“We Have Bigger Fish to Fry”: Phil Heath Recalls ‘Suffering’ Through First-Ever Mr. Olympia Diet Prep

Bodybuilding calls for many sacrifices, particularly surrounding food and nutrition. Athletes have to adhere to a strict diet for extended periods until they finally reach their goal. For seven-time Mr. Olympia Phil Heath, it meant going through an arduous process of giving up his cheat meals to get a taste of the Sandow.

In a candid podcast with popular coach Hany Rambod, ‘The Gift’ told all about his journey. Starting as a professional basketball player, Heath was confronted with a transformative shift into bodybuilding after a brief moment of inspiration. Through various ups and downs, he finally found where he belonged, and now he is a man of multiple talents.

But almost every champion has had humble beginnings, and Heath had to suffer before making it to the Olympia stage. He recalled how his wins weren’t rewarded until he reached the zenith of his goals. Taunting Rambod with an incident from the 2008 Iron Man Pro, he laughed:

“What was really funny is after the show, and this is how it works when you win a show, you’re excited, you want to go eat… As a pro that is actually trying to be Mr. Olympia, you don’t really get to do that…”

Turns out, after winning the 2008 Iron Man Pro, Heath wanted a reward in the form of a cheat meal. But since he was queued up for his Mr. Olympia debut the same year, Rambod needed to exercise some control.

Heath demanded burgers and fries from the popular fast food joint, In-and-Out. But his star coach was quick to limit his options, barring salt in his food and curbing the quantity of burgers. This made the bodybuilding veteran livid.

“When we talk about suffering in diet, like I did everything you asked…you want to reward yourself, you have this in your brain…you feel like ‘I won! I can turn this up’ and you’re like, ‘Nah dude, we have bigger fish to fry’.”

Eventually, Heath had a stellar debut at the Olympia, where he stunned bodybuilding enthusiasts with his package. No one expected him to come in so strongly, but when he grabbed third place, competitors knew he’d pack a stronger punch next time. Eventually, he won his first Mr. Olympia title in 2011 and kept it till 2017.

What got former basketball pro Phil Heath into bodybuilding?

Coming dangerously close to being the third person with eight Mr. Olympia titles, Phil Heath surprisingly never thought of this career initially. Having studied marketing and IT, the bodybuilding veteran opened up to his idol, Ronnie Coleman, about how he was surprisingly responsible for Heath’s shift.

In a workout collaboration with Coleman, the seven-time Mr. Olympia revealed the true story behind his bodybuilding roots. While he intended to move forward with his basketball career, a change in coaches and circumstances forced him out. Simultaneously, during one of his IT classes, his partner had a poster of a jacked Coleman that caught his eye. It instantly inspired him to get ripped. From there to working out with his inspiration, Heath is still regarded as one of the fittest bodybuilding veterans. At 44, he continues to inspire many more.