“I was competing naturally” - Phil Heath says he ‘never pushed PEDs right away’ during his prime

By Kiran Rao

Modified Mar 13, 2024 12:33 GMT

Phil Heath is a legendary bodybuilder who stormed the world of bodybuilding during the 2010s. He is one of the best Mr. Olympia performers, with seven consecutive titles from 2011-2017. In his time, Heath displayed some of the best poses in the game.

The latest episode of the Cutler Cast featured the seven-time Mr. Olympia. In conversation with four-time Mr. Olympia champion Jay Cutler, Heath revealed that he has never abused performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) during his reign in the sport and was always conservative about the use of drugs.

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Heath on his PED use

Heath competed with several massive names, including Dexter Jackson, Coleman, and Jay Cutler. He won multiple Sandow trophies in a row, tying the legendary Arnold Schwarzenegger at seven. Heath, during the podcast, mentioned that his conservative use of PEDs came after his competing and winning naturally.

"I’m just going to say it here: I was never pushing PEDs like right away. I was competing naturally and beating guys that weren’t."

Viewing a picture of him and Cutler together, Heath mentioned that people would repetitively nag him about his PED-use cycle.

"When I met you – that picture – when I show people that picture, they’re like, ‘what kind of stuff were you on.’ Like do you really want to know what ... I was eating. That’s the difference. I have those genetics."

Heath pointed out that his passion for basketball most likely helped him gain some serious mass in his legs.

"I do think playing Division I basketball and running all the time and doing all that work ... the stimulation of being a defensive ... like I was always in the defense. Imagine being in a squat like a defensive stance non-stop."

Heath then drew a parallel between his defensive skills in basketball and his bodybuilding journey:

"We do that for a bodybuilding show being in that same stance doing lunges and all that."

Mr Olympia Phil Heath poses during a media call ahead of the 2012 IFBB Australian Pro Grand Prix XIII (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)

During his reign as Mr. Olympia, Heath was known for his fragile skin, giving his muscles a unique definition and an edge over the other athletes.

"I think bodybuilding was the perfect sport but my skin texture is what people don’t realize — that’s what really set me apart from everybody and the person who said that was the late Peter McGough"

For the untrained eye, McGough was a legendary journalist in the sport. He provided bodybuilders with incredible insight and was a close friend of Heath's.

Heath criticized the turn the sport has taken today about PED use. He said athletes sacrifice muscular definitions to build bigger physiques through drugs which are quite detrimental to skin texture.

"The guys today don’t have that probably because of shot injections, probably because of their training, but as far as the poundage ... I never got intimidated by watching someone like yourself or Ronnie [Coleman] thinking that that’s what I have to do to be champion."

Nicknamed 'The Gift,' Heath is a giant in the sport. He last competed in 2020, but in November last year, Heath promised a comeback in 2023. We cannot wait to see what the year holds for him.