Classic Physique competitor Terrence Ruffin has one of the most beautiful physiques in the world. He showcased it through his routine of artistic poses, achieved his second straight Olympia, and his two wins in 2021 and his 2022 Arnold Classic. Watching Ruffin transition effortlessly from pose to pose reminds me of bodybuilding greats Craig Monson and Ed He Korney.
Ruffin’s stage success is largely due to the tight conditioning of his X-frame physique. In his YouTube video, published Oct. 30, 2022, Ruffin did a leg workout with wellness athlete and recent IFBB pro Tiffany Sam. Check it out below.
warm up
Ruffin did several sets of resistance band exercises before hitting the weights to properly warm up the joints to prevent injury. After this, both athletes completed several sets of seated hamstring curls and squats with just a barbell.
Ruffin’s coach Joe Bennett explained that it’s beneficial to pause and physically reset at the beginning of each repetition during the warm-up set. This ensures that each rep can move through the full range of motion.
Superset: Seated Hamstring Curl & York Bar Squat
Ruffin and Sam started with five to six supersets of seated hamstring curls and yoke bar squats with raised heels. Most people have a high quadriceps-to-hamstring ratio, so you can often improve your hamstrings.
The benefit of a raised yoke bar is less strain on the knees and lower back. Raising your heels will bias your quadriceps.
[Related: Jeremy Buendia Announces Allen Watkins As His Coach for the 2023 Olympia]
leg press
Leg press was second for Ruffin and Sam. Ruffin tackled up to seven 45-pound weight plates on each side in sets of six before dropping a pair of plates for back offset. failed.
The two bodybuilders were mindful of moving throughout their range of motion, even on heavier sets that focused on controlled eccentrics. Ruffin typically tailors his workouts based on sensations so that he can feel the stimulation in his target muscles.
Lying Hamstring Curl & Smith Machine Split Squat
Coming back to the hamstrings, Ruffin and Sam did leg curls for a few sets of high reps. They squeezed at the top of each rep and ran a slow negative. They both utilized assisted reps near the end of the final set.
You cannot walk and lift the maximum load.
Sam recorded several single-leg Smith Machine split squats on one quad and used a foam roller to lift the unused leg. Unilateral quadriceps development may resolve muscle imbalances.Ruffin encouraged Sam to reach mechanical failure, but she seems to avoid it. It looked like Ruffin had her tuck on her set for an extended drop because she thought it might be hindering her progress.
[Related: Nick Walker and Mike O’Hearn on the Importance of Mindset During Competition Prep]
leg workout
Below are each of the moves Ruffin and Sam made on the day of the leg.
- Superset: Seated Hamstring Curl & York Bar Squat
- leg press
- lying hamstring curl
- smith machine split squat
Ruffin walked the cameraman through the leg flexing methodology while explaining how to flex all the quadriceps muscles on stage. He said at least he 40% of bodybuilders don’t know how to bend their legs properly.
Ruffin was just over six weeks away from the 2022 Olympias when the video was released. The details of his physique seem to be showing up steadily as he tries to build his best package yet. We will see if they are lined up in the
Featured Image: @ruff_diesel and @teffanysam on Instagram
