By Gary Chappell
EARLIER this year, James Hollingshead was not even sure he wanted to compete again
After finishing eighth at the Japan Pro last November, his plan was to step away from competition.
Instead, he ended up winning the Lenda Murray Atlanta Pro, getting an Olympia motif tattooed on his neck and booking his place at the 2026 Mr Olympia in Las Vegas.
But the trophy is not really the story. The story is what happened before it. Because Hollingshead has now admitted that, at one point, he had contemplated “the end of everything”.
And the strange thing is that the thing which eventually saved his bodybuilding career may have been accepting that he might not be very good at it any more.
Speaking to Justin Shier on Shier and the Shed, Hollingshead was asked whether 2026 had been a make-or-break year.
His answer was unequivocal.
“Yeah, 100%. It was sink or swim," he said. "I had already contemplated the end of everything. I didn't see what I believed in any more.”
There was still brief signs of life, however.
He continued: “There was a flicker of belief because otherwise, I wouldn't have put one foot forward in front of the other. But it's just that what was happening in real life wasn't reflective of what I thought was potentially possible.”
That is a brutal place for any athlete to reach. Particularly one who has spent almost two decades building his entire identity around bodybuilding.
But then something changed.
Hollingshead went into Portugal expecting to fail. Not win. Not qualify.
Not even necessarily be competitive.
Fail.
“Portugal, I thought, go to bomb. I was like, 'I might go here, I'm dead last'. But I was already accepting, I was accepting of where my place is in bodybuilding at the time. I was like, 'maybe I have been the best I can be and done the best I can do'.”
And that acceptance took the pressure away.
“It took the weight off, man. Took the weight off because, as I was doing the training, because I enjoy it, I was like, 'OK, well, I'm not doing this for a result on stage. I'm just doing it for me, a passion'.”
Then came the really important bit.
“And a byproduct of doing it for you is that you end up building something great, because it's honest.”
That became the theme of his season.
And the irony is obvious; the less he obsessed about proving himself, the better he became.
Hollingshead did not win Portugal. Or the next show. Or the one after that.
He kept finishing second.
Hollingshead now thinks it was exactly what he needed.
“I'm glad I didn't win any of the shows prior. Because it's like, you don't know how much you love something until you're in that position. And if I'd won anything earlier, it wouldn't have created the best me.
“It would have made me content with less. Would have made me think I'm more than I am. Having to do so much meant I had to evolve.”
Then comes perhaps the most important lesson he took from the entire year.
“And that's the best lesson from this. Adversity is such an undervalued and under appreciated aspect of life. You don't really learn how to navigate problems if you've never dealt with adversity. You never have to evolve. You're never forced into this evolution to make sure that you can rise out of the flames and be your best.”
That's not really a bodybuilding lesson. It is a life lesson.
And Hollingshead is not interested in rewriting history now that it has worked out.
“I wouldn't have changed a thing," he said. "When I look at every moment of this and how it's unfolded, I'm like, 'that's perfect'.”
After the Atlanta victory, Shier put the achievement into perspective.
Four shows. The comeback. The underdog story. The Olympia ticket.
Hollingshead's response was wonderfully understated.
“Yeah, dude, it's funny, because you're like, you have a show to win. And I'm just thinking to myself, I'm like, well, we four shows deep. We did it. We did it. We did it.”
And Hollingshead had another admission; he is nt naturally good at giving himself credit.
But this year, he has learned that perhaps he should.
“I'm not someone to pat myself on the back and give myself too much praise," he said. "But this year's philosophy has been to do that. But sometimes it's okay to do so. It's OK to be proud of yourself. I think that's really important.”
That sounds simple. In bodybuilding, it isn't.
Because the moment you finish a show, the sport – your own mind – immediately asks what comes next.
Bigger arms. Wider back. Better legs. Lower body fat. Better placing. Another show. Another prep. Another problem.
Hollingshead has finally learned to stop for a moment.
“You should feel pride in what you do," he said. "And you should feel a sense of accomplishment. Too many times, especially within bodybuilding, it's always like, ;what's next? I've got to improve this. OK, I looked great, I'm happy at this showing, but I need to bring my arms up and this needs to improve'.
“So just to be able to sit there in the moment, like just go, fuck, I did it. I'm proud of myself. I think it's a skill set, to be honest.”
There is another part of Hollingshead's new philosophy that is worth paying attention to.
He talks about saying positive things out loud. Not because he thinks positive thinking magically fixes everything. Because he knows how loud the other voice can become.
“When you have internal dialogue, they're both the same volume, aren't they? So they're both in your head, same volume. Whereas if you take the positive and you say out loud, it becomes noisier than the other voice.
“In time, you actually swallow the other voice. It's really important not to give that other voice... not to speak it out loud.”
That matters because Hollingshead knows self-doubt is not something that disappears simply because you qualify for the Olympia.
It will come back. The bad show will come back. The criticism will come back. The comparison will come back.
The answer is not pretending those moments do not exist.
“We can't be naive and pretend those moments won't come again. It's about harmonising with them and knowing that they are just part of the life. I feel far more equipped to handle that.”
There is another reason for the change. Fatherhood.
Asked what had done the most to him, Hollingshead did not need a long answer.
“One word: fatherhood. Fatherhood's done that to me. Having Hailey.”
It has changed what bodybuilding means. The Olympia is not simply a trophy any more. The process matters. Being present matters.
And that feeds directly into a philosophy Hollingshead has now shared with his followers.
In an Instagram post following his qualification, he wrote: “You see, I’ve figured out finally that it’s OK to lose. It’s OK to not be what is wanted in the day. Why? Because that takes nothing and I mean nothing away from your work or your personal progress.”
That is the sentence that perhaps best explains his 2026 season.
He had to learn how to lose before he could learn how to win.
He continued: “With this mindset I’ve found it comforting and I’m happy to compete more. To show up for my fan base (the best) and be present in person to perform.
“The being there is always going to be better than the avoiding being there. What’s the worst that happens? You don’t present your very best? Or you don’t place high? Damn that must suck but you know the truth is this.”
The truth? You get up the next day. And you try to be better.
“You are going to wake up the next day motivated to be better at what you do... or you are not and if you are not. Well that tells me everything about your role in bodybuilding.”
That is the test. Not whether you win. Whether you still want to improve after you lose.
There is a line in the Instagram post that is particularly important. Because bodybuilding has a reputation for being an industry built on dissatisfaction.
Never big enough. Never lean enough. Never good enough.
Hollingshead now argues that the opposite may actually produce better results.
“The urge to be better. That is the beauty, that is the passion and that is and has to be your reason through thick and through thin.
“Only then will you find peace on this path. And you know what? A man or woman at peace will improve more than one who is hating themselves.”
There is, of course, still shows to do. Next weekend [September 5/6, 2026] comes the Italy Pro. Then the Mr Olympia
The Olympia is not a participation trophy. Hollingshead knows that. His last two Olympia appearances did not go the way he wanted. So he is not going to Vegas simply to make up the numbers.
But neither is he going to destroy the mindset that got him there. Six weeks is not the time to reinvent himself.
“The focus here isn't trying to change the game," he said. "It's just repeating the habits you've set in play and mindset, because that's what was good for you.”
That is the challenge now. Stay the course. Be kind to yourself. Appreciate how you got there.
And, as Hollingshead says, actually allow yourself to be proud.
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