The Workout Routines of the World’s Greatest Bodybuilders

Subj: The Classic Training Routines of the Greatest Bodybuilders to Ever Live.

The 1970’s produces the greatest male physiques the world has ever seen. The 70’s, dubbed the ‘Golden Era’ of bodybuilding, saw stars like Frank Zane, Serge Nubret, and Arnold Schwarzenegger take the stage.

Bodybuilders of the Golden Era possessed a classic physique. They were lean, symmetrical and aesthetic.

Each bodybuilder had their preferred way of training. They fine-tuned their workout routines to achieve the look they wanted. These guys knew how to make the most out of every lift and trained according.

In this post I show you the classic bodybuilding routines of Franco Columbu, Mike Mentzer, Frank Zane, Serge Nubret, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno.

These men range in height from 5’5” tall (Franco Columbu) to 6’5” tall (Lou Ferrigno). I know the challenges faced by tall trainers. This article shows you how to workout for your body type.

This post proves that it doesn’t matter how tall you are – you are still able to build an amazing physique with the right knowledge and work ethic.

The Classic Bodybuilding Routines of the World’s Greatest Bodybuilders

Franco Columbu

Height:  5’5″, Competition Weight: 185 pounds

Born in Italy, Franco Columbo was a powerlifter who won many European strong man competitions.

Franco Columbo earned his nickname, “The Sardinian Strongman” by pulling off impressive feats of strength. He could deadlift over 700 pounds and could lift a car up on two wheels with ease. Talk about an awesome party trick.

True to his roots, Franco Columbu focused on heavy lifting and incorporated powerlifting exercises into his workouts.

He used a lot of supersets for his workouts to keep his heart rate up and to burn fat.

In the 70’s Franco Columbo and Arnold Schwarzenegger teamed up to train together in America and the rest is history.

Standing at just 5’5” inches tall, Franco Columbu built a powerful and athletic looking physique. This helped him compete with the bigger guys that had a height and mass advantage.

Franco focused on building a well balanced and symmetrical physique.

FRANCO COLUMBU’S POWER BODYBUILDING PROGRAM

This is Franco Columbu’s workout routine he used leading up to his 1981 Mr. Olympia victory. Franco Columbu’s workout was a 14 day split. It’s worth noting that three times a week he would train twice a day, morning and night.

MORNING SESSION / AFTERNOON SESSION

1. Chest, shoulders / Arms
2. Back / Legs
3. Chest, shoulders
4. Arms
5. Legs / Back
6. Chest, shoulders
7. Rest
8. Arms / Legs
9. Back
10. Chest, shoulders / Arms
11. Back / Legs
12. Chest, shoulders
13. Arms
14. Rest

Columbu trained abs in the morning on days 3, 5, 6, 9, 11 and 12, and in the afternoon on day 1.

FRANCO COLUMBU’S CHEST WORKOUT

Superset

• Barbell bench presses: 3 * Sets of  15, 10, 4 Reps
• Cable crossovers: 3 * Sets, Reps 20

Superset

• Flat-bench dumbbell flyes: 3 * Sets of 20, 15, 6 Reps
• Cable crossovers: 3 * Sets of 20 Reps

Giant Superset

• Barbell incline presses: 3 Sets of 15 Reps
• Barbell pullovers: 3 Sets of 15 Reps
• Parallel-bar dips: 3  Sets   To failure
• Cable crossovers: 3 Sets of 25 Reps
• (The above where performed in one giant set, back to back to back to back, using the same weight for all three sets).

* For the first two super-sets, Columbu pyramided up in weight (and down in reps) for bench presses and flyes, but he kept the weight the same for cable crossovers.

FRANCO COLUMBU’S SHOULDER WORKOUT                                             

• Standing dumbbell lateral raises: 4 Sets of 10 Reps
• Bent lateral raises: 6 Sets of 10 Reps
• Behind-the-neck presses: 4 Sets of 10 Reps
• Alternating dumbbell front raises: 3 Sets of 8 Reps
• Cable lateral raises: 3 Sets of 10 Reps

FRANCO COLUMBU’S BACK WORKOUT

• Wide-grip pull-ups: 6 Sets of 10-15 Reps
• T-bar rows: 4 Sets of 10 Reps
• Seated cable rows: 4 Sets of 10 Reps

superset

• One-arm dumbbell rows: 3 Sets of 10 Reps
• Hammer-grip pull-ups *: 3 Sets of 10 Reps (Columbu used a parallel-grip cable attachment hanging on a pull up bar)

FRANCO COLUMBU’S ARM WORKOUT

superset                                                                         

• Cable pushdowns: 4 Sets of 8 Reps
• Standing dumbbell curls: 4 Sets of 8 Reps

superset

• Lying barbell triceps extensions: 4 Sets of 8 Reps
• Barbell preacher curls: 4 Sets of 8 Reps

superset

• Seated barbell extensions: 4 Sets of 8 Reps
• Dumbbell incline curls: 4 Sets of 8 Reps

FRANCO COLUMBU’S THIGH WORKOUT                                                 

• Barbell squats: 7 Sets of 20, 15, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2 Reps
• Leg presses: 4 Sets of 50, 25, 15, 8 Reps
• Leg extensions: 6-7 Sets of 20 Reps
• Barbell lunges *: 2-3 Sets of 12-15 Reps (performed every other workout)
• Dead-lifts: 6 Sets of 5, 5, 5, 3, 1, 1 Reps (performed every other week)

Franco Columbu’s Training Diet

BREAKFAST

• 4 fresh eggs
• 1 fresh fruit in season or large orange juice
• Homemade plain yogurt (made with raw milk) w/ granola cereal
• Glass of water
• Vitamins and minerals

LUNCH

• Large vegetable salad with oil and vinegar
• 1 cooked fresh vegetable
• Large portion of fresh broiled protein such as fish, chicken, prime cuts of beef, lamb, or liver
• Wine or mineral water

MID AFTERNOON SNACK

• Plate of selected imported cheeses, with fresh fruit in season or nuts
• Tuna fish

DINNER

• Similar to lunch (early) same choices

LATE EVENING

• Small dish of fresh yogurt (good for digestion)

The portions here seem up for interpretation. Obviously you can add food as need to meet your dietary needs and training goals.

In my opinion, this is a low amount of food at first glance. I’m going to assume the large portions of meat were 1-2 pounds +.

Next up on our list of classic bodybuilders –

Mike Mentzer

Height: 5’8”, Competition Weight: 220 pounds

Mike Mentzer was an absolute powerhouse.

This dude was only 3 inches taller than Franco Culumbu but weighed over 30 pounds more during competition.

As you can see to the left Mike Mentzer had a compact and powerful build. If you have a stocky build this is a good physique to aim for.

Mike Mentzer’s approach to weight training was focused on lower volume in relation to his bodybuilding counterparts. He advocated High Intensity Training during his prime training years.

High intensity training meant taking each muscle to complete failure during each workout. Often times he would workout beyond failure on many of his sets.

Mike Mentzer used a variety of High intensity training techniques such as are Forced Reps and Rest-Pause Reps to train beyond failure and stimulate muscle growth.

Forced Reps:

Forced reps are when you reach muscle failure and have a training partner help push out more reps. The technique fatigues more muscle fibers and stimulates more complete growth and muscle density.

Rest-Pause Reps:

Let’s say you’re lifting a weight, repping it out and you reach failure. You can’t lift the weight for another rep. Most would put the weight down at this point but don’t!

Let the weight rest for a few seconds while you catch your breath. Then once you get your barrings, lift the weight again. Then rest again, then lift the weight again.

Do this 3 or 4 times to push your muscles to the max. This could be considered training beyond muscle failure.

Mike Mentzer used these techniques to push his body to the limit. This approach differed from the techniques used in other Classic Bodybuilding Routines.

Mike Mentzer’s Classic Bodybuilding Routine

Mentzer trained with a four day split. He worked out with high intensity and used his days off to train abs or do accessory work to improve weak spots.

Mike Mentzer’s Workout – Monday and Thursday

Chest (chest exercises are done for 4 cycles with no pause between movements)

• Pec-Deck Squeeze (to failure)
• Incline Barbell Press (forced reps)
• Cable or Dumbell Flye

Triceps (Tricep exercises are done for three cycles of 8 reps to failure with no rest in between)

• Triceps Extension
• Weighted Dip

Thighs (Use maximum weight for these lifts)

• Heavy Leg Extensions 1 set x 10 reps
• Leg Press 1 set x 10 reps
• Parallel Squat 1 set x 10 reps
• Leg Curl  1 set x 10 reps

Tuesday and Friday Workout

Back

• Pullover
• Close Grip Underhand Chin Up (Pullovers and chin ups are done superset style for two cycles)
• Long Cable Pulls 2 set x 8 reps
• One Arm Dumbbell Row 2 set x 8 reps

Shoulders (shoulder exercises are done for two cycles to failure with no rest in between)

• Lateral Raise
• Military Press Behind the Neck

Biceps

• Preacher Curl
• Barbell Curl (Preacher and Barbell curls are done to failure for 3 cycles with no rest)
• One Arm Concentration Dumbbell Curl

Calves

• Seated Calf Raises
• Calf Raises on Leg Press Machine

Abdominals (Ab exercises are done for three supersets until failure)

• Hanging Leg Raise
• Crunches

Mike Mentzer’s Diet Suggestions

Mentzer was interviewed after his bodybuilding career and questioned about the importance of diet in bodybuilding –

“The most important thing regarding nutrition is that a bodybuilder obtain a well-balanced diet. This can be accomplished by getting the daily compliment from each of the Four Basic Food Groups:

1) fruits and vegetables
2) cereals and grains
3) meat, fish and poultry and
4) milk and daily products.

Doing so will give you the proper ratio of nutrients – 60 percent carbs, 25 percent protein and 15 percent fats.

Don’t underestimate the value of a well-balanced diet. Think about it. What could possibly be better than a well-balanced diet, which covers all of your nutritional needs?”

– Mark Mentzer, Interview with John Stamatopoulos, 2005. Read the whole interview here.

Mentor stressed balance in his diet. Now this in my opinion is a simple answer to this question as it covers most people’s nutritional needs. It’s a blanket answer without going into too much detail or complication.

Mentzer’s diet suggested more carbs and less protein compared to other diets. However this is a solid diet, some people handle carbs better then others. I would tweak this diet to include more protein and natural fats and lower the carb intake.

Menter’s routine differered from other Classic Bodybuilding Routines in the sense that he trained to failure quite often.

Frank Zane

Height: 5’10”, Competition Weight: 190 pounds

Frank Zane had one of the most aesthetic physiques of all time.

You can see by looking at him that there’s a stark contrast between bodybuilders of the Golden Era compared to today.

Frank Zane focused on muscle balance and symmetry as well as building perfect proportions between muscles.  He had a slim waist and well developed and balanced muscles.

Frank Zane is proof that bigger muscles does not mean better physique.

He advocated taking bodybuilding slow. He suggested gaining weight steadily and keeping your body trim. Aim for 5 pounds of quality muscle a year rather than bulking and cutting.

He also advocated a lot of stretching in between sets. Stretching is a great way to get blood and nutrients into the muscles and lactic acid and toxic buildup out.

Stretching is also great for shaping the muscles and improve recovery time.

You’ll notice that high volume was a theme with his workout routine and his workout splits were unique compared to other bodybuilders.

Frank Zane’s Workout Program for ‘Peak Conditioning’

Frank Zane typically did a 4 day sequence workout for “Peak Conditioning”. This meant he worked out 3 days then took the 4th day off. Then 3 days on, 1 day off etc.

Workout Day 1:  Back, biceps, forearms, abs

Day 2: Abs, thighs, calves

Day 3: Chest, shoulders, triceps, abs

Here’s a quote from Frank Zane talking about his training routine –

“Since my goal is reach peak condition in mid Autumn, summer training is the most intensive for the whole year. For muscle growth to thrive, starting in June, I train 3 days out of 5. I like this the best because I get enough rest.

Frank Zane’s Workout: 

• Day 1- Back, biceps, forearms
• Day 2 – Thighs, calves
• Rest on Day 3
• Day 4- Chest, shoulders, triceps
• Day 5- Rest.

“I do ab work every day and 12 to 20 minutes of treadmill at the end of each workout. Increasing the weight each set, keeping my reps between 8 and 12 for upper body and thighs, 15 to 25 for calves, and 25 to 50 for abs, stretching 15 seconds between sets, I do 2 sets of each exercise and work my way up to 3 sets as I progress through the summer Resting 2 to 3 minutes between sets my workouts last 75 minutes.

My goal is to keep tension in the muscle I’m working during the entire set, so with back, I don’t lock my arms out on the negative-this keeps tension on the lats where it belongs, not on the shoulders.“

– Frank Zane

So let’s recap that for sake of easy reading:

• Rep range for upper body exercises and thighs is 8-12 reps
• Rep range for calves is 15-25
• Range for abs is 25-50
• Stretch 15 seconds between sets
• 2 sets of each exercise working up to 3 sets as training goes on.

Frank Zane’s Workout Day 1: Back, Biceps, Forearms and Abs

Back

• Front Pulldown
• Cable Crossover Behind Neck
• Low Cable Row
• Shrugs
• Close Grip Pulldown (2 arm lat stretch between sets)
• 1 Arm Row on machine, cable, or dumbbell (1 arm lat stretch between sets. I get a great pump even in my biceps)

Biceps

• One Arm Dumbbell Concentration Curl
• Preacher Cable Curl
• Alternate Dumbbell Curl(keep wrists straight each rep)

Forearms

• Reverse EZ bar curl
• Barbell wrist curl
• Gripper

Abs

• Hanging Knee Up
• Abdominal Crunch
• Seated Twist

*At the end of Day 1 workout do 5 minutes of rowing machine @ 25 strokes/minute

*Focus & do slow negatives

Day 2 Workout: Abs, thighs and calves

Abs

• Incline Leg Raise
• Crunches
• One Arm Cable Crunch

Thighs – I do 1 leg back stretch for hamstrings and 1 leg up stretch for quads between sets. Hip machine for rear oblique and outer hamstring, Leg extension/leg curl super-set, leg press, erect squat on Leg Blaster- thighs so pumped take 5 minute break

Calves

• Standing calf raise on leg blaster
• calf raise on leg press machine
• donkey calf raise
• seated calf raise

I do a total of no more than 6 sets on calves. I get the maximum burn on each set so necessary for calf growth by holding each rep for a count of 5 at the top. Then, walk around and feel my calves swell up and do 15 seconds of calf stretch between each set.

Hit the treadmill at end of workout for a 20-30 minute run.

Day 3: Chest, shoulders, triceps and abs

Begin workout doing doorway stretch and 1 arm shoulder stretch

Chest

• Front Press or  70 degree incline dumbbell press
• 30 degree incline dumbbell press (not locking out at the top keeps tension on the pecs)
• Pec Deck
• Dip Machine (doorway stretch between all sets)
• Pullover machine (1 arm shoulder stretch)

Delts & triceps supersets:

• 1 arm DB side raise/1 arm DB triceps extension (one arm shoulder stretch between sets)
• Rear delt machine/Pressdown or db kickback (rear delt stretch between sets)

Abs

• Knee up chair
• CrunchesSerge
• Seated twist

Sources: Frank Zane’s books: Fabulously Fit Forever and Frank Zane: Mind, Body, Spirit

Serge Nubret

Height 6′ , Competition Weight: 200 pounds

Serge Nubret was a French bodybuilder and actor.  Serge was known for spending 4-5 hours in the gym each day simply because he “loved training” so much.

When it comes to Classic Bodybuilding Routines Serge was unique. He lifted light weight and performed ‘pump training‘. He used light weight and concentrated to isolate the muscle and squeeze the muscle as hard as possible.

Each rep was done with extreme focus with the goal of achieving the ultimate burn/pump.

Serge Nubret was a tremendous athlete and when it came to aesthetics he was by far one of the best built competitors on stage.

You’ll notice that Serge Nubret’s workouts contained a huge amount of volume. Probably more volume that all of the other bodybuilders in his era.

Serge Nubret is what you’d call a ‘Pump chaser’. Each workout he would train using a massive amount of volume. His workouts typically lasted for 2 hours at a time.

He rested very little during his workouts as he liked to keep the tempo up to keep the strain on his muscle and to burn extra fat and calories.

Serge Nubret’s Classic Bodybuilding Routines (Sets x Reps)

Serge trained 6 days a week Monday-Saturday and took a rest day on Sunday. He trained abs everyday, sometimes up to an hour each and everyday including Sundays.

Monday/Thursday Workout: Quads, Chest and Abs

• Squat: 8 x 12
• Leg Press: 6 x 12
• Leg Extension: 6 x 12
• Bench Press: 8 x 12
• Flat-Bench Dumbbell Flye: 6 x 12
• Incline Bench Press: 6 x 12
• Incline Dumbbell Flye: 6 x 12
• Dumbbell Pullover: 6 x 12

Tuesday/Friday Workout: Back, Hamstrings and Abs

• Pull-Up: 6 x 12
• Behind-the-Neck Pulldown: 8 x 12
• Wide-Grip Front Pulldown: 6 x 12
• Bent-Over Barbell Row: 6 x 12
• Lying Leg Curl: 8 x 15
• Standing Leg Curl: 8 x 15

Wednesday/Saturday Workout: Shoulders, Arms and Calves

• Behind-the-Neck Military Press: 6 x 12
• Alternating Dumbbell Front Raise: 6 x 12
• Barbell Upright Row: 6 x 12
• Cable Lateral Raise: 6 x 12
• Barbell Curl Superset with Triceps Pressdown: 16 x 12
• Dumbbell Curl Superset with Triceps Dip: 16 x 12
• Standing Calf Raise: 8 x 12
• Seated Calf Raise: 8 x 12

Ab Training

Serge trained his abs at the end of every workout and on Sundays for an hour straight. His favorite ab exercises were the hanging knee raise and seated knee-ups performed on a flat bench.

Be sure to read my article about Serge Nurbet ‘Pump Training’ for an in-depth look at Serge Nubret’s Workout Routine

Serge Nubret’s Diet

Serge Nubret has an interesting diet that goes against the mainstream bodybuilding crowd that preaches 6+ meals per day.

He typically ate one huge meal a day and that was it. The meal was typically the same thing:  2-4 pounds of horse meat, with rice, beans and lentils.

Serge’s workout is also a little unorthodox compared to the other Classic Bodybuilding Routines.

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Height 6′ 2”, Competition Weight: 235 pounds

Arnold is the undisputed King of bodybuilding. Arnold had the body, personality and mindset of a winner.

Born in Austria, he relentlessly pursued his dream to become the best build man to ever live.

This passion and drive for perfection allowed him to develop a bullet-proof mindset that we can all learn from and apply to improve our lives.

Arnold used a variety of different training methods throughout his career. The one below was used by him to prepare for the weeks leading up to competition.

Arnold’s training routine was unique because he took a two phase approach –  Level 1 and Level 2. Level one is to be performed for 6-8 weeks followed by Level 2 for an additional 4-6 weeks.

Arnold’s workouts were a mix of power training and hypertrophy due to the amount of volume used and rep scheme.

Arnold was known to use intense superset programs as well in the off-season to build a lot of muscle quickly. He was an advocate of continuously adding weight in order to always get stronger.

Arnold stressed the importance of a positive mental attitude stating that “You must approach all of your training with a positive mental attitude and the firm conviction that you will succeed.“

Make sure you challenge yourself with heavy weight and really push yourself to the limit when training.

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Competition Workout Routine (Level 1)

Monday and Thursday Workouts

Chest

• Bench Press: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Incline Press: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Pullovers: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps

Back

• Chin-Ups: (do as many repetitions at a time as you can until you reach a total of 50 reps)
• Bent-Over Rows: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps

Power Training

• Deadlifts: 3 sets of 10, 6, 4 reps to failure

Abdominals

• Leg Raises: 5 sets of 25 reps

Tuesday and Friday Workouts

Shoulders

• Barbell Clean and Press: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Dumbbell Lateral Raises: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps

Power Training

• Heavy Upright Rows: 3 sets of 10, 6,  4 reps to failure
• Push Presses: 3 sets of 6, 4, 2 reps to failure

Upper Arms

• Standing Barbell Curls: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Seated Dumbbell Curls: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Narrow-Grip Bench Press: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Standing Triceps Extensions with Barbell: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps

Forearms

• Wrist Curls: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Reverse Wrist Curls: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps

Abdominals

• Incline Sit-Ups: 5 sets of 25 reps each

Wednesday and Saturday

Thighs

• Squats: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Lunges: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Leg Curls: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps

Calves

• Standing Calf Raises: 5 sets of 15 reps each

Lower Back

Power Training

• Straight-Leg Deadlifts: 3 sets of 10, 6, 4 reps to failure
• Good Mornings: 3 sets of 10, 8, 6 reps to failure

Abdominals

• Leg Raises: 5 sets of 25 reps each

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Workout Routine (Level 2)

Monday / Wednesday/ Friday

Chest

• Bench Press: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Incline Press: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Pullovers: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps

Back

• Chin-Ups: (do as many repetitions at a time as you can until you reach a total of 50 reps)
• Bent-Over Rows: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps

Power Training

• Deadlifts: 3 sets of 10, 6, 4 reps to failure

Thighs

• Squats: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Lunges: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Leg Curls: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps

Calves

• Standing Calf Raises: 5 sets of 8 to 15 reps

Abdominals

• Leg Raises: 5 sets of 25 reps

Tuesday/ Thursday/ Saturday

Shoulders

• Barbell Clean and Press: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Dumbbell Lateral Raises: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps

Power Training

• Heavy Upright Rows: 3 sets of 10, 6,  4 reps to failure
• Push Presses: 3 sets of 6, 4, 2 reps to failure

Lower Back

Power Training

• Straight-Leg Deadlifts: 3 sets of 10, 6, 4 reps to failure
• Good Mornings: 3 sets of 10, 8, 6 reps to failure

Upper Arms

• Standing Barbell Curls: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Seated Dumbbell Curls: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Narrow-Grip Bench Press: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Standing French Press: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps

Forearms

• Wrist Curls: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps
• Reverse Wrist Curls: 5 sets of 8 to 12 reps

Abdominals

• Incline Sit-Ups: 5 sets of 25 reps each

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Training Diet

Morning: (At Zucky’s restaurant)

• Cheese Omelet
• Hamburger patty
• Cottage cheese
• Coffee

Lunch:

• Beef patty
• Eggs
• Cottage cheese

Dinner:

• Steak or Chicken
• Cottage cheese
• Salad or baked potato

In between Meals:

• Rheo Blair’s Protein

On Sunday’s only:

• Eat whatever you want: pizza, ice cream, and so on.

P.S. Pick up Arnold Schwarzenegger’s book: Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder. It’s the best book I’ve ever read about bodybuilding and how to Win at life.

The man was a genius and incredible competitor. His mastery of attitude and mindset was something worth reading about.

Who knows you might learn something – I know I did and it improved my life in several ways.

Lou Ferrigno

Height: 6’5”, Competition Weight: 280 Pounds

The Hulk. Lou Ferrigno was a giant. His massive frame allowed him to pack on a huge amount of muscle.

“From what I see, most people train one bodypart a week. I think you should do more that that, hit it twice a week.

They’re also doing 20 sets, which is way too many. I believe you should do only 10 to 12 sets, max, per body part.

After every 72 hours or so, you should hit that part again. You can rotate exercises.“

Lou Ferrigno’s workout is the most generic of the Classic Bodybuilding Routines.

Lou had a straight forward approach to his bodybuilding routine:

“The best regimen for me is three days on/one day off.

’ll do chest and back on day one, biceps and triceps on day two and shoulder and legs on day three.

The beauty is you can change exercises all the time, which always makes it interesting. You don’t need to do that much.

It’s how you train. I do one warmup set, then four sets, eight to 10 reps, three exercises per bodypart.

It should never take more than an hour to do your weight workout. You can add up to 30 minutes of cardio a few times per week.” – Lou Ferrigno

Lou Ferrigno’s Classic Bodybuilding Routines

Shoulders

• Standing Dumbbell Overhead Press     4 Sets x 10 Reps
• Dumbbell Lateral Raise     4 Sets x 12 Reps
• Seated Bent-Over Lateral Raise     4 Sets x 12 Reps

Biceps*

• Barbell Curl** 2 Sets of 15-20 reps
• Incline Dumbbell Curl 3-4 Sets of 10-8 reps
• Preacher Bench or Preacher Machine Curl 4 Sets 10-8 Reps

Triceps

• Pushdown 4 Sets of 10-8 reps
• Lying Tricep Extensions 4 Sets 10-8 reps
• Standing French Press 4 Sets of 10-8 reps

Forearms

• Barbell Wrist Curl 4 Sets of 15-10 reps

*Note: Lou likes to pyramid up in weight/down in reps for successive sets.

**Eight light warmup sets

Back

• Chinups  As many sets as it takes to complete 50 Chinups
• Bent Rows  5 Sets of 8-12 reps per set (increase weight each set)
• T-Bar Rows  5 Sets of 8-12 reps per set

Chest

• Dumbbell Preses 5 Sets of 8 to 10 reps (first set is warm up)
• Flys 4 Sets of 8 to 10 reps
• Incline Barbell Press 4 Sets of 8 to 10 reps

Legs

• Squats 4 sets of 12 to 15 reps
• Leg Extensions 4 sets of 8 to 10 reps
• Leg Curls 4 Sets of 8 to 10 reps

Abs

• Crunches 2 to 3 sets

Lou Ferrigno’s Diet

Lou is a fan of a well balanced diet. He follows and recommends a few diet guidelines to complement his Classic Bodybuilding Routines:

• Get 1 and 1½ grams of protein per pound of body weight.
• Aim for 15 times your weight for calories. If you tend to put on fat easily, try between 10-15 times. If you have a quick metabolism, try between 15-20 times.
• 25% protein, 55% carbs and 20% fats as a baseline.

You Now Have the Tools to Build a Classic Physique

So what are you going for? The athletic build like Frank Zane? The Powerful physique like Mike Mentzerr, or the massive size and musculature of The Hulk, Lou Ferrino?

You have the blue print here for whatever you are going for that can help you get started.

Here’s my take on what I discovered: If you want to build the best body possible you need to hit the weights and eat good wholesome, fresh foods when and only when you’re hungry!

The Common Denominator

One of the most powerful tools at your disposal is your ability to visualize the body you want. This is where everything begins. You need to be able to see yourself in your mind of how you wish to be.

This subconsciously programs your brain to work towards that goal. Practice visualization as often as possible done to the finest detail and this will establish an end goal in mind for you to work toward.

Then after that you make the plan and lay down the roadmap to reach your goal. Then you work your ass off to get there!

This topic comes up often on bodybuilding forums all over the internet. People want to know what they should go for in terms of body weight, body proportion and body composition. Maybe you’re tall and skinny, or you could be short and fat. Either way, this article provides the blueprint to achieve the greatest body ever built for people your height.

That’s the common denominator here. Hard Work + Good Food = Results.

Keep in mind, many bodybuilders in this Golden Era took steroids. They had a little more in their arsenal than just the routine they used to train and the food they ate.

This article breaks down each bodybuilders go-to workout when training for competition. These classic bodybuilding routines shaped the best build men history. I Also boiled down all of their training into the ultimate 70s bodybuilder workout.

Bodybuilding and steroids

This post is designed to help you understand the best body you can build with your proportions. Keep in mind, these bodybuilders openly admitted to using steroids in their effort to build their statuesque figures.

What you can take away from this article is that hard work and diet account for 95% percent of their progress.

What I mean by that is, they took steroids before competition to grow muscle and maintain low body fat.

This allowed them to look huge and cut during competition. It was unusual that they looked like this for more than a few weeks, often just a few days. The underling point is that hard work, discipline and good nutrition are absolutely the most important variables when it comes to getting into great shape.

Most of these guys where between 4-5% body fat during competition. This small amount of body fat is only maintainable for a short period of time before it becomes unhealthy. Therefore bodybuilders train hard in the off season and eat a lot of food to be in a calorie surplus in order to gain muscle. In the off season they would be around 10-16% body fat on average.

While this is still trim by many standards it allowed their bodies to recoup, stay healthy and build muscle. These Classic Bodybuilding Routines vary a bit in terms of approach and execution but the underlying facts are the same. Work hard as hell

Most natural trainers can get close to these physiques. You might not be able to get as cut or defined but you can certainly pack on some quality muscle with the right training, diet and the sheer willpower to make it happen.

Even though the best bodybuilders used steroids the foundation of their success in bodybuilding can be attributed to hard work. Intense, consistent training and disciplined diet are the foundation of their great physiques.

The Common Denominator

What really set these men apart was their passion and willingness to train hard and diet appropriately. They had tremendous focus, discipline and drive to achieve their results. A natural trainer can look great using these same principles.

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