Arnold!
Arnold! If there’s one name synonymous with bodybuilding and the Mr. Olympia contest, that’s it. Sure, he’s not the only Mr. O with an impressive legacy, but Arnold’s legacy transcends bodybuilding to include movie stardom and politics. He’s known for his tremendous drive to succeed, perhaps more than anyone. In this 2-Part edition of the Olympia Series, we will take a look at two of his routines (not the same old same old competition double split!) as well as a look at his success in and out of bodybuilding. We’ll also look at his take on nutrition and supplements. So if you’re ready, let’s jump into Part 1, then get ready to check out Part 2!
Arnold’s Bodybuilding Contest History (1)
| Year | Contest | Location | Placing | Notes / Won By |
| 1965 | Junior Mr. Europe | Germany | #1 | First major victory |
| 1966 | Best Built Man of Europe | Germany | #1 | |
| 1966 | NABBA Mr. Universe (Amateur) | London, UK | #2 | Won by Chet Yorton |
| 1967 | NABBA Mr. Universe (Amateur) | London, UK | #1 | Youngest ever Mr. Universe at age 20 |
| 1968 | NABBA Mr. Universe (Professional) | London, UK | #1 | |
| 1968 | IFBB Mr. Universe | Miami, Florida | #2 | Won by Frank Zane |
| 1968 | IFBB International Powerlifting Ch. | Stuttgart, Germany | #1 | Bodybuilding presentation / title |
| 1969 | IFBB Mr. Universe (Amateur) | New York, NY | #1 | |
| 1969 | NABBA Mr. Universe (Professional) | London, UK | #1 | |
| 1969 | IFBB Mr. World | New York, NY | #1 | |
| 1969 | IFBB Mr. Olympia | New York, NY | #2 | Lost to 3-time champion Sergio Oliva |
| 1970 | NABBA Mr. Universe (Professional) | London, UK | #1 | Defeated his idol, Reg Park |
| 1970 | AAU Mr. World | Columbus, Ohio | #1 | Defeated Sergio Oliva |
| 1970 | IFBB Mr. Olympia | New York, NY | #1 | Youngest Mr. Olympia in history at age 23 |
| 1971 | IFBB Mr. Olympia | Paris, France | #1 | Competed unopposed |
| 1972 | IFBB Mr. Olympia | Essen, Germany | #1 | |
| 1972 | WBBG Pro Mr. World | New York, NY | #1 | |
| 1973 | IFBB Mr. Olympia | New York, NY | #1 | Defeated Franco Columbu & Serge Nubret |
| 1974 | IFBB Mr. Olympia | New York, NY | #1 | Heavyweight & Overall Winner |
| 1975 | IFBB Mr. Olympia | Pretoria, South Africa | #1 | Heavyweight & Overall Winner; featured in Pumping Iron |
| 1980 | IFBB Mr. Olympia | Sydney, Australia | #1 | Iconic and highly debated final comeback win |
Arnold’s Powerlifting / Weightlifting Competition History (2)
| Year | Contest | Location | Placing | Performance Stats |
| 1963 | Graz Olympic Lifting Competition | Graz, Austria | — | First weightlifting contest; 165 lbs overhead clean and press |
| 1964 | Styrian Junior Weightlifting Championship | Styria, Austria | #1 | Totaled 280 kg / 705 lbs |
| 1965 | Austrian Olympic Lifting Championship | Austria | #1 | Heavyweight division winner |
| 1966 | International Powerlifting Championship | Stuttgart, Germany | #1 | 80+ kg division; 585 kg / 1,290 lbs total |
| 1967 | German Powerlifting Championships | Munich, Germany | #2 | 80+ kg division; 650 kg total |
| 1967 | Graz Paradise Keller Championships | Graz, Austria | #2 | |
| 1968 | German Powerlifting Championships | Munich, Germany | #1 | 80+ kg division; Career best 725 kg / 1,598 lbs total |
Of course, any serious lifter knows who Arnold is. For that matter, anybody that’s not a hermit most likely knows who he is. Some less informed people may know him mainly as a movie star, still others really only know him as the Governor of California. But I would say most people, lifters and non-lifters alike, know he was a champion bodybuilder.
His rise to fame in bodybuilding is a very inspirational story. In fact, “Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder” should be required reading for any serious lifter. Some may disagree with his training ideas, but when it comes to inspiration, his story is hard to beat.
Arnold’s Success
One of the things about his story is his drive to succeed. We’ve all heard about positive thinking, but perhaps no one has defined it quite the way Arnold has. His drive to succeed brought him from Graz, Austria to California (with the help of Joe Weider, who saw his potential). Had he stayed in Graz, he most likely would have followed in his father’s footsteps as a police officer. But his dreams brought him here: he not only wanted to compete, he saw himself becoming the best bodybuilder in history, and planned to move beyond the sport into movies and politics.
Throughout “Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder”, he makes statements such as “I knew I was a winner”, and “I knew I had what it takes to succeed”. He is a big believer in visualization, both in terms of training and in life. If you want to really look into the concept of positive thinking, read the two books mentioned in this article series. It’s like taking a master class.
Arnold’s Business Ventures
Arnold was already a self-made millionaire by the age of 30, long before he achieved mainstream Hollywood success or landed his breakout roles in Conan the Barbarian or The Terminator. He strategically created a network of overlapping businesses during his competitive bodybuilding years to achieve financial independence so that he wouldn’t have to take subpar acting roles just to pay rent.
Here are the primary business ventures Arnold ran while coming up in the bodybuilding world.
1. The Mail-Order Business
Not long after he moved to America in 1968, Arnold recognized the business potential of leveraging his rising bodybuilding stardom. (3)
- His Mail Order Business – He started a mail-order company from a simple post office box.
- The Product: He mainly sold instructional bodybuilding booklets. Some sources claim he moved into exercise equipment as well. (4, 5)
2. European Bricklaying & Masonry
In 1968, Arnold partnered with his best friend and fellow bodybuilder, Franco Columbu, to start a construction company called European Bricklayers and Masonry Experts. (6)
- The Strategy – They utilized clever marketing by marketing themselves as “European experts” in marble and masonry, which allowed them to charge a premium price. They staffed their crews entirely with fellow bodybuilders from Gold’s Gym.
- The Turning Point – The business boomed tremendously following the 1971 San Fernando earthquake, which created a massive demand for the repair and rebuilding of fallen chimneys, fireplaces, and brick walls across the Los Angeles area.
3. Posing Seminars and Personal Training
As his reputation as a multi-time Mr. Olympia grew, Arnold organized and charged admission for posing seminars and high-end personal coaching sessions, turning his growing fame into a highly profitable, recurring service.
4. Real Estate Investing
The true vehicle for Arnold’s early financial success was California real estate, which he began buying in the late 1960s and 1970s. Instead of upgrading his lifestyle with his early business profits and contest winnings like many people would do, he put that money toward real estate investments. (4)
- The Playbook – He started by placing a down payment and taking out a loan to buy a six-unit apartment building in Santa Monica. He lived in one of the units himself while renting out the remaining five to cover the mortgage and generate clean cash flow.
- The Scale – He progressively used the equity and rental profits to trade up to a 12-unit building, followed by 36 units, eventually aggressively expanding into lucrative commercial office buildings and retail properties along Santa Monica’s Main Street
Arnold’s Legacy
The obvious point here is his impact on bodybuilding, from being a major influence to the fact that he still has a major impact with his “Arnold Classic” contest, second only to the Olympia in the IFBB. Since its inception it has grown into a weekend event as big as the Olympia itself. He is generally considered the greatest bodybuilder of all (that’s subjective, of course). His influence on bodybuilding is massive. He helped transform what was once an underground counterculture into a multi-billion-dollar global fitness empire. He did not just win titles; he fundamentally changed how the human body is viewed, trained, and celebrated worldwide.
Before the docudrama Pumping Iron came out in 1977, the public widely perceived bodybuilders through a lens of negative stereotypes. Through his charm and psychological warfare against competitors like Lou Ferrigno, the documentary became a massive hit that humanized the sport. It rebranded gym culture into an aspirational lifestyle.
His books, such as Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder, and The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding, continue to be highly rated, with Encyclopedia often referred to as the Bible of Bodybuilding.
His legacy cannot be overstated. He is, without question, the most successful of any bodybuilder, and the most popular figure to come out of bodybuilding. In fact to this day he still influences countless bodybuilders, from beginner to seasoned competitor.
The Routines
Pretty much any other site that highlights a classic Arnold routine will automatically go to his 6 Day Double Split. Not me. For those who have read my articles, I don’t typically feature the same routine everybody else does. I may refer to it, but I also try to show readers something different.
So it is with 7-Time Mr. Olympia Arnold Schwarzenegger. Instead, I’m featuring one routine from “Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder” and one routine from “The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding”.
4-Day Split Schedule
Day 1 – Legs, Chest, Abs, Forearms
Day 2 – Shoulders, Back, Arms, Abs, Calves
Day 3 – Rest
Day 4 – Repeat Day 1
Day 5 – Repeat Day 2
Day 6 – Rest
Day 7 – Rest
Arnold’s 4 Day Split Routine (Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder)
Monday / Thursday – Legs, Chest, Abs, Forearms
Squats
5 sets x 8 reps, add 20 lbs per set
Leg Extensions
5 sets x 12 reps, add weight each set
Leg Curls – Do these seated or lying.
5 sets x 10 reps
Standing Calf Raises
5 sets x 15 reps
Bench Press
5 sets x 8 reps, add weight each set, your last set should be 5-6 reps.
Flat Dumbbell Flyes
5 sets x 10 reps
Sit-Ups – Knees Bent
5 sets x 40 reps
Leg Raises – Knees Bent
5 sets x 40 reps
Wrist Curls
5 sets x 15 reps
Tuesday / Friday – Shoulders, Back, Arms, Abs, Calves
Press Behind The Neck – Some experts claim this is a “dangerous” exercise. If you feel it may be, substitute this with the Overhead Press.
5 sets x 8 reps, add weight each set, you should only be able to 6 reps on your last set.
Side Lateral Raises – Perform these with your little finger higher than your thumb, and raise the dumbbells as if you were pouring a pitcher of water.
5 sets x 8-10 reps
Chin-Ups Behind The Neck – Similar to the Press Behind The Neck, some claim this exercise may not be safe because they place an unnatural strain on the shoulders and neck. Therefore, you can substitute these with regular chin-ups.
6 sets x 10 reps
Bent-Over Rows
5 sets x 12 reps
Barbell Curls – Arnold used a straight bar, but feel free to use an EZ-Bar
5 sets x 8, 8, 6, 6, 6 reps
Seated Dumbbell Curls – Supinate your wrists as you bring the dumbbells up, an Arnold favorite.
5 sets x 8 reps
Restricted Incline Dumbbell Curls – As per Arnold, perform these by keeping your elbows slightly forward, thereby limiting front delt involvement.
5 sets x 10 reps
Standing French Press Behind The Head – Arnold used a straight bar, feel free to use an EZ-Bar.
5 sets x 12 reps
Lying Triceps Extension – As above, Arnold used a straight bar, feel free to use an EZ-Bar.
5 sets x 10-12 reps
Leg Raises with Knees Bent superset with Twists using a Bar
5 sets x 20 reps each – take no more than 7 minutes to complete.
Wrist Curls – Arnold advocated doing these every day.
5 sets x 15 reps
Performance Notes
Arnold typically advocates resting one minute between sets. He also famously advises establishing the mind-muscle connection, something he is known for.
In addition, he recommends a full range of motion completely under control, with a pause and squeeze at the top. He would use “controlled cheating”, but you have to be mindful of that becoming pure momentum.
While tempo is not mentioned, if you watch videos of him working out, he trained fairly fast, taking roughly 1-2 seconds up and 1-2 second down with the pause and squeeze at the top.
Summary
In Part 1 of Arnold!, we have not only looked at his 4 Day Split routine, we’ve also looked at some of the things that sets him apart. In Part 2, we’ll dive into another routine as well as his take on nutrition and supplements. In the meantime, don’t forget to stop by illpumpyouup.com and check out all we have to offer!
References:
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arnold_Schwarzenegger
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arnold_Schwarzenegger
By Jim Brewster