by Matt Weik, BS, CSCS, CPT, CSN
It wasn’t all that long ago that I wrote an article about how I thought both Christian Guzman and Chris Bumstead were the future of our industry. Both had great personalities, big brands, and a global following that had all eyes on them. These two greats will do whatever it takes to achieve their goals, and unfortunately, I feel that one of them took things a little too far.
In this article, I’m going to voice my opinion on the “new” Christian Guzman, and it may ruffle a few feathers. I’m not personally friends with Christian, I’ve never hung out with him or spoken with him, and he most certainly probably has no idea who I am (even though I’ve published a ton of great articles featuring him over the years).
Disclaimer: This article is based on my opinion. You may have your own opinion, and that’s fine, but this is mine.
Christian Guzman Builds Things — Just Not Muscle
First off, that heading alone is probably enough to have me getting some hate in my DMs (and I’m fine with that). But let’s be honest here: Christian Guzman has never had a massive physique.
Now, I say that and want to follow it up with this… Christian Guzman had one of the best physiques in the industry. That is, before he decided to go for his IFBB pro card and use certain steroids (which he has openly talked about before all of the haters out there tell me he’s “natty 4 life, bruh”).
I understand that there are people out there who believe an IFBB pro card is like wearing a badge of honor. But we’d all look a little silly if we didn’t understand that getting a pro card today compared to back in the day is drastically different. We have bodybuilders getting pro cards these days that (in my opinion) don’t deserve them. The IFBB is giving out pro cards like Christmas presents on December 25th.
While I applaud the fact that Christian Guzman wants to get the “coveted” IFBB pro card — at what cost? Clearly, as you may have seen in his videos and posts, his health isn’t exactly the best currently. He may be working to fix that, but what damage has the anabolics already done?
Businesses That Have Created a Legacy
For a man who has built an empire from the ground up, what does he have to prove? He doesn’t need an IFBB pro card in order to earn my respect or even the respect of others. The man has built multi-million-dollar businesses from scratch. Everything from Alphalete apparel to Alphalete Gym to now Alphaland. What does he truly gain from damaging his health in an attempt to get a ridiculous card (that you have to pay to keep each year) that reads “IFBB PRO CARD.”
Does that not seem a little silly?
The businesses Christian Guzman created will be his legacy — especially the Disney-like attraction of Alphaland (minus the pedos). Alphaland is a fitness enthusiast’s wet dream when it comes to everything they want, all on one property. Bodybuilders geek out over the thought of visiting Alphaland and even getting to meet Christian in person.
With over a million followers on social media and over a million subscribers between his YouTube channels, the impact he has on the industry and those who are on their own fitness journey is insane. Unfortunately, his steroid use seems to have opened the door to some hate and people walking away from his content due to the choices he made. But again, I couldn’t care less if someone uses steroids or not, I just don’t understand the reasoning for why Christian Guzman decided to go that route.
A Fading Physique — Think About Longevity, Not About a Trophy
Even if Christian Guzman wasn’t open and honest about using steroids in the past before making a video telling the world he’s been using anabolics in an attempt to “do whatever it takes to get a pro card,” his physique a few years back many would tip their hat to and would be something they wanted to attain.
Christian was never the biggest guy out there, which is a reason he never got his pro card. But his physique was something many people aspired to build for themselves. It was more attainable compared to what we see on stages today. And more than anything, Christian looked healthy.
I honestly thought Christian had his shit together. He had the businesses, the physique, the bank account, the family, the cars, and the girl. If you ask me, he’s checked all the boxes a dude would hope to achieve in their lifetime. But where is he now?
Several months ago, I was texting with Nick Trigili about his deal with Alphalete and congratulating him. I also mentioned to him that something didn’t seem right with Christian, and he mentioned he believed he was under a lot of stress with everything going on.
While Nick may have been right, I believe there was more going on in the background and that Christian was using “certain things” that caused him to fumble his words, almost as if he was having an anxiety or panic attack. He looked tired, he looked stressed, he looked, well… tweaked out. If he was or wasn’t, that’s none of my concern. But as someone who, quite frankly, looks up to him, this was extremely hard to watch.
While I don’t want to say Christian’s steroid use is his “downfall,” I most certainly don’t think it has helped him at all. His health is currently an issue. His physique looks nothing like it did (and not in a good way). And while he got engaged to Heidi, I’m not sure he’s ultimately truly happy. I may be wrong, but typically, everyone plays it off that they’re great when, deep down, they’re battling something.
Overall, I truly wish the best for Christian Guzman and hope he can turn his health around and will come to the realization that he doesn’t need a pro card. In the grand scheme of things, it means nothing after everything he’s accomplished. Getting a pro card will not make him more money, and I really don’t believe it will make him any happier. It’s like when he bought the R8. Sure, it made him happy initially, but that eventually fades. I just hope he doesn’t allow his health to continue to fade…
