How Lando Norris Trained to Become the F1 World Champion

Originally posted on BodyBuildingBros | By Ruwa Javed | Last updated May 5, 2026 3:56 PM ET

Lando Norris secured his first F1 world championship in December. The McLaren driver overcame Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton following a grueling 2025 season. His victory stems from a specialized assessment at Swansea University designed to eliminate lost lap time.

The 26-year-old also had a tough competition with his own teammate, Oscar Piastri. However, after a tough neck-and-neck fight, Norris emerged victorious.

Talking about his win, he said ‘I feel proud, but not because I’m going to wake up tomorrow and go, ‘I beat everyone.” I’m not proud because I get to just say I’m a world champion. I’m proud because I feel like I made a lot of other people happy.’

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Besides being a talented driver, there is a rigorous training regimen that helped the Briton reach the top. Last year, Norris shared his entire training on his YouTube channel, giving fans a little sneak peek into how he keeps himself ready for action.

At the beginning of the video, he arrived at Swansea University for his assessment, where his strengths and weaknesses were assessed. Assessment day includes multiple assessments of the F1 champion at maximal capacity and provides data for Lando’s team that they use throughout the season.

Or, according to Norris, “Basically, [an assessment of] the things that might cost me lap time, and anything that costs me lap time is not a good thing.”

Here is everything the assessment includes:

Checking Norris’ body composition and metabolic rate

A Stratos DR body scan analyzes his fat mass, lean mass, and bone density, and it is followed by measuring the resting metabolic rate.

Testing the hand grip

Grip is tested by making Norris squeeze a hand dynamometer to measure his grip strength.

Lower body analysis

He stretches and performs mobility exercises and vertical jumping drills to measure explosive power, agility, and reaction time.

The 3-minute test

Here he sprints as fast as he can and reaches as far as he can in three minutes.

Neck strength

Having a solid neck helps you endure the G-forces and maintain vision at that time.

Neck endurance

In this test, a harness is fitted to his head, and he has to push against the lateral force while somebody pulls the harness from the other side.

VO2 max test

Under this test, Norris runs on a treadmill, while wearing a mask, at 6km per hour, with the pace increasing 1/2km per hour every minute.

Heat stress test

The heat stress test assesses Norris’ tolerance to exertion in heat by making him cycle on a stationary bike while wearing sensors and a mask.

Lando Norris’ training and diet routine for F1

Once the assessment is done, he will know where his body stands and what he needs to do to improve. In that, his training and diet routine come in handy.

Training:

Cardio