Formula 1 Racing Physical Over Emotional Fitness Wonders Spanista?

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Dear Wellness Seekers,

Formula 1 Racing Physical Over Emotional Fitness Wonders Spanista? I do wonder. In the Health & Wellness section of the Feb. 17th WSJournal I was drawn to an article about a favorite pastime my husband and I share – Formula One Racing.  The WSJournal article headline reads, “To Race a Formula One Car, tart with a Very Strong Core” reported by Kristiano Ang. What made this article noteworthy was the untold story on the high level of fitness required for drivers to reach this elite class. The photos made me smile because the driver featured was Susie Wolff. Susie Wolff is a test driver for the Williams Martini Race Team. By the way, the driver in the Formula 1 car pictured in below the feature article is Ms. Wolff.   I have been fortunate to attend races in Australia, Europe and Canada, meet the drivers and watch them perform. There is not experience quite like it – before , during or after.

The fast, glamorous, international world of Formula 1 has quite an iconic and sexy past. For example, I think my top movie favorite of the last three years is RUSH.( Available at Amazon, recommend the wide screen edition. It is worth it.) It is the story of two legendary drivers who carried out an intense rivalry for years that eventually turned into a respectful friendship. The extreme drivers are James Hunt (played by Australian born Chris Hemsworth) and Niki Lauda ( played by German born Daniel Bruhl ) – the emotional intensity it takes to drive uber fast cars that today fly at peak speed of over 200 mph for up to 90 minutes – this is not just a race of physical fitness, in addition it takes emotional fitness to endure and win. With this experience I have a point of view shared in the Spanista Takeaway at the end of this opinion post.

The WSJournal article outlines Susie’s work out, diet, gear and playlist to help her establish core body strength. An essential. However, Spanista feels the story falls short. Today there is so much emphasis put on physical fitness, which is terrific for peak performance and wellbeing, but I would like to propose an alternative point of view – there is a key missing ingredient. I think this pursuit should be balanced with Emotional Fitness. In fact the ingredient of Emotional Fitness separates the winners from the losers.  Peak performers should work from the inside out to se the right emotional context for winning.

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Spanista Takeaway: I wonder if this performance strategy could be taken to another level if seen through the eyes of Spanista Philosophy? Perhaps Ms. Wolff could capitalize on what I call The Female Advantage  – self care that is composed of  balanced strength  – a powerful synergy between emotional fitness and physical.  If cultivated properly it can bring her to the top of the crowd – if she finds the right approach to perfect this self care approach that works for her and build on her unique strengths.

Of course physical fitness is productive form of self care that which I strongly advocate but it’s emotional fitness that makes for world-class winners like Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) and before that Sebastian Vettel (Fararri) and before that Ayrton Senna. (McLaren).

Formula 1 Racing Physical Over Emotional Fitness Wonders Spanista? I wonder if it is time for a woman to take on Formula One on the track to win? 

Your thoughts?

To Your Self Care Journey To Joy,

Ginny