Getbig.com: American Bodybuilding, Fitness and Figure
Getbig Main Boards => Gossip & Opinions => Topic started by: Scimowser on November 30, 2006, 02:23:56 PM
-
Since Ronnies back has gone to shit, is it fair to say Joel; has the best back in the world at this time? His pics in the new edition of MD are astounding, his back for me is unmatched by anyone today
-
word
-
word
I thought he said back? Is there a pic of this guy's back? I know a lot of people are unhappy with Cutler's win, but his back double bi was insane this past olympia. Wide as hell in other poses too.
-
too bad his legs are horrible, like a couple of pencils.
-
his nose is really wide.
-
his nose is really wide.
if you stood next to him you wouldn't even come upto his balls.
-
too bad his legs are horrible, like a couple of pencils.
Yup, came here to same the same thing. Even the 'greatest' back in the world looks silly when propped on top of no legs.
-
he tore both quads severely but apparently hes enlisted Milos to get them up to par. And weve all seen the results of a Milos leg day - for good and bad! ha ha
-
he tore both quads severely but apparently hes enlisted Milos to get them up to par. And weve all seen the results of a Milos leg day - for good and bad! ha ha
yeah i know, those sets of Smith Machine squats with a massive 25 on each side are brutal. ::)
-
Joel Stubbs a better back than Jay Cutler? ???
-
(http://www.versagripps.com/admin/assets/Joel%20Stubbs%20photo%204%20lg.jpg)
(http://www.versagripps.com/admin/assets/Joel%20stubbs%20photo%202%20lg.jpg)
(http://www.versagripps.com/admin/assets/Joel%20Stubbs%20photo%203%20lg.jpg)
A short list of the greatest backs of all time would start with names like Ronnie Coleman, Dorian Yates, Lee Haney and Joel Stubbs. Right now, thousands of readers are spitting out protein shakes and asking, "Who the hell is Joel Stubbs?" Leading up to this year's rendition, the first three men had won the past 21 Mr. Olympia titles--but few bodybuilding fans have even heard of the fourth man, and he may never so much as qualify for the Mr. O, much less compete in it.
Still, when Joel Stubbs made his pro debut at the Europa Super Show September 17 in Arlington, Texas, the combination of width, thickness and neck-to-glutes details in the Bahamian's back astounded even this jaded reporter.
The next morning, FLEX's Kevin Horton photographed Stubbs in the sweltering heat of MetroFlex Gym--using the same equipment that built Coleman's legendary lats--and I found out precisely how Stubbs crafted a back that rivals Big Ron's for world's best.
BACKGROUND | First, let's answer the question that made many of you spray your whey. Standing 6'3" and weighing 305 in the offseason and 278 in his pro debut, Joel Stubbs is a tight fit in his office--the cockpit of a jetliner. Stubbs is a pilot for Bahamasair, dividing his time between his native Nassau and his usual destinations of Miami, Florida, and Atlanta, Georgia. Stubbs played basketball at Florida Technical College and started bodybuilding in 1996. Then, after tearing patellar tendons of both knees on a basketball court, he committed more energy to physique competition, taking the super-heavyweight class of the 2000 Southern States (Marcus Haley won the overall) and securing IFBB pro status by winning the 2003 Central American and Caribbean championships.
"That was the goal I wanted to reach," Stubbs says of that contest. "I was unsure about going on. But I thought why not have some fun in the big league?"
He placed 12th in the 2005 Europa Super Show, hindered by a deficient lower body that was overpowered by his tremendous torso. Stubbs, who turns 38 in December, wants to promote bodybuilding in the Caribbean and see how far he can advance in the "big league," but his primary workplace remains the skies.
BACKTALK | When asked why his back is so outstanding, Stubbs gives the reply of a man who, for obvious physiological reasons, doesn't have a view of himself like the rest of us do--he can't honestly assess that bodypart of his, which is truly a bodybuilding wonder. Fact is, he believes his chest is on par with his back. That's not quite the case, but in any event, we had to delve deeper into just how he crafted his titanic rear view.
Stubbs clearly has a genetic proclivity for back musculature, but he also takes the same rigidly technical approach to his training that he does to landing an airliner. If there's a secret, it lies in the fact that he doesn't merely rep out rows and chins, but he carefully focuses each exercise on specific areas. "The back is a complex muscle group," he explains, "so I concentrate on details and on how the muscles tie together."
He alternates two back workouts. The first, his heavy day, includes more power movements, with pyramided sets for as few as six reps. The second, his light day, includes sets that go up to 15 reps. Most of the year, the gentlemanly islander does a heavy day one week and a light day the next week, but for the final month before a contest, he trains back twice per week.
Six sets of chins, performed in three different styles, remain a constant in both workouts, as does the precise way the wide-bodied jet-flier targets lifts to specific areas of his spacious back. He explains his approach to each exercise.
* Chins "I like doing chins first and with different grips, because this really warms up the various back muscles and stretches them out. When I change my hand positions, I feel different muscles working in different ways. I feel more of my upper lats and rear delts working with the wide forward [overhand] grip.
"With the hammer [palms facing each other] grip, I feel more of the traps tying into the rhomboid area. With the reverse [underhand] grip, I feel more of my rhomboids and the lower part of the lats."
* Deadlifts "Deadlifts are best for lower and midback thickness, all up the lumbar region, from the bottom of the back to the lower traps. I pyramid five or six sets. I start with one plate per side [135 pounds], and every set I go heavier, working all the way up to seven plates per side [675 pounds] for six reps."
* Barbell rows "I pyramid up, starting with one plate per side [135 pounds] for 15 reps and going to three plates per side [315 pounds] for eight to 10 reps. I usually alternate my sets, going underhand for one and overhand for the next. Sometimes I do two overhand and two underhand, sometimes three of each. I feel barbell rows in my upper back and middle back, getting a little better squeeze underhand and a little better stretch overhand. The important thing is to use a weight that's heavy enough to make you really work, but not so heavy that you can't feel the back muscles contracting."
-
His conditioning in the FIRST pic is equal to Cutlers...on Cutlers best days. Well...maybe not. In the first pic Joel is waaaay more vascular.
-
Joel Stubbs a better back than Jay Cutler? ???
without question
-
without question
I am a Cutler fan, but I think I agree with you. That middle pic of him standing relaxed is incredible. If his legs are as lacking as you guys say they are, 675 for 6 on the deadlifts is that much more impressive to me.
-
hahaha, the dreaded "weight belt photo." hahaha
-
Definetely better than Ronnie's back nowaday's but Jay's I'm not sure. Jay's might be thicker.
Now who wants to start a 600 page thread comparing Ronnie, Joel and Dorian's backs? ;D
I give it to Ronald.
-
Excellent back & delts. The calves & hamstrings of a high school cheerleader.
-
Dorian has a better back and so does Ronnie at his best.
-
back is fantastic, shoulders are good, glutes are even striated.....He really just needs to bring the quads up, his whole posterior chain is nice!
I think he can do damage if he can bring those wheels up, because he can put a TON more size on them.
-
Joel's rear lat spread is fucking sick !!!!
-
victor martinez. easy.
-
victor martinez. easy.
Victor's is huge but I would say Stubbs has a huge and complete back, It just looks better then Victor's and at 6'3 would easily dwarf him in a side by side comparision of backs.
-
He's got a very good back and seeing as that wins a lot of points in the mandatories then he's in gretsa shape to win most bodybuilding contests he enters.
But at 6'3'' his legs are always going to be his achilles heel and I can't see him bringing them up to his upper body even at this stage in his career. He'll be lucky if he ever cracks top ten at the Olympia.
-
its not about his legs, or how he fares against a prime dorian and ronnie. Its about does he have the best back NOW!
-
In that case the answer's no, he doesn't have the best back now. I would say Jay's is still a tad better.
-
He doesn't have the muscle maturity/density of the other guys we're talking about but there's no doubt he can be on par and better than the best back in bodybuliding. He's also ridiculously wide by the looks of it.
-
Looks great next to other big men like Quincy Taylor
(http://www.fitnesspont.hu/mass-shop/picture_gallery/Europa_Super_Show/2006/Europa_Super_Show_2006_058.jpg)
Huge
(http://www.fitnesspont.hu/mass-shop/picture_gallery/Joel_Stubbs/Joel_Stubbs_005.jpg)
-
His BDB lets him down. Awesome back otherwise!
-
His back is f'n ridiculous, plain and simple. Incredible width! His relaxed is the best, the muscles just hang down. Hope he can bring up his legs (especially quads) with the injuries. If anyone can help him, its Milos.
-
In that case the answer's no, he doesn't have the best back now. I would say Jay's is still a tad better.
perhaps ifyou measure the distance between the peek of each lat Jay has the advantage... but in every oher catagory that matters Joel houses jay....as far as there backs are concerned... jay might be as thick but thickness means nothing without seperation, jay has horrible back seperation, joels is near flawless
-
Joel has a great back. Possibly the best back now. Here are some pics of Ronnie's back
-
Don't leave out Orville Burke as having one of the best backs.
(http://img49.exs.cx/img49/935/orville15mw.gif)
-
that last one has to be ernie taylor. look at the tris.
-
that last one has to be ernie taylor. look at the tris.
MAybe - but the pics I saw were all in a row (different shots of the same guy). I don't think ernie ever had a back to brag about...
-
MAybe - but the pics I saw were all in a row (different shots of the same guy). I don't think ernie ever had a back to brag about...
Ernie had a pretty decent back with high lats, the calves give it away it has to Ernie in that pic.
(http://www.fitnesspont.hu/mass-shop/picture_gallery/Arnold_Classic/2004/Arnold_Classic_2004_339.jpg)
(http://www.fitnesspont.hu/mass-shop/picture_gallery/Mr_Olympia/2002/Mr.Olympia_148.jpg)
(http://www.fitnesspont.hu/mass-shop/picture_gallery/San_Francisco_Pro/2002/San_Francisco_Pro_005.jpg)
-
Ernie had a pretty decent back with high lats, the calves give it away it has to Ernie in that pic.
(http://www.fitnesspont.hu/mass-shop/picture_gallery/Arnold_Classic/2004/Arnold_Classic_2004_339.jpg)
(http://www.fitnesspont.hu/mass-shop/picture_gallery/Mr_Olympia/2002/Mr.Olympia_148.jpg)
(http://www.fitnesspont.hu/mass-shop/picture_gallery/San_Francisco_Pro/2002/San_Francisco_Pro_005.jpg)
I admit - I think that last one of mine is ET. Good call.
-
Very hard to say. Noone ever heard of Stubbs a couple of years ago. So, I am sure there are other guys out there with amazing backs, too. Without the total package, he/they will never win the big shows. Thus, we may never know of them.
-
word
Vince G looks better.
-
E.T's Tris Are fucking HUGE! From the back. As for his back I like that one too. Dude is what like 6,4? His whole body jumpes out but is ugly.
As for Stubbs. FUCKING WOW!
What Alex would say " From the Back for days, My Ass for Weeks" Quote on Quote.
-
(http://zedcornellius.homestead.com/files/orville_burke_jay_cutler_2001mro_prejudging_0008.jpg) :P
-
big Trevor Smith
-
Is his name not Trevor Crouch (Great Britain) ?
-
the problem with Stubbs is that his arms look tiny mext to his back.
-
fuck, yeah wrong name! ha ha ha My excuse is im still at work and absolutely fucked!!! thanx for the correction bud
-
too bad his legs are horrible, like a couple of pencils.
Exactly. Too bad he's 6'3". BB world doesn't like giants. For some reason their upper body so far up in the air makes comparaison difficult.
No way he can fill that frame either. Quick calculation he would have to be 320 to be complete à la Ronnie.
-
Exactly. Too bad he's 6'3". BB world doesn't like giants. For some reason their upper body so far up in the air makes comparaison difficult.
No way he can fill that frame either. Quick calculation he would have to be 320 to be complete à la Ronnie.
more like 350, the guy is 6'3"
-
(http://zedcornellius.homestead.com/files/orville_burke_jay_cutler_2001mro_prejudging_0008.jpg) :P
Was this 2001?
-
Was this 2001?
Yup !
-
best back right now...yeah, probably. Ronnie ain't what he used to be. I like how Jay's improved his in the last few years but Joel's back is pretty unreal. Shame his legs are all f'd up.
-
Yes the guy is just huge!
Joel Stubbs was at the NPC 2006 Excalibur Bodybuilding and Figure Championship yesterday in Culver City CA. I posted some photos this morning on my blog at BodyBuilding.com...
http://blog.bodybuilding.com/SecondFocus