Ryan Terry and Hafthor Björnsson “The Mountain” put their pecs to the test and attack a strongman chest-focused workout.
Monday is international chest day, so you’ll find a beeline for the bench press station to start the week. Hafthor Björnsson and bodybuilder Ryan Terry are at the front of that line — their chest workout occurred earlier this month. This was quite the team-up, with the duo giving many invaluable tips to implement your next push day. Read on for some insight!
When Ryan Terry started in 2010, going to the gym at 14, it was about improving his fitness and gaining confidence. Well, he’s come a long way since then, with a professional career that snowballed from winning the Mr. Great Britain Pageant at age 21 in 2010.
After winning the best body award and the Mr. International competition next, he decided to step up his bodybuilding career, and he’s had quite the success. He went on to win the European Arnold Classic’s Men’s Physique in 2013. Then he came second place in Mr. Olympia Men’s Physique in 2016 and secured a first-place finish in the Arnold Classic UK Pro 2021. He’s the first ever IFBB Men’s Physique Pro from the UK!
| Full Name: Ryan Terry | ||
| Weight | Height | Date of Birth |
| 185-195lbs | 5’10” | 11/17/1988 |
| Division | Era | Nationality |
| Men’s Physique | 2010s, 2020s | British |
Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson is no stranger to bodybuilding either, but you probably know him as Hafthor “The Mountain” Bjornsson. Quite the nickname of the man who won the World’s Strongest Man, Europe’s Strongest Man, and Arnold Classic in one calendar year! Your favorite non-bodybuilding pal probably knows him as Ser Gregor “The Mountain” Clegane from Game of Thrones.
Thor started his professional career as a basketball player, but injuries forced him to retire in 2008. However, he soon met Icelandic Strongman Magnus Ver Magnusson, who encouraged him to compete. As a result, Björnsson won three bronze and three silver medals before finally winning the World’s Strongest Man in 2018. Thor also holds the record for the world’s heaviest deadlift at 501 kg, which he set in 2020.
| Full Name: Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson | ||
| Weight | Height | Date of Birth |
| 231- 450 lbs | 6’9” | 11/26/1988 |
| Division | Era | Nationality |
| Strongman/ Bodybuilder | 2010s and 2020s | Icelandic |
In this post, we deep dive into Thor and Ryan Terry’s epic chest day workout, including some bodybuilding tips shared by this powerful bodybuilding duo. We also learn how to pose for Men’s Physique from Ryan Terry, and you’ll find Ryan Terry’s unique refeed day meal plan.
Thor and Ryan Terry Chest Day Routine
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As mentioned, Ryan Terry and Thor teamed up for this epic chest day in early April. Building your chest as a bodybuilder is vital for your posture, helps you breathe better, and makes lifting easier. Strengthening your back to help your balance and posture is also recommended when doing a lot of chest work to prevent muscular imbalances.
Barbell Bench Press
Barbell bench presses work your pectoral muscles, shoulders, and triceps. The barbell is easier to lift to control than dumbbells and will allow you to lift a heavier load. Thor and Terry did this exercise as a warmup and discussed the differences in using flat bench presses for bodybuilding. For this movement, Björnsson starts with 40kg and works up to 140kg.
Ryan Terry reveals that he was banned from flat benching because he was part of a bodybuilding team, and three of the lads tore their pecs from flat bench presses. So he avoids it and hasn’t gone above using three plates to stay injury-free. Instead, he focuses more on reps as opposed to heavy weights. Ryan Terry explains he trains at a high intensity but uses lighter weights in most workouts to avoid injuries.
Unfortunately, this foreshadowed when Bjornsson tore his pecs two weeks later trying to hit a new bench pressing record during a live stream!
Incline Dumbbell Press
The incline dumbbell press works on all three of your pec heads, and the incline of the bench specifically engages your upper chest.
Thor starts lifting 26 kg of dumbbells for this exercise, and Terry does the same. They then move up to 40kg dumbbells, and Terry needs some spotting assistance to complete his reps.
Seated Cable Rows
Seated cable rows are just what you need to work on your back on chest day. They’re great for your lats, your traps, and your rhomboids. They also work on your biceps as a secondary muscle. Terry and Björnsson both took turns doing the seated cable rows before moving to the final routine of the day.
Face Pulls
Face pulls are a great finishing exercise to exhaust yourself and maximize your gains after your routine. They work on your traps, rear delts, and rhomboids. For this routine, Thor and Terry did three sets of 15 before heading to the bodybuilding pose session.
Ryan Terry’s Men’s Physique Bodybuilding Poses
After their session, Ryan and Thor finished the day with bodybuilding poses. As a pro in Men Physique, Terry showed Thor the best ways to pose and shared some crucial tips.
Your front and back pose is essential in the Men’s Physique class, although some federations could also ask for a side pose. Terry leads Thor through doing his front pose perfectly to show off his V-taper, lats, delts, and abs.
Next, he shows how to position yourself for the perfect back pose before ending the lesson with vacuuming — drawing in the lower abs while exhaling. Unfortunately, Thor had a bit of a challenge learning to vacuum and ended up with cramps from the lesson.
Ryan Terry’s Refeed Meal Plan
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Many people confuse refeed days with cheat days, but they’re not the same. Cheat days are about eating unplanned and uncontrolled for one day; all kinds of food are allowed (1).
On the other hand, refeed days involve eating a calorie surplus in a controlled manner, usually after increasing physical activities like Ryan Terry did with FIBO day or eating fewer calories.
Refeeds are a great way to counteract hunger, tiredness, and lethargy and can even help you step out of a weight loss plateau due to a calorie deficit (2). Here’s Ryan Terry’s meal plan for his refeed day:
- meal one: 150g oats, 40g blueberries, 20g almond butter, 2 scoops whey
- meal two: 150g oats, 40g blueberries, 20g almond butter, 2 scoops whey
- meal three: 4 beef patties, 250g cooked weight white rice ½ avocado
- meal four: 4 poached eggs ½ avocado, 8 rice cakes
- meal five: 200g salmon fillet, 200g white rice, mixed green veg
- meal six: 3 beef patties, 1 fillet steak, 500g cooked potato /chips/ fries asparagus
- pre-workout: 50g cyclic dextrin /EAA’s
- intra-workout: 50g cyclic dextrin / EAA’s
- post-workout: 100g cyclic dextrin /2 scoops whey protein
You can check out Ryan Terry’s and Björnsson’s full chest day duo below, courtesy of Ryan Terry’s YouTube channel:
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References
- Murray, S. B., Pila, E., Mond, J. M., Mitchison, D., Blashill, A. J., Sabiston, C. M., & Griffiths, S. (2018). Cheat meals: A benign or ominous variant of binge eating behavior? Appetite, 130, 274–278. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2018.08.026
- Peos, J. J., Norton, L. E., Helms, E. R., Galpin, A. J., & Fournier, P. (2019). Intermittent Dieting: Theoretical Considerations for the Athlete. Sports (Basel, Switzerland), 7(1), 22. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports7010022
