Bodybuilder Sam Sulek is less than three weeks away from making his pro debut at the 2026 Arnold Classic. On Feb. 17, he broke down his strict grocery haul during contest prep.
“This puts me at exactly 19 days away from showtime.”
A lot of influencers talk the talk, but few back it up. Sam Sulek did just that in 2025. He finally made his amateur debut at the 2025 NPC Legends Classic and won overall gold in Classic Physique. This set the stage for him to shine at the Arnold Amateur en route to first place.
The victory secured his invite to the 2026 Arnold Classic, allowing him the chance to compete against the best. Looking ahead, the Arnold Classic lineup is stacked with top-caliber talent, including reigning champion Mike Sommerfeld, Wesley Vissers, and Andrea Mammoli.
Sam Sulek’s Grocery Haul During Prep for the 2026 Arnold Classic
Find his groceries from the video below:
- Top sirloin petite steaks (6 packs)
- 96% lean ground beef (2 packs)
- Canned chicken (6 cans)
- Jar of Pickle Chips
- Beef jerky (1 bag)
- Plain lightly salted rice cakes
- White cheddar flavored rice cakes (2 sleeves)
Steak
“You don’t have to be a kinesiologist dieting master’s degree kind of dude to be able to understand that this cut of steak is much leaner than this cut of steak. Look at all this marbling.”
Ground Beef
“You can’t just say I want some ground beef. You’re going to want to go as lean as feasible. You can’t tell as much, but even just that visual cue is still apparent.”
Canned Chicken
“The convenience factor of the canned chicken has been insane. I don’t understand the hate for it. I get it, yeah, it’s got a good chunk of sodium. If you drink a ton of water, that’s not a problem. High sodium is not an issue. It’s high sodium with low fluid intake that can start to mess with you a little bit.”
Pickle Chips
“Got a little bit of an older meal inspiration. I grabbed a big container of pickle chips. One more – I wouldn’t call this a hack per se, but it’s at least one of my preferred methods of ground beef consumption. It’s essentially a deconstructed burger.”
Beef Jerky
“This whole bag has 60 grams of carbs, added sugar just to sweeten it up. It’s a little tricky. It’s a little bit on the nose here, but that’s not completely off base. I’m going to eat this in the freakin car on the way home,” he said.
Rice Cakes
“Plain, lightly salted rice cakes, so these do very well in terms of my overall meal sizing because each rice cake sleeve has two individual little packets of seven, and each rice cake itself has seven grams of carbs. That means each bag is just about 100 grams of carbs worth of rice cakes.”
Despite it being his very first Pro-level show, Sulek opted to coach himself. He believes this process is simpler than reporting to a coach with progress photos throughout preparations. While he notes that some individuals benefit from coaches, he wants to see what he can accomplish on his own.
Based on recent physique updates, Sulek looks on track to make a statement. The 2026 Arnold Classic is set for March 5-8 in Columbus, OH.
RELATED: Bodybuilder Sam Sulek Breaks Down 2,541-Cal Full Day Eating in Prep for 2026 Arnold Classic
Watch the full video from the Sam Sulek YouTube channel below:
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