Could Phil Heath be past his peak?
It’s official! Phil Heath is the 2015 Mr. Olympia champion. With Kai Greene out of the competition, there was no one to threaten the Olympia champ’s title reign. It was surprisingly Dexter Jackson who came the closest to pulling the upset. Dexter’s resurgence as a top contender this year is nothing short of amazing. If you ask us, Jackson may have been the most shredded bodybuilder that was on stage this past Saturday. Nevertheless, Phil Heath proved that with proportion, size, and definition, that he was deserving of taking the top spot.
Yet still there seemed to be something a bit off about the champion. He came in and dominated the competition en route to his fifth consecutive Olympia victory, trailing Dorian Yates, Ronnie Coleman, Lee Haney, and Arnold Schwarzenegger who each have at least six consecutive wins, not to mention beating out Jay Cutler in overall wins. But something has become very apparent about the reigning champ. Though he remains impressive he still hasn’t been able to capture the same magic of his first Olympia win back in 2011.
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Now before we go any further we want to make one thing clear – Phil Heath is an amazing and talented bodybuilder who 100% deserves the 5 Mr. Olympia wins he has earned. There is still no doubting that he is the best in the business right now. And while it’s easy to believe that Phil Heath might actually reach his 10 Sandow goal and accept him as an unstoppable force… we also want to face the reality that every year is a new year and nothing, even Phil Heath, is set in stone. Does Phil Heath have an unreal physique? Yes. Will he always? No.
When Heath was first crowned Mr. Olympia, there was not a doubt in anyone’s mind as to who the superior bodybuilder was on the posing stage. Phil crushed the competition. In 2011 no one was his equal. But since that win, The Gift hasn’t looked nearly as shredded as he had. Of course, this is knit picking, but in the 2014 event he did seem to carry a bit more water weight than we were used to seeing. Phil attributed this to him being sick that year. And while this year, there was some improvement, Phil just wasn’t able to capture that same look that he had when he destroyed the field in 2011.
Left: 2011, Right: 2015
As the body ages it’s understandable that things will change genetically. It’s a process that’s out of our control and because of that it can be a battle for a bodybuilder to fix deficiencies. With age comes muscle maturity, but it also carries it’s share of negatives as well. Phil’s physique seems better suited to a smaller frame than what he’s brought for the past couple of years. At this point a little less size would likely do him some good and return him to that form that brought him his first Olympia win. He may be the champion, but he’s looking a little less unbeatable these days.
Phil said it best in Generation Iron, when you’re at the top of the mountain – everyone is going to knit pick every last detail. He’s right. But can his future physiques keep up with that kind of in depth criticism? Only time will tell.
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Do you think Phil Heath was in top form this year? Let us know in the comments and forums. Also, be sure to follow Generation Iron on Facebook and Twitter.
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