Bodybuilding veteran Flex Wheeler still hasn’t forgotten how close he came to winning the Mr. Olympia. In a recent YouTube video shared on June 22, 2025, he explained that he wouldn’t be alive today had he won the prestigious title. He also talked about the low-carb diet he used during his tenure, along with his top two favorites heading into Olympia.
Wheeler is consistently referred to as one of the sport’s uncrowned Mr. Olympias. In the 1990s, he dominated the sport, winning countless titles. Ultimately, Ronnie Coleman never allowed him to win the Olympia though. Despite that, Wheeler managed to defeat big-name bodybuilders, like Shawn Ray, Chris Cormier, and Kevin Levrone.
During and after his career, Wheeler has faced countless health battles. He had his leg partially amputated following a car accident and has dealt with kidney failure. In his spare time, he reflected on these past struggles and the current state of the Open class.
Flex Wheeler Says He Wouldn’t Be Alive Had He Won Mr. Olympia, Talks Top 2 Threats In Men’s Open Today
In the video, Wheeler emphasized that he’d rather be a bodybuilder who people thought should have won the Olympia, rather than an undeserving champion.
Level Up Your Fitness: Join our 💪 strong community in Fitness Volt Newsletter. Get daily inspiration, expert-backed workouts, nutrition tips, the latest in strength sports, and the support you need to reach your goals. Subscribe for free!
“I’d rather be a non-Mr. Olympia titleholder and people believe that I should have been instead of being a Mr. Olympia and people saying you didn’t deserve that. I understand now more so than anything that was just not written for me. It was hell to deal with.”
“My mental challenges and being suicidal, I would come home from training and shoot my gun in my house, just to get used to the sound, so I can put it to my head and pull the trigger.”
According to Wheeler, not winning the Mr. Olympia was the best thing that happened to him, and he believes he wouldn’t be alive today had he secured the title:
“I understand now that it would have been too much power for me. I fully get it, my father in heaven is saying I’m having a hard time dealing with what I gave you. I can’t give you that because you’ll be uncontrollable. It doesn’t bother me anymore.”
“It was the best thing that didn’t happen to me. I don’t believe that I’d still be alive if I had won the Mr. Olympia. I’m pretty confident I wouldn’t be here if I had because I struggled with being suicidal.”
Throughout his prime years, Wheeler fueled his physique with a high-protein, zero-carb diet, made mostly of filet mignon and peanut butter.
“It was just protein, just steak. Filet mignon, it was an expensive deal, my food bill. We’d go to Costcos but it was just filet mignon for the last two months I’d have to go zero carbs. Filet mignon and peanut butter, and ketchup. I’d have peanuts if I was hungry in between that. No [veggies]. I should have, I just can’t eat vegetables, I hate them, I can’t stand them.”
“I’d just take vitamins and minerals to close that gap. It was just zero carbs, 12 ounces of filet mignon and two spoonfuls of peanut butter going into the show,” he shared.
Looking at today’s crop of competitors, Wheeler suggested that Hadi Choopan and Derek Lunsford would struggle with the size of athletes like Samson Dauda or Andrew Jacked.
“You have Samson who is starting to define and grow into who he can be. If you put the playing field even, there’s no way that Hadi or Derek can beat him because he has things that they don’t. But it’s more. It’s kind of like the argument with me and Shawn when he finally admitted I knew I could never beat Flex one-on-one, he has everything that I have, 20 pounds on me, and about four inches, what can you do about that? It’s just true.”
He believes Choopan and Lunsford have reached their ‘outer limit,’ whereas Dauda and Jacked have more areas to add mass to their physique and improve.
“The bigger men left the door open that allowed them to do that. Now saying that, Derek and Hadi, what they’ve been able to achieve is just mind-boggling,” adds Wheeler.
“I feel they are at the outer limit of having too much where Samson and Andrew have so much more that they can still just add. They haven’t got to it.”
He argued that these taller Pros are leaving the door open for shorter competitors to find success.
“So, for me, it’s like they are just leaving that door open for these guys to be able to come in there. If you just take them all at 100%, then it would be Samson and Andrew going at it because they are the two bigger men, and they do have the smaller waists and the more flowing lines.”
Bodybuilding veterans are beginning to offer their predictions for the upcoming Mr. Olympia. Rich Gaspari recently broke down the lineup. He predicted Dauda to win a second title in October with Derek Lunsford in the top three, and Nick Walker somewhere in the top five.
Wheeler is adamant that Dauda’s and Jacked’s height could set them up for a big night in a few months. The 2025 Mr. Olympia takes place October 9-12 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Watch the full video from the Overcome Cast YouTube channel below:
You can also follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and
YouTube for even more content.
