Andreas Cahling – Complete Profile: Height, Workout And Diet

Andreas Cahling is a Swedish-American wrestler and bodybuilder who competed in the IFBB Pro League. Cahling primarily competed in the 1970s and 1980s era of bodybuilding but continued to participate in competitions until as recently as the 2010s.

He is best known for winning the 1980 IFBB Mr. World title and for maintaining a great physique well past 70 years of age. This article explores the complete profile, biography, workout routine, and diet as well as statistics.

Andreas Cahling

Born: November 19, 1952
Birthplace: Uddevalla, SWEDEN
Residence: Oceanside, California, USA
Nickname: The Viking, The Golden Viking, Andy
Height: 5′ 8″ (175 cm)
Competition Weight: 190 lbs (87 kg)

Andreas Cahling Biography

Andreas Cahling was born in 1952 in Sweden. Wrestling was the first sport of his choice while growing up and he started competing in different forms of wrestling in his early years. To gain strength for wrestling, Cahling started weight training as early as 11 years of age and eventually grew a passion for bodybuilding.

Cahling moved to Japan when he was 17 years old where he participated in several elite regional wrestling competitions. But after his love for bodybuilding grew, the 72-year-old moved back to Sweden and eventually transitioned to Venice Beach, California – the Mecca of bodybuilding.

Cahling started training at the Gold’s Gym in Venice Beach, California, and working alongside some of the greatest Golden Era bodybuilders significantly contributed to his growth as a bodybuilder.

Bodybuilding Career

Andreas Cahling made his bodybuilding debut with a first-place finish at the 1976 Mr. Venice Beach California. He next competed at the 1977 IFBB Mr. World and walked away with a second-place finish.

At the 1978 IFBB World Amateur Championships, the veteran bodybuilder achieved a fifth-place finish and continued to be a successful competitor in the following years.

His win at the 1980 IFBB Mr. International proved to be Cahling’s best competitive appearance but his activity level significantly decreased afterward. Cahling last competed at the 2012 IFBB Master’s Olympia and called it a career with a 16th-place finish at the show.

Cahling also tried his hand at acting and appeared as Thor in the martial arts movie Kung Fury.

Life after retirement

In the 1990s, when Andreas Cahling was not officially retired but was not competing actively, he developed a tumor that was growing closer to his brain. It affected his facial nerves which controlled his expressions and his sense of hearing. The veteran bodybuilder had it removed surgically and it caused one side of his face to look different than before.

However, he made a complete recovery and continues to train hard and live a healthy life. He routinely appears on public platforms and teaches the importance of a healthy lifestyle to younger generations.

His articles on training and nutrition have also been featured in FLEX magazine, Muscle & Fitness and others too numerous to mention. Also, Andreas Cahling designed his first posing suit over 25 years ago. The craftsmanship and excellent fit soon made his posing suits highly sought-after by professional bodybuilders.

Thoughts on modern bodybuilding

Andreas Cahling belongs to an era of bodybuilding when shape, proportions, symmetry, and muscle definition were more valued than monstrous size. However, times have changed and size has become one of the, if not the most important criteria for winning the competitions.

While most yesteryear bodybuilders criticize this change, Cahling looks at it differently. Cahling believes that bodybuilders are doing everything that can increase their chances of achieving competitive success.

“You have to understand that these guys are pushing in all directions and they’re trying to deliver what they see is bringing home the gold on stage. You want to be winning the shows.”

However, he agrees that sometimes bodybuilders grow so much that their physiques no longer look anatomically harmonious.

Competition History

2012

• IFBB Masters Olympia & Pro World – 16th place

2011

• IFBB Pro World Masters Championships – 13th place

1993

• Niagra Falls Pro – 18th place
• Chicago Pro – 20th place
• Pittsburgh Pro NP

1990

• Niagra Falls Pro – 4th place

1984

• World Pro – 6th place

1981

• Grand Prix Canada – 6th place
• World Grand Prix – 6th place

1980

• IFBB Mr. International – 1st place

1979

• European Men’s Championships – 3rd place
• Mr. International – 2nd place

1978

• Mr. International – 6th place
• World Amateur Championships – 5th place

1977

• Mr. World – 2nd place

1976

• Mr. Venice Beach – 1st place

Andreas Cahling Workout

Throughout his bodybuilding career, Andreas Cahling has been known for being a mentally strong individual. It is because of his mental fortitude that Cahling was able to maintain discipline and ignore the distractions to stay the course. A combination of these factors helped him follow an arduous training routine that sculpted his physique.

As he has aged, Cahling has reduced the training volume significantly and focused more on the quality of workouts. Healing from injuries can be a long and cumbersome process for older individuals. As a result, Cahling is careful about performing exercises with proper technique, form, and ideal weight to minimize the risk of injuries.

Speaking about his experience of reduced training volume, Cahling often says:

“If I had known back then what I know now, I would have trained less, eaten more and rested more, absolutely.”

Cahling’s training routine at the moment is organically evolved. He does not train for a specific number of days or does not follow a fixed training split all year long. But generally, He dedicates a separate training session for the chest, back, legs, arms, and shoulders. Depending upon the immediate goals, Cahling combines different muscle groups in the same workout.

“But if I really feel like I want to leave it all, I would actually do two or three workouts every day with very brief and short sessions.”

Training methods

Cahling has no rigid rules for the number of sets or rep range. However, he can aim to perform anywhere between 6 to 8 and 15 to 18 reps per set based on the target muscles. For smaller muscles like arms and calves, Cahling prefers higher rep range with lighter weights. He increases the weight and reduces the rep range for bigger muscles like back and legs.

However, he is careful to perform cardio every day and believes that the benefits of cardio exercises go far beyond mere calorie burning and fat loss. During his competitive bodybuilding days, the veteran bodybuilder performed about 10 minutes of cardio every day. He has now increased it to a minimum of 20 to 30 minutes of cardio daily.

Other than weight training, Cahling often does cycling, dancing, balance training, and dancing to maintain physical as well as mental health.

Following are Cahling’s preferred exercises for each muscle group:

Chest

• Bench Press
• Incline Dumbbell Press
• Machine Chest Press
• Smith Machine Incline Bench Press
• Cable Chest Flyes
• Incline Dumbbell Chest Flyes
• Cable Crossovers

Back

• Dead Hangs
• Lat Pulldown variations – medium grip, close neutral grip, reverse grip, behind-the-neck lat pulldowns
• Bent Over Dumbbell Rows
• Low Rows
• Seated Cable Rows
• Deadlifts
• Rack Pulls

Arms

• Dumbbell Curls
• Barbell Curls
• Dumbbell Preacher Curls
• Barbell Preacher Curls
• Lying Cable Biceps Curls
• Dumbbell Concentration Curls
• Lying Dumbbell Triceps Extensions
• Crossover Cable Triceps Extensions
• Cable Triceps Pushdowns
• Dumbbell Wrist Curls
• Reverse-Grip Dumbbell Wrist Curls
• Chin-Ups

Shoulders

• Barbell Front Raises
• Dumbbell Shoulder Press
• Machine Shoulder Press
• Dumbbell Lateral Raises
• Cable Lateral Raises
• Reverse Pec Deck Flyes

Legs

• Leg Extensions
• Barbell Step-ups
• Hack Squats
• Barbell Squats
• Leg Press
• Lying Leg Curls
• Stiff-Leg Deadlifts

Abs

• Hanging Leg Raises

(The exercises mentioned above are Andreas Cahlig’s preferred exercises for each muscle group based on his comments in several videos on his YouTube channel. However, the order of exercises and combination should not be mistaken as a fixed training routine for each muscle group as it may vary.)

Andreas Cahling Diet

Andreas Cahling follows a few simple rules when it comes to dieting. Primarily, he adheres to eating healthy foods that he enjoys. Cahling does not eat foods only for their perceived benefits. It is essential to follow a strict diet for long periods to make meaningful gains and eating foods you don’t enjoy can make it extremely difficult. He also says:

“I’m quite disciplined and in control with my food intake without really making an effort. Ut just does not make sense to eat something that I, from experience, know that does not feel so good in an hour, two or three later or even the next day.”

While he still falls victim to the needs of his tastebuds sometimes, those instances are extremely rare. For the most part, Cahling includes organic whole foods in his diet and stays away from processed high-calorie foods that lack nutritional value.

Cahling believes that food choices can make a significant difference in maintaining performance and longevity, especially as you age. According to him, aging-related joint stiffness is one of the major hindrances in your performance longevity, and eating organic whole foods can make a ‘night and day’ difference in how you feel.

Health scare and subsequent diet changes

After suffering from a serious case of tumor that affected his hearing and the ability to control facial nerves in the late 1990s, Cahling became increasingly curious about learning how he could keep deadly diseases at bay.

He realized that maintaining an alkaline environment in the body is one of the most effective ways to avoid getting tumors or diseases. To achieve this, Cahling uses supplements as well as alkaline water, and spring water for hydration. He said:

“Supposedly, and I believe it’s true, most diseases do not do well in an alkaline environment such as cancer and tumors that supposedly will have a very hard time growing in an alkaline environment.”

To Conclude…

Andreas Cahling embodies the spirit of healthy living and performance longevity. Not only does he strive to gain better understanding of his body to be able to do the things he loves, but he also spreads the message of health and longevity to the rest of the world. He does this by practicing what he preaches, something that we can all learn to implement in our lives.

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