CLEVELAND, Ohio -- On any given day in the town of Conway, Ark., Browns running back Peyton Hillis can be seen trudging through his neighborhood with a half-ton truck harnessed to his chest. 
On lighter training days, he'll lug a small car or all-terrain vehicle around the block.
"I know it's weird, but if you saw it, you can see it works," he said. "It's just something a buddy of mine came up with and I've been doing it since my junior year in high school."
One thing is for certain: The newly-minted Madden 12 cover boy and 1,000-yard rusher hasn't let success or fame go to his head.
"You can never get complacent," said Hillis, who beat out Eagles QB Michael Vick for the Madden 12 cover that will debut in August. "All of this has been exciting for my friends and family and the people of Conway. Things like this don't happen around here very often and the people are very proud of me. It just makes me want to work that much harder for them, for the Cleveland fans and the people I grew up with. It's truly a blessing."
When Hillis isn't attached to a hunk of metal, he's doing a variety of other things to prepare for the season.
"I have coaches from Conway High working me out and all kinds of local fitness experts," he said. "I'm doing yoga, MMA and things like that. I'm an unorthodox player, so I have to do things that fit my kind of game."
Family and friends have also been able to help with the fumbling issue that plagued Hillis last season. After leading all running backs with eight fumbles in 2010 and tying for third among all NFL players with five lost, Hillis knew he had to take some drastic measures in the off-season.
"I'll carry a ball around with me all day and ask people to try to knock it out of my hand when I least expect it," he said. "I'll give them some money and stuff so people get pretty geeked up about that. It just helps me to take care of the ball without even thinking about it."
So has it cost him an arm and a leg?
"Sometimes they'll get it out, but most of the time they don't."
For the folks who think that Hillis wore down toward the end of last season, guess again. He was playing with cracked ribs for the final three games that made every breath, every move excruciating.
"I broke them at the very beginning of the Cincinnati game [Dec. 19] and then aggravated them in the Baltimore game the next week," he said. "They were really bad in the last game against Pittsburgh, too [six carries, 13 yards]. It was tough to cope with, but I did it because I wanted what's best for the team and I wanted to play for the guys. I wanted them to know how much the team meant to me, and I wanted to do them that favor."
That's one of the reasons Hillis is excited to have second-year running back Montario Hardesty recovered from a torn anterior cruciate ligament. Head coach Pat Shurmur said recently that Hardesty, who was pegged as the No. 1 tailback heading into last season, should be full-go by training camp.
"It'll take a lot of the beating off of me and he'll add a lot to the team," said Hillis. "I'm excited about having him back out there and I hope he comes back 100 percent. If he does, I know he'll help the team out tremendously."
Hillis even welcomes the threat to his starting tailback job.
"I always find competition in each and every thing I do and it will bring competition -- no doubt about it," he said. "But being professional and being who I am, I like competition. I like a good challenge and I'm always up for anything."
He's also up for whatever role Shurmur has for him in the West Coast offense -- the same scheme he excelled in as a rookie under Mike Shanahan in Denver in 2008.
"I'm going to go out with the same mindset I had last year, trying as hard as I can," he said. "I'll do all that I can, all they want me to do and I'll let everything else take care of itself."
Hillis, who rushed for 1,177 yards and 11 TDs in 2010, acknowledged that the West Coast is a good fit.
"There will definitely be more passing involved," he said. "You have to be more versatile to be a running back in the West Coast. Catching the ball out of the backfield is really important and they can also split you out wide a lot more in the slot and stuff like that. So it's all things I believe I can do really well and I feel really comfortable with that."
Hillis attended both of the "Camp Colts" at the University of Texas this off-season and regained his familiarity with the West Coast terminology.
"The first couple of days may be a little tough, but it will come to me a lot faster for sure than if I never learned it," he said. "Then again, the past five years I've had five different coaches and five different playbooks, so I'm kind of used to the situation."
Hillis said he hasn't been back to Cleveland since the end of the season, but is looking forward to his day-long youth football camp at St. Ignatius on July 9. Part of the proceeds will go the Cleveland Muny Football League.
"I really enjoy teaching kids the basics of football and giving them information," he said. "When I was growing up, I didn't go to any special camps. I hope it's exciting for them because I know it's exciting for me."
Hillis, who doesn't believe in the Madden curse, hasn't set any individual goals.
"I'm not going to be happy until Cleveland wins a Super Bowl," he said. "Those individual goals come and go, but Super Bowls and the relationships you make with coaches, teammates and fans last forever."
For more information on Hillis' youth camp, log onto peytonhilliscamp.com
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