Nick Walker — Complete Profile: Height, Workout and Diet

Nick Walker is a Professional Open division bodybuilder from the United States. He won first place at the 2021 Arnold Classic, and placed 3rd at the 2022 Mr. Olympia the most prestigious bodybuilding event in the world. His nickname is “The Mutant”. This is his complete profile, biography, training regime, diet plan, and more.

Nick Walker

(Bodybuilder) 

Early Life 

Nick Walker is from New Jersey, USA. 

He was molested as a child and grew up as a loner because it was hard to trust anyone after his traumatizing experience. 

“I felt like I was all I had. So I definitely isolated myself from everyone, friends and even my family at some point.”

This led him down a path of drugs and alcohol but at one point he realized that things had to change and thankfully, he found lifting, and might we say, the rest was history.

Nick now admits that while the thoughts and his childhood experience never really goes away, he focuses forward and tries not to think about it much. 

He’s just laser-focused on becoming Mr. Olympia and hopefully winning ten Sandow trophies. 

Career and Competition

From what we can see, Nick “The Mutant” Walker was made for this sport.

His first competition came after graduating high school and although he did terribly, the crowd was still cheering him on and he’s said it was the first time he’s felt proud of himself.

Nick fell in love with the process and his childhood experiences pushed him to want to be better and to inspire others. He’s done an amazing job so far. 

“There are lights at the end of every dark tunnel, you just have to be able to find it. No one is going to find it for you.”

Nick only turned Pro last year after winning the 2020 NPC North American Championships. Less than a year later, he won the New York Pro, guaranteeing him a spot at the 2021 Olympia. 

On September 25, 2021, Walker made history by winning the Arnold Classic Ohio, Known as the second biggest bodybuilding and fitness competition in the world, behind the Olympia. He took home $130,000 in prize money and joined a list of iconic names to have won this prestigious show.

To do it on his first try is especially impressive considering many take more than once to win this title. He even called his win at the Arnold and then predicted a top-five finish in his Olympia debut. With a few days to the Olympia, there are high expectations for the young stud. 

Read: Nick Walker Makes Statement After 2021 Arnold Classic Victory

Competition history

• 2013 NPC Eastern USA Championships – Men’s Novice Light Heavyweight [7th]
• 2013 NPC Eastern USA Championships – Men’s Teen [1st place]
• 2013 East Coast Championships: Novice – Lightheavyweight [3rd place]
• 2013 Eastern USA Championships – Teen B [1st place]
• 2014 NPC Junior Nationals – Middleweight [2nd place]
• 2015 NPC Northeast Summer Classic – Middleweight [1st place]
• 2015 NPC USA Championships – Middleweight [8th place]
• 2016 NPC USA Championships – Welterweight [2nd place]
• 2016 NPC South Jersey Championships – Men’s Heavyweight [1st place]
• 2017 NPC National Championships – Men’s Heavyweight [6th place]
• 2017 IFBB North American Championships – Men’s Heavyweight [6th place]
• 2018 NPC USA Championships – Middleweight [3rd place]
• 2018 NPC National Championships – Middleweight  [6th place]
• 2018 Caribbean Grand Prix Pro Qualifier – Light Heavyweight [3rd place]
• 2019 NPC South Jersey Championships – Men’s Heavyweight [1st place]
• 2019 NPC USA Championships – Men’s Super Heavyweight [2nd place]
• 2020 North American Championships – 1st (Pro Card)
• 2020 Chicago Pro – 4th
• 2021 New York Pro – 1st (Olympia qualifier)
• 2021 Arnold Classic – 1st
• 2021 Mr. Olympia – 5th
• 2022 Mr. Olympia – 3rd
• 2023 Arnold Classic – TBD

Training Regime

Nick Walker was coached by Matt Jansen up until Jansen revealed the two are no longer working together. The two formed a winning duo for Walker’s rookie season including winning the Arnold Classic and they shared an inseparable bond beyond coach and athlete. 

In responding to a Q&A, Nick said that when he met Matt in 2019, he had a gut feeling that he was the right coach for him and it turned out to be true.  

“Outside of coaching, we are like best friends, we are family, I do look at him like a brother to me.”

He said that their relationship inspired each other to be their best. 

The 2020 New York Pro winner said that he wants to give his coach the first Sandow trophy (Olympia trophy) because he more than deserves it. 

At the time of this writing, the most recent training video that Nick posted to his YouTube was a chest and biceps workout 10 days out from the Olympia. 

When this close to a major competition, a lot of competitors avoid going too heavy as there’s the risk of injury. This is why you won’t find any compound free-weight movements in this workout, but rather, exclusively machines that remove the stabilization requirement and keep constant tension on the muscles.

The Arnold champ explained that he wasn’t trying to do anything too different from his Arnold prep. He and coach Jansen just wanted to avoid making any mistakes at this point.

It’s also important to note that these workouts were done close to a major competition so his strategy varies depending on the situation. 

Typically though, he does some fasted cardio in the morning for 20 minutes, 5 days per week, before doing his resistance training workouts. 

Chest and biceps workout

• Machine chest fly
• Machine Incline leverage press
• Neutral grip machine chest press
• Machine chest press
• Cable standing fly
• Cable standing biceps curls
• Machine preacher curl
• Barbell biceps curls 21s

Nick likes to start with the machine fly to get his chest warmed up before doing heavier compound movements. 

He also had the following advice for maximizing chest development.

“It’s all about the squeezing, squeeze the muscle as hard as you can and that will bring out all the detail,” he said in the video. “I think the low volume heavy weight training is very good to build the dense, grainy muscle. But sometimes you got to change it up a little, higher rep, a little higher volume. For one that helps burn fat more and I believe that creates more detail.”

Shoulders, upper back, and triceps 

• Seated dumbbell shoulder press 
• Machine standing shoulder lateral raise 
• Machine seated shoulder press
• Cable standing shoulder lateral raise
• Cable seated wide-grip row
• Machine row
• Reverse pec dec
• Cross cable pushdown
• Arsenal dip machine

Nick likes to stick with the same exercises and progress as much as he can with them before changing up his movements. 

“I don’t really believe in changing exercises week to week, I like to keep progressing with the same exercises until progression seems to stall or something is just not clicking anymore, then I’ll make a change.”

Arm day

• Triceps cable pushdown
• Barbell curl 21s
• Arsenal dip machine
• Cable biceps curls  
• Cross cable pushdowns
• Machine preacher curl
• Incline overhead dumbbell extension 1 set x 30 reps
• Hammer curl 1 set x 30 reps 

The Mutant has some of the best arms in the Open division so a lot of people want to know exactly what he’s doing. Of course, most of his arm aesthetics are due to his top-tier genetics but he also works his butt off in the gym. 

But unlike his other body parts, there’s not as much focus placed on his arms because it’s such a dominant body part, and rather than having a structured arm routine, he chooses to do what feels good and just has fun with it. 

He also tends to apply this mindset to training, in general and believes it’s often the best way to go about working out. 

“Training is supposed to be fun, you want to make sure you’re having fun and enjoying every moment of your training.”

This workout consists of alternating triceps and biceps exercises. Nick has his own training techniques as they work and feel best for him.

One example is that he likes to do cable curls, explaining that it takes tension off of the elbow joints and forearms. He also uses Prime Fitness fat grips attachment as he feels the contraction much more in his biceps. 

Back

• Cable lat pulldown 
• Assisted T-bar row 
• Reverse grip low row using machine
• Seated cable row w/ long angled bar
• Straight arm cable pushdowns
• 1 set of assisted pull-ups including rest pauses until 20 reps
• Weighted back extensions
• Power tower leg raises 

For the cable pulldown, Nick says it’s important to sit as upright as possible when focusing on working the lats. Otherwise, leaning too far back turns into a variation of the row, and anatomically, we know that changing angles is important for emphasizing certain muscle groups. 

Quads

• Leg extensions
• Leg press
• Hack squat
• Single-leg extensions
• Walking lunges
• Sissy squats (bodyweight)
• Thigh adduction machine

Hamstrings, Glutes, and Upper Back

• Seated hamstring curl
• Lying leg curl 
• Standing single-leg hamstring curl machine
• Cable stiff-legged deadlift
• Machine hip thrust
• High stance leg press
• Leg abduction machine
• Cable pulldown
• Machine seated straight leg calf raise

This leg workout was 10 days out from the 2021 Arnold Classic. Nick said that he does as much as he needs to during the warm-ups (seated hamstring curl) to avoid the potential for injury this close to a show. 

As for the rep range, 12-15 seems to work best for him. 

“If you go too heavy, you don’t feel it, what’s the point all you’re going to do is feel it in your joints the next morning.”

“Set little baby goals that lead up to one big goal.”

Nick’s Passion for Bodybuilding

At this level, you must have unparalleled passion, dedication, and willpower to get up every day and train, eat, and sleep bodybuilding. 

But it’s Nick’s obsession and aside from having elite genetics, he absolutely loves what he does and is living his dream. 

“When you have a strong passion for something, when you love to do something, the thought of burning out just doesn’t occur,” said the 27-year-old from New Jersey. 

“I love the way I’m living my life, I’m living my life the exact way I want to, I’m living life on my terms, I’m living my dream to the fullest.”

Diet and Nutrition

Nick’s coach Matt was just as responsible for his diet as much as the training portion of his preparation. While he could not always be around for every session or meal, they had a system going to ensure Nick stayed on track. 

Nick’s diet varies and he has shared his full day of eating on several occasions. While we did not include every diet regime he follows, here’s an example of a high-carb day. 

Meal 1

Mega Fit steak 224 g, cream of rice 200g, 100g blueberries

Meal 2 – Pre Workout

350 g Jasmine rice, 224 g 99% fat-free ground turkey, 10 g avocado oil, mustard, cinnamon, 200g pineapple

Meal 3 – Post Workout

350 Jasmine rice, steak, string beans, macadamia nut oil

Meal 4

350 g Jasmine rice, 224 g 99% fat-free ground turkey, 100g pineapple

Meal 5 

350 g Jasmine rice, 224 g 99% fat-free ground turkey, 100g pineapple, 100g string beans

Meal 6 

Mega Fit chicken, 350 g Jasmine rice, 224 g 99% fat-free ground turkey, 100g pineapple, 100g string beans

Supplements

Like any bodybuilder or fitness fanatic, Nick Walker does take supplements to support his health and performance. 

Morning supplements – Heart support, multivitamin, turmeric, omega 3’s, liver support, blood pressure support, kidney support, K2, D3, Vitamin C.

Morning drink – Daily greens, collagen, GI by Revive, glutamine

Personal Life 

Nick has a YouTube channel with over 68k subscribers that he uploads to regularly with the help of his brother. He also has 640k Instagram followers. 

Walker is sponsored by Revive Supplements and a few other companies. 

He currently lives in Florida and is happy down in the Sunshine state. His family is also planning to move down.

During a recent Q&A session, The Mutant said he is currently single. That’s because, as he explained, professional bodybuilding is hard to do while in a relationship. 

“It really takes a special kind of woman to understand what it takes to be the champion, especially how selfish bodybuilding is.”

Additionally, he mentioned that while some women may be about the lifestyle, it’s often short-lived. 

“I prefer to be single right now for sure.”

Who Does Nick Walker Think Is The GOAT of Bodybuilding?

In a Q&A, Walker was asked if he could beat the legendary four-time Mr. Olympia Jay Cutler in his prime. Nick did not hesitate to admit that he probably wouldn’t. He also thinks Jay is the greatest to have ever done it. 

 “In my opinion, you know, Jay Cutler is the GOAT (Greatest of All Time). Even though he only had four Mr. O titles, Jay Cutler is all-around just the GOAT. The way he was able to hide all his weaknesses and everything else, that’s what a champion is.”

Well, it turns out, Cutler also thinks very highly of Nick, recently saying that he thinks the young competitor can place second at the 2021 Olympia. 

As for any other bodybuilder he’s looked up to, it’s without a doubt six-time Mr. Olympia Dorian Yates. If he could compete against any legend, it would be “The Shadow”.

Insane Leg Veins

Perhaps Nick Walker’s insane, bulging calf veins got just as much attention as did he after his Arnold Classic win. 

Arnold Schwarzenegger pointed out the leg veins during Nick’s posing routine.

“What’s the story with his veins on the calves in the front? I’ve never seen that before. There’s definitely something going on there, it’s a little bit too thick those veins. I would definitely have those checked out.” 

Dave Palumbo of RX Muscle did a little education segment on the topic. But in a nutshell, Walker has varicose, also called spider veins. Common in the legs and largely genetic, this condition is caused by weak or damaged walls or valves in the veins.

Because veins have one-way valves that open and close to keep blood flowing to the heart, damaged or weak valves in the veins can cause pooling or backflow and as a result, swollen and large, twisted veins. 

Bodybuilding certainly doesn’t help as training causes increased pressure in the legs. However, oftentimes varicose veins are purely a cosmetic issue but in some cases can cause discomfort or lead to more serious problems. 

Nick’s calf veins don’t seem to be an issue at the moment but there are procedures to take care of them. 

Additional Information

The story of Nick Walker has been an incredible and inspiring one, to say the least. His story of using the painful memories from his childhood to push him to greatness would give anyone goosebumps.

At 27 years old, Walker has made waves in Open bodybuilding, climbing the ranks at an impressive rate and we wish him the absolute best at the Olympia and future competition. 

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