Professional driver and Victoria’s Secret model Toni Breidinger is one of an elite group of female racers killing it on the track and off—and the sky’s the limit. Breidinger, 24, frequently shows fans what goes on behind the scenes in the racing world, as in a recent social media post where she shared a video of herself wearing a gray athletic bodysuit, walking around the track with her racing suit around her waist. “An artist on the track,” a fan commented. “Painting that yellow line,” Breidinger responded. Here’s how the racer stays fit, strong, and focused on her goals.
Breidinger works out twice a day and has a personal trainer. “I know a lot of people think you’re kind of just sitting and turning a steering wheel but it really takes a lot more than that,” she told Flaunt. “A lot of people think it might just be arms, but I have my legs get tired in a race. Honestly, it’s like an entire body workout that you have to prepare for, even though it doesn’t really seem like it. I find myself getting tired in all areas of my body.”
Breidinger uses technology to give her wellness routine an edge. “I’ve used MyFitnessPal to track macros, which was helpful when I started to get serious about my nutrition,” she told The Modems. “I also use MapMyRun to record all my runs so I can keep track of those as well. It’s so handy to be able to keep track of all my health goals easily all in my phone. Fitness is super important as well as is practice. I will be pushing to better myself in as many ways as I can.”
Breidinger tries to stay positive both on the track and in her day-to-day life. “I am very ambitious and stubborn so I feel like I naturally keep myself motivated to reach my goals, but I also have my bad days where motivation is just a struggle,” she told The Modems. “I’m lucky because the people I surround myself with are always there to lift me up and keep me on a positive mindset. I’ve gotten so much good career advice over the years but the best one was, ‘Mindset is what separates the best from the rest’. I always knew a positive mindset was important but I never really applied it to my life until this year and it really has changed my life for the better. It sounds cliché but I swear by it.”
Breidinger thinks most people have no idea about the work that goes on behind the scenes in the racing world. “They just see us on TV, on the track and they don’t realize all the stuff that goes into it during the week,” she told The Athletic. “Sometimes people think we just show up, but there’s a lot of physical training during the week and even mental training. I work with a sports mental coach, I have sim training, notes, watch lots of footage. And also the business aspect, which is a whole new other world.”
Breidinger measures success not just by winning, but from improving. “People can look at results and be like, ‘Oh, there’s this many wins and this many top-fives,’ but I always set progress goals going into every weekend,” she told The Athletic. “If I feel like I improve on my restarts this weekend, that’s like a little win to me. So I have smaller goals and kind of measure success in that way. As long as I’m still building and growing as a driver and I haven’t stalled out, then I feel like I’m working toward success.”