Chris Bumstead and Ramon Rocha Queiroz are fierce competitors on stage but they have a cordial and cooperative relationship when they are not competing on stage. The duo recently joined hands for an intense back workout to push each other in the gym and achieve their bodybuilding goals.
Chris Bumstead and Ramon Rocha Queiroz are two of the most elite competitive bodybuilders. They compete in the IFBB Pro League’s Classic Physique division and have established their dominance over the division with consistent top finishes.
Canada’s Bumstead dethroned his predecessor Breon Ansley to become the Classic Physique Olympia champion in 2019. He has defended the top spot four consecutive times from 2020 to 2023.
The 28-year-old overcame many difficult situations to stay ahead of the division that includes elite bodybuilders like Urs Kalecinski, Breon Ansley, Terrance Ruffin, and of course, Ramon Rocha Queiroz.
Although CBum is planning to hang up the posing trunks soon, he is leaving no stone unturned to continue with his winning ways. He is structuring his training and diet to have an edge over the competition.
Meanwhile, Queiroz is a Brazilian competitor that rose to the ranks quickly to become a formidable challenge to Bumstead’s top spot. The 28-year-old made his Olympia debut in 2021, surging right into the top five. He firmly held the runner-up spot in the 2022 and the 2023 Olympia, falling short of defeating Bumstead by slight margins.
While Queiroz is getting ready to defend the Arnold Classic title in 2024, Bumstead is in the middle of his 2024 off-season training.
Chris Bumstead and Ramon Rocha Queiroz go through a back workout
Chris Bumstead recently joined Ramon Rocha Queiroz in the gym for a joint training session. Since Queiroz is preparing for the show, CBum asked him to choose the muscle group for the workout and helped him go through it.
Lat Pulldown on Iso-Lateral Machine
Bumstead and Queiroz commenced the workout with lat pulldown on an iso-lateral machine. Both arms of these machines are attached to separate weight stacks and move independently. This helps remove strength imbalances.
Lat pulldowns primarily target the latissimus dorsi muscles in the back and help build a wide back. Bumstead utilized slow eccentric reps to do this exercise. This technique helps increase the time under tension, bringing about hypertrophy more effectively.
A few sets of the movement followed and the duo moved on to the next exercise.
Lat Pulldown
The duo next performed the standard cable lat pulldowns and advanced to horizontal pulling movements.
Iso-Lateral Rows
While vertical pulling movements like lat pulldown help build a wide back, horizontal pulling exercises like seated rows or bent-over rows impart thickness. As a result, including both types of exercises is consequential for complete back development.
Bumstead and Queiroz next performed straight back rows on an iso-lateral machine. This compound exercise builds muscles and strength in the upper posterior chain which includes all the back muscles like rhomboids, trapezius, latissimus dorsi, and erector spinae.
Both men executed a few good sets of the exercise. They utilized a full range of motion but stopped short of full elbow flexion to avoid taking the tension off the muscles. Following this, the duo took up another horizontal pulling movement.
Machine Bent Over Rows
Bent over row is one of the most important strength and mass-building compound back exercises. It targets the teres, posterior deltoids, and infraspinatus among other major back muscles like rhomboids, latissimus dorsi, and trapezius, making it an effective complete back-builder.
Iso-Lateral Low Rows
Working from different angles and positions is essential to emphasize different parts of the muscle for well-rounded development. Low rows enable doing this as the line of movement is different from the traditional seated rows.
Bumstead and Queiroz performed a few sets of the exercise to add more stimulus to the back muscles. They did the last set to mechanical failure and added a few forced reps to reach complete muscle failure.
Straight Arm Lat Pulldown
Most of the effective back exercises are compound movements that involve simultaneous flexion of multiple muscles and joints. However, the straight arm lat pulldown is one of the few beneficial isolation movements that deserve a place in the back training routine.
Additionally, it is one of the great finishers to the back routine and the Classic Physique bodybuilders called it a day after a few sets of straight arm lat pulldown using a rope attachment.
Overall, the workout included the following exercises:
- Lat Pulldown on Iso-Lateral Machine
- Lat Pulldown
- Iso-Lateral Rows
- Machine Bent Over Rows
- Iso-Lateral Low Rows
- Straight Arm Lat Pulldown
Bumstead and Queiroz will compete against each other at the 2024 Olympia. There will be nothing but competitive spirit once they step on stage. However, until then, there will be no animosity.
Watch the full workout video below, courtesy of Ramon Rocha Queiroz’s personal YouTube channel:
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