His bodybuilding days may be well behind him, but Arnold Schwarzenegger still knows how to workout, hard. To this day, the Austrian Oak is still regarded as one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time, winning seven times at the internationally renowned Mr Olympia bodybuilding competition – a hard record to beat and only done so by two people. One of which was Ronnie Coleman, who won Mr Olympia eight years running and, recently, the retired bodybuilders met at Golds Gym to do an arms and shoulder workout. After all, who better to pump iron with than another champ?
Despite the pair having retired from professional bodybuilding well over a decade ago, Arnold, who’s 76 and Ronnie, who’s 59, are both still in incredible shape. Although, there’s no surprises there. In Arnold's YouTube video of the pair working out at in Venice Beach, Arnie said he aims to work out seven times a week, knowing it will actually only be six or five, whereas Ronnie revealed he works out six days a week.
The pair got started on the lat raise machine and there was constant banter between the two as Ronnie continued to pump out a couple more reps than his friend. "People are watching, and they say 'why is Ronnie always doing three more reps than Schnitzel?" Arnold jokes. "Look at those reps. How can anyone keep up with that stuff? See, that's the difference between the eight-time Mr. Olympia and the mere seven-time Mr. Olympia.”
Although the retired bodybuilders were using pieces of gym machines, rather than free weights for their workout, you can still easily do their session at home using a pair of the best dumbbells or the best kettlebells. Here’s a breakdown of Arnie and Ronnie’s exact workout routine – including their reps and sets – that you can do at home
- Lat raises – three sets of 12 reps
- Chest press – four sets of 12 reps
- Tricep pushdowns – four sets of 20 reps (do dumbbell overhead tricep extension)
- Bicep curls – three sets of 10 reps
We think that's actually a pretty nice, steady upper body workout that shouldn't take you too long. Although, we do have Arnold's 15-minute full-body dumbbell workout if you're after something a little quicker. On the other end of the scale, and if you do happen to have a lot more time on your hands, you could always give Arnie' Golden era back and chest workout a try. Although, bare in mind, even Arnie says this is one for the 'hardcore crew'!
