Following a history of injuries from his bodybuilding career and unsuccessful back surgeries that left him unable to walk, Ronnie Coleman continues to progress toward his goal of walking without assistance. His goal is to walk unassisted again in a two years.
In a video he posted online, Ronnie describes a poolside rehab session that is assisting him in gaining the strength he needs.
With his eight Mr. Olympia wins and numerous other wins in bodybuilding, Ronnie Coleman is one of the most successful bodybuilders ever. However, during his career he has endured quite a few injuries to his body, especially his back.
After he officially retired, Ronnie had 13 back and neck surgeries to fix his injured back. Unfortunately none of the surgeries were successful and some of them have even done more harm than good, leaving him unable to walk.
Related: Despite His Surgeries, Ronnie Coleman Got Back to Training
He currently undergoes stem cell treatment as well as specific exercises, that he believes are going to help him walk again soon.
“This, along with the stem cells, it’s helping me get back on my feet and hopefully real soon. I’m not going to give up on this until I am walking again.”
Ronnie Coleman’s Pool Routine
Ronnie Coleman focuses on four different exercises during his rehab session, targeting strength building in his lower body.
High Steps – 5-6 sets of 35-40 steps
One-Legged Stands – 5-6 sets of 20-30 seconds
Floating Flutter Kicks – 5 minutes per leg
Seated Single Leg Kicks – 5 minutes alternating legs
High steps
Coleman starts his workout with, what he calls, high steps. Coleman crosses his arms while standing in the pool and raises himself as high as he could with his legs.
“These are called high steps and all I do is fold my arms so all I’m using is my legs and I just high step all the way to the end there.”
One leg stands
Then Coleman switches to one-legged standing. In this straightforward workout, Coleman concentrates solely on moving his legs.
“All I’m trying to do is stand on one leg for about 20 seconds. That’s one leg. Now, I’ll do the other leg, the same thing. Sometimes I go to 30. It all depends.”
Flutter kicks
Coleman grabs the edge of the pool and kicks with his legs for about 5 minutes.
“Normally, I have a buoy for this one but I don’t have one here. At home I have a kid’s toy. I just lay on it and do kicks”
Seated leg kicks
Ronnie says that this is actually the first exercise he does before getting in the pool. He sits on the pool steps and does leg kicks, a movement that looks similar to leg extensions for 5 minutes.
“Before I get in, I do leg kicks. I do that for like five minutes, back and forth between each leg. It helps strengthen the quads up a little bit, almost like a leg extension, using the water for resistance.”
Related:
Ronnie Coleman Explains Why Many Bodybuilders Today Look Like Non Lifters
