by Christian Duque
This is the kind of question that people will immediately say is a stupid one. Now I’m not one of these people that say there’s no such thing as a stupid question, because there are many, and unfortunately I’ve heard many of them. But this isn’t a question that you should take literally. Of course Nick is competing to win, right? Why else would you he doing the show? But that’s not what the title of this article addresses. He may say he wants to win and he may look like he wants to win, but is he willing to go the distance? To go all the way? Because here’s the deal folks, Nick stopped posting physique updates a few days ago, meaning that he will not be posting any updates during the 6-7 weeks before the contest. And although I have never competed and I am by no means a bodybuilder, I would say that the period that Nick is going to go radio silent, is probably the most difficult part of a prep. because now he’s not lifting heavy with all the calories he wants. He’s training heavy with the calories that he’s allowed to have. He’s no longer enjoying the comforts of the offseason, either. And it’s important to note that with Nick because he has not done an Olympia in 2 years. Now one could argue that he’s fresh off the Pittsburgh, but you can’t compare that to the Olympia or even to an Arnold Classic. And not only that, he went into that contest thinking he was going to win easily. He wasn’t expecting to see Derek or some of the other top talent that he had to face off with. So as a result of that, even though he looked better than he has in recent memory, that package is not enough, it’s not nearly enough to win the 2025 Mr Olympia. Derek was also off and still beat him. But then others might argue that Nick won the New York Pro and that that wasn’t that long ago. They would be right, but who did he face off in New York?
The question of whether or not a competitor wants the title, this title in particular, is a far deeper question. It’s not a question that necessarily deals with his physique or even what a physique looks like on stage. Because there have been competitors that had the best physique but didn’t take the win. And that’s not because of politics, it’s not because of bad lighting, it’s not because there was too much going on with regards to the backdrop on the stage, either. It deals with the mentality of wanting to win. And that mentality manifests itself in many different aspects on stage. For example, it has often been said that you have to pose hard in order to win. What does posing hard actually mean? What it means is that you have to hit the mandatory poses with precision. It means that you have to pose hard during the pose down. It means that you have to pose gracefully during your posing routine. Posing hard is not just the act of posing, but it’s the mentality behind it. You have to feel like you’re the winner. Historically when they talk about the 2001 Olympia they talk about how Jay did not want it badly enough. Even Jay has admitted to this for years. He had the better physique between him and Ronnie but Ronnie had the mindset. The mindset is huge.
Now the question is, does Nick Walker have a good mindset? And I would argue that that’s in question. I would argue because he backed out of two consecutive Olympias. Who the hell does that? The answer is no one. Well actually maybe we could say Kai Greene but with Kai it was different. Kai didn’t show up because he didn’t think he could win, he didn’t show up because he didn’t think they would let him win. So the reality of the matter is Nick’s mindset isn’t necessarily as ironclad as is physique. It may not even be as Ironclad as his discipline. Doubts can create all sorts of bumps in the road.
I mean we don’t really talk about doubts and nerves that much in bodybuilding until the final 48 hours or so. And that’s when the cortisol levels are bouncing all around and competitors either hold water or come in flat or any number of other issues related to that. But nerves could manifest themselves way earlier than peak week. And sometimes doubts and insecurities can lead to catastrophic disaster. For example, prepping for10 weeks and then dropping out of the Olympia. Or signing an Olympia contract and having second thoughts the second the ink dries. The reality of the matter is that mindset and the mind, in general, are very important factors in whether or not someone has what it takes to win.
And that’s just it, when people see the title to this article they’re going to associate it with lifting hard, or drying out, or taking a whole boatload of performance enhancing drugs. And none of those things are what this story is about. That’s what’s wild to me. Because people just don’t deposit the adequate attention on the mind that they should. And some people that think about the mind, think of it only in terms of mental health. Mental health is very important, don’t get me wrong, but the power of the mind is an integral component of the mind-muscle connection. I feel like the mind is part of everything, from the pumps in the gym to looking at yourself in the mirror to transitioning from pose to pose on stage.
I’d like to think that Walker has the emotional and spiritual power required to be Mr Olympia. There’s no question that he can win on the scorecards but he has to have all his ducks in a row to do that. He can’t be thinking about when Samson beat him in Columbus or when Derek beat him in Pittsburgh. He can’t think about the two Olympias that he backed out of. He can’t think of injuries, he can’t think of his old coach, he can’t think of any of these things. He has got to be 110% of the mindset that he’s going to win, that none of the guys that are on that stage with him can come close to him, that he is so dominant, so powerful, so above the rest that he’s unstoppable. Now, he’s doing that for the press, but he needs to actually believe it. I want to know if Nick believes it. I want to know if he truly believes he will be Mr Olympia and if he will stop at nothing to get the Sandow.
If you asked me to be honest with you right now as I write this article, I don’t think he’s got it. Let’s see if Nick will prove me wrong.
