Fresh off of first place at the 2023 Europa Pro Championship, Regan Grimes has quickly refocused in a familiar direction. By narrowly edging out Asha’s Nathan for the Men’s Open title on September 17, Grimes punched her ticket to the 2023 Mr. Olympia contest.
Of course, the Canadian-born IFBB pro is no stranger to competing on the sport’s biggest stage. But after placing 15th in the men’s Open division in each of his first two trips and skipping the 2022 Olympia to gain more muscle, Grimes has a lot to prove.
With the 2023 Olympia scheduled for November 2-5, she officially kicked off her preparation by posting a training vlog to her YouTube channel on September 26, 2023. Grimes’ grueling back and biceps workout begins around the 1:25 mark.
A busy travel and training schedule won’t stop Grimes from doing everything she can to be in tip-top shape for her third Mr. Olympia appearance. Clearly successful in his muscle-building efforts over the past year, he began training him by concentrating on his lats.
Cable Rope Jumper
Grimes began the session with three sets of a staple from the past: the rope jumper. He specifically noted that his goal was to “get some blood in the back” in preparation for the following exercises. Grimes also highlighted the use of short rest periods of about 90 seconds, which provides enough time for one training partner to complete a set while the other recovers.
During the initial phase of training, he also addressed his ongoing rivalry with de Asha, who finished ahead of Grimes at the 2023 Flex Weekend Pro Men’s Open Show on September 10, 2023.
“He beat me cleanly in Italy. I came back and beat him in Spain, and that’s it,” Grimes said. “I’ve competed against Nathan three times. I beat him twice, he beat me once. I’ll see you again in six and a half weeks.”
Assisted pull-ups
Next, Grimes and her training partner headed to the assisted pull-up machine. Using wrist straps for support, he gripped the pull-up bar at its widest point to provide maximum stimulation to his lats.
He worked to the point of failure, ending with partial reps on his last set.
Chest Support Row
Grimes moved to free weights for several sets of chest-support rows (T-bar rows). He started with two 45-pound (20-kilogram) plates, keeping his head in a neutral position while squeezing his lats, rear delts and traps at the top of the movement. Grimes added another 45-pound plate for his final set.
One-arm lat pulldown
The 2023 Mr. Olympia contestant took his training in a slightly different direction by training his arms independently on an isolateral lat pulldown machine. Grimes didn’t show much footage of this exercise, but he did show some humility by admitting that he was too heavy at his last show and that dropping “another five to six kilos” would help squash any controversy over his position.
“I feel like I have enough size,” Grimes explained. “The body is much more impressive when it is in a state of madness. You actually look bigger with less weight.”
Super Low One Arm Row
The penultimate back exercise of Grimes’ workout was another isolation move: the super low row. Working with a pair of 45-pound plates per side, he adopted a staggered stance, keeping his chest against the pad while pulling his elbow back and contracting his lower lat muscles. Grimes not only performed clean reps, but also provided useful information on his nutrition protocol.
For fuel during training, the Canadian native drank a blend of 20 grams of amino acids with 15 grams of carbohydrates from Yamamoto Nutrition GlycoBol. Grimes, who began training after eating two no-carb meals and one carb meal, said her post-workout protein shake also includes 10 grams of glutamine (which aids recovery) and 10 grams of creatine, which is It has been shown to help promote muscle growth and volume.
Back extension
Grimes finished with weighted back extensions to target the erector spinae muscles. Holding a 45-pound plate, he extended his body forward as far as possible before arching back at the top of each rep. Grimes also performed a variation that included an abdominal crunch at the bottom of the move for the ultimate test of core strength and endurance.
Close Grip Bicep Pulldown
A four-part biceps workout started with close-grip bicep curls. While many lifters generally try to keep their arms out of this movement to focus on maximum engagement of the lats, Grimes recommends exactly the opposite.
He kept the range of motion much smaller, pulling down just above a 90-degree angle to maintain full tension on the biceps from the insertion point to the elbow.
preacher curl machine
Grimes moved on to the preacher curl machine to perform several sets of this classic bodybuilding exercise. After experiencing some soreness in both biceps, he performed isolated reps with each arm as a finisher.
Seated Dumbbell Biceps Curl
With the session almost complete, Grimes hit her biceps again with another curl variation. Working with 30-pound dumbbells, he held his arm at a 45-degree angle away from his body and methodically curved and contracted his bicep to achieve a big pump.
Cable winding
Finally, Grimes finished her training where it began. This time, he swapped the rope for a handle to perform one-arm cable curls. Employing an overhand grip (palms facing down) allowed Grimes to get a great boost to both his biceps and brachialis.
Complete back and biceps workout for muscle growth
While Grimes didn’t provide a specific number of sets or reps, there’s no doubt her workout will get the job done. Here is a complete summary of the exercises performed:
- Cable Rope Jumper
- Assisted pull-up machine
- Chest–T-Bar Row with Stand
- One-arm lat pulldown
- Super Low One Arm Row
- Back extension
- Close Grip Bicep Pulldown
- preacher curl machine
- Seated Dumbbell Biceps Curl
- Cable winding
Just weeks away from securing a spot in the 2023 Mr. Olympia lineup, Grimes has momentum on his side. Noticeably larger than in previous years, he must be diligent with his diet and conditioning in preparation for competition. However, if he stays the course, Grimes certainly looks capable of making everyone forget about those 15th-place finishes in 2020 and 2021.
Featured Image: Regan Grimes / YouTube
