Flex Wheeler believes that Nick Walker should not be chasing size moving forward.
Men’s Open bodybuilder Nick Walker entered the 2025 Olympia with high hopes but fell down the scorecard after what many believe was an uneven performance. While there are many reasons behind this, bodybuilding legend Flex Wheeler came up with his own theory. Like many from his era, he does not believe that bigger is better and spoke on why that might be the case for Walker.
[RELATED: Nick Walker Talks Plan to Coach Himself, All-Time Best Looks]
Walker was forced to miss the 2023 Olympia after suffering a hamstring tear. He returned to the stage during the 2024 New York Pro and was victorious, punching his ticket to the biggest show of the year once again. Walker received criticism following his victory and would later announce that he decided to sit out of the Olympia once again.
The 2025 Pittsburgh Pro brought the first-ever Men’s Open competition to the event. Walker was one of the headliners, along with Mr. Olympia Derek Lunsford. Walker finished as the runner-up but believed he did enough to win the show. Despite this feeling, he actually was not completely satisfied with his look.
| Full Name: Nick Walker (Men’s Open Bodybuilder) | ||
| Weight | Height | Date Of Birth |
| 270-295lbs | 5’7″ | 08/03/1994 |
| Division | Era | Nationality |
| Bodybuilding | 2020 | American |
Flex Wheeler Talks Nick Walker’s Performance
Nick Walker has many premiere victories during his career, including at the Arnold Classic and New York Pro. Flex Wheeler does not believe that we have seen the best version of Walker in recent competition.
“I don’t think was nowhere near the best version of Nick we’ve seen. When he won the Arnold Classic, I think he was a little bit more streamlined. He was a lot harder than he was at the Olympia. Something definitely changed and didn’t pan out for him.”
Walker burst onto the scene with one of the best rookie years in the sport. It began with a victory at the New York Pro in 2021 before hitting the Arnold Classic stage. After withdrawing from the 2024 Olympia, Walker made the decision to work with Kyle Wilkes as his new coach. After yet another Olympia has passed, Walker shared that he will be coaching himself moving forward. Wilkes shared his own video previously sharing this news but Walker wanted to touch on it as well.
Over the last year leading up to the Olympia, Walker focused on adding size and Wheeler believes that is not the way to go.
“He’s one of those guys where bigger isn’t better. That seems like what he’s targeting. I think I’ve seen him in better shape and him be able to control his waistline better at other shows.”
In 2020, Nick earned his IFBB Pro Card after winning the NPC North American Championships. In less than a year, he won the New York Pro which gave him a spot at the 2021 Olympia. Then, on September 25, 2021, Nick Walker won the Arnold Classic Ohio on his first try. This is known as the second biggest bodybuilding and fitness competition in the world behind the Olympia.
In 2021, he took 5th place at the Olympia. Then, in 2022 Nick Walker stepped on stage with his best package yet, battling it out with some of the top pros in the world, and taking home a 3rd place trophy, beating out former champions Big Ramy and Brandon Curry. Not to mention, Walker came home with the title of People’s Champ.
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