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<HR>10. Phil Heath
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While Jay Cutler has the most dominant physique on the planet in today's times, it does not go without saying that a large part of that is because of mass rather than an aesthetically pleasing physique. "The gift", on the other hand, has a near-perfect structure of huge delts, big arms, a tiny waist, and a chiseled midsection . At only 31 years old, Heath is clearly the most talented bodybuilder and even has plenty of room for improvement.
The former D1 Basketball player has transferred his hard work and self discipline into the sport of bodybuilding and has received plenty of accolades. In his rookie debut at the Olympia, he finished an impressive top 3 finish. If not for a stomach virus within 24 hours of the 2009 Olympia, Heath might have won it for coming in with such great conditioning and detail. Looking to rebound off of a 2010 second place finish at the incumbent-heavy Olympia, Heath is looking to take the reign from Jay Cutler to be the next multi-year winner.
<HR>9. Franco Columbu
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"The Sardnian Strongman" really defied genetics in an age where supplements were hard to come across and training methods had to be unconventional to see any kind of sizable gains. Columbu had incredibly large muscle bellies on a small frame with tiny joints. As a reuslt, Columbu won over the bodybuilding world winning two Mr. Olympias even after a devastating knee injury (dislocated during the 1977 World's Strongest Man while carrying a refrigerator on his back).
Anyone who can look this ripped at only around 200 pounds and can move cars and deadlift over 700 pounds has got to be on this list.
Franco Colombu also had a pair of wings on his back that looked like he could fly with them...
<HR>8. Frank Zane
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When referring to leanness, we use the term "Zanelike" in bodybuilding, and as such, anyone who has a name that is synonymous with bodybuilding deserves to crack the top 10 of this list. If there is one person that gym-goers would choose to look like, it would be Frank Zane. At only 190 pounds, he was as aesthetically pleasing to the eye as you can get and didn't look like a grotesque bulky bodybuilder that much of the sport has reckoned with in today's times due to heavy drugs and a overreliance on mass to win bodybuilding titles. Frank Zane had such an incredible physique that he even beat Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1968 IFBB Mr. Universe at a deficit of some 60 pounds. Zane concentrated on stellar lines and attention to detail to beat jaw-dropping mass and was one of the few to ever pull it off. Zane garnered three straight Olympia titles by outconditioning the competition and changed the bodybuilding sport forever, being able to win at only 185 pounds with 18" arms, but a unprecedented 29" waist. If there was ever a guy who had a V-Taper, it was Frank Zane.
Now, who would you rather look like walking down the street?
<HR>7. Ronnie Coleman- 1998 and 1999
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Ronnie Coleman shocked the bodybuilding world in 1998 when 6x Mr. Olympia Dorian Yates retired, Paul Dillett collapsed on stage, and he went on to win his first Olympia title. Coleman emphatically stole the Olympia from Shawn Ray, Nasser El Sonbaty, and Kevin Levrone who were all jockeying for first for years. Ronnie came in huge AND ripped; and Dorian was probably saying to himself "it was a good thing I retired" because Ronnie's size and conditioning up to that point was unmatched.
Ronnie Coleman had it all in the beginning stages of his career including mass and detail, but nothing was more impressive than his back. Even today's Olympia, Jay Cutler, cannot match the size of the muscle bellies and the symmetry that Ronnie displayed in his back.
However, Ronnie Coleman took the mass thing way too far and you can see how his midsection blew out of control towards his latter years. It's a shocker he won the Olympia so many times with dozens of bodybuilders in the mix who displayed massive size, but better cuts. Just take a look at the timeline and you can notice that his most dominant forms were during his first 2 Olympia captures.
<HR>6. Kevin Levrone
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The most underrated bodybuilder of all time, Kevin Levrone had a ridiculous set of arms and delts to match his absolutely chiseled midsection. "The Maryland Muscle Machine" has just fallen short of securing greatness, placing second at the Olympia three times. Levrone is the Renaissance man of bodybuilding only behind Arnold being a lead singer in a band and acting alongside of competing on stage.
<HR>5. Arnold Schwarzenegger
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What is a greatest physique list without Arnold? Anrold has been the face of bodybuilding since he won his first Olympia and won the hearts of the nation over. Arnold's combination of sheer size and muscularity along with his personality landed him as the highest paid action movie star ever and the Governor of California.
However, while a lot of people probably think he should be up higher, Arnold really couldn't compete in today's times from a physical standpoint. His size is outmatched and he is clearly outconditioned by pretty much the entire field of bodybuilding post-1990.
Regardless, Arnold still looks better than most of the bulky/grotesque field and had one of the best physiques consisting of the one beach body we'd like to emulate. Moreover, his personality still makes him the greatest bodybuilder of all time.
<HR>4. Lee Haney
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Before Lee Haney, there was just size or conditioning, but not both. Haney was the first to bring both to the table: groundbreaking muscularity and stellar shape. Yet, the 8 x Mr. Olympia does not receive nearly the amount of recognition he should and that is certainly disappointing. Tipping the scales at 250 pounds, Haney was bigger than all of his competitors, yet walked on stage with an 8 pac and razor sharp cuts every time.
Haney took training to a whole new level to bring in detail never before seen.
Haney has transformed the sport of bodybuilding forever by dominating the field with mass. Many have tried and ultimately failed to match what Haney has accomplised in terms of matching his size and vascularity.
<HR>3. Dexter Jackson
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Dexter Jackson finally got his taste at history winning the Olympia in 2008 after finishing in the top 4 for years on end. Nicknamed "The Blade" for his razor sharp cuts, Dexter Jackson has the deepest set of abs in bodybuilding. He is the most conditioned athlete of all time in this sport, always coming in with razor sharp cuts.
<HR>2. Shawn Ray
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There couldn't be a more fitting name for Shawn Ray than Mr. Symmetry. Shawn Ray defined proportion and balance. It is mind boggling to think he didn't win one Olympia considering he gave fits to not one Olympia but 3 mainstays in Lee Haney, Dorian Yates, and Ronnie Coleman. Shawn Ray's vision to win audiences over with artistic display and proportion lost to the "mass" appeal despite his top 5 place finish in all but one Olympia.
Known for his talkative mouth and open views, Shawn Ray had a career that ranks among the most impressive in bodybuilding's history, but he never was able to place the Sandow on his mantle. He was packed with a ton of muscle mass, enough to rival any competitor, but moved audiences with his symmetry. He was a rare breed in bodybuilding, and one that is even more scarce now.
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1. Flex Wheeler
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The biggest snub of all time, Kenneth "Flex" Wheeler racked up an amazing 17 professional titles yet he never won the Sandow, placing just behind the Olympia champs a total of three times. Knowledgeable bodybuilding fans consider Flex to be the best of the best not only for aesthetic purposes, but also the best there ever was. If you lined up all the pro bodybuilders from all the different eras and put them all in one room, you would be very hard pressed to not pick Flex as having the greatest body. He was everything bodybuilding represented: size and detail with very few weaknesses. In particular, we can look back to his rookie debut in 1993 where he won his first four shows that he entered including a totally impresssive 2nd place finish in his first Olympia.
Flex Wheeler had the best midsection in the game and a chiseled body to go along with it. Flex Wheeler had it all- size, mass, definition, proportion, and symmetry. He was often compared to near-perfect legends Steve Reeves and Bob paris throughout his career, yet obtained a level of muscularity never before seen. It's just a shame that mass has consistently beat out definition at the O. The judges have always been more impressed with mass than perfection. Otherwise, Flex might have been right there with Lee Haney, holding the title for Most Olympias ever won.
