BODYBUILDING LEGEND Ronnie Coleman was one of the earliest stars of the fitness internet, when clips of his high-energy workout sessions—complete with his amped-up delivery of catchphrases like “yeah buddy!” and “light weight!’—went viral in the pre-social media age. He’s provided color commentary reacting to some of his legendary clips before—so it makes sense that he would be excellent in the role of a talking head, reacting to other lifting clips from around the internet. The eight-time Mr. Olympia-winner recently took to his YouTube channel to react to some interesting deadlift videos—and it’s safe to say he’s seen a deadlift or two in his day, so he’s more than qualified to offer his opinions on a stranger’s form (or lack thereof).
He’s shown a handful of viral videos, and it doesn’t take long for him to be impressed by how dumb some of these movements are.
“When there’s some stupid shit to be done, people figure out a way to do it,” Coleman says about the first video he’s shown. The line up includes a guy lifting several hundred pounds while holding onto the plates rather than the bar itself, another person deadlifting with the bar in between his legs (a.k.a. the Jefferson deadlift), and another barely pulling the bar more than a few inches off the ground.
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Among all these deadlifting clips one stands out as rather different, and it might’ve impressed Coleman most. It involves a guy standing on two rolling chairs and lowering all the way down into a deep split before pulling the chairs back together to return to standing. Not exactly a deadlift, but it earns Coleman’s seal of approval, anyway. “That’s some mad flexibility on another level.”
The weird ones are stacked in between some rather impressive lifts, too. Coleman comments on a few interesting technique changes, such as grip choice and distance, but he applauds their success regardless. “He got it up, that’s all that matters,” Coleman says.
While we don’t want to contradict the man known as “The King,” it’s probably more important that you go about deadlifting with better form than the lifter’s in these clips.
Check out our exhaustive guide to make sure that your form is on-point the next time you hit weight room for a deadlift workout.
Cori Ritchey, NASM-CPT is an Associate Health & Fitness Editor at Men’s Health and a certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor. You can find more of her work in HealthCentral, Livestrong, Self, and others.
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