How did you get started with bodybuilding

I started going to the gym after a rough breakup, I used the gym as an outlet for all of my anger. After the end of the first month of training I had gained 7 pounds. I was hooked after seeing the results!

A few months later I was spotted by a Bodybuilding coach who gave me the knowledge and training to take my body to the next level and that was when everything changed!

Fitness Model Gerardo Gabriel

10 Roy Callender

Underappreciated today, Callender won two IFBB pro contests in 1979 and placed fourth at the 1981 Mr. Olympia. His dense pectorals were slashed with fanlike clefts from his sternum to their rounded bottoms, and his keg-sized rib cage added to his nearly unbeatable side chest pose. Callender trained with very high volume, sometimes doing more than 50 sets per workout for chest.

9 Serge Nubret

From the front, Serge Nubret had one of the most aesthetically pleasing physiques ever, and his chest was a key factor in this assessment. The man who finished second in the 1973 Mr. Olympia lacked the pec thickness of others in our top 10, and yet his perfectly sculpted chest seemed to have been meticulously carved from marble

Nubret mostly credits the bench press for his pec development.

8 Franco Columbo

Although Columbu stands only 5’5″, his pecs were not only stupendously thick, but, unlike others of his stature, they were also large from top to bottom and side to side, and they could have looked at home on 6’5″ Lou Ferrigno. Their most unique quality was the unparalleled cleft that segregated the upper region from the rest, as if the upper pecs were separate muscles (they’re not).

The two-time Mr. O (1976, ’81) attributes most of his size to barbell presses (flat and incline) and dips.

7 Gary Strydom

Strydom’s pecs were far from the thickest on our list, but their lower and outer perimeters were boldly delineated, and they were perpetually striated. At his best in the late ’80s, his flexed chest resembled two mounds of perfectly aligned spaghetti.

He utilized moderate volume and repetitions, as well as both compound and isolation exercises.

6 Ronnie Coleman

Two big reasons why Coleman will be trying for Sandow number nine on September 30 are his left and right pectorals. Throughout his reign atop the bodybuilding world, few challengers have been able to hang when he puffs up his pecs during side shots or when he induces a flurry of ridges by crunching out most-musculars.

Coleman goes as heavy as possible for 10-12 reps per set, and he built his chest primarily with barbell and dumbbell presses.

5 Markus Ruhl

The antithesis to Nubret is Germany’s Ruhl, for there’s nothing artful about Ruhl’s physique. It’s scary big and never more so than when he’s crushing most-musculars and his pecs are redolent of planets colliding.

Ruhl, who has won two IFBB pro shows, relies primarily on machine presses in his current chest training.

4 Bertil Fox

Currently serving a life sentence in prison for double murder, Fox was once one of the world’s best bodybuilders, finishing fifth in the 1983 Mr. Olympia. His pectorals–perhaps the thickest ever–made one wonder if three sets of pecs were grafted, one on top of the other, onto the originals. Fox built them via high volume, heavy weights and basic movements.

3 Lee Haney

Haney and Coleman share the record of eight Mr. Olympia titles. During his Olympia reign (1984-91), few came close to matching the size, shape and striations of Haney’s chest, and he used his pecs in poses such as the most-muscular, front lat spread and even the front double biceps to distinguish himself from his smaller challengers. Heavy pyramided pressing movements were primarily responsible for his pec size.

2 Lou Ferrigno

With size as the number-one criterion, it’s probable that no one before or since could match the chest of the Incredibly Hulking star at his best. His squarish thick-as-pie pecs and deep broad rib cage helped propel Ferrigno to two Mr. Universe titles (1973-74) while in his early 20s, and they were still tough to top when he returned to the Olympia stage in his early 40s.

Ferrigno pyramided his presses and stressed his chest from a variety of angles.

1 Arnold Schwarzenegger

There are a multitude of ways to assess Schwarzenegger California governor, superstar actor, business magnate and seven-time Mr. O but in evaluating his chest in the first half of the ’70s, his pecs were thick, broad and proportionately developed from top to bottom.

He favored relatively high volume, low to moderate reps and free-weight basics.

Top 10 Bodybuilders With The Greatest Pectoral Development

In both the 1974 and 1975 Mr. Olympia contests, four immortal chest masters Arnold Schwarzenegger, Franco Columbu, Serge Nubret and Lou Ferrigno–flexed on the same stage in what were arguably the most pectacular displays in bodybuilding history.

More than 30 years later, while assembling this list of the top 10 male chests of all time, it quickly became apparent that, more than any other bodypart, the standards for pectorals have changed the least over the past three decades.

Today’s typical Olympia competitors walk around on legs far superior to those of previous generations, but the top four finishers at the last Mr. O did not possess markedly better chests than the four legends listed above.

In fact, judging by pectoral size, proportion and details–with a few exceptions–today’s bodybuilding elite have lesser chests than the very best of the ’70s and ’80s. For that reason, only two current competitors made it to our top 10. Present professionals such as Johnnie Jackson and Branch Warren would have made a top 20, but so would lesser knowns from yesteryear such as Josef Grolmus and Tyrone Youngs.

In two words: free weights. Many current champs rely on machines for the bulk of their sets, but most of the pecs on our honor roll were built the old-fashioned way–with flat and incline barbell presses, dumbbell flyes and dips. Time has yet to improve on barbells, dumbbells and parallel bars for constructing a thick, powerful, finished chest.

Photos by Pat Lee

Where does your motivation come from

I have always been a very competitive person and when I set a goal I do whatever it takes to achieve it! My fans are also an inspiration for me to keep going and push myself harder each day.

My ultimate motivation comes from my inner goal to one day become a world famous fitness model and have one of the best physiques in the industry.

How did you get started with bodybuilding

I remember there was a time during my younger years where I wanted to become bigger and stronger so I signed up at the local gym. After a few weeks of intense training I fell in love with bodybuilding and eventually I decided to focus all my attention on building the best body possible.

I have been able to achieve the body I have today thanks to years of consistent dieting and training. The fitness lifestyle has been very rewarding and I have loved every bit of the journey.

Fitness Model Sergi Constance

Sergi Constance model

I was born in Valencia on October 25th, 1988. Since I was a kid I loved sports and practised all kinds of them. I studied at the Santisima Trinidad School in Valencia and my favorite course was Physical Education. Later on, in college, I graduated with the degree in Physical Education and Sports (CAFD) at the Universidad Catolica San Vicente Martir in Valencia. During college I had the chance to work as a model, mainly chosen because of my muscular profile.

Fitness is my passion. I love reading and learning; improving exercise techniques, diet approaches and training tips to achieve a better performance and a superior physique.