You don’t need a strict morning routine to improve your life, but according to six-time Mr Olympia Chris Bumstead, they certainly help. The retired bodybuilder says morning routines are key in helping to build momentum for the day without even having to think about it.

While at the peak of his powers between 2019 and 2024, Bumstead would do the same thing every day. Upon retiring, he slowly drifted away from the same disciplined approach because he didn’t think it mattered. But he quickly realised just how important it is, and has since reverted back a structured morning routine despite him no longer competing.

‘Choosing to have discipline just for the sake of building self-respect and feeling more organised and aligned in your life is so important to everyone. That moment of alignment at the beginning of the day sets you up for success,’ Bumstead says in a recent YouTube video.

This is the morning routine that Bumstead stuck to during the years when he was competing – and the key lessons anyone can learn.

Wake Up Early and Get Outside

In order to enjoy the calm and quiet of the morning, Bumstead says he woke up early in the morning, before anyone else in his family. He claims this provided him with mental clarity, especially when coupled with getting outside and exposing himself to natural light as soon as possible

‘Wake up before the children are awake, when the birds are chirping, before the things are stirring. Your mind just feels a little bit calmer,’ he explains.

Natural light exposure in the morning is also a great way to regulate your circadian rhythm, which helps you to feel more energised and makes waking up easier.

Treadmill Meditation

From there, the 31-year-old spent up to an hour on the treadmill doing a steady pace walk. He’d spend the first 20 to 25 minutes with his eyes closed, visualising all the things that would see him become successful come competition day, such as his training, nutrition, travel to the event, and even poses on stage.

‘[It’s] not just visualising, but literally feeling, what it would feel like to win the Olympia that year,’ Bumstead explains. ‘I had a therapist who walked me through doing it to try to ease my anxiety and nerves that I had about going on stage, and it worked so well. When your body feels like it’s experienced something emotionally even before it’s happened, you just feel more confident doing it, and you’re more likely to achieve it.’

This also stopped him using his phone for an extended period of time. It was only in the second portion of his time on the treadmill where Bumstead allowed himself some screen time. He typically watched some anime to pass the time.

Breakfast

The final portion of the American’s routine saw him head to the kitchen to eat the exact same meal everyday: a smoothie containing protein powder, creatine, some form of fibre, banana and ice, alongside some oats and eggs.

‘The best time of the day was stepping off the treadmill, and then going to eat breakfast. You’re just like, “Finally, food”. My stomach is grumbling on the treadmill. And when I was competing, these were before the times where bodybuilders were taking GLP 1s, and we just had to suffer in our hunger.’

While Bumstead recognises that this isn’t an entirely replicable morning routine for the average person, he thinks the main principles behind his message will still help people improve their lives.

‘I feel like if you’re doing 45 minutes of cardio walking and chilling in the morning and a workout, it probably won’t [work for everyone],’ Bumstead explains. ‘That’s 2 hours plus of exercise for an average person, which isn’t really feasible. But the idea of waking up, having some time alone, going for a walk, moving your body, getting some sunlight, drinking some water and having a quick meditation, are all intentional things you can do.

‘I think one of the most important aspects of it is the fact that it’s a routine, so you’re doing the same thing all the time. That was a huge thing in prep – when you’re tired and fatigued, taking the thinking out of things made it easier.

‘Everyone’s busy. There’s chaos every day. Things change. But if you have something that never changes, and you have a routine you don’t have to think about, you can just go through the motions and build momentum for the day. I think that can make a huge difference.’

Put simply, creating a routine that doesn’t require you to make any decisions each morning and is something that you can actually stick to is the key.

For Bumstead, waking up early, meditating, getting outside and eating the same breakfast all set him up properly to attack the day how he wanted. For you, it might look something entirely different – you just have to find something that suits your lifestyle best.

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Ryan is a Senior Writer at Men’s Health UK with a passion for storytelling, health and fitness. Having graduated from Cardiff University in 2020, and later obtaining his NCTJ qualification, Ryan started his career as a Trainee News Writer for sports titles Golf Monthly, Cycling Weekly and Rugby World before progressing to Staff Writer and subsequently Senior Writer with football magazine FourFourTwo.

During his two-and-a-half years there he wrote news stories for the website and features for the magazine, while he also interviewed names such as Les Ferdinand, Ally McCoist, Jamie Redknapp and Antonio Rudiger, among many others. His standout memory, though, came when getting the opportunity to speak to then-Plymouth Argyle manager Steven Schumacher as the club won League One in 2023.

Having grown up a keen footballer and playing for his boyhood side until the age of 16, Ryan got the opportunity to represent Northern Ireland national futsal team eight times, scoring three goals against England, Scotland and Gibraltar. Now past his peak, Ryan prefers to mix weightlifting with running – he achieved a marathon PB of 3:31:49 at Manchester in April 2025, but credits the heat for failing to get below the coveted 3:30 mark…

You can follow Ryan on Instagram @ryan.dabbs or on X @ryandabbs_