Canadian bodybuilder Chris Bumstead has been a dominant force in the Classic Physique division over the last few years. The reigning four-time Olympia champion stands as the most successful Classic Physique athlete in the history of the competition. In a recent interview with Chris Williamson, Bumstead shared the only 10 exercises he would keep to build muscle for contests.
Chris Bumstead first gained attention for his insane muscle mass, definition, and symmetry in 2017. He narrowly missed out on the top prize at Mr. Olympia to former two-time champion Breon Ansley, who defeated him again the next year. After two consecutive silver medals, Bumstead returned with a vengeance and handily dispatched the competition to secure his maiden Sandow trophy at the 2019 Mr. Olympia. He became a powerhouse in the Classic Physique division, winning four Mr. Olympia events in a row with 2022 Mr. Olympia being his latest victory.
Bumstead opened up on the mental challenges of defending the coveted title earlier this year. He admitted he was afraid of losing and not meeting the expectations he set for himself. His ultimate objective is to hang up his posing trunks at the top and depart from bodybuilding as a dominant champion.
‘CBum’ revealed he cut back on PEDs (performance-enhancing drugs) and has been training harder as a result three months ago. While he used to bulk up to 265 pounds in the off-season in the past, he and his coach said they don’t plan to go as high this season. Instead, Hany Rambod is focused on keeping him around 255 pounds to bring a leaner Bumstead on stage for his next outing.
Two months ago, Bumstead shared that he took less time off and appears to be in better form than ever before entering a prep. He also credited his former coach and Men’s Open standout Iain Valliere for helping him stay injury-free. In addition, he thanked Valliere for the immense success he achieved at a young age.
Bumstead teamed up with Derek Lunsford, former 212 Olympia champion and Men’s Open sensation, for a brutal back workout under the mentorship of Rambod two months ago. The pair crushed the workout to help Lunsford get ready for his guest-posing appearance at the 2023 Pittsburgh Pro.
Considering how imposing Chris Bumstead has been in the Classic Physique category, there has been speculation about how he would fare against the mass monsters of the Open.
IFBB athletes’ representative Bob Cicherillo believes he could contend with the best and even push for the top three if he added 15-20 pounds to his frame. Hall of Famer Chris Cormier praised Bumstead’s package and called for him to receive a special invite to the Open last month. On the other hand, bodybuilding veteran Rich Gaspari isn’t convinced Bumstead is ready just yet and argued he’d need to gain about 40 pounds of muscle to win the Open Mr. Olympia.
Chris Bumstead lists the only 10 exercises he’d pick to build muscle
In a recent YouTube video, Chris Bumstead picked the only 10 exercises he would keep to get as muscular as possible for contests.
Bumstead started off with squats and deadlifts to cover the lower body using compound movements that target multiple muscle groups.
“Squats, just overall leg growth, they help glutes, quads, a large portion of the legs. Barbell back squats, super simple,” said Bumstead. “If it’s my whole life I might actually do some Smith machine squats because it’ll help my knees and be a little bit easier.
“Deadlifts just to get something that’ll target my hamstrings so I don’t have to take out another in 10 or something to hamstring focused, and glute and back focused.”
Next, he went with pull-ups, incline dumbbell presses, seated dumbbell shoulder presses, close grip flat bench, dumbbell curls, bent-over rows, and hanging leg raises for his upper body and overall development.
“Pull-ups so I can hit my back and biceps in one, neutral grip. Incline dumbbell press. I find incline is a little bit better on your shoulders so if it’s the only exercise you do you won’t f**k up your shoulders too much and dumbbell, it’ll keep you a bit more symmetrical. Dumbbell shoulder press seated.
“I think that’ll help your triceps and shoulders a lot. Maybe a close grip flat bench for a different part of the chest and triceps. Dumbbell curl because how do you want to live without doing dumbbell curls for the rest of your life, standing supinated. Bent over row, that’ll help with stability and the core as well and then lower back and upper back. Hanging leg raise to make sure your core is getting hit so you’re not f”**king up your back.”
He rounded off the list with lateral raises.
“This is a tough one. I’m trying to focus on either lateral raises or overhead tricep extension because I haven’t had a lot of specific triceps. I would probably do lateral raises just to get some meaty delts over.”
Chris Bumstead gave fans a look into the private gym he’s building and his new meal plan last month. He’s hoping to have the training facility ready about 18-20 weeks out from the 2023 Mr. Olympia and said he dropped down to four meals instead of six for better digestion.
Bumstead’s exercise selection gives fans interesting insight into the mind of a dominant four-time Classic Physique Olympia champion.
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