Landon Cassill, driver of the No. 40 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, is snapping into fitness in a whole new way. He has teamed up with Snap Fitness, the first fitness company to be a primary sponsor in the sport, to promote a healthy and active lifestyle.
Cassill acknowledged that NASCAR has indeed gone through some of the same changes as in other sports like golf when it comes to physical fitness of the competitors, thereby attracting interest from fitness companies as potential sponsors.
“I feel like NASCAR has gone through what golf went through a few years ago with the Tiger Woods era,” Cassill said. “Golf was always a sport where there was a certain skill that made a good golfer but they weren’t necessarily athletes. And then Tiger Woods came along and he had that skill but added in this layer of athleticism. He started learning how to use his body to his advantage in addition to his skill. He changed the sport of golf that way.”
“I feel like he changed the game and I think NASCAR has gone through a similar situation,” Cassill continued. “Race car driving is certainly a skill. To do what we do, you have to have a certain skill, but for the longest time you didn’t have to be an athlete to drive a race car. Then you have someone like Jimmie Johnson that came along and he turned it into an athletic thing, focusing on his endurance. He tried to elevate everything that his body can do from what it goes through in the car. And he’s won six championships. So, it’s kind of hard to argue with that.”
“On my side of it, it’s more of how I look at myself, what I’m doing and how I make sure that I’m doing everything I can to get the best race possible every week. I sleep better at night knowing that I’ve built up the endurance to make it through a 500 mile race without being exhausted.”
Cassill’s sponsor has also inspired him personally to raise his own fitness level to new heights.
“For me, I have to find something that motivates me other than just working out so I got hooked on doing triathlons, very similar to Jimmie Johnson,” Cassill said. “And I actually train with him time to time, as well as working out with Josh Wise, who also competes.”
“When I schedule a triathlon six months in advance, I know that I have to prepare for that race,” Cassill continued. “So, I put myself on a pretty specific training schedule for that time. I do a lot of training Monday through Thursday when I’m at home. And then when I’m on the road, I have some early mornings. I choose to find a Snap Fitness to work out in when I’m on the road or a pool to swim in to get some training in. So, on a Friday evening instead of going out to dinner for two hours, having a beer and going back to the hotel, I go and train for two hours and then grab something to eat.”
“It’s just a matter of how you discipline your time.”
Cassill has also married his fitness with healthier eating, a discipline which he has even been able to practice on the road at tracks all over the country.
“I’m a little different eater than most especially in my industry,” Cassill said. “I don’t eat any meat and I don’t eat any dairy products or animal products at all. It’s just something I’ve done over the past couple of years and have migrated to being full-on plant-based with my nutrition. It’s just a performance thing for my body and it seems to be what works for me.”
“I have a nice little routine where every time I land at whatever city, I find the closest health food store,” Cassill continued. “There are a lot more than you think. Some of the places where you think it might be hard to eat healthy, like Pocono where we are out in the middle of nowhere, has one of the best health food stores in Wilkes-Barre. It has everything that I need.”
“One of the toughest places I had this year was in Riverside, California,” Cassill said. “It was far enough out of LA where there wasn’t any of that quirky, healthy stuff. But pretty much everywhere we go, there is a health food store where I stock up. I rarely eat out. But in a pinch eating out, I like Thai food.”
Cassill also acknowledged that his fitness is essential to not only endure the extreme conditions on the race track but to also stay mentally tough throughout one of the longest seasons in sports.
“This is a really tough season and we have a lot to endure,” Cassill said. “The biggest thing that has kept me mentally focused this year is the partnership with Snap Fitness.”
“They came on midway through the year and they planned these races for the later part of the season, Chicago and Kansas in the Chase here,” Cassill continued. “They’ve kept me really busy and driven for sure. They are looking at doing more sponsorship in the sport. They want to be involved and they want to make this work. And they are making me work for it.”
“I appreciate that because it’s kept me focused. It would be tough if we didn’t have any sponsorship and were set where we are in the points but I’ve got plenty to focus on right now.”
Cassill’s new partnership has also kept him fit now that the Chase competition is in the second Contender round.
“I’m just going to focus on my deal during the Chase and focus on my race,” Cassill said. “If the leaders come around and they are going to lap me, I’ll give them room just like I would any other time. It’s more important just to do that. I think the new format is great and we will have the best Chase.”
While competing in his own way in the Chase, most of all Cassill is driven by his newest sponsor and partner, which is one that fits so well with him and one that he hopes will resonate with the NASCAR fan base.
“It’s really exciting when they came on board just because it was such an organic fit,” Cassill said. “We get along so well and we have so much in common because fitness and training are so important to me.”
“They’ve been able to complement my training through this partnership,” Cassill continued. “I do my strength training at Snap Fitness, in addition to time running, on the bike and in the pool. But strength training is the foundation to all that, having the muscle strength to withstand injury and things like that.”
“It’s been a really good fit and I really appreciate their energy towards this partnership and sponsorship,” Cassill said. “What they are trying to accomplish, I think they have set themselves up to have success no matter what.”
“Failure is not an option and they are going to make a connection to NASCAR fans, who are the most loyal fans in the sport. They are going to make a valuable connection and they will enjoy their time with us.”
