Ronnie Coleman bei der Premiere von Netflix Fubar Staffel 2 im Tudum Theater in Hollywood, USA am 11. Juni 2025, Hollywood, CA, USA, Los Angeles, Kalifornien, USA, Nordamerika Ronnie Coleman at Netflix s Fubar Season 2 premiere held at the Tudum Theater in Hollywood, USA on June 11, 2025, Hollywood, CA, USA, Los Angeles, California, USA, North America Copyright: imageBROKER/Lumeimages ibltuj14029925.jpg Bitte beachten Sie die gesetzlichen Bestimmungen des deutschen Urheberrechtes hinsichtlich der Namensnennung des Fotografen im direkten Umfeld der Veröffentlichung
Ronnie Coleman bei der Premiere von Netflix Fubar Staffel 2 im Tudum Theater in Hollywood, USA am 11. Juni 2025, Hollywood, CA, USA, Los Angeles, Kalifornien, USA, Nordamerika Ronnie Coleman at Netflix s Fubar Season 2 premiere held at the Tudum Theater in Hollywood, USA on June 11, 2025, Hollywood, CA, USA, Los Angeles, California, USA, North America Copyright: imageBROKER/Lumeimages ibltuj14029925.jpg Bitte beachten Sie die gesetzlichen Bestimmungen des deutschen Urheberrechtes hinsichtlich der Namensnennung des Fotografen im direkten Umfeld der Veröffentlichung
Jul 26, 2026, 5:00 PM CUT
8x Mr. Olympia Ronnie Coleman posts old clip of himself reflecting on bodybuilding wins
Ronnie Coleman revisited one of the defining chapters of his bodybuilding career on July 24, sharing an old Instagram clip that reflected on the setbacks he endured before becoming an eight-time Mr. Olympia champion.
Looking back at his early Olympia finishes, Coleman explained that he never complained about disappointing results. Instead, he focused on improving until he eventually reached the top of the sport, a mindset that became the foundation of his record-setting success.
In the Instagram post, Coleman said, “In 1992, I didn't place at all in the Olympia... I didn't complain. 1994, I didn't complain when I got 15th. 1995, I didn't complain when I got 11th. 1996, I didn't complain when I got 6th. 1997, I didn't complain when I got 9th."
Coleman then tied that stretch of quiet years to the larger point he wanted to make.
"The moral of the story is, why complain? If y'all want to do something different, if y'all like the sport you competed in, you got a problem with it, don't compete,” Coleman added in the Instagram post from his official account (@ronniecoleman8).
Ronnie Coleman bei der Premiere von Netflix Fubar Staffel 2 im Tudum Theater in Hollywood, USA am 11. Juni 2025, Hollywood, CA, USA, Los Angeles, Kalifornien, USA, Nordamerika Ronnie Coleman at Netflix s Fubar Season 2 premiere held at the Tudum Theater in Hollywood, USA on June 11, 2025, Hollywood, CA, USA, Los Angeles, California, USA, North America Copyright: imageBROKER/Lumeimages ibltuj14029995.jpg Bitte beachten Sie die gesetzlichen Bestimmungen des deutschen Urheberrechtes hinsichtlich der Namensnennung des Fotografen im direkten Umfeld der Veröffentlichung
Ronnie Coleman bei der Premiere von Netflix Fubar Staffel 2 im Tudum Theater in Hollywood, USA am 11. Juni 2025, Hollywood, CA, USA, Los Angeles, Kalifornien, USA, Nordamerika Ronnie Coleman at Netflix s Fubar Season 2 premiere held at the Tudum Theater in Hollywood, USA on June 11, 2025, Hollywood, CA, USA, Los Angeles, California, USA, North America Copyright: imageBROKER/Lumeimages ibltuj14029995.jpg Bitte beachten Sie die gesetzlichen Bestimmungen des deutschen Urheberrechtes hinsichtlich der Namensnennung des Fotografen im direkten Umfeld der Veröffentlichung
Coleman's message centered on persistence rather than disappointment. After steadily improving his Olympia finishes throughout the 1990s, he finally broke through in 1998 by defeating Flex Wheeler to win his first Mr. Olympia title.
That breakthrough marked the beginning of one of bodybuilding's greatest dynasties, as Coleman successfully defended the Mr. Olympia title seven more times to finish with eight consecutive championships. His message in the video reflected the mindset behind that achievement: "Why complain?"
Coleman's breakthrough didn't come from persistence alone. After the 1997 Mr. Olympia, he made solid changes to his training, nutrition and contest preparation which helped.
Ronnie Coleman admitted to changing his Mr. Olympia strategy for the 1998 competition
After losing the 1997 Mr. Olympia title, Coleman met legendary nutritionist and coach Chad Nichols, which changed his overall momentum.
According to a January 10 YouTube post by Muscle Mind Media, Coleman once said, “Before I met Chad Nichols, I only ate five meals. I met Chad Nichols probably in 1998, my first show of the year, which was San Francisco Show. Chad changed cardio. I used to do just one hour a day, and that was enough for me, at least I thought.”
Not only did Coleman's new fitness trainer change his cardio, but he also changed his diet. Before that, he used to eat only 5 meals a day, which later increased to 6 meals a day under the guidance of Nichols.
However, according to Coleman, when Nichols suggested six meals a day, Coleman balked, saying he didn't have time for that. Nichols came back with an unusual fix: wake up in the middle of the night to squeeze in an extra meal, then go right back to sleep.
Coleman was skeptical at first, but that's exactly what he ended up doing. He'd sleep from 4 to 7, wake up for his first meal of the day, sleep again from 8 to 11, and repeat the cycle to hit all six meals. It amounted to a serious amount of food, day after day.
Those changes helped Coleman capture his first Mr. Olympia title in 1998, validating the persistence and work ethic he reflected on in the video decades later.
What are your thoughts on Coleman's mindset? Let us know in the comments.
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Written by
Supradeep Dutta
Edited by
Rudra Dubey