Professional bodybuilder Regan Grimes is making a major shift in his training philosophy, and it’s not what most people would expect from someone who placed at the Olympia.
In a recent YouTube video, Grimes opened up about stepping away from heavy lifting and refocusing on longevity, family life, and sustainable health practices.
The candid training session offers a rare glimpse into how elite bodybuilders adapt their approach as priorities evolve.
His message? It’s time to train smarter, not just harder.
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The Reality Check That Changed Everything
Grimes hasn’t trained with serious intensity since before the Olympia competition. Now 35 years old, he’s feeling the effects of years of heavy training on his body.
The wake-up call came during a simple family outing. When shooting basketball with his kids two days before filming, Grimes realized something troubling.
I can barely jump. I don’t even really have a jump shot anymore because I can barely jump.
That moment crystallized what matters most. His daughter Ella is starting sports soon, and Grimes wants to be an active participant in her athletic journey.
I’m not old enough to not be running around playing with my kids. I need to be able to do that up into my 60s and 70s.
A Complete Training Philosophy Overhaul
Grimes has dramatically changed his back training over the past few years after realizing he wasn’t making the improvements he wanted.
His new approach prioritizes quality over quantity and mind-muscle connection over moving massive weight.
The New Back Training Blueprint
Grimes walked through his current back workout, which targets different lat regions systematically:
- Single-arm high rows: Waking up the lats before bilateral movements
- Front-facing lat pulldowns: Building volume with controlled tension
- Seated wide-grip rows: Targeting rhomboids and lower traps
- Lat pulldowns: Focusing on upper lat development
- Linear rows: His favorite machine for lower lat work
- Pullovers: Finishing movement for complete lat engagement
Total volume? Approximately 12-15 working sets—significantly less than traditional bodybuilding programs.
Form Over Ego: The Critical Technique Shifts
Throughout the workout, Grimes emphasized technical details that many lifters overlook.
For single-arm high rows, he angles his body at 45 degrees to wrap the lat around for better stretch and engagement. Driving the elbow down to the hip targets the lower lat specifically.
I’m keeping my shoulder down and back throughout the whole range of motion. I’m not letting that shoulder move. That takes the tension off the lat.
On seated rows, Grimes warned against overarching the lumbar spine—a common mistake when chasing heavy weight.
A lot of you guys think I’m moving a whole bunch of weight. I only have 130 pounds on here. It’s only like half the stack. I’m controlling the weight throughout the entirety of the motion from start to end.
His key principle: constant tension, zero momentum, no ego.
The Visible Results of Smarter Training
Despite backing off heavy weights, Grimes has seen significant improvements, particularly in 2023.
His lower lats—an area that was “non-existent for so many years”—now show considerably more detail and thickness. The gap in his lat development has started filling in.
There’s more detail but definitely I saw a lot of improvement around this area.
Beyond Bodybuilding: The Health Pivot
Perhaps most striking is Grimes’ shift toward overall health optimization rather than pure physique development.
Without an Olympia prep on the horizon, he finally has flexibility to experiment with different approaches. His focus areas include:
- Micronutrient education: Understanding essential nutrients beyond macros
- Food variety: Breaking free from repetitive bodybuilding meals
- Vegetable intake: Addressing long-term deficiencies
- Sustainable programming: Finding maintainable long-term protocols
Grimes acknowledged what many bodybuilders won’t admit: traditional bodybuilding nutrition isn’t actually healthy.
As a bodybuilder, it’s not necessarily healthy eating. We’re in a calorie deficit and packing on size. We’re not getting a huge variety of foods or huge variety of nutrients.
Teaching the Next Generation
Grimes’ motivation extends beyond personal health. He wants to model genuinely healthy eating patterns for his children.
I want to be able to pass healthy eating on to my kids. Honestly, probably a lot of us are deprived of a lot of micronutrients because of the lack of variety in our food.
He admitted being “really guilty” of minimal vegetable intake, especially during off-season when food volume is already overwhelming.
The Recovery and Programming Strategy
Grimes is currently running a two-days-on, one-day-off split during his first weeks back. The exact long-term programming remains flexible based on intensity and recovery needs.
He’s considering upper-lower splits to distribute sets across multiple body parts, reducing fatigue on individual muscle groups. Recovery time between hard sessions is now a priority, not an afterthought.
Training like a bodybuilder year round and eating like a bodybuilder year around—I’m burning out on it.
The Hormone Optimization Approach
Grimes is working with specialists from Transcend to optimize his testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) and peptide protocols.
Upcoming blood work will inform a customized plan designed to optimize both health markers and physique maintenance. This science-based approach represents a mature evolution from traditional bodybuilding practices.
It’ll be fun to see what my physique can do when I am prioritizing my health and what I’ll look like.
Key Takeaways for Regular Lifters
Grimes’ transformation offers valuable lessons for anyone training with weights:
- Control trumps weight: Perfect form with moderate loads beats heavy, sloppy reps
- Shoulder position matters: Keeping shoulders down and back maintains lat tension
- Remove momentum completely: Constant tension produces better stimulus than bouncing weight
- Adjust equipment strategically: Small changes in pad height dramatically shift muscle emphasis
- Breathe deliberately: Exhaling during contraction helps maintain core stability
- Recovery is training: Adequate rest between sessions isn’t weakness—it’s wisdom
Most importantly, Grimes demonstrates that longevity and functionality can coexist with an impressive physique. Sacrificing mobility and health for short-term gains ultimately limits what’s possible long-term.
His journey from Olympia competitor to health-focused athlete shows maturity rarely seen in bodybuilding content. As he experiments with sustainable approaches, Grimes is redefining what successful training looks like beyond competition.
