Ronnie Coleman goes through his entire series of injuries and surgeries dating back to as early as college.
There is no bodybuilding fan who doesn’t know Ronnie Coleman. He is a legend in the sport and perhaps one of the biggest bodybuilders of all time. But his legendary success came at a cost. He is now just as well known for his series of injuries and surgeries that have plagued him in his later life. In our latest GI Exclusive Vault interview, Ronnie Coleman recounts his entire history of serious injuries starting from college through to today.
Ronnie Coleman has suffered a large number of spinal surgeries on top of a double hip replacement surgery. This was all documented, while contrasting with his past legendary bodybuilding career, in our documentary Ronnie Coleman: The King.
We sat down with Ronnie Coleman for over an hour discussing his entire life story. Of course, not every single moment from the interview could make it into the final film. That’s why we’re pulling out segments from the cutting room floor for our GI Exclusive Vault series.
Ronnie Coleman: The King goes into detail about his injuries, surgeries, and specifically an upcoming spine surgery at shown at the end of the film (he has since received more surgeries since its release). But in this extended interview clip, Ronnie Coleman goes into detail in one long conversation about every single injury he had sustained leading up to this moment in his life.
Perhaps somewhat surprisingly, his back issues started as early back as college. He had started noticing some serious pain in his back but only when he was training. So he was able to mostly ignore it beyond his workout sessions. He eventually went to a chiropractor to help mitigate the pain – but that was about it.
Fast forward to his bodybuilding years. Ronnie Coleman details the worst pain he had ever been in his entire life. It was shortly after competing in the Mr. Olympia. He was training – doing his usual heavy squats. He suddenly heard a pop. It was so loud – he actually thought his spotter had smacked him. He didn’t. A few seconds later he felt a terrible pain that went down into his leg. But he finished the rest of his workout anyway.
It wasn’t until later that he tried to suit up and go to work as a police officer that he realized the pain was too much to handle. He knew that something was seriously wrong. This began the long series of back problems Ronnie had in earnest. It would eventually lead to multiple surgeries.
While his doctors told him he could still work out – they advised him against doing squats. So what was the first thing Ronnie Coleman did when he next trained at the gym? He did squats.
While this might seem like willful ignorance on Ronnie’s part – it really speaks to his passion for bodybuilding. He wasn’t ignoring the doctor’s advice because he didn’t care. It’s quite the contrary. He cared about bodybuilding and training so much that he was willing to push the boundaries further. He was willing to risk further injury because to not try would to make him unsatisfied.
A longer and less pain filled life would not be worth it if Ronnie Coleman couldn’t lift. That might sound crazy to most people – but it’s what helped him become the best bodybuilder in the history of the sport.
You can watch Ronnie Coleman go into detail about every major injury he suffered throughout his career in our latest GI Exclusive Vault interview segment above. You can also watch Ronnie Coleman: The King on digital today! Click here or the banner below to stream or download.
