Morning routines are the most important component of the day as they can have a significant impact on the activity during the rest of the day. Bodybuilder Chris Bumstead recently shared how his morning routine unfolds with Olympia weekend in sight. Bumstead is a Canadian IFBB Pro bodybuilder that competes in the Classic Physique division. He is one of the most successful active bodybuilders and has three consecutive Classic Physique Olympia wins on his resume. After snatching the title from former champ Breon Ansley at the 2019 Olympia, CBum has dominated the competition at the 2020 and 2021 Olympia to retain it. He will attempt to extend the legacy further by securing a fourth win at the 2022 Olympia.
Bumstead’s competition prep is in its final phase and he recently shared the new 2100-calorie diet to get shredded. After ending the coach-client relationship with old friend Iain Valliere, CBum is now training under famed Coach Hany Rambod. In spite of having retirement in sight, the 27-year-old is tackling the competition prep with a champion’s mentality and training with other elite competitors like Hadi Choopan to push his limits.
Recently, Bumstead shared his morning routine ahead of the 2022 Olympia and posted the video on his YouTube channel. So without further delay, let’s see how Bumstead’s day starts and everything it includes.
Chris Bumstead’s morning routine two and a half weeks out of 2022 Olympia
Bumstead starts his day fairly early and drinks one liter of water to replenish his dehydrated body. Typically, he loses approximately 6lbs of body weight in one night, and rehydrating early in the morning really helps. Following this, Bumstead steps on a weighing scale usually naked to avoid the weight of his clothes impacting the scales.
The Classic Physique Olympia champion heads to his basement for a posing session and shares his photos and weight with his Coach Hany Rambod to keep him updated. Before doing some cardio work, it is time to ingest some caffeine. Earlier, Bumstead was taking a fat burner supplement. However, two and a half weeks out of Olympia he has reduced its intake. He prefers to make himself a coffee or a cold brew along with an electrolytes supplement.
“Drink this… Super light chocolate taste but it just gives a little flavour, electrolytes and I refill my water back up to the top, grab my headphones and go start cardio…” CBum stated.
Cardio training
CBum’s cardio training includes walking on a treadmill for 45 minutes in his barefoot shoes with minimal cushioning. He typically starts with a three percent incline with a 3 mi/hr speed and slowly works his way up to six percent incline with 3.5 or 3.8 mile/hr speed. Towards the very end, CBum pushes his body really hard and sets the incline on eight to ten percent for the glutes and other lower body muscles to really do the work.
“I typically start with my headphones in, put on relaxing music and try to chill and reflect. Sometimes I envision the rest of my prep… Going through my peak week… Getting on stage, me doing this stuff and I put myself through the motion like that and I kind of feel it all and experience it all and get myself mentally prepared for it,” Bumstead said.
The supplement Stack
The champ added that he puts his phone on aeroplane mode before going to bed at night and blocks out the distractions until he steps on the treadmill. So the cardio time is also his first time using a smartphone in the day.
After getting done with the cardio, it is time for CBum to take his dietary supplements.
His supplement stack at the moment includes:
- Vitamin K2 & D3
- Turmeric
- Vitamin C
- Fish Oils
- Lipids and Healthy Cholesterol
- Sodium Bicarbonate
CBum stated that fish oils have a considerable amount of calories. However, he has been taking them for a long time so his body is accustomed to them.
“100 calories from the fish oil… Maybe that wouldn’t be the best. But my body is used to it and I am losing weight doing it. So we’re doing it,” Bumstead added.
Eating the breakfast
Bumstead next calls his coach Hany Rambod to go over the plan and they fine-tune the plan depending on the training split on that day, weight, and other factors. Then, it’s time for Bumstead to tackle the rest of the day according to the game plan. CBum alters between oats or pancakes and eggs for breakfast.
“I don’t know why but I just like switching it up. Sometimes I want to eat two separate things that taste a little bit different. Sometimes I just want to eat a plate of thin, watery egg white pancakes. So today’s one of those days,” he said.
After enjoying breakfast, CBum does a bit of foam roller and stretching exercises to open up his joints and muscles. Speaking about his experience doing this, Bumstead explained:
“Anecdotally, I have never stretched in the past and this year I’ve been stretching five times a week in the morning. My hips feel better, my quads feel better, my knees feel better. I’m in less pain than ever…”
Shoulders Workout
On this particular day, CBum trained his shoulders in the gym. He refrained from using free weights for the compound movements and started the workout by targeting the lateral deltoids.
Machine Lateral Raises
Bumstead warmed up his shoulders with three to four sets of machine lateral raises to increase the blood flow. After doing a few working sets of this exercise next, the 27-year-old took to XXX.
“Warm-ups lately, I’ve honestly been doing a little bit more. Normally it’s like three to four to conserve my energy. But right now, I’m really trying to get my blood moving and flowing. I’m not hitting any PR or doing really heavy sets right now. So I’m trying to burn calories, blood flow, warm up properly and not hurt myself,” Bumstead explained.
Machine Overhead Press
CBum next took to the machine overhead press to target the anterior delts. After getting a few solid sets of this exercise on a plate-loaded machine under the belt, he jumped into the next movement.
Machine Incline Shoulder Press
This was the next compound movement to target the anterior delts in CBum’s shoulder workout. Bumstead used the Flex Fitness shoulder press machine for the exercise.
“I love this machine which is way too light. This is Flex Fitness shoulder press. This one’s pin loaded and it’s a full stack right there. I just control the way and push. Typically, during my off-season I can’t use it. But we’re one week out right now. I don’t feel like loading up a bunch of plates…” Bumstead said.
CBum then cranked out a few solid sets of incline shoulder press on the machine before taking up the next exercise.
Seated Dumbbell Lateral Raises
Bumstead next targeted the lateral deltoid muscles with this isolation exercise and pushed through a few sets to fire up the muscle group.
Seated Dumbbell Front Raises
After taking a good look at his physique during the rest period, Bumstead went back to working the anterior deltoids with this isolation movement. Performing this exercise in a seated position eliminates the need to stabilize the core and helps focus more on the shoulder isolation. CBum performed the sets unilaterally to failure and shifted his focus on the posterior deltoid muscles with the next exercise.
One Arm Cable Rear Delt Flyes
The rear delts / posterior deltoids are difficult to activate with common shoulder exercises. As a result, it is essential to incorporate rear-delt-specific exercises in the training routine to develop these muscles. CBum targeted them with the one-arm cable rear delt flyes. However, instead of a regular straight handle, he used a D-handle attachment.
Bumstead’s coach Hany Rambod likes to call this variation the ‘Bi**h Slap’ rear delt flyes. Since the wrist position changes to vertical when using the D-handle, the movement targets the middle part of the rear deltoids. CBum performed a few sets of this exercise and took to a triceps exercise next.
Crossover Cable Triceps Extensions
The reigning Classic Physique Olympia champion sprinkled this triceps movement into the training session and did a few sets to stimulate this pushing muscle. Shoulder stability and full elbow flexion are the two most important criteria for triceps activation. The crossover cable triceps extensions enable both of these and help develop the triceps.
Superset – Reverse Pec Deck Flyes and Hanging Leg Raises & Knee Tucks
CBum went back to working the rear delts next and performed a few sets of reverse pec deck flyes. In spite of being an elite bodybuilder with an impeccable mid-section, Bumstead revealed to have never done abs exercises for more than three to four reps throughout his bodybuilding career.
“I used to do three, four or five reps and just cramped so bad I couldn’t do it anymore. Now I can do three, four, five sets and not die. So, it’s a plus for me,” he said.
The Canadian bodybuilder has a little better control of the abdominal muscles now. However, he still refrains from doing weighted exercises and does simple bodyweight movements to work the abs.
At this stage of his prep, Bumstead is doing only leg raises and knee tucks for four to five sets. Each set consists of ten reps of leg raises and ten reps of knee tucks. This rep range is a little bit short of failure for the 27-year-old phenom. Bumstead superset the reverse pec deck flyes with this exercise and cranked out all the sets in rapid succession. This superset served as the finisher to CBum’s training session as he wrapped up the workout after this.
Overall, the workout included:
- Machine Lateral Raises
- Overhead Press Machine
- Machine Incline Shoulder Press
- Seated Dumbbell Lateral Raises
- Seated Dumbbell Front Raises
- One Arm Cable Rear Delt Flyes
- Crossover Cable Triceps Extensions
- Superset – Reverse Pec Deck Flyes and Hanging Leg Raises & Knee Tucks / Hip Raises
You can watch the full video here, courtesy of Chris Bumstead’s personal YouTube channel:
Chris Bumstead is a favorite heading into the 2022 Mr. Olympia and his physique updates show exactly why he is number one. While he does seem to be a level above the rest of the division, young contenders like Terrence Ruffin, Urs Kalecinski, and Ramon Rocha Queiroz’s recent physique updates show that they’ve made big improvements. Will Bumstead continue to lead the division? We’ll find out in a week. Until then, stay tuned to Fitness Volt for lightning-fast updates.
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