Road to 2020 Olympia | Phil Heath | First Contest to Pro Card in 2 Years
Phil Heath: First Contest to Pro Card in 2 Years
by Ron Harris
MD Presents Phil Heath Week
Phil Heath Will Compete in the 2020 Mr. Olympia
Daily Articles All Week Long!
Seven-time Mr. Olympia Phil Heath’s announcement that he will compete in the 2020 Mr. Olympia “to handle some unfinished business” and win Sandow number eight sent shock waves through the bodybuilding universe and promises to make this December’s Olympia Weekend even more interesting. Not only are bodybuilding fans anxious to see the return of one of the industry’s most popular competitors, but if Phil Heath wins the 2020 Mr. Olympia it would be historic in that Phil would tie the record of eight Mr. Olympia wins held by Mr. Olympia legends Ronnie Coleman and Lee Haney. In honor of Phil’s return to the Mr. Olympia stage later this year, MD proudly presents Phil Heath Week – daily articles as a tribute to Phil. Each day, our staff looks back at Phil Heath’s illustrious career, along with some new perspectives on Phil’s return, exclusively on www.musculardevelopment.com
Humble Beginnings
Since he won the 2005 USA, Phil Heath has had access to one of the most respected and sought-after coaches in the industry, Hany Rambod. But in 2003 when he was preparing to enter his first contest in his native Colorado, the advice he was offered wasn’t quite as qualified.
“This was the most dumb-ass, worst diet plan I ever could think of. I asked one of my friends, ‘Hey man, what do I do? They got me doing this show.’ He said, ‘You just got to eat 50-60 grams of protein and 50 grams of carbs with each meal, that’s it.’ I was like really, that’s it? All right. Luckily I was able to win, probably due to the fact that I was just training as a bodybuilder now. I was doing these two-hour weight sessions I was reading in the magazines.”
Heath’s stupendously gifted genetics were beginning to show glimmers of greatness. It’s apparent in the structure and shape he displayed in photos of that first contest, as well as in his already-impressive arms. He talks about how his gains weren’t as rip-roaringly fast as you might have thought, as well as how that first win was a turning point for him that changed his future from that moment onward— and steered him toward the path that led him to the Mr. Olympia stage just a few years later.
“Over time, I was able to gain weight. But I mean, I weighed 180 pounds when I played ball in college, I weighed 190 at my first show. So it wasn’t too dramatic. The only things I really cut out were pizza and beer, which I immediately re-implemented the minute I stepped offstage after winning. After that show, something changed. I thought wow, this is really cool. Whatever I put into this, I got out of it. Whereas in hoops, I could score 50 points in a game and we could still lose. It makes no sense. Bodybuilding was very rewarding. So after that, I decided to keep going, and I was actually able to win my pro card two years later.”
Jay Cutler— His Guardian Angel
Due in large part to his nickname of “The Gift,” there is a widespread yet inaccurate assumption that Phil came from money and never had to struggle. Here he lets us know that there was a time when he was indeed living paycheck to paycheck, but that through the benevolence of his friend and mentor Jay Cutler, he was able to move out of that station much sooner than expected.
“Before that happened in 2005, I remember I was really going through a lot of mess. I was the same broke-ass bodybuilder that I see and talk to so many of on tour. We all have the same story. We’re spending all our resources in the hope that we can be better in the gym. I was working two jobs. I had met Jay Cutler, and he had told me to get some images to him. He passed them around to different people. In 2005, I started getting calls from different companies. I got phone calls from Steve Blechman with MD and Peter McGough from FLEX. I was ready to get sponsored. I was actually sponsored going into the Junior Nationals. We all know that doesn’t really happen, but I was really fortunate, because the day of the Junior Nationals, I had 43 dollars to my name. I remember doing the juniors and thinking, I’m just happy to finally be here, because I had no money and no support system. It was tough. I knew nobody. I was there at the show by myself. I knew one guy in the show who went to my gym. I won that show and got sponsored by AMI/Weider.”
Finally, Heath talks about the first car he ever owned, which was not, as some imagine, a Lamborghini. And along with the good fortune, he shares with us a little-known negative event— the effects of which linger to this day.
“I was able to buy my first car with that money. I was driving a Lincoln LS, green, decent wheels, nothing crazy. That came later. I got rear-ended a half-mile from my house. So now I’m getting ready for the USA with a beat-up car. People at the gym were like, Couldn’t Weider get him a nicer car? I remember the residual effects of that accident, which still resides to this day. Any time I get really lean, my back goes out. I get back spasms, and it almost can’t be fixed.”
Luckily, thanks to great chiropractic and acupuncture care in more recent years, Phil’s back problems have been managed to the point where he has been able to win the world’s top bodybuilding title for the past four years in a row.
Source: NPC News Online video, “Phil Heath Seminar – 10-23-14, Bev Francis Powerhouse Gym: How He Began his Bodybuilding Career.”
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