Lutch Green
5 World's Most Extreme Bodybuilders
Gregg Valentino
Gregg Valentino is one of the most controversial yet popular bodybuilding icons, considered by some as the biggest bodybuilder ever.
He started bodybuilding at the age of 13. After over 23 years of training naturally Gregg decided to experiment with steroids.
During this time his arms grew from an impressive 100% natural 21″ to an in-human 28″. He was, at one point,
the man with the largest arms in the world. But after years of steroids injections, his bicep exploded.
Administering all of those injections took its toll on Valentino and he developed a hematoma in his right arm that started leaking pus.
This caused a bad fever and the arm blew up like a balloon filled with pus, like a giant zit. He decided
to drain the haematoma by himself. He set about stabbing the arm with a syringe to draw the pus out.
After 20 minutes of self-mutilation and two tumblers of coagulated blood and gore, Gregg ended up
in emergency surgery, and all his body-building efforts disappeared under the surgeon’s knife.
Markus Rühl
Born in 1972, Markus Rühl also known as “The German Nightmare,” began bodybuilding in 1991 at the age of 19 after sustaining a knee injury playing soccer.
The then 140 pound German-born Rühl started lifting and after five years, finally competed in his first competition – over 100 pounds heavier, at 243 pounds.
He is well known for his freakish size. He possesses some of the biggest shoulders in bodybuilding
history and is one of the strongest bodybuilders alive along with Johnnie O. Jackson and Ronnie Coleman.
He won the heavyweight and overall title at his first competition, the Bachgau Cup, and began a long career of bodybuilding.
He soon received his pro card, continued packing on additional muscle mass, and simply grew and grew his amazing physique.
Ronnie Coleman
Born May 13, 1964, in Bastrop, Louisiana, Ronnie Coleman is a retired American professional bodybuilder who shares the record of eight straight wins as Mr. Olympia.
He also holds the record for most wins as an IFBB professional with 26 wins. Coleman graduated Cum Laude from Grambling State University with a degree in accounting.
He has a contest weight of about 300 pounds, something that not many bodybuilders achieve. Coleman got
his start as a football player, initially working out so he could be more impressive on the field.
He immediately impressed at his first competition in 1990 and soon began dominating
the bodybuilding world, earning his IFBB Pro card as well as countless titles.
Phillip Heath
Born on December, 1979, Phillip "Phil" Heath also known as "The Gift" is an American IFBB professional bodybuilder and the current Mr. Olympia.
Heath was born and raised in Seattle, Washington, and attended Rainier Beach High School, where he played shooting guard on the varsity basketball team.
He earned a basketball scholarship to the University of Denver. While he loved basketball, he was looking
for his next challenge, and it was only after university that he found the world of bodybuilding in 2002.
He pushed his body from 185 pounds to 215 pounds of pure muscle, before cutting down to
192 pounds for his first competition, The Rocky Mountain NPC USA Championship “Northern.”
Heath won – quite the way to start out his career. He trained harder, got even bigger, and eventually
racked up a whole slew of other titles, including his IFBB Pro card and four Mr. Olympia wins.
Greg Kovacs
Gregory Mark Kovacs was a Canadian IFBB professional bodybuilder who was born on December 16, 1968, in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada.
He studied electrical engineering for one year at college, played hockey and soccer before concentrating on his bodybuilding pursuits.
Deemed to be the strongest and most massive bodybuilder in the world, Greg
Kovacs achieved an off-season weight of 420 lbs, with a height of 6'4".
His arms measured 25 inches, his chest 70 inches, and his legs a colossal 35 inches. He has been reported
to have developed over 27-inch arms in the prime of his career. Kovacs earned his IFBB Pro Card in 1996.
Greg Kovacs died November 22, 2013, at the very young age of 44. He suffered a catastrophic heart
attack; the most common cause of death among steroid users including bodybuilders and wrestlers.