Classic Flex

Flex Wheeler - Is Returning to the Olympia, This Time in Classic Physique. Here’s Why He May Finally Win an Olympia Title.

- Greg Merritt

Having been second in the Mr. Olympia three times and first in four American Arnold Classics, Flex Wheeler is arguably the best bodybuilder to never win a Sandow. What’s more, there are many people, including this writer, who think he’s the greatest bodybuilder, period, if we’re merely judging bodies—the best mixture of shape, symmetry, and size. Even as he updated with modern curves and cuts, he always sported a classic physique. On Sept. 15, at 52 and 15 years after he last competed in the Olympia, Wheeler will return to bodybuilding’s ultimate stage, this time in pursuit of a different but appropriate title: Olympia classic physique. There are nine reasons Flex Wheeler is forever classic and why he may finally nab that elusive Olympia victory.

STAY ON BALANCE

In the ’90s, what was Wheeler’s best body part? Arms? Quads? Delts? Correct answer: all of the above and more. That’s because he was never celebrated for a single piece of the whole. There were always several pros with better arms, quads, delts, or any other part, but when he was at his best, there was no one who brought it all together as well as Wheeler, who was rightly celebrated for the entirety of his physique. This was no accident. Each year, he and his trainer, Charles Glass, assessed his body and targeted muscles and parts of muscles—maybe the lower lats or the upper chest or outer quads—that needed a special focus to stay in line with the rest. Glass prioritized these areas in Wheeler’s workouts. Always, the focus was on a complete and balanced physique.

MUSCLED IN MIDDLE AGE