"I had to kind of restart" - Nick Walker is still optimistic to improve despite 2023 Arnold Classic upset

The 2021 Arnold Classic champion Nick Walker has been one of the most intriguing and performing competitors in the Men's Open division.

He recently participated in the 2023 Arnold Classic, where he finished as runner-up, just behind Samson Dauda.

In the most recent Think Big Bodybuilding podcast, Walker shared that he had to restart from the beginning to get better in 2019. He also added that the progression was faster after he changed his approach:

"I was pretty ballistic when I started [training]. Actually, Matt taught me that [more control]. When we met back in 2019, he didn't do my training per say, but he told me to slow the movement down, control the eccentric rep and explode up. So that's – so I had to kind of restart in a way. But that's just what I did and the progression just came very very fast."

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Nick Walker talks about the usage of steroids, training routines, and more

When the roster for the 2023 Arnold Classic was announced earlier in January, Walker's name was not on the list. But after the organizers increased the prize pool to $300,000 for the Men's Open category, the Mutant along with Andrew Jacked and Big Ramy jumped into the second most prestigious bodybuilding competition.

Nick Walker came into the competition as the favorite. But on the day, it was Samson Dauda who clinched his first Arnold Classic title.

On the most recent Think Big Bodybuilding podcast, Walker, along with Skip Hill, Andrew Berry, and Scott McNally came together to talk about various bodybuilding issues and who is going to win the 2023 Mr. Olympia. Nick Walker emphasized that he has been a 'high-responder' to steroids from a very young age:

"I always found that I was pretty hyper-responder. So, yeah. When I was younger did I push it a little harder? Sure. But now, where I'm at, if I was to tell people what I do, they would probably unfollow me and call me a liar"

The Mutant revealed that he has made changes to his training routines and sessions since Mr. Olympia in 2022. He shared that he increased the number of reps in the exercise and is on progressive overload.

Nick Walker said:

"As far as counting reps, say, 'Oh, I did 150-pound dumbbells for incline dumbbell press – 12 this week, next week I want to hit 10 for 14 reps.' I didn't care for that. I was just – if I feel good, I'm going to train heavier."

"If I don't, I'm going to train a little differently. There was never like – yeah, so now that I'm kind of doing that now [progressive overloading] it's kind of a new motivation."

Nick Walker was asked about the what are the chances that bodybuilding will get transitioned to more esthetic physiques in the coming years. He replied:

"It's more along the lines of which direction are we going. I kind of do feel they are kind of transitioning to the more taller aesthetic look. With that being said, I'm not necessarily trying to play that game, but if I can play my own game and improve my aesthetics more and more, I will!"

In the last four months, two of the most prestigious bodybuilding competitions have taken place. At the 2022 Mr. Olympia, it was Hadi Choopan who inspired the world with his maiden victory. Later on, at the 2023 Arnold Classic, Samson Dauda defeated the likes of Nick Walker, Andrew Jacked, Big Ramy, and Shaun Clarida.

Nick Walker was inspiring in both tournaments. He finished third in Mr. Olympia and second in the Arnold Classic. However, in the latter tournament, many experts felt that Nick Walker should have been crowned the champion.