The retirement life appears to be going well for bodybuilder Chris Bumstead. In a recent YouTube video shared on December 12, 2024, he opened up on how training has changed since his last contest, losing 15 pounds of muscle, and his new favorite snack.
Chris Bumstead established himself as a six-time Classic Physique Olympia champion and announced his retirement from the sport. However, his decision to step away from the stage didn’t last long. He fulfilled one of his dreams and competed in the Open class at the 2024 EVLS Prague Pro.
Although he lacked experience in the Open division, he shocked the world, narrowly taking second place behind Martin Fitzwater, the fourth-best bodybuilder in the world. Despite the success, he reinstated his retirement from bodybuilding, leaving fans curious about what lies ahead for the Canadian champion.
Chris Bumstead Gives Training Update Post-Retirement, Shares New Favorite Snack, Says He Lost 15 Lbs of Muscle
Bumstead plans to start biking five times a week for 30 minutes to stay in shape.
“Getting back into the gym after that time off has been tough. I’ve had one workout since and everything is achy and I’m so weak. My heart rate is shooting through the roof.
I’m hella out of shape right now. The goal right now is to bike at least five times a week, 30 minutes, get my heart rate, I got to watch, want to keep my heart rate at an average of 130-135 for 30 minutes.”
He modified his training routine as of late, prioritizing superset workouts while aiming to achieve mobility and a better range of motion.
“I’m supersetting workouts, just trying to get really good mobility, range of motion, I feel like when you take time off, getting back to the gym is really hard because you don’t have the focus, you don’t have the strength, you’ve come down so far from the last time you were in the gym. Mentally, it’s more of a battle than anything.”
As for other changes to his training, ‘Cbum’ revealed that he’s lifting at ’50 percent capacity’ and focusing on free weights instead of machines.
“Right now, I’m literally going 50 percent of my max RPE, reps in reserve, or whatever the fuck people call it. I have a lot of reps in reserve right now. I’m going 50 percent capacity. So I’m just trying to move full range of motion, stretching, doing a little bit more free weights, all that good stuff.”
Currently, Bumstead is weighing 245 pounds and stressed that he’s lost 15 pounds of muscle since the Prague Pro.
“Still want to stay jacked, a little bit more functional,” he shared. “I just feel skinny and out of shape. I think I competed in the mid-250s in Prague and the other day, I don’t know what happened but I was 237 one day when I woke up and that was a bad day. Since then, I’m back up to like 245 but I’ve lost like 10 pounds and I’ve put on some body fat.”
“Realistically, that means I’ve lost probably almost 15 pounds of muscle in a month and a half,” he shared. “I don’t look bad. I still look great. But the drastic change of being fucking what I looked like in Prague or the Olympia to now, it’s just a big variance.”
He also touched on his new favorite snack in retirement: a bagel with cream cheese and almond butter.
“Anything with bread, toast. Bagel and cream cheese has been like my humorous joke. I have literally been eating it like every single day. Cream cheese is just so fucking good. I literally don’t think I had cream cheese for 15 years, how old am I? Maybe longer. At least 15 years and now I have it everyday because it’s absolutely incredible.”
“I put a bagel and a cream cheese and I’ll put almond butter on top of the cream cheese too, incredible,” said Bumstead.
While Bumstead parted ways with bodybuilding, some in the community, including head judge Steve Weinberger was more than impressed with his Men’s Open splash in the Czech Republic. He believes with added thickness to his chest, back, and arms, he could continue to find success in the Men’s Open class.
Following years of competing at the highest level, Bumstead seems content with his decision to retire. He intends to update fans on his fitness goals moving forward.
Watch the full video from the Chris Bumstead YouTube channel below:
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