MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- Drivers who take their fitness routines seriously are no longer the minority in the garage.

Today a majority of the top-tier performers in NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series are finding that workouts can in fact enhance performance on the track.

For years, drivers were content to dismiss the theory and looked to pizza and cheeseburger lovers, such as two-time champion Tony Stewart, as proof that treadmills and tofu were overrated for successful wheelmen.

“

When I was in my 20s it seemed like I was untouchable. But that's not the case now.

”

JEFF GORDON

But opinions are changing.

Carl Edwards is no longer the lone gym rat on the circuit flying the fit freak flag. He has company by way of Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Burton and, more recently, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Earnhardt inside the gym may be more of a surprise than other drivers because admittedly he's more content to spend time in front of a computer as opposed to stair climbing.

Nevertheless, Hendrick Motorsports is pulling out all stops to help the No. 88 team and its driver succeed, so if it means putting the sport's favorite barbeque-loving Carolina boy on a program, then so be it.

Team owner Rick Hendrick said last week that the team is looking at everything, and that Earnhardt is working out and has changed his eating habits.

"Well, Rick wouldn't lie about it, but I'm just trying not to leave any stone unturned and obviously as you get older, you need to take better care of yourself," Earnhardt said this weekend at Martinsville Speedway.

His father, the late Dale Earnhardt, began feeling the effects of age and started an aerobics routine in his early 40s and gave up red meat.

"I'm just trying to do my part and make sure that I'm as good as I can be when these guys need me," Earnhardt said. "So I definitely needed to change my diet a little bit because I was not very proactive in what I ordered or what I bought and wasn't very picky about where I eat my meals. I'm just trying to be a little smarter and a little more responsible there."

Maintaining health and wellness at Hendrick Motorsports is somewhat of a growing trend that began with Jimmie Johnson, but new teammate and veteran driver Mark Martin is the true pioneer and influencer.

"Mark is always there for advice," Earnhardt said. "So is Jimmie -- Jimmie is a big cheerleader in trying to get me to do a better job and take better care of myself. He's a big help."

“

When a 50-year-old man is in better shape than you are and you're 30, then you need to get to work.

”

JEFF BURTON

As for Gordon, he has a few self-motivating reasons as to why he has hit the gym.

"Well it's my back," he said after Martinsville's Sprint Cup practice Friday. "My back is hurting so bad that I'm just trying to do something to alleviate some of the back pain."

He, too, has Johnson and Martin prodding him along.

"Mark definitely has been a big influence on Rick [Hendrick], and Rick has been jabbing me and giving me a hard time about him being in the gym," Gordon added.

And like the elder Earnhardt, 37-year-old Gordon is feeling his age.

"When I was in my 20s it seemed like I was untouchable. I could bend over and touch my toes. I could get out of bed with no aches and pains and get out there and run 500 laps at Martinsville and then do it again the next day if I wanted to," said the four-time champion who, until he hit 30, seemed to be physically invincible. "But that's not the case now."

So age and a back injury have forced Gordon to work out, but it might be the perfect remedy for the Cup Series points leader.

"I will say that I feel fantastic. Even though last week in Bristol my back was still hurting, from a cardio standpoint, I felt like I could have run another race," he said. "I got out refreshed without any kind of muscle soreness or anything like that. Besides my back, I felt fantastic. So I will say I'm in some of the best shape that I've been in a very long time."

Two years ago Gordon took up cycling and mountain biking, just for recreational purposes, until it started aggravating his back problems from incessant leaning forward.

Then last season he and crew chief Steve Letarte discussed hiring a trainer for the track so that Gordon could get help for his back.

"To do things to try to loosen my back up because what happens is it almost spasms and it gets tight and if you don't treat it then you go to the next race and it is worse and worse and worse," he explained. "I was focused on that at the end of the season. Over the offseason, my wife, Ingrid, talked me into going to the trainer. I started that in January."

He works out three to four times a week and refuses to miss a session.

"They are really intense and pushing me really hard and making the most out of every workout," he said. "I am already seeing the results in a pretty short period of time."

Jeff Burton, for years, has worked out with a professional trainer and learned early on the benefits of being in shape. He considers his workout program a vital part of his success, especially for a man who travels more than 36 weekends a year. The mental and physical demands begin to add up.

Also, Burton feels if drivers wanted to be thought of as professional athletes and paid like professional athletes, then they should act like professional athletes.

"This is a serious business. Anything you can bring to the table to make you and your team better, you need to bring it," Burton said. "Fitness is very important. I'm glad to see Mark [Martin] set a positive influence over there at [Hendrick Motorsports] and get people up and running. When a 50-year-old man is in better shape than you are and you're 30, then you need to get to work."