Despite their different training philosophies, Lee Labrada and Branch Warren still reached the top of the IFBB Pro League. On July 24, 2025, they joined hands for a gritty arm workout and discussed the future of the Men’s Open division.
Lee Labrada mastered the art of posing, having presented a near-flawless physique in his prime. Though he never won the Mr. Olympia title, he was an elite competitor who gave titans of the sport like Lee Haney all they could handle onstage. Labrada’s rivals outweighed him by up to 50 pounds, yet that never stopped him from putting together an ironclad legacy.
Branch Warren was also a top-tier bodybuilder who came incredibly close to the Sandow trophy. In 2009, it looked like he had the tools to win, but he had the misfortune of facing off against a motivated and counted-out Jay Cutler.
Bodybuilding Veterans Branch Warren and Lee Labrada Unite for Hardcore Arm Workout
Find the exercise selections below from the YouTube video:
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- Warm up
- Hammer dumbbell curl
- Cable bicep curl
- Barbell curl
- Tricep pushdown
- Bent-over one-arm cable tricep kickback
Hammer dumbbell curl
Labrada discussed how to adjust training as you age to preserve tendon strength and connective tissue.
“You got to know your limits,” shares Labrada. “I’m 65 and you have to think about those things as you get older. You want to work with weights that are not excessively taxing your tendons and your connective tissue. So, work hard, and work heavy but work smart.”
Cable bicep curl
During cable curls, Warren also reflected on how he’s adjusted his training to accommodate his age.
“I think the early days before I had elbow surgeries and everything else, I used to get a full contraction, squeeze, come down, but as you get older, you adapt your training style so you’re not crippled in the morning.”
Barbell curl
Warren opted for 100 pounds on the barbell curl, emphasizing that his training style depends on intensity:
“Remember, it’s not stimulate, it’s annihilate,” said Warren.
Tricep pushdown
Moving through triceps pushdowns, Warren touched on Johnnie Jackson’s strength and discussed how it would compare against a prime Ronnie Coleman.
“Johnnie is stronger [than me], I could out-bench him. Pound-for-pound, but Ronnie poundage-wise could probably outlift him but pound for pound, Johnnie is the strongest. I’ve seen him pull 850 in the gym deadlift, squat over 800 for a double or triple.”
Bent-over one-arm cable tricep kickback
On their last exercise, Labrada and Warren gave their thoughts on their current training frequency.
“If I don’t work out for a week, I feel like a fish out of water. It’s become so habitualized in my life. It’s a virtuous habit,” explains Labrada.
“It becomes just what you do. It’s like getting up in the morning to brush your teeth and get dressed. It’s what you do. The difference is it’s not the priority it was once upon a time, but it’s a part of my life.”
Then, they tackled the current state of the Men’s Open division. For a moment, Warren was worried about the future of the sport because Chris Bumstead was the most popular bodybuilder, not the reigning Mr. Olympia.
“I think we went through a period of time where there was no depth in Men’s Open bodybuilding and for the first time in the history of our sport, the most popular person was not Mr. Olympia, it was Chris Bumstead in Classic. It worried me because the big boys are what make the sport,” he said.
He believes the Open class now has depth that it lacked a few years ago.
“In the past three or four years now, there’s a lot of depth there. You got some good athletes and young guys coming up. You got Samson, Derek, Hadi, Martin, Hunter, Nick, you got these young guys.”
“Do they look like us in the 2000s? No. Did we look like you guys in the ’90s? No,” shared Warren. “I don’t know if that’s for me to say [if the Men’s Open is headed in the wrong direction].”
Between their arm training session and conversation about the Men’s Open, Warren and Labrada continue to watch the sport evolve from their time onstage. Warren believes the newfound depth in the Men’s Open is a promising sign for the division’s future.
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