Eight-time Mr. Olympia Ronnie Coleman maintains that bodybuilding shows are won from the back. Coleman used an intense approach to physique building. He focused on heavy-weight movements and targeted every body part separately because he knew that on the professional stage, bodybuilders are judged on every muscle and part.

With this approach, Coleman built his massive back, characterized by extreme thickness, intense density, and unparalleled width. Behind this development was a hidden philosophy that the legend himself stated on May 1 in an Instagram post.

Coleman wrote in the caption, “Yeah Buddy… I’ve always said Shows are won from the back I knew once I turned around, it was a wrap! No one was bringing that thickness or detail like I did!”

Coleman trained brutally to build this back. He once admitted that, while working on the back and other body parts, he did not pay any attention to distractions.

He added, “Back in the day, training was simple: when it was back day, it was back and biceps—nothing fancy, nothing extra”.

The King also said, “My back routine was straightforward but brutal. I’d start with deadlifts, the foundation of any real back workout. From there, I hit the T-bar row, then moved into heavy bent-over rows. Sometimes I’d finish with a machine movement, but honestly, the basics were enough”.

Coleman's back was so impressive that even one of his biggest competitors, Jay Cutler, once praised him. During his appearance on The Iced Coffee Hour on October 25, 2022, Cutler said, “For me, my back held me back or against Ronnie Coleman because he was just so advanced in the back area”.

Although Coleman opened up about the importance of back training in bodybuilding, fans often wonder what routine he followed to build such a massive back.

Ronnie Coleman’s back workouts during his Mr. Olympia preparation

Coleman's back workout was split into two vital sessions, including:

• Workouts entirely focused on thickness
• Workout focusing on his width.

The King used to train his back two times a day. So let's look at Coleman's training for width.

Width movements:

• Seated cable row: 4 sets, 10-12 reps
• Barbell row: 5 sets, 10-12 reps
• Front pulldown underhand: 3 sets, 10-12 reps
• Lever machine pulldown: 3 sets, 10-12 reps.

Thickness movements:

• Barbell row: 3 sets, 10-12 reps
• Deadlift: 4 sets, 6-12 reps
• Single-arm dumbbell row: 3 sets, 10-12 sets
• T-bar row: 3 sets, 10-12 reps.

So, that was Coleman's intense back training routine!

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Written by

Supradeep Dutta

Edited by

Suyashdeep Sason