Written by Giles "Tiger" Thomas

09 June 2020

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The Rise of Ruffin

Steel Supplements' Terrence Ruffin

By Giles Thomas

When the Classic Physique division hit the IFBB Pro League in 2016, I wasn’t shocked when it hit the ground running with its growth and popularity. It had actually been around in the UK and European amateur scene since 2006 – and even in the Arnold Classic Amateur not long after that. So the bodybuilding world was already well aware of its potential and rapid expansion.

The 2017 Mr. Olympia I attended was when I really felt the swell of excitement for the category. Talk of who was who in the category was like never before. That’s when the favorites started to pop up; Chris Bumstead, Breon Ansley and George Peterson were names thrown around in Vegas that week amongst bodybuilding fans, almost as much as Big Ramy, Phil Heath and Shawn Rhoden. That’s when I knew the Classic division had truly arrived. In that Olympia, there were also two other names I was particularly keen to see – and that was the return of Flex Wheeler, only this time as a Classic – and also this amazing 23-year-old called Terrence Ruffin that had seriously caught my watchful eye on social media.

Why?

I remember feeling confusion in the UK; going to the UKBFF British Championships every year, I was always left scratching my head when watching the Classic division. For me, the right guys rarely won and from my perspective it seemed to be judged just like any other bodybuilding class, only this one having a height versus weight restriction. Disappointing. My vision of Classic was literally a retro-rewind to the aesthetic physique art that we saw in the 1970s and 1980s; from the truly classic pros such as Berry de Mey (particularly when he took third at the 1988 Mr. Olympia), from France’s Francis Benfatto (at his best in 1991, IMO) or from Serge Nubret in the mid-1970s to mid-1980s. That, for me, was classic. The angling of the body when all poses were executed, the fluidity of the transitions, the way they moved, all components of what I felt as an observer was in essence a true “classic” physique. Then along came Terrence on Instagram (IG @ruff_diesel), and my interest was instantly piqued. “Now we’re talking,” I said to myself. Along came the 2017 Mr. Olympia and Terrence was in the top six, and still so young. This was encouraging; the true classic guys were getting looked at, fantastic.

2018 and the Posing Routine That Changed the Game

Screen Shot 2020-06-03 at 5.04.41 PM stage shot pose

Terrence, eager to qualify for the 2018 Mr. Olympia, chose the Toronto Pro to qualify at. A huge event and certainly one of the more respected shows in terms of quality and quantity of competitors. Terrence, now 24 and riding high off his top-six finish at the Mr. Olympia eight months previously, was now a little bigger and better. But it wasn’t only his physique that had improved; it was his presentation. Do me a favor please, go and search right now for his posing routine from this contest. Really watch it closely and also read the comments below – minds were blown, the spectators were amazed, and as Arnold said in Pumping Iron, “Now this … is posing.” Ruffin was leveling up, again, and hungry to improve on his top-six finish at the Mr. Olympia. He won in Toronto and his name was added to the Bumsteads, the Breons and the Petersons as someone that was really going to move up in September 2018 at the biggest bodybuilding event in the world.

The Olympia came and surprisingly perhaps, Terrence did a “Ronnie ’97” and slipped from sixth place to ninth. Of course, his posing brought the house down, as we all expected, but the placing wasn’t what HE expected, or wanted. Realizing he brought what the category required in terms of aesthetics, in terms of classic, artistic posing and bringing great conditioning, there was only one final piece of the puzzle that he lacked to move up: size. The other guys were getting bigger, the weight limit of Classic was being bumped up and the lighter, smaller guys like Terrence were struggling to keep up. A new game plan was needed.

2019

Clearly realizing he needed more size to really move up at the Mr. Olympia, Terrence worked out a game plan with his coach and fellow IFBB pro John Meadows. John, much like Terrence, is known for his stage presentation and is well known for paying attention to the finer details of growing muscle. Even after a decisive win at the 2019 Niagara Falls Pro show, they both decided that more size was still needed to really do damage to crack the top five in Las Vegas. The rest of the year he took off. And grew. “If 2019 was the setup, 2020 we’re creating a legacy,” wrote Terrence on his social media. Realizing he had to reach as close to his weight limit for the 2020 Arnold Classic, he went to work.

Arnold Going to See Classic Now

Terrence Ruffin stage shot Weighing in at 174.8 pounds, 0.2 pounds under the 175-pound weight limit for his height, the sacrifice of skipping the 2019 Mr. Olympia proved to be a wise move. Time away from contest prep had allowed him valuable months to add size and really be competitive. Interviewing Terrence at the meet-the-athletes on Thursday, March 5, 2020, just one day before the show itself, I’ll admit I was concerned. The kid looked almost too thick in his clothes, and he seemed almost too relaxed. Was this a good sign? Was that new size or just an out-of-condition Terrence underneath his clothes?

When we asked Terrence after the show about how he felt about his eventual second place, he replied, “We’re happy with compared to how I used to look, and nothing against Alex [Cambranero, first place], but I did think going in that Steve [Laureus, third place] was going to be the guy that would have won, with him placing second the previous year, but I definitely think Alex was worthy of the title. And the love I was shown by the fans after the show was something I’d never seen before. Even a couple of Mr. Olympias reached out to me, which was awesome.”

Next Up, the Olympia and Athleticon – 2020

After such an amazing showing at the Arnold, Terrence was asked what he was going to do differently going into the Mr. Olympia. He replied, “Not too much. I consider the Arnold Classic a great showing and a great prep. I still want my upper body to be bigger and more defined. It’s way better than in 2018, so that just means I need more time.” He adds, “In addition to that I do want to bring up my calves and improve the control of my midsection. For calves I’ll be doing just one exercise a day at the beginning of my workouts, and for abs I’ll be putting in time feeling quality contractions when I pose, and alternating each day between the ab roller and crunches with an ab mat.”

On Training and Living in Quarantine

Being an IFBB pro in training for the Mr. Olympia whilst being on lockdown, how is young Terrence getting by? “I spent maybe 600 or 700 bucks on a home gym and I'm getting by, Giles. The only thing I’m having an issue with is variety, but I just do less exercises but for more sets, so it’s not too bad.”

Much like other pros I’ve spoken with generally and on “MD Global Muscle” on musculardevelopment.com (and on MD’s YouTube account), I asked Terrence about having all this time spent at home and he replied: “This time in isolation has really given me time to reflect and think about the many blessings I have now. I’ve always been a fan of bodybuilding and I realized my story isn’t much different from guys like Phil Heath, Kai Greene and Sergio Oliva Jr., where at a certain point in our bodybuilding we didn’t have much. We sacrificed certain luxuries and we missed out on some events. I can’t tell the future, but what I can say is that oftentimes when things are at their hardest is right before something beautiful happens.”

Screen Shot 2020-06-03 at 5.04.24 PM side by side

On That Arnold Classic Wrap-up

The pressure of expectation can indeed be a double-edged sword. In the Arnold Classic wrap-up video with myself and MD online editor Ron Harris, Ron stated that Terrence had what it took for him to some day win the classic Olympia. I agreed. Why? explained that at 26 years old, Terrence is already in many ways streets ahead of much of his competition: he has pro wins under his belt, a top-six Mr. Olympia (2017) and a runner-up position at the Arnold Classic (2020). And he isn’t even anywhere near 30 years old.

With Ron Harris after the wrap-up, we debated “can physiques get better with no increase in bodyweight?” The general consensus in the sport of bodybuilding is that in order for a physique to improve, the bodyweight has to increase. I don’t believe that to be true. Prime examples I gave were Shawn Ray. From his pro debut at the 1987 Night of Champions to his final pro show, the 2001 Mr. Olympia, his bodyweight remained almost exactly the same. In fact, the one year he did try to come in heavier was in 1991 when he dropped from third (in 1990 in Chicago) to fifth at the 1991 Mr. Olympia in Orlando. As the years progressed, so did Shawn’s physique but his stage bodyweight held nice and steady.

And Lee Priest, when he won the San Francisco Pro, weighed in at his all-time pro lightest of 199 pounds. At the 2003 Mr. Olympia, Lee came in at 220 pounds. His placing? Last.

So there we have it – my point being that even if Terrence Ruffin’s is coming 0.2 of a pound under his maximum allowed stage bodyweight of 175 pounds, he can still improve and refine what could well be a Mr. Olympia-winning look before he’s 30. Astonishing when you consider this young man was in his first Mr. Olympia in his early 20s. Next stop for Terrence? Las Vegas, for the Mr. Olympia this September. We wish him well and into that first callout.

Current Training Split

Delts
• Military Press
• Lying Cuff Raises
• Reverse Pec Dec
• Y Raises [Separate] w/Cable Upright Rows
• Rope Pushdowns

Back, Delts
• Single-arm Pulldowns
• Neutral-grip Rows
• Chest Supported Wide-grip Rows
• Cable Pullovers
• Incline Cable Curls

Chest, Delts
• Incline Press
• Plate-loaded Flat Press
• Pec Dec Superset w/Dips
• Y Raises
• Cross Cable Extensions

REST DAY

Legs
• Seated Leg Curls
• Safety Bar Squats
• Lying Leg Curls
• Hack Squats
• Lunges

Biceps and Triceps
• One-arm Preacher Curls
• Swiss Bar Press
• Cross Cable Pushdowns
• Seated Incline Cable Curls

* One exercise of calves and abs for each training.
* Sets vary depending on recovery (based on caloric intake; in other words, how close to a show Terrence is); typically 1-3 sets.
* Warm-ups: as many as needed, anywhere from 1-4, depending on the exercise.
* Sets usually are between 5-12 reps.