Chris Bumstead may have retired from the competitive side of bodybuilding, but the six-time Classic Mr. Olympia winner’s profile is still very much on the ascent. With training taking a new direction and his line of health supplements now on a meteoric rise, CBum sat down with M&F to reflect on the phenomenal success he had with his physique, where his true passions now lie, and what to expect in the future.
Few people have done more to peak people’s interests in building muscle than Christoper Adam Bumstead. From 2019 until 2024, the Canadian crushed his competition to lift six-consecutive titles in the Classic Division, amassing millions of fans and inspiring those both young and old to make their own gains in the gym.
Now 30, Bumstead has been lifting weights since he was 14 years old and learned much of what he knows thanks to the painfully truthful process of trial and error. Bumstead’s detailed approach to commanding the Olympia stage left nothing to chance, putting a spotlight on any area of his mental or physical health that could offer even the slightest of advantages. Of course, this is how champions are made, but while many people ask Bumstead for his advice, few understand what it takes to follow in his prolific path.
Becoming Mr. Olympia is a world away from setting up as a self-styled social media influencer. On the bodybuilding stage, judges don’t care about filters or slickly edited videos, and there’s certainly no short-cut to success.
“As much as someone can hear over and over again that there’s no secret and that it’s just consistent hard work and it takes time, they’re still like, ‘OK, cool, but what’s the secret?’” jokes the bodybuilding legend. “So, when people come up to me and ask, ‘What’s your best piece of advice?’ My answer is usually something along the lines of, ‘Don’t listen to anyone who gives you one piece of advice because it doesn’t exist.’ You know, you gotta jump in the weeds, you gotta take action. You gotta start, you gotta fail.”
He adds: “There’s no right way to start, no right time to start. You just kind of gotta jump right in the mess and figure it out as you go. And if you’re serious, and if you love what you do, you will figure it out on your own. Getting past the fear of starting and the vulnerability that comes from actually working hard at something, risking failing, I think that is just such a big thing that holds people back.”
What Chris Bumstead figured out for himself, and illustrated time-and-time-again on the iconic Olympia stage, is that repeated success means taking care of those things that others neglect.
“I kind of have 3 pillars that I live by,” he tells M&F. “Like you ‘Build,’ ‘Fuel,’ and you ‘Focus.’ There’s training (for building muscle). Fueling is like the nutrition and (then there’s) sleep and recovery. Focus is your mind. But when it comes to recovery, sleep is arguably like the top pillar that you need to focus on,” says Cbum. “You know, a better, healthier, rested body is also able to grow more, and I don’t think people understand. It’s not always about driving yourself into the ground, but actually giving your body the rest it needs so that it can do the work to get you where you need to be.”
While Bumstead is keen to stress that there is no magic ‘winning’ pill, there are plenty of supplements that can hone our health and help with those all-important areas such as quality sleep.
“The main ones that I go through at night are magnesium, inositol and theanine,” shares Cbum. “They’re the ones that your body naturally has within it, and it doesn’t deplete your sources to take it,” he explains.
Of course, protein has been a huge product of choice over the years for packing lean mass on Bumstead’s buff body. “To get in your protein goals as a bodybuilder through just meat is very challenging,” he explains to the uninitiated. “Creatine absolutely is a must; I take 5 to 10 grams a day minimum. I’m on omega-3 for joints and inflammation and there’s studies on autoimmune (conditions) that omega-3 is really good for that too,” he shares.
“I think it’s really cool,” beams Cbum of his products having a fitting physical presence. “Just an evolution over time, of a kid who loved working out and shopped in supplement stores,” he reflects. “And then, I wanted to get a job and work in a supplement store. Next thing I know, I have a company I want to get into a supplement store, and then it’s on the shelf,” he says proudly. “The next thing I know it’s not only on the shelf, but we have our own wall there. So just seeing that evolution come from something that’s truly a passion of mine is an honor to see.”
moriauphoto/Instagram
Chris Bumstead Reflects on His Favorite Olympia Victory
In the life and times of Chris Bumstead, his business success is yet another ambition realized through hard work and dedication, but is there a particular Olympia trophy that meant the most?
“It’s really hard for me to pick a favorite because there’s different reasons to be proud of,” explains the six-time champ. “It’s tough because my mind always goes to loving challenges, like the tough ones I went through. But in terms of just the most joyous, the one that had, like minimal obstacles was 2020 for me. It was coming off my first win.”
He adds: “When I won my first win in 2019, it was a bit controversial. So, it was like, ‘Should he have won.’ It was pretty close, and it was arguable, and I really wanted to come back that year and just shut the door and show that I deserved to be there, and no questions asked. I came back and made the best improvements I’ve ever made, had an incredible Olympia showing and made probably the biggest jump in progress I had made between years. So, 2020 was definitely always really special to me.”
While Bumstead gave fans a final bonus performance in Prague, placing an impressive second in his first and only Open division outing in 2024, this was not the start of a new chapter. Still, you can take the bodybuilder out of bodybuilding, but you can’t take bodybuilding out of the bodybuilder it seems. To that end, Olympia fans will be excited to learn that Bumstead has been working closely with the event’s promoters to bring something “big and crazy” to a show that he holds so dear to his heart.
Despite all his fond memories of flexing for trophies, Bumstead is not one for staring too long into the rear-view mirror. Of course, he’s loving life with “less pressure” and more family time, but he’s still very much sweating it out in the weight room, albeit with a new focus.
“I continue to stay very driven and motivated for the gym,” he tells M&F. “I started my career because I love the gym and somewhere along the way it turned into a lot of pressure of expectation to win, to dominate, to do it all perfectly and I’m thrilled to wash that all away now, of any expectation, and just step back into the gym because I want to… because I love it. It’s experience, so I’m definitely still very excited to push myself and I take a fulfillment in pushing my body to new challenges. So, getting in the gym now, I’m trying to maintain as much muscle as possible, as much strength as possible. But I also want to turn into a little bit more of a functional athlete. Like when I was a teenager (playing multiple sports like football, baseball, and basketball).”
He adds: “I’m having kids now, and I want to be able to play sports with them, and I want to be able to kick their a** in sports for as long as possible and not just playing with them. I want to also still look good, because there’s that bodybuilder in my heart. I’m blending kind of hypertrophy with athletic training and slowly getting my body into a position where I can move more functionally. And it’s something that’s fun and new and exciting to me, and it’s fun to step into something and being bad at it. You know, I’ve been very good at bodybuilding for a long time and now I’m doing these movements, I feel very uncomfortable and awkward and like a beginner. So, it’s kind of fun to be starting a journey as a rookie again.”
To follow Chris Bumstead on Instagram, click here.
