps, reaching one arm forward on the roller before sliding it back towards the opposite planted foot. The second is an advanced bird-dog variation, with one foot and the opposite hand grounded while the other foot is raised and the moving hand reaches forward before returning towards the elevated foot.
The exercises may be advanced, but Hamilton’s broader training goal is simple: steady progress. ‘With lifting, cardio, flexibility and strength training, everything is about progress and endurance and going further than the day before,’ reads his Instagram caption.
While the finer details of his sessions remain private, Hamilton told Men’s Health last year
that the foundations aren’t far removed from a typical gym routine.
‘Ultimately, it’s no different to what people at home would be doing if they go to the gym,’ he said. ‘I’m still doing similar sort of HIIT workouts and I do similar weights.
‘There’s obviously a lot of resistance work. There’s a lot of work on your neck, which is probably something that most people don’t ever do. But I struggle with all the same things that most people do. There’s days I really don’t like it – particularly when you’re sore from previous workouts.’
One thing is clear: Hamilton is still chasing the title. ‘I’m still here, 20 years on, still standing, still hungry, still focused on the dream,’ he wrote on Instagram ahead of the season opener in Melbourne on March 8. ‘No holding back.’
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Abbi Henderson is Acting Nutrition writer who covers health, fitness, women’s sport and lifestyle for Women’s Health and Men’s Health. Before settling in a British seaside town, she spent a couple of years living in Canada, where she contributed to publications such as Best Health, Foodism and Canadian Living, and discovered she is, in fact, a little outdoorsy. With a desire to help make healthcare, exercise and sport more accessible to women, she writes about everything from the realities of seeking medical support as a woman to those of being a female athlete fighting for equality. She has a personal trainer qualification, a couple of medals from her short time in competitive Irish dancing, and an Arsenal Women season ticket. When she’s not in front of a screen working, she enjoys weightlifting, going for walks and stopping for little treats (matchas and pastries), and trying new recipes (that are almost always pasta-based).
