Chris Bumstead is aiming to collect a sixth Classic Physique Olympia title next month but made time during prep for an interesting Q and A. In a recent YouTube video shared on September 23, 2024, he discussed his mindset for the 2024 Mr. Olympia. In addition, he revealed the best foods to eat during a bulk, the most optimal training splits, and updated fans on his gut health just a few weeks before taking to the stage.
Since ripping the Classic Physique Olympia title out of Breon Ansley‘s hands, Chris Bumstead has been on a tear in the popular division. He’s gone largely unopposed during his reign, having weaponized the perfect combination of fullness, muscle hardness, and conditioning. There hasn’t been a contender that has truly given him a run for his money, though that could change in October.
He is set to face off against Brazil’s Ramon Queiroz who finished second at Olympia the last two years. But that won’t be all. ‘Cbum’ has to get through the spectacular front poses of Wesley Vissers, who upset Queiroz at the 2024 Arnold Classic. Vissers also claimed gold at the Arnold Classic UK show, setting the table for a heated showdown against Bumstead in the near future. Before the clash goes down, Bumstead answered some burning questions from fans about his career, health, training, and diet.
Chris Bumstead Reveals Best Foods for Bulking, Most Optimal Training Split, and Discusses Mindset for 2024 Mr. Olympia
Although he’s dealing with pressures ahead of his title defense, Bumstead says his happiness isn’t determined by a trophy.
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“If you’re searching for an exciting moment on stage at the Olympia or that’s the biggest thing for me, for me, happiness, if it was being on stage under the lights, hearing my name being announced as Mr. Olympia, I’d be happy for fucking five seconds a year and there’d be a lot of stress on that one moment which there is but there’d be a lot of pressure on that and everything else would suck if I didn’t have that.”
Instead, he believes having authentic goals and a strong set of values is key to fulfillment as a dominant titleholder.
“I think happiness for me is like I said, authentic goals, having a strong set of values that are really important to you that overpower everything else. For me it’s family, relationships, connection, being myself around specific people when I need it.”
According to ‘Cbum,’ the best training split is the one you’ll adhere to. While we all want to shore up weaker body parts, the reigning champion says beginners shouldn’t concern themselves with that right away.
“The most optimal split is going to be whatever you can line up perfectly into your routine and schedule. And if you have a weak body part and you’re just getting to the gym I don’t think that fucking matters at all. So I would just say whatever you enjoy doing, if you like doing a full push day, if you like doing an arm day, if you like having two different leg days in a week, hamstrings and quads, you just have to figure it out,” he shared.
He believes beginners should gravitate toward a standard push, pull, legs, or a typical bro split.
“I would say if you’re starting, I’d start with a push, pull, legs or a bro split,” said Bumstead. “Figure out what works best for your body.”
When it comes to push day routines, Bumstead credits the incline dumbbell press as essential. He mentioned that the movement helps him monitor his strength.
“Incline dumbbell press is my absolute essential chest press. I literally use that to mitigate or to monitor my strength, build the chest, do everything so, I’m doing that today.”
Given that he’s competed for several years at the highest level, knee pain has become an obstacle for Bumstead. His solution was to stop wearing shoes during training, especially on leg days.
“I’ll train in socks no matter where I am for legs. It’s more comfortable, B, I have wide feet and I like being able to spread my toes. I found that I used to wear Converse and my toes were getting crammed in my Converse and I had really bad knee pain.”
“I didn’t really change much about my training other than stopping to wear shoes and my knee pain has literally been negligible for the last three years since,” adds Bumstead.
If bulking is on your agenda, Bumstead believes olive oil can have a major impact on gains by adding it to most meals. He also believes pancakes and oat-filled protein shakes are ideal options if you’re looking to add lean body mass.
“Pancakes are a good one but I would say the biggest thing for me here is olive oil. I fucking love olive oil. Got to get that good shit straight from Italy extra virgin. But putting that on meals definitely helps a lot.
Shakes obviously help a lot being able to blend oats with some almond butter or something in it but the biggest thing for bulking and I will say this till I’m blue in the face and I’ll sound repetitive is eating foods you can digest properly.”
Maintaining proper gut health is paramount for bodybuilders, as it can affect recovery and training performance. He called the gut ‘the brain of the body’ and revealed that he stays away from food like McDonald’s because it causes him to have an inflammatory response.
“Having a diet that’s not too inflammatory for yourself. Like when you’re young and you can eat McDonald’s and feel great the next day that’s incredible, but if I had fucking McDonald’s one time right now my gut would be so inflamed and your gut is like the brain of the body.
It would inflame your whole body. It would slow down your ability to recover, your lactic acid production, it would be sitting in your body longer, your training wouldn’t be as good. Everything fucks up from your gut.”
Bumstead has been hard at work in preparation for the 2024 Mr. Olympia. Led by FST-7 training founder Hany Rambod, Bumstead has pushed through pain, adversity, and sweat to refine the physique he intends to win with next month.
Even with business ventures and preparations, Bumstead makes time for his fans. Don’t miss his attempt to secure a sixth Classic Physique Olympia title when he storms the stage next month from October 10-13 in Las Vegas, Nevada!
RELATED: Olympia-Bound: Chris Bumstead Fine-Tunes Chest with Hypertrophy Coach’s Mobility Tips
Watch the full video from Chris Bumstead’s YouTube channel below:
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