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What The Barbell Wrist Curl Can Do For Strength & Flexibility

By
Austin Letorney
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barbell wrist curl

Boost both strength and flexibility with a great exercise in the barbell wrist curl.

Too often do we neglect our wrist and forearms muscles but the barbell wrist curl is a great exercise to throw into the mix. For those of us looking to increase strength and flexibility, the barbell wrist curl is a great way to challenge our muscles while receiving tons of benefits to aid in our training and physical health. While we may overlook this muscle group, knowing the barbell wrist curl is out there now limits the excuse.

Strong wrists and forearms will help greatly when it comes to strength and stability on your biceps and hand muscles. This aids in sport specific and more functional movements to give you a well-rounded exercise that will work to boost training, performance, and everyday movements. With this exercise now in your routine, you will tackle bigger and better gains without the fear of injury or unwanted pain.

Let’s take a look at the barbell wrist curl to see just what makes this so great. From what it is, to muscles worked, the many benefits with it, and how to perform it, you will have all the necessary tools to place in your routine so you can better strengthen and stabilize those often times overlooked muscles.

barbell curl

What Is The Barbell Wrist Curl?

The barbell wrist curl is an isolation exercise that works to target your forearms and hand muscles. This will not only build strength, but it works to stabilize the wrists by strengthening muscles around it as well as boost flexibility and mobility for only the best in terms of movements. A beginner level exercise, you only need a barbell and this can be done at any point in your workout.

Check out our list of the Best Barbells for awesome lifting products!

Muscle Worked

The muscles worked in this exercise really aren’t too many, but this exercise can offer the best benefits as you look to boost strength and stability. This primarily works your wrist flexors but will also hit your forearm and hand muscles as you seek the best for all your gains. By focusing on these muscles, you better prepare yourself for other bigger lifts that require necessary stabilization.

10 Exercises for Thicker Forearms

Benefits Of The Barbell Wrist Curl

The barbell wrist curl exercise has the ability to provide for a host of benefits that are worth knowing. Once you know what this exercise can do for you, you won’t want to not include this in your routine.

Benefits of barbell wrist curls include:

  • Great isolation exercise: By working to isolate a specific muscle group, you better target that spot for increased growth and only the best gains (1).
  • Focus on wrists and forearms: A nice exercise to focus on your wrists and forearms, this allows you to build strength and offer stabilization in areas often overlooked.
  • Improve grip strength: Grip strength is so important for sport specific and more functional movements and the right exercise can greatly increase this (2).
  • Plenty of variations: So many variations exist so you get the same benefits without repeating the same exercise over and over again.
  • Good for flexibility: Build flexibility and work to optimize your range of motion to support all movements (3).
  • Enhance functional movements: By enhancing grip strength and building better support, you enhance functional movements and everyday activities.
  • Pairs well with other barbell exercises: Barbell exercises are great for seeing gains and this exercise pairs well with many of those upper body and full body barbell exercises.

How To Perform It

Here are the steps for performing barbell wrist curls:

  1. Set up your bench and barbell with your desired number of weight.
  2. Kneel in front of the bench and place your arms so that your wrists hang off the opposite edge.
  3. Keeping your elbows tucked and core engaged, curl the weight, only moving your wrists upward.
  4. Slowly lower back down as you feel a stretch in your forearms, bringing this back to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for your desired number of sets and reps.

barbell workout

Great Variations Of The Barbell Wrist Curl

The nice part about an exercise like the barbell wrist curl is that there are plenty of variations to change up your workouts yet still get the same benefits as if you were performing the same exercise. Great variations of the barbell wrist curl exercise include:

  • Barbell Reverse Wrist Curl
  • Behind The Back Reverse Wrist Curl
  • Dumbbell Wrist Curl
  • Cable Wrist Curl
  • One Arm Dumbbell Wrist Curl

Best Barbell Exercises To Pair With

Along with the this exercise, there are other great exercises to pair with that all involve the barbell. Training with a barbell can provide for convenient and versatile workouts while working to boost athletic performance and better cognitive functioning. Working to increase everything from strength, size, mobility, and stability, a barbell is a great workout tool to help you get to where you want to go.

As part of your routine, definitely consider a great shoulder exercise in the barbell shoulder press to offer growth for those boulder shoulders. While you work to stabilize and strengthen your wrists with the barbell wrist curl, hit your biceps with the reverse barbell curl or traditional barbell curl for a real boost in strength. To tackle those full body workouts, try the barbell burpee for this will enhance all areas of your performance for the better.

Check out our list of the Best Barbells for awesome lifting products!

Wrap Up

Barbell wrist curls are a great exercise to strengthen and stabilize your wrist, so you only see the best for your gains. By working to give you a great exercise that targets your wrists and forearms, it makes sense to include this into your routine. Other great barbell exercises pair nicely with this so you see those gains you want most. Give this workout a try and see what it can do for all your gains today.

Let us know what you think in the comments below. Also, be sure to follow Generation Iron on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. 

*Images courtesy of Envato

References

  1. Szymanski, D.; et al. (2004). “Effect of 12 Weeks of Wrist and Forearm Training on High School Baseball Players”. (source)
  2. Lee, J.; et al. (2016). “The Effect of Wrist Position on Grip Endurance and Grip Strength”. (source)
  3. Rahman, H.; et al. (2020). “Stretching And Flexibility: A Range Of Motion For Games And Sports”. (source)

The Best Cable Exercises For Your Triceps

By
Calvin Huynh
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The Best Cable Exercises For Your Triceps

The triceps is what I call, a masterpiece muscle. It carves a chiseled horseshoe on your upper arm as it develop. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, your triceps are underdeveloped. Let me show you how to get your triceps to hit puberty, but first, let’s go to class for a second. To get bigger, you’ll have to get smarter. Non-negotiable.

The triceps are comprised of 3 heads, the lateral, the long, and the medial head. Together they wrap around a large part of your upper arm. Grow your triceps and your arms will appear bigger for the same time invested in training your biceps. Cool hack huh?

Anyways, all 3 heads contribute to the primary function of elbow extension which is fancy word for straightening your arm.

Unfortunately, your triceps lose leverage as it gets closer to the straightened position. Dumbbell kickbacks don’t match this resistance profile well because the weight only resists downwards. Bands are better because you can aim the line of pull closer with your triceps by tying it at various angles.

However, bands stretch and add more resistance which means there’s more load where your triceps are weakest.

The solution is cables. Cables are a triceps best friend. They allow you to position the line of resistance with the fibers of all 3 heads without increasing the resistance curve where your triceps are already mechanically weakest. In addition, cables are generally more joint friendly especially the exercises I’m about to show you.

To make a long intro short, if you’re not using cables to build your triceps, your triceps training is remedial at best.

So here are 3 triceps exercise to include in your training as soon as possible.

Overhead Rope Extension

First exercise is an overhead rope extension. The overhead position also allows the long head to stretch and get additional muscle growing affects.

Notice how my arms go out and apart instead of forward. This forces more stress on your triceps instead of aggravating your elbow joint.

In fact, the traditional way of doing overhead rope extensions, many advanced lifters report joint pain. Don’t do that anymore.

Another thing to note is that I put the pulley at a moderate level. Doing this exercise from the bottom pulley which is quite common doesn’t add more resistance and simply makes it harder to setup. In fact, if you’re lifting appreciable weight, you won’t be able to bring the rope up to position.

Hand Supported Tricep Extension

This is what I call the hand supported tricep extension. It’s another joint friendly triceps exercise.

It also hits the triceps at a different angle as you extend horizontally. I like the hand support because it adds significant stability for force production without hindering the natural motion of cable.

It’s like the benefits of a seated triceps extension machine, but without the drawbacks of being jammed into a linear motion.

As for setup, I like to either set the cable perfectly parallel with the ground or 1-2 notches higher.

Single Arm Angled Triceps Extension

Being closer to the machine loads the lengthened position and allows your arm to provide more stability.

The most noteworthy thing about this exercise though is the slight angle. I don’t know who started the whole elbow tucked thing, but that is inefficient for the triceps.

The long head attaches at your shoulder blade. Squeezing your arm by your side essentially jams that insertion point and limits the space and output of the long head which is the hardest head to bias.

The angle changes that. It also unsurprisingly makes the exercise less stressful for the joints. Many lifters I’ve trained report how much more they feel their triceps and no strain on their elbows with this variation.

Line the pulley so the cable runs in line with your upper arm.

Lastly, always do these unilaterally. You can use 2 cables at the same time, but the rubbing of the cables won’t feel as smooth. Not to mention, most people lack unilateral work in their programs, so more is always better.

Programming

As far as programming goes, add 2 or all 3 of these into your program depending on how often you train your triceps.

3-4 sets per exercise is plenty. Aim for rep ranges of 8-12 or higher. Keep your wrist straight and your body stable to force the triceps to work.

Lift with ferocious intensity until the horseshoe appears. As the weeks go on, add more weight. Rinse and repeat and that horseshoe will go from small bump to a masterpiece.

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Phil Heath Responds, Defends Modern Bodybuilding After Berry de Mey Criticizes Lower Back Conditioning

By
Greg Patuto
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Berry de Mey believes lower backs and conditioning have gone downhill recently, Phil Heath responds.

IFBB Hall of Fame bodybuilder Berry de Mey has weighed in on the topic of modern bodybuilding compared that that of the past. This has come up in many ways since the conclusion of the 2022 Olympia. de Mey seemed to focus on conditioning, specifically in the lower back, of current bodybuilders.

de Mey took to Instagram to share different back comparisons. In his comments, he credits Hadi Choopan for showing up to the Olympia shredded but believes conditioning and precision needs to improve in the division. Because of this, Phil Heath responded to one of his posts.

Phil Heath Defends Modern Bodybuilding

In a recent post, Berry de Mey shared a post comparing the backs of Dorian Yates and Hadi Choopan.

“Hadi was in TOP CONDITION!!! The best. CONGRATULATIONS TO A GREAT CHAMP. Hard and everything on point. Nothing but respect for Hadi! But it is a professional subjective jury sport that is about opinions. I’m glad he won. The only one really in shape. My posts are about the “lower back phenomenon” which I don’t understand.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Berry de Mey (@berrydemey)

Yates is known for his back and has one of the best of all-time. In today’s bodybuilding, de Mey claims that athletes are not focused on their lower back. In a previous post, he credits Choopan once again but claims that despite being in the “best condition of all” that he “didn’t have a hard lower back.”

On Tuesday, Berry de Mey shared one more post, showing a comment from Phil Heath.

“Berry De Mey gotta relax. We should celebrate the achievements while remembering the past. For all we could say is the damn tanning is harsher than years ago plus those pics from them were on actually 35mm film and not with todays tech. We can mention the black backgrounds which btw I freaking love, why? Because you get the freakiest lighting and you wont get that with harsh LED lights blasting from all directions. We are working within the parameters of bodybuilding ,technology, judging that has to offer.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Berry de Mey (@berrydemey)

Berry de Mey: “Isn’t It A Logical Consequence That All Details Are Discussed?”

Berry de Mey remains a fan of bodybuilding and has shared his insights on many occasions. After the Olympia, he believes that it is fair to critique the competition as well. In his response to Phil Heath, de Mey explains his side.

“Bodybuilding is a different kind of sport. The toughest sport there is in my opinion. It is 24 hours a day and the core activity takes place in the gym. On the day of the contest competitors “just” show the result of this difficult sport. This is a fundamental difference from any sport you can come up with. As a result, the element of scoring is based on a subjective assessment of appearance by the judges.
Without being disrespectful, can’t we talk after the competition about elements on which the jury based who the winner is? With all the praise for the champion, isn’t it a logical consequence that all details are discussed?”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Berry de Mey (@berrydemey)

For more news and updates, follow Generation Iron on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

The Supercharged Male Stack

By
Dylan Wolf
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Enhance Your Performance All Around

Gentlemen, your performance is something you want to keep in check. Whether that be in the gym, bedroom, workplace, wherever, you want your performance to be the best it can be so you do not disappoint. You want to be that supercharged male. However, as time goes on, your testosterone levels begin to drop off, libido decreases, fat levels change, and so on. This can be a problem associated with age, but also existential factors such as stress as well as diet and workout routines, and even more can contribute.

So what do you do? You can clean up your diet and workout more, but many people turn to supplements for that extra boost! Unfortunately, the supplement market is oversaturated with underdosed supplements advertising that they help men’s testosterone levels, libido, and performance as a whole. Yet again, InnoSupps stands out with their products for help in this department. 

InnoSupps provides quality supplements that boost testosterone, improve libido, and cut fat, and when you combine them, can be the ultimate stack to be a supercharged male. Let’s dive in.

Men’s Health Overview

Testosterone is a sex hormone that plays important roles in the body. In men, is typically found to regulate sex drive (libido), bone mass, fat distribution, muscle mass and strength, and the production of red blood cells and sperm. As a man gets older, his testosterone begins to drop. This can lead to things like decreased libido, difficulty getting or maintaining an erection, loss in muscle mass, fat gain, amongst other issues. These are not pleasant and no one wants them. Men want to perform the best they can, whether it be in the gym, bedroom, or elsewhere.

So, what do you do?

Supplementation Overview

While diet and workouts are key factors in boosting male performance, supplements are something to turn to for help getting that extra boost. They can help get your hormones in check faster and more effectively, so you can obtain that better performance you are looking for. 

However, the supplement market is nothing short of saturated and there are a lot of junk supplements out there. InnoSupps is a brand that stands out with scientifically backed ingredients and proven results. That is why we will be going over the best supplements from InnoSupps for the guys.

T-Drive

First on the list, is T-Drive. This natural testosterone booster stimulates and supports healthy hormone production while increasing energy levels in the gym and in the bedroom and improves overall male vitality. 

This includes ingredients such as KSM-66 (a form of ashwagandha) as well as fenugreek to boost testosterone levels and support male vitality as well as fertility. T-Drive also includes coleus forskohlii root extract and epimedium to increase your libido. 

Overall T-Drive does things like:

  • Helps Boost Semen Volume
  • Stimulates and Supports Testosterone Production
  • Promotes Overall Male Vitality
  • Effortlessly Increases Muscle Mass

Price: $69.99

Nitro Wood

Next up is Nitro Wood. Nitro Wood amplifies blood flow throughout your body, improving your overall wellness, energy levels and physical performance  in the bedroom and beyond! 

This contains ingredients like maritime pine bark and cinnamon bark powder to improve blood flow, alongside beet root powder to help with healthy blood pressure levels. It also features InnoSupps S7 blend to boost nitric oxide. This S7 blend includes things such as coffee bean and green tea leaf extract amongst other ingredients.  

Overall Nitro Wood does things like: 

  • Increases Energy Levels with Nitric Oxide
  • Supports Healthy Blood Pressure
  • Improves Sexual Function
  • Aids in Natural Immune Support

Price: $42.99

Night Shred

Night shred can be found in two different versions, Night Shred or Night Shred Black Edition. Night Shred maximizes the quality and quantity of your sleep. You’ll sleep deeper and better while priming your body to accelerate the fat-burning process.

They include ingredients like GABA, chamomile, Valerian Root, and melatonin for rest and recovery. Then to burn fat, there are ingredients such as grains of paradise, CLA, and L-Carnitine. For naturally relieving stress, ingredients such as ashwagandha, xylaria, and 5-HTP are used.

Overall, Night Shred and Night Shred Black Edition do things like: 

  • Helps Sleep Deeper and Longer
  • Helps Boost Metabolism
  • Enhances Overnight Muscle Recovery
  • Naturally Relieves Stress

Price: $35.99

The Supercharged Male Stack

Sure, you can purchase each product separately, but you can also purchase them as a stack, and get that triple threat performance enhancement. InnoSupps offers T-Drive, Nitro Wood, and Night Shred all together, as the Supercharged Male Stack. It saves you time, a little bit of money, and gives you the chance to experience all the great benefits of these three products all at once. 

Price: $139.99

However, InnoSupps offers a “subscribe and save” option, where you can subscribe to receiving the Supercharged Male Stack every month and save 25%. This option drops the price to only $104.99.

You also can purchase the Supercharged Male Stack for one month, or three months. The price per bottle for each option is listed below.

1 Month Supply: $46.66 per bottle/$139.99 Total

3 Month Supply: $38.88 per bottle/$349.99 Total

Supercharged Male Stack Reviews

We cannot forget to leave out the reviews, being that they are so good it only solidifies our choice to stand behind this product. Currently, there are 9,443 total reviews for the Supercharged Male Stack. Out of that number, 8,375 of them are five stars, with 808 reviews being four stars. The men are raving over this stack, and for good reason!

Frequently Asked Questions

You may have some questions you want answered before you purchase, and that is more than okay. We are ready to answer.

Why Should I Use Supplements? 

Not everyone deems supplements as necessary, and they are not something to be entirely relied on either. Supplementation makes it easier for you to get a good amount of the necessary nutrients you may not get solely from your diet or lifestyle. Supplements are not really meant to replace anything entirely. For example it is not recommended to take a Vitamin D supplement and then never expose yourself to sunlight again.

Why Choose InnoSupps?

You may be questioning as to why you would even choose Inno Supps, and it is true that many supplement companies offer products for improving male performance. However, Inno Supps products are physician-backed. The whole Supercharged Male Stack is endorsed by Cedars-Sinai Cardiologist Dr. David M. Filsoof, M.D. This is something not many supplement companies can offer, physician backed products, and is one reason InnoSupps stands out.

Inno Supps also offers a “Subscribe and Save” deal, where you can subscribe to monthly supplements, and save 25%. Not to mention, you get a 30-day money back guarantee if you are not satisfied.

Superchrged Male Stack Wrap Up

Overall, male performance is something that should be kept up on. Men are susceptible to their testosterone levels dropping, libido decreasing, fat levels increasing, and other unwanted effects. While the supplement market for countering these issues is overcrowded, InnoSupps stands out with T-Drive, Nitrowood, and Night Shred, making up the Supercharged Male Stack. 

Will you be trying it out?

Hafthor Bjornsson, Martins Licis Grapple in Jiu-Jitsu Training With Gordon Ryan

By
Jonathan Salmon
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Hafthor Bjornsson and Martins Licis train jiu-jitsu with world champion Gordon Ryan.

World Strongest Man champions Hafthor Bjornsson and Martins Licis do jiu-jitsu training with multiple time world champion Gordon Ryan. The two strongman veterans were pushed to to new limits as they experienced the thrill and the agony of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Not all athletes are not created equal. A strongman will find it difficult to excel at Jiu-Jitsu in the beginning. The same is true for a jiu-jitsu player looking to compete in a strongman competition; chances are they’re not going to fair all that well. It takes time, dedication, patience, and consistency in order to excel at just about anything.

Where jiu-jitsu and strongman is concerned, it’s essentially learning two different approaches to training and competing. While strongman may be competitive, it’s not a physical confrontation between the athletes. For jiu-jitsu the game is as much about strength as it is about being mentally flexible, creative, intuitive, and having supreme endurance in order to be high level. World’s Strongest Man champions Hafthor Bjornsson and Martins Licis learned that lesson well as they trained under the guidance of multiple-time jiu-jitsu world champion Gordon Ryan.

Bjornsson vs Licis

A terrifying blend of strength, athleticism, and supreme grappling knowledge, Gordon Ryan is the perfect candidate to help walk these two strongman champions through this jiu-jitsu experience. Hafthor Bjornsson and Martins Licis learned a fair amount from Ryan before putting it to work themselves. Bjornsson and Licis would end up rolling, utilizing their massive strength against one another.

Ohh maaan, if we tried again, @thorbjornsson would have surely destroyed me! 😅 The endurance he gained from boxing far surpasses mine, and he was ready to continue rolling. After this, I was laying on the ground like a pancake. Time to do more cardio! – Thank you @thorbjornsson for grappling, let’s do it again sometime, or maybe you can kick my ass in some sparring 🥊 🤕 And thank you @gordonlovesjiujitsu and @jiujitsugiant for teaching us some moves! 💪

 

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A post shared by Martins Licis (@martinslicis)

Rolling With The Champ

Gordon Ryan also got in on the fun and ended up grappling Hafthor Bjornsson showing that size doesn’t matter if you have quality strength and high level technique.

Literally went against the best and got humbled quite badly. @martinslciis and I got the opportunity to meet up with @gordonlovesjiujitsu while he was doing his last workout before he competes tomorrow. I love trying out new sport and what a pleasure it was. Excited to watch Gordon crush his opponent tomorrow! This guy is next level! 🔥

See the full training here.

What do you think of Hafthor Björnsson and Martins Licis training jiu-jitsu with Gordon Ryan.

For more news and updates, follow Generation Iron on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

News and Editorial Writer at Generation Iron, Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Sound Cloud for in-depth MMA analysis.

Hadi Choopan Profile & Stats

By
Dylan Wolf
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Hadi Choopan bodybuilder

The biography, life, and accomplishments of Hadi Choopan

The 2022 Mr. Olympia contest has just wrapped up, crowning a new competitor has been crowned, dethroning the reigning champ, Big Ramy. Who is it? Hadi Choopan.

Hadi Choopan has gone through trials and tribulations to get where he is at, so let’s dive in to all of the things leading him to where he is today.

Below is a complete breakdown of Hadi Choopan’s profile, stats, biography, training and diet regimens.

Full Name: Hadi Choopan (Men’s Open Bodybuilder)
Weight Height Date Of Birth
200-220lbs 5’7″ 09/26/1987
Division Era Nationality
Men’s Bodybuilding 2020 Iranian

 

Biography

Hadi Choopan 2022 Mr. Olympia victory

The backstory of Hadi Choopan begins in September of 1987, where he was born in Sepidan County, Fars Province, located in southern Iran. His family was very poor, making him a another product of the financially struggling region they were in. These poor conditions resulted in Hadi having to work at an early age. He would peddle goods alongside working in construction.

Even though he was always working, Choopan still managed to develop an interest in bodybuilding which started in the year 2000, at the age of 13. Hadi began mocking poses of other famous bodybuilders, in front of his family. However at first he was rather undersized, which resulted in jokes and push back from his friends and family.

Hadi Choopan was eventually able to gain some size. His first coach was Jamshid Owji, in 2002. Back then, Jamshid only allowed Hadi to lift 5kg weights, due to his small size. Even though the weights were light, Hadi was still putting on muscle mass.

Hadi’s Bodybuilding Career

In only three years of pursuing professional bodybuilding, Hadi Choopan earned a third place in a national competition. Additionally, he won first place in competitions in his native Providence Of Fars. Then in 2005 he won his first national title. This is where people started to take notice of Hadi.

Hadi would stop training with Jamshid Owji in 2008 and spend a few years without a trainer. Even with no trainer, he still managed to win more national titles. One of them was a silver medal at the WBPF World Bodybuilding Championships. Hadi went without a trainer until 2013. However at this point he began training with Ali Ne’mati. Once the two started working together, Hadi’s career as a bodybuilder began to take off.

Hadi Choopan won first place in 2013 at the WBPF Asia Championships. A good start to his professional run. He would return to compete at the WBPF World Bodybuilding Championships, winning gold three years in a row, from 2013 through 2015. He was successful, but only competed in these competitions during those years.

Hany Rambod x Hadi Choopan

Image from Instagram (@hadi_choopan)

In 2017, Choopan would stop training with Ne’mati and he would go on to train with the one of the best known trainers in the world, Hany Rambod. The duo made even bigger jumps in Hadi’s career. He made his first showing under Rambod at the 2017 Mr. Olympia Amateur, where he managed to securer a gold medal.

Hadi Choopan competed three more times that year. He earned silver medals across the board. One of those being the 2017 Asia Grand Prix to multiple-time 212 Olympia champ Flex Lewis. Many in attendance saw this as controversial, saying it appeared that Choopan had a bigger and better physique than Lewis. However, it was at this point, that “The Persian Wolf” would be known worldwide in the bodybuilding community.

Choopan would unfortunately be met with issues receiving a U.S. Visa, to compete in the big shows stateside. This ruled him out of a few competitions over the years, including the Arnold Classic, and Mr. Olympia in 2018. Thankfully, was able to get the issues resolved for 2019.

Hadi Choopan Competition History

(2003-2011): 15 Provincial Gold Medals (Fars and Tehran provinces)
2008: Babol National Tournament – 3rd, Saari National Tournament – 2nd
2009: Saari National Tournament – 2nd, Rasht National Tournament – 2nd
2010: Saari National Tournament – 1st
2011: Mashhad National Tournament – 1st
2012: WBPF World Bodybuilding Championships – Silver Medal
2013: WBPF Asia Championships – Gold Medal/Overall, WBPF World Bodybuilding Championships – Gold Medal
2014: WBPF World Bodybuilding Championships – Gold Medal
2015: WBPF World Bodybuilding Championships – Gold Medal

2017: Mr. Olympia Amateur – Gold Medal/Overall, IFBB Sheru Classic Pro – Silver Medal, Asia Grand Prix – Silver Medal, San Marino Pro – Silver Medal
2018: Dubai Expo – Silver Medal, IFBB Portugal Pro – 1st, Asia Grand Prix – Gold Medal
2019: IFBB Vancouver Pro – Gold Medal, Mr. Olympia – 3rd
2020: Mr. Olympia – 4th
2021: Mr. Olympia – 3rd
2022: Mr. Olympia – 1st

Training

Hadi Choopan uses a combination of strength training and hypertrophy training to get the best results. Typically, Hadi will spend one day a week, lifting heavy weights to focus on strength. Then he will then spend another day working for the same muscle groups focusing on volume.

Let’s take a look at an example of Hadi’s workouts and how the strength and hypertrophy aspect:

Chest Workout – Strength

Incline Bench Press: 5 sets x 5 reps
Flat Smith-Machine Chest Press : 5 sets x 5 reps
Incline Dumbbell Press: 3 sets x 5-8 reps
Weighted Dips:  3 sets x 6-8 reps
Heavy Cable Flys: 3 sets x 4-6 reps

Chest Workout – Hypertrophy

Incline Dumbbell Press: 3 sets x 10-12 reps
Flat Barbell Bench Press: 5 sets x 8-12 reps
Incline Flys: 4 sets x10-12 reps
Dips: 4 sets x 10-12 reps
Dumbbell Pullovers: 4 sets x 10-12 reps
Push-Ups (superset, with cable flys): 4 sets x 12 reps
Flat Bench Dumbbell Flys (lightweight, finisher): 5 sets 10-12 reps (drop set last set)

Cardio

Hadi Choopan 2022 Mr. Olympia

Hadi is known for his razor-sharp conditioning, so you’d assume that he is hitting the cardio hard. However, as far as cardio training is concerned, Choopan does not individually train cardio. Instead, when he does hypertrophy training, Hadi will only take 30 seconds to a minute between sets. He says this allows for his heart rate to stay up, improving his cardio, and burning fat. He is known to do two or three High-Intensity Training sessions a week, leading up to competitions. Other than that, there is no unique cardio routine he follows.

Nutrition

Hadi is a believer that diet is the most important aspect in crafting the physique you want. He focuses his diet around his desire to grow lean muscle. A lot of what Hadi eats consists of brown rice, avocados, and skinless chicken breast for the majority of the year. This helps him stay lean year round and ease into his contest prep.

Hadi Choopan also uses a variety of supplements alongside his strict diet. Here are some of his main supplements:

– Whey protein isolate
– BCAAs
– L-Carnitine
– Fish Oil
– Multivitamin

Wrap Up

Hadi Choopan is someone who came from virtually nothing, but managed to make it work. He worked hard throughout his early years to grow and make a name for himself and have an impact on the sport of bodybuilding. Struggling to get a Visa and not being able to compete at some of the biggest shows in the world, Hadi was almost at a disadvantage in his IFBB career. However, through years and years of hard work, blood, sweat, and tears, Hadi Choopan was crowned the 2022 Mr. Olympia.

2022 Natural Olympia Results

By
Terry Ramos
-
2022 Natural Olympia results

Tommi Thompson wins the 2022 Natural Olympia title! 

The 2022 Natural Olympia results are in! The 2022 Natural Olympia took place at the Golden Nugget Las Vegas Hotel & Casino from November 10-13. And it was Tommi Thompson that came out on top. 

Tommi Thompson won the Men’s Bodybuilding Open division at Natural Olympia. Earlier this summer, Thompson shared some contest prep tips before competing at the International Natural Bodybuilding Association (INBA)/Professional Natural Bodybuilding Association (PNBA) Pro/Am World Championships in Florence, Italy. Of course, his prep and training with former Natural Olympia champ Philip Ricardo Jr. have paid off now that he’s the champ of the biggest natural bodybuilding show globally. 

The INBA PNBA, the largest natural bodybuilding organization globally, hosts the Super Bowl of bodybuilding. Natural Olympia is akin to Mr. Olympia except with one big difference–as the name implies, it’s for naturals only. Bodybuilders that compete in Natural Olympia are thoroughly drug tested through the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) guidelines–the most superior drug testing standards in professional sports. 

The cash prizes aren’t nearly as big as the ones in the International Federation of BodyBuilding and Fitness (IFBB) Pro. For example, the 2022 Mr. Olympia champ Hadi Choopan won a whopping $400,000 winning Mr. Olympia, compared to Thompson’s $3,000 payout for winning the Men’s Bodybuilding Open division at Natural Olympia. And, of course, as natural athletes, there’s a considerable size difference between the athletes in the INBA PNBA league compared to the IFBB Pro athletes. 

This year Natural Olympia saw many prominent faces, including the legend and former Natural Olympia champ Philip Ricardo Jr., Hall of Famer Chad Martin, and 3x Natural Olympia Classic Physique champ Brandon Lirio. And Men’s Bodybuilding Masters top competitor Peter Cichonski and former Bikini Divas champ Kayla Rowling. In addition, 6x Natural Olympia champ Kiyoshi Moody came out of retirement to step on the Pinnacle of Natural Bodybuilding stage. 

Moreover, many reigning champs from 2021 Natural Olympia came back to reclaim their title: Alondra Chatman (Figure Open ), Derek Joe (Classic Physique Open ), Tamer Barakat (Classic Physique Masters ), Arely Ayala (Angels ), Hilary Grant (Figure Masters), and Claire Burton (Women’s Physique Masters). 

The event results are listed below, where you’ll find a full breakdown of the winners and top-place finishers at the 2022 Natural Olympia. 

2022 Natural Olympia: All Pro Division Winners

  • Men’s Bodybuilding Open: Tommi Thompson 
  • Women’s Bodybuilding Open: Leanne Barrett
  • Figure Classic: Angela Wiseman
  • Men’s Sport Model Masters: Brandon Stewart
  • Men’s Sport Model Open: Sang Yeon Hwang
  • Women’s Sport Model Masters: Henrietta Farkas
  • Women’s Sport Model Open: Lana Danliov
  • Classic Physique Masters: Tamer Barakat 
  • Classic Physique Open: Derek Joe 
  • Women’s Physique Masters: Claire Burton 
  • Women’s Physique Open: Kristy Graham-Kumabe 
  • Men’s Physique Masters: Jason Magee
  • Figure Masters: Hilary Grant 
  • Figure Open: Alondra Chatman 
  • Women’s Bodybuilding Masters: Michelle Lawrence 
  • Women’s Bodybuilding Grand Masters: Sarah Condor Fisher 
  • Men’s Bodybuilding Masters: Tommi Thompson 
  • Angels: Arely Ayala 
  • Men’s Bodybuilding Grand Masters: Tamer Barakat 
  • Men’s Bodybuilding Ultra Masters: Peter Cichonski 
  • Wellness: Shiante Alcorn-Suarez
  • Bikini Divas Masters: Diane Joojoo Kim
  • Bikini Divas Open: Lana Danilov
  • Men’s Physique Open: Daniel Anderson 

Division Breakdown 

Men’s Bodybuilding Open

  • First Place – Tommi Thompson 
  • Second Place – Ben Lloyd
  • Third Place – Philip Ricardo 
  • Fourth Place – Kiyoshi Moody
  • Fifth Place – Key Gedan 

Women’s Bodybuilding Open

  • First Place – Leanne Barrett 
  • Second Place – Claire Guirguis
  • Third Place – Michelle Lawrence 
  • Fourth Place – Anita Csurgo
  • Fifth Place – Megan Knight 

 

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Figure Classic

  • First Place – Angela Wiseman
  • Second Place – Veronica Malloy
  • Third Place – Hilary Grant
  • Fourth Place – Svetlana Joiner
  • Fifth Place – Nicole Bolz

Men’s Sport Model Masters

  • First Place – Brandon Stewart
  • Second Place – Marcos Almeada

 

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 Men’s Sport Model Open

Women’s Sport Model Masters

  • First Place – Henrietta Farkas
  • Second Place –  Paula Scopinaro 
  • Third Place – Hyemi Park
  • Fourth Place – Brittany Yeates 

Women’s Sport Model Open

  • First Place – Lana Danliov
  • Second Place –  Henrietta Farkas 
  • Third Place – Talia Kerr
  • Fourth Place – Paula Scopinaro
  • Fifth Place – Stephanie Zorzi

Classic Physique Masters

  • First Place – Tamer Barakat 
  • Second Place –  Henrik Edstrom 
  • Third Place – Peter Cichonski 
  • Fourth Place – Rota Elliot 
  • Fifth Place – Chris Moore 

 

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Classic Physique Open

  • First Place – Derek Joe 
  • Second Place –  Lawrence Chambers 
  • Third Place – Brandon Lirio 
  • Fourth Place – Tamer Barkat 
  • Fifth Place – Luigi Musella 

Women’s Physique Masters

  • First Place – Claire Burton 
  • Second Place –  Kay Wiseman 
  • Third Place – Christine Desoto 
  • Fourth Place – Svetlana Joiner 
  • Fifth Place – Beth Wright 

Women’s Physique Open 

  • First Place – Kristy Graham-Kumabe 
  • Second Place –  Nicole Basmer 
  • Third Place – Claire Burton 
  • Fourth Place – Nicola Truelove 
  • Fifth Place – Kay Wiseman 

Men’s Physique Masters

  • First Place – Jason Magee  
  • Second Place –  Simone Crapanzano 
  • Third Place – Michael Wittig 
  • Fourth Place – Allan Guinto 
  • Fifth Place – Thane Brizan 

 

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Figure Masters

  • First Place – Hilary Grant 
  • Second Place –  Paula Christian Cox 
  • Third Place – Anita Csurgo 
  • Fourth Place – Henrietta Farkas 
  • Fifth Place – Mary Haynes 

 

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Figure Open 

  • First Place – Alondra Chatman 
  • Second Place –  Zhanique Lovett
  • Third Place –  Sherrie Bingham 
  • Fourth Place – Veronica Malloy 
  • Fifth Place – Angela Wiseman 

 

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Women’s Bodybuilding Masters 

  • First Place – Michelle Lawrence 

Women’s Bodybuilding Grand Masters

  • First Place – Sarha Condor Fisher 

Men’s Bodybuilding Masters

  • First Place – Tommi Thompson 
  • Second Place –  Tamer Barakat 
  • Third Place –  Joseph Farese 
  • Fourth Place – Matt Mirowski 
  • Fifth Place – Rota Elliot 

Angels

  • First Place – Arely Ayala 
  • Second Place –  Diane Joojoo Kim 
  • Third Place –  Crystal Jones 
  • Fourth Place – Evet Markarian 
  • Fifth Place – Panakun Maisat 

Men’s Bodybuilding Grand Masters

  • First Place – Tamer Barakat
  • Second Place –  Philip Ricardo 
  • Third Place –  Chad Martin 
  • Fourth Place – Joseph Farese 
  • Fifth Place – Byrce Cleary 

Men’s Bodybuilding Ultra Masters 

  • First Place – Peter Cichonski 
  • Second Place –  Ron Derby 
  • Third Place –  Kevin Cvengros 
  • Fourth Place – Peka Bennefield 

Wellness

  • First Place – Shiante Alcorn-Suarez
  • Second Place –  Niamh Swart 
  • Third Place –  Elizabeth Tran 
  • Fourth Place – Perla Bueno 
  • Fifth Place – Nathali Bordeaux 

Bikini Divas Masters

  • First Place – Diane Joojoo Kim 
  • Second Place –  Svetlana Zelenyuk
  • Third Place –  Vanessa Aichele 
  • Fourth Place – Kelly Vaupel 
  • Fifth Place – Sandra Van De Kamp 

Bikini Divas Open

  • First Place – Lana Danilov 
  • Second Place –  Kayla Rowling 
  • Third Place –  Lisa-Marie Linn 
  • Fourth Place – Shar Hess
  • Fifth Place – Diane Joojoo Kim 

Men’s Physique Open

  • First Place – Daniel Anderson 
  • Second Place –  Jovan Ennis-Esson
  • Third Place –  Colin Congo 
  • Fourth Place – Philip Thomas 
  • Fifth Place – Marc Cheatham 

Generation Iron congratulates all the outstanding competitors who earned a medal and competed at the 2022 Natural Olympia.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger Believes Classic Physique Should Be Mr. Olympia

By
Greg Patuto
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Chris Bumstead

Arnold Schwarzenegger has always been a big fan of Classic Physique.

Arnold Schwarzenegger continues to be an influential voice in the bodybuilding and fitness world. After watching how the 2022 Olympia played out, the greatest bodybuilder of all-time had some comments in a recent interview. Schwarzenegger has always been a fan of Classic Physique and claims that this should be the Mr. Olympia title.

The Men’s Open category was extremely deep this year, full of various mass monsters looking to take home the elusive Sandow Trophy. In the end, Hadi Choopan was able to win the title while reigning two-time champ Big Ramy fell to fifth. This was just one of 10 divisions that appeared on stage, and that includes Classic Physique.

Schwarzenegger is a seven-time Olympia champion and helped pioneer the sport in the 70s. During his time on stage, Classic Physique did not exist so the Open division was not all about size. Because of this, Schwarzenegger favors the proportion and quality of Classic Bodybuilding.

“I think it is crazy in a way to have a Classic Physique category simply because that should be the Mr. Olympia because what is it that we’re celebrating, that in the Classic days we looked more proportionate, and now we don’t give a shit about it anymore? Is that what we’re saying?”

Chris Bumstead 2022 Olympia

Arnold Schwarzenegger Speaks On Classic Physique, Chris Bumstead’s Popularity

In an interview with Nick’s Strength and Power, Arnold Schwarzenegger broke down all divisions of the 2022 Olympia. He has spoken out in favor of Classic Physique before and its overall quality compared to Men’s Open. He backed up this notion once again.

“I think it’s odd they had to literally create a Classic Physique competition to give to the person who has the best quality body, the most well-balanced body also a trophy because he couldn’t compete where the monsters were competing. That’s actually wrong. Like I’ve said, bigger is not always better. I don’t think it’s going in the right direction.”

When making his argument, Schwarzenegger used Chris Bumstead as an example.

Bumstead is coming off his fourth consecutive Classic Physique Olympia title. He has built status as one of the most popular bodybuilders on the planet and continues to grow his brand. On stage, all eyes are on Bumstead when he is posing and many follow his prep during the offseason via his social media pages.

 

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“I always feel like the insiders have their own favorites and then there’s the viewers, the spectators, the fans… and he’s the most popular if you think about that. He’s the most popular bodybuilder right now.”

Chris Bumstead has dominated Classic Physique for years but has not made an appearance at the Arnold Classic. Arnold Schwarzenegger believes that Bumstead would be successful on stage in Columbus and has brought this to his attention.

“I think he could win there’s no two ways about that. I told Chris about that. As you know, Chris is a big fan of the Arnold Classic, he comes there, and he’s very kind to all the fans. He does autographs and all this stuff.”

“I hope that he competes because I think he has a great chance of winning that.”

It is clear that Men’s Open continues to grow in popularity and is adding more and more talent each day. Arnold Schwarzenegger has gone on record speaking in favor of Classic Physique because of its overall quality. At the end of the day, fans just have two elite divisions to watch over the course of the year.

For more news and updates, follow Generation Iron on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Your Bodybuilding Coach Is Probably A Fraud… Here’s How To Fix It | U-Natty States Of America Podcast

By
Derek Dufour
-

Pro natural bodybuilder and personal trainer Brandon Lirio breaks down all of the signs that you have an ineffective coach.

In 2022, we are living in an ongoing fitness boom. The bodybuilding industry is bigger than ever before, gyms and fitness centers are prevalent, and information about health and fitness is everywhere. The human race is more aware about the importance of fitness and have more options than ever before to seek it out.

Unfortunately, with the rapid growth of instant content via social media and the web – there is more misinformation available than ever before as well. When it comes to coaching, that means everyone and their mother claims to be a coach. The important reality to understand is that most of these online coaches are scammers at worst or simply unknowledgeable at best. In our latest episode of the U-Natty States Of America podcast, Brandon Lirio breaks down key signs your bodybuilding coach is a fraud.

Beyond being a Natural Olympia bodybuilding champion, Brandon Lirio is also a personal trainer and has been for quite some time. So this week’s topic is a very important one to him. Working in the personal training field – he is more than aware of how many unskilled and scam coaches exist that are taking people’s money. Even worse, they can be harming clients .

The problem is two-fold. First, there are some bodybuilding coaches who know they are lying and see personal training as an easy way to scam people out of money. Second, there are athletes who believe their personal success is enough to help train other people. This isn’t always a bad thing – but can be if, let’s say, your coach is a bodybuilder who only won a single pro show and instantly jumped into coaching.

Brandon Lirio wants to make it clear that not everyone is out to get you – but that doesn’t mean those trainers are actually good bodybuilding coaches. At the end of the day, the responsibility lies on you, the client, to do proper research and know what is essential in a professional coach or trainer. Let’s break it down.

“Trust me. Just because you bench well and you entered a bodybuilding show does not mean you know what you are doing in terms of powerlifting.”

– Brandon Lirio

The importance of coaching certification… and how to properly evaluate them

Brandon Lirio finds it essential that all fitness clients look for coaches who are certified. This is the first step in finding some form of legitimacy behind a coach’s claims. It proves that a third part has evaluated the person.

However, the unfortunate reality is that most certifications are easy to get. Like many tests, most aspiring bodybuilding coaches only train to beat the test rather than actually retain the knowledge. That’s why Brandon Lirio emphasizes actually looking at the kind of certification your coach possesses.

he National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) requires that their certification exam be proctored. This means that an expert is on site overseeing the exam to ensure that the person isn’t just going through the motions – but doing it well and that they actually understand the concepts. 

On the flip side, the International Sports Science Association (ISSAand American Counsel on Exercise (ACE) do not require proctored exams. So that is a very basic first step to look for when seeking a bodybuilding coach. In Brandon Lirio’s opinion – it’s always better to go with a NASM certified coach due to the proctored exam.

At this point – these certifications still don’t mean the coach is a master. It’s just the beginning. Many of these certificates are covering the intermediate to basic info. But it’s  good start. At this point, like any other doctor or therapist. The client must see if a coach is a good fit. You may have to run through a handful of different coaches before finding the right one. It’s frustrating, but vital if you want success and to get your money’s worth.

Warning signs of a bad coach

Brandon Lirio breaks down three key things to look out for when you start the process of seeking a bodybuilding coach. Below are red flags and warning signs. If your coach shows any of these signs – you might want to consider switching to a new trainer:

  • If they don’t ask questions
  • If they ever ask you to pay in a strange or sketchy way
  • If you bring up a medical issue or medication and then they shrug it off or not take it into consideration.

The last bullet point is extremely important. We can’t expect our fitness coaches to be doctors. But their advice may intersect with pre-existing conditions you have or medications you may be taking. If your coach shrugs this off when you bring it up, or doesn’t take it seriously, you have a coach that may be risking your health.

A bodybuilding coach doesn’t need to be an expert on medicine (unless they are offering you protocols on powerful drugs and PEDs), but they should be willing to have you confer with a doctor to see if their training regimen will work safely with your situation. If they don’t even consider that or worry about that – the coach doesn’t have your best interest in mind.

Wrap Up

In the modern world, it’s all too easy for anyone to claim they are a bodybuilding coach in their Instagram bio. That’s why it’s more important than ever for potential training clients to do their research and be serious about how they vet their trainer. The power of the consumer is real – but it only works if the consumer draws the line and is knowledgable about what to expect.

Brandon Lirio understands it’s easy to blindly trust a coach – because you are likely seeking a coach because your own methods have hit you up against a wall. But blind faith in anything is dangerous. Be prepared, use this information Lirio provides to help guide you, and do the diligence to find the right coach before you waste time, money, and possibly your health on a scam.

You can watch Brandon Lirio’s full comments on modern day coaching in fitness by watching the latest episode of U-Natty States of America above. Make sure to check back every Wednesday for new episodes only on the Generation Iron Fitness Network, or wherever podcasts are downloaded.

Liver King Hits Deadlifts In L.A. Traffic, Still Transitioning Off Steroids

By
Greg Patuto
-

Liver King was seen on the street hitting some deadlifts and discussed his current status.

The truth has been exposed about Liver King but that has not stopped him from preaching what he believes is right — the nine ancestral tenets. Recently, TMZ caught up with Liver King on the street and discussed his current status with steroids as he hit some deadlifts in the street.

Just a few weeks ago, Derek from More Plates More Dates exposed emails proving that Brian Johnson was indeed on steroids. After the allegations, Johnson made a video where he admitted the truth and apologized for misleading his fans. Since then, he has not slowed down in the gym or moving around spreading his word.

Recently, Liver King was seen in Los Angeles where TMZ caught up to him. Johnson showed off a workout before accepting an invitation on a company bus with Celebrity Tour patrons.

“If you see Liver King, you see somebody working out. That’s the only way to be.”

Liver King Transitioning Off Steroids

After finishing his one set of deadlift workouts, Liver King was invited onto a TMZ Celebrity Tour bus. He accepted the invitation and answered some questions in front of those in attendance. The reporter asked Johnson about his current status with steroids.

“There’s no doubt that steroids helped but listen, there’s video all over the internet of how I looked before steroids. You can see videos all over the internet of how I’m going to look after steroids because I’m transitioning off.”

 

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Liver King admitted to using steroids that very morning but explained that it was a process and he will not just stop cold turkey.

“This morning. Well, I have a plan to come off. It doesn’t happen overnight.”

Finally, Liver King backed up his apology and discussed how he would become better from it.

“I dug myself into a hole. I kept digging myself into that hole. Listen, I regret it. Out of all of the dumb sh*t I’ve done in my life, that was the dumbest. Now, I’ve got a clean slate.”

For more news and updates, follow Generation Iron on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

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