Hunter Labrada, the rising Men’s Open star, is determined to redeem himself after falling to seventh place at the 2022 Mr. Olympia. In a recent YouTube video and Instagram post, Labrada shared his weight of 277.6 pounds and gave his fans tips on maximizing their performance through exercise selection. Hunter is the son of IFBB Hall of Famer Lee Labrada, and he has had an exciting IFBB Pro League career so far. Last year, fans considered him an early Olympia favorite due to his mass and conditioning levels displayed throughout the off-season. However, when he traveled to Las Vegas for the show, he faced stiff competition from his rival Nick Walker, Samson Dauda, and many others. In the end, Labrada secured seventh place at the 2022 Mr. Olympia, which was three spots below his performance the previous year.
After the Olympia, Hunter was transparent about the seemingly botched prep and peak. His coach, Ben Chow, later suggested that Hunter carried excessive weight too close to the contest prep, which exacerbated the peaking process in the days leading up to the show. Although Hunter’s placement consumed him with anger, he is now using the setback as fuel to further his success.
In February, Lee Labrada revealed on The Menace Podcast with Dennis James that his son Hunter was aiming to compete at two bodybuilding contests before considering another Mr. Olympia. After throwing his hat into the 2023 Tampa Pro and Texas Pro, Labrada provided a recent update on his progress, as well as some exercise selection tips.
Labrada reported that he and his team have begun pulling food in preparation for the 2023 Tampa Pro, scheduled for August 3-5. In addition, he provided a comprehensive diet plan consisting of six meals. Hunter also discussed the significance of exercise selection in a separate YouTube segment. During the video, he said lifters should look through a metaphorical “lens” while exercising. He demonstrated the process he follows for selecting his workout routine and when changes are necessary for advancing progress.
Hunter’s first filter for exercise selection is what is the main priority for the day or what is the main focus that they can get out of that day. For a smaller body part, there might not be a ton of variation, but for a larger body part like the back or legs, there’s quite a bit of prioritization that they could do. The next lens that he looks through is what is the best exercise to accomplish this with. The best exercise is the one that offers the best alignment, the best resistance profile, and the best bracing ability. Once an exercise is no longer garnering results, it’s time to change movements to facilitate substantial progress.
Hunter also emphasized the importance of avoiding joint pain. There are telltale signs of when you need to switch your workout, including no longer making progress in it and the exercise starting to put you in pain. In such cases, it’s best to change the movements to avoid injury and promote progress.
Hunter is working hard to redeem himself after his disappointing performance at the 2022 Mr. Olympia. He’s using the setback as fuel to further his success and is determined to do better at the 2023 Tampa Pro and Texas Pro. With his father’s guidance and his own dedication and hard work, Hunter is well on his way to becoming a top bodybuilder in the IFBB Pro League.
