10 bodybuilders with some of the biggest legs in the history of the sport

Bodybuilding is about extra than simply having massive biceps, spherical shoulders and a broad again, opponents additionally have to have an equally spectacular decrease physique if they’re to tie their physique collectively. And in current many years, many contestants took to the stage sporting large quads, calves, and hamstrings that helped them safe high spots on the greatest exhibits.

There is no scarcity of spectacular legs in bodybuilding historical past, however these 10 opponents, particularly, are among the many better of one of the best. From the person synonymous with the squat to probably the most adorned lady to ever compete at Olympia, these legends are arduous to high.

[Related: 10 Competitors With Some of the Best Arms in Bodybuilding]

10 opponents with the largest legs in bodybuilding historical past

Tom Platz

With a nickname like The Quadfather, it ought to come as no shock that Tom Platz made it onto this listing. Leg improvement has all the time been essential in bodybuilding, however the bulging quads and rock-solid calves of Platz have led to Oh issue to his decrease physique which helped redefine what elite legs seem like.

[Related: How to Train Your Legs for Maximum Hypertrophy]

However Platz’s legs weren’t simply there to indicate, his squatting energy was additionally completely legendary. Look no additional than his visitor lifting stint at a powerlifting occasion at FIBO in Germany in 1993 when he squatted 525 kilos for 23 reps. Whereas there may be some hypothesis concerning the validity of this outstanding feat, there isn’t any denying that his legs pack an actual punch.

Ronnie Coleman

Eight-time Mr. Olympia Ronnie Coleman is taken into account by many to be a bodybuilding GOAT. And whereas his unimaginable again improvement is normally the primary attribute many level out, his titanic legs aren’t far behind. His quads stood out in each entrance pose he struck, whereas his hamstrings and glutes made his rear double biceps probably the greatest ever.

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And like Platz, Coleman’s legs had the facility to match. A lot of The Kings’ mystique comes from its 2003 coaching video The price of the ransom, the place he’s proven squatting 800 kilos for a double, adopted by a set of leg presses with 2,300 kilos for eight reps. If there’s one piece of footage that completely encapsulates the period of bodybuilding’s “mass monsters,” that is it.

Jay Cutler

The person who lastly dethroned Coleman as Mr. Olympia in 2006 additionally had strong legs to face on. Jay Cutler has gained 4 Mr. Olympia titles and three Arnold Traditional championships in his profession, however in a sea of ​​successes, his well-known Quad Stomp pose from the 2009 Mr. Olympia stands head and shoulders above the remaining.

[Related: 10 Mens Open Bodybuilders With Championship-Quality Calves]

That 12 months, Cutler was trying to regain the title after shedding it to Dexter Jackson in 2008. Throughout his routine, Cutler aggressively stomped the stage and flexed his quads, which swayed hypnotically in entrance of the packed crowd.

Photographer Per Bernal was readily available to snap a photograph of the pose, cementing it as an iconic second within the sport. These extremely developed legs helped Cutler safe the title that 12 months, and that picture has been part of his legacy ever since.

Warren department

One of many solely opponents who might maintain his personal within the decrease physique division with Cutler was Department Warren. A local of Texas, Warren educated in the identical Metrofelx fitness center as Ronnie Coleman in Arlington, and while you’re in the identical constructing as The King, it is arduous to not be impressed to go slightly heavier within the squat rack.

[Related: The 15 Best Squat Accessory Exercises for Muscle Growth and Plateau Busting]

Warren completed one place forward of Cutler on the Olympia in 2009, however gained two Arnold Classics in 2011 and 2012. And a big a part of that success was the unreal leg improvement that earned him the suitable nickname: Quadrasaurus.

Irene Andersen

The Ladies’s Bodybuilding division is not any stranger to creating muscular legs, and on the high of that listing is Irene Andersen. As one of many biggest feminine athletes within the division, Andersen is probably greatest recognized for her ultra-muscular higher physique, however do not sleep on these wheels.

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Her spherical quads and torn hamstrings are among the greatest within the sport and helped her place fifth in Ms. Olympia (2020 and 2021) and third within the 2019 Rising Phoenix World Championships. However the actual spotlight right here is perhaps her calves, which maintain up simply wonderful in opposition to the remainder of Andersen’s jaw-dropping mass.

Dorian Yates

Following the retirement of eight-time Mr. Olympia Lee Haney in 1991, Dorian Yates took up the torch and ran with it as probably the most dominant bodybuilder of the ’90s. The Shadow was recognized for his high-intensity coaching fashion referred to as Blood and Guts, which centered on an all-court set or two that pushed his muscle tissue to absolute failure.

And whereas most bodybuilders on the time opted for extra quantity of their coaching, Yates proved his technique labored each time he took the stage with a pair of legs that carried him to 6 Sandow trophies.

[Related: How Strong Was Arnold Schwarzenegger? We Look Back at the Oaks Short-Lived Powerlifting Career]

Yates was compelled to retire with accidents following his 1997 Olympia win, however on the time was thought to be having one of the best pair of legs since Platz. And to attain that mass, Yates mentioned he leaned closely on Smith machine squats, relatively than free-weight barbell squats, as his profession progressed.

Kai Inexperienced

When Kai Greene first hit the scene in 2006, folks thought he was lined as much as be the following Ronnie Coleman on account of their comparable muscle construct. And like Coleman, Greene sported a well-defined pair of muscular legs that completely complemented his broad again and rounded shoulders.

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One of many secrets and techniques to Greene’s success was his showmanship and top-notch expertise as a poser, which allowed him to current his legs higher than virtually anybody else within the sport on the time. The entire package deal from him earned him second place on the Mr. Olympia from 2012 to 2014, together with three Arnold Traditional titles in 2009, 2010 and 2016.

Yaxeni Oriquen

Regardless of competing in opposition to multi-time champions like Lenda Murray and Iris Kyle, Yaxeni Oriquen nonetheless discovered a option to seize the vaunted Ms. Olympia title in 2005, together with 5 Ms. Worldwide wins in her profession. And one of the crucial essential elements of her recreation was an elite pair of legs that few, if any, might match.

[Related: Lou Ferrignos Hulking Comeback at the 1992 Mr. Olympia]

Whereas there have been occasions the place Oriquen’s legs truly overwhelmed her higher physique, the judges did not appear to care, as she’s nonetheless walked away with a good quantity of {hardware} all through her profession. Although the ladies within the division get larger and greater yearly, Oriquen continues to be remembered as one of many greats.

Iris Kyle

In a sport filled with dominant champions and longstanding dynasties, there is just one athlete who can declare 10 complete Olympic titles: Iris Kyle. Her assortment of Ms. Olympia wins all through her 15-year profession is a testomony to her consistency within the fitness center and her potential to hone and enhance her physique from contest to contest.

[Related: The Story Behind the Chaotic Drug-Tested 1990 Mr. Olympia]

Whereas Kyle is understood for a show-stopping pair of quads, you possibly can argue that her hamstrings have actually pulled her physique collectively. When she rotated and confirmed her full physique from behind, it was virtually all the time sufficient to separate her from the pack.

Mamdouh Huge Ramy Elssbiay

The trendy instance of leg objectives could be two-time Mr. Olympia Mamdouh Huge Ramy Elssbiay. Even making his professional debut on the 2013 New York Professional, Ramy’s excessive quad improvement set him aside from everybody else on stage. They have been so massive, in actual fact, that they overwhelmed his calves, however that did not cease him from profitable the present and notifying everybody else within the Mens Open division.

[Related: Ronnie Coleman Vs. Mamdouh Big Ramy Elssbiay: A Fantasy Battle Between Bodybuilding Heavyweights]

Elssbiay did her homework after that present and improved her calves and hamstrings within the years to return. Lastly, her large quads have been extra according to the remainder of her legs and flowed extra fluidly together with her higher physique. The consequence was arguably one of the best physique within the sport in 2020 as he gained his first Mr. Olympia title after which efficiently defended his crown the next 12 months.

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