On Jan. 12, 2022, bodybuilder Dennis James took to his Instagram page to post his interview with the reigning two-time Mr. Olympia champion Mamdouh “Big Ramy” Elssbiay. They discussed Elssbiay’s off-season progression and current bodyweight of 155 kilograms (341.7 pounds). According to James, Elssbiay’s training for the 2022 Mr. Olympia began the day after winning the 2021 Mr. Olympia.
Check out James’ entire interview with Elssbiay in the video below, courtesy of James’ Instagram page. The interview begins at the 5:28 mark after resolving some technical difficulties:
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Elssbiay shared that his 2021 Olympia prep did not allow much time to “change many things.” At the 2021 Olympia, Elssbiay was almost immediately called out with 2019 Mr. Olympia champion Brandon Curry in what became essentially a two-horse race for the title with a dialed-in Hadi Choopan fighting for a spot alongside them.
However, the 2022 Olympia weekend is scheduled for Dec. 16-18 in Las Vegas, NV, which is enough time for Elssbiay to “bring something [different] for the fans.
We are working very hard, but we can do many things more.
Whatever Elssbiay means by “something different” from a physique standpoint, his calling card as a “mass monster” is unlikely to change. His current weight of 155 kilograms (341.7 pounds) is significantly more than his stage weight at the 2021 Olympia, where he was just shy of 300 pounds.
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Despite the increase in body weight, Elssbiay is still performing cardio every day during training. Considering Big Ramy currently “trains every single day,” that is a decent amount of cardio for one of the often heaviest men on the Olympia stage.
I feel I’m very healthy.
Big Ramy’s current focus is getting a solid foundation before Ramadan, which begins on April 2, 2022, when he will naturally consume fewer calories during the fasts in observation of the holiday. He will still have eight months to dial in his physique for the 2022 Olympia once Ramadan concludes on May 1, 2022.
Elssbiay turned heads at the 2020 Mr. Olympia contest with a previously unseen level of conditioning. His side chest pose with his peeled quad sweep was one of the most memorable images of that weekend. He brought a similar package in 2022 to retain his title. We’ll see if he can continue his reign on the bodybuilding throne and achieve a three-peat in Las Vegas in December 2022.
Featured image: @big_ramy on Instagram
