What Did Ronnie Coleman Eat In His Prime to Help Build a Legendary Physique?

Ronnie Coleman is a former professional bodybuilder and arguably one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time, with a record eight consecutive Mr.Olympia titles.

Bodybuilding legend Ronnie Coleman. (Image via Peakpx)

He also holds an incredible record for the most IFBB Professional wins (26). Coleman’s size and sheer physique made him near unbeatable in his peak physique, and that would not have been possible without a consistent eating and training regime.

In this article, we will take a look at what the legendary bodybuilder Ronnie Coleman ate and his workout routine during his prime that helped him build a jacked physique.

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Ronnie Coleman’s Diet During His Prime

Coleman's diet would mostly consist of 20-25% carbs, 5-10% fat, and 65% protein. He focused the most on his protein intake and preferred a few good scoops of protein powder shakes.

Despite being so huge, he still needed the protein, because, according to Coleman himself:

“The most important thing about nutrition is protein, as it is the main ingredient that builds muscle”.

Ronnie Coleman diet. (Image via Wallpapers.com/ mdc123)

Meal 1:

Coffee, 2 cups of egg whites, ¾ cups of cheese and grits, arginine, and pre-workout supplements.

Meal 2:

2 pieces of cornbread, 1 ¾ cups of brown rice with red beans, 16oz of chicken breast, and 3-5 L-arginine

Meal 3:

1 medium baked potato and 16oz chicken breast

Meal 4:

Medium baked potato, lemonade, 5oz of chicken breasts, 9oz of filet mignon, whey protein bread, and post-workout supplement

Along with his strict diet, Coleman also took supplements to give his body the required nutrition. Here are the supplements he took during his prime:

• Vitamin E and C
• Joint capsules
• Chromium for controlling his blood sugar levels
• CoQ10 for a healthy heart
• Multi-mineral
• Zinc electrolytes
• Calcium magnesium
• Omega fatty acids
• Prostate health supplements
• Echinacea

During his interview as a guest on comedian and UFC commentator Joe Rogan’s podcast “Joe Rogan Experience”, the 58-year-old former bodybuilder discussed several things about his bodybuilding career, training, and size. He also talked about his body fat ratio and diet, which was somewhat shocking for Rogan and viewers alike.

Coleman said that he used to do heavy lifting and ate a lot. As a result, he put on 5-10 pounds of muscle a year. He ate 450 grams of chicken, grilled chicken breast and a half cup of rice as his everyday meal. He had about six meals a day to become the Big Hulk.

Along with his intense diet, Ronnie Coleman also trained like a beast. For his workouts, he usually preferred heavyweights with low reps. Instead of exercising on machines, Ronnie Coleman focused on strength training with free weights, as it helped him maximize his flexibility and improve his range of motion as well.

Here’s what Ronnie Coleman’s workout routine looked like:

Ronnie Coleman workout routine. (Image via Wallpapers.com/ Ringnar)

For the legs:

• Barbell hack squat
• Barbell squats
• Standing, seated and lying leg curls
• Leg extensions
• Seated calf raises
• Seated single-leg curls

For triceps and back:

• Bent-over barbell rows
• One-arm dumbbell rows
• Lying T-bar rows
• Wide-grip lat pulldown
• Lying triceps press
• Standing dumbbell triceps extension
• Triceps dips

For shoulders:

• Side lateral raises
• Seated bent-over dumbbell rear deltoid raises
• Overhead shoulder press
• Front dumbbell raises

For the biceps and chest:

• Decline barbell bench press
• Barbell curls
• Medium grip barbell bench pressOne-arm dumbbell preacher curls
• Medium grip barbell incline bench press
• Alternate hammer curls

For triceps, abs, and chest:

• Incline dumbbell press
• Crunches
• Decline barbell press
• Cambered-bar triceps extensions
• Incline dumbbell flyes
• Triceps dips
• Seated raises
• Donkey calf raises

Ronnie Coleman will forever be one of the biggest names in the world of bodybuilding. (Image via Wallpapers.com/ Prentice)

Ronnie Coleman started bodybuilding at an early age. Coleman will forever be one of the biggest names in the world of bodybuilding. Considering all his wins and the way he used to train his body, it can be said that Coleman set a new standard for muscle definition and mass.

Despite having mobility issues and health issues suffered by Ronnie Coleman never misses out on a chance to work out at his home gym and remains involved in the bodybuilding world.

He runs his own supplement line under the name of “Ronnie Coleman Signature Series” and has the love and support of his friends, family, and millions of fans around the world.