Franco Columbu Workout Review

We live in a day and age that is ridden with instant gratification.

Never is the need for immediate results more keenly felt than in the fitness industry.

Our social media feeds are laden with products and routines promising quick results.

In fact:

A day doesn’t pass where I’ve yet to encounter a faceless avatar online who still believes protein supplements are some sort of magic potion that will yield unprecedented muscle mass without having to lift weights.

For many, anything requiring time, effort and patience is shunned in favour of shiny fads, shortcuts or ‘hacks’.

When it comes to building championship winning physiques, we’ve covered numerous bodybuilding legends including Larry Scott, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Frank Zane who have gone on to demonstrate that mass, symmetry, strength and aesthetics can all co-exist on one frame.

This isn’t something you can easily do in a ‘6-week summer sizzler hypertrophy program’ being flogged by the average juiced up influencer on Instagram.

However,

One man, who arguably might have been one of the strongest men to ever live, lifting cars, bending steel bars and running whilst carrying a fridge on his back epitomised the hard work, consistency and patience needed to develop a physique all blokes who enter any gym aspire to.

That man was none other than Franco Columbu.

In this post we’ll be covering two workout routines outlined in his book: ‘Winning Bodybuidling’.

Let’s get into it.

Who is Franco Columbu?

Franco Columbu was born in Sardinia, Italy on August 7th, 1941.

A son to shepherds, Columbu was of scrawny stature and would often get into scraps with kids from his local village growing up.

As such, Columbu would later take up boxing and discover a real talent for it.

In an interview with the Miami Herald in 1982, Columbu explained:

“I was always skinny until I was 11, I got beat up a lot. Then one day, I started beating people up. Nobody could touch me.”

Not one to shy away from attention, in his book ‘Coming on Strong’, Columbu reflects:

“As soon as it dawned on me that people noticed me when I competed, I made a point to become good at it.”

He continued to work as a shepherd and a bricklayer in his village, dreaming of fame through boxing whilst training at a gym which was 10 mile bike ride from where he lived.

Columbu developed significant strength and speed to defeat some early opponents, but decided to leave his native Italy to train in Munich, Germany, winning more than 30 amateur fights before quitting boxing altogether in pursuit of weightlifting and bodybuilding.

It wasn’t until Columbu moved to Germany that he met Arnold Schwarzenegger at a bodybuilding competition in Munich in 1965.

From there, Columbu would go on to form a lifelong friendship with Schwarzenegger who would both frequently train and compete with one another.

Check out the below video of Columbu and Schwarzenegger in a head-to-head posedown during the 1975 Mr. Olympia competition:

The pair would later move to California during differing times in the late 60s, both taken under the wing of Joe Weider (founder of IFBB and the editor of several bodybuilding and fitness-related magazines) who would give them each a weekly allowance to train at Gold’s Gym in Venice Beach.

However,

The stipend from Joe Weider wasn’t enough to sustain them, so both Columbu and Schwarzenegger would go on to form a bricklaying business in order to make ends meet.

This also meant that they could still get a good workout and tan in the sun when they weren’t training in the gym.

Despite only standing at 5 foot 5 inches with a competition weight of 84kg (185lbs), Columbu’s feats of strength were simply mind-blowing.

Some of his personal powerlifting records included being able to clean and jerk with 400lbs (181 kg), perform a bench press with 525lbs (238 kg), squat with 655lbs (297 kg) and execute a deadlift with 750lbs (340 kg).

He could also burst a hot water bottle by blowing into it in 55 seconds which he was entered into the Guinness Book of Records for.

If that wasn’t enough,

He also featured in the inaugural ‘World’s Strongest Man’ competition in 1977, but only managed fifth place.

Some of his notable bodybuilding successes were placing first in the lightweight division of both the 1974 and 1975 Mr. Olympia competitions, before winning the competition overall (with the removal of weight classes) in both 1976 and 1981.

Overview

Franco Columbu’s Intermediate Workout

Columbu’s intermediate workout is aimed at those with some weightlifting experience as well as athletes competing in sports who are in ‘better than average’ shape.

The intermediate workout should be performed at least 3 times a week on consecutive days.

Columbu recommended the following order to train each muscle as follows:

• Calves

• Quadriceps

• Hamstrings

• Lats (mid and upper back)

• Lower back

• Pectorals (chest)

• Deltoids

• Biceps

• Triceps

• Forearms

• Abdominals

The effectiveness of this programme lies in its high repetitions (15 – 20) in order to build size, power and speed spread across 21 different exercises.

This includes 3 exercises for the back, legs and abdomen and 2 for every other body part.

Because this routine is a full body workout, it is a great plan to follow if you’re strapped for time but still want to build muscle as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Undoubtedly, if you are an intermediate lifter, it won’t take long until you start seeing some noticeable results.

Performing full body workouts are great way to burn through a lot of calories meaning that not only will you build muscle, power and speed, but you’ll also drop a few percentage points in body fat.

Additionally, full body workouts were the preferred training method of many of the pre-steroid greats including Steve Reeves, so you can train with the assurance that you will be sculpting a completely balanced physique.

On the surface, whilst Columbu’s intermediate workout seems rather simplistic to those with more experience, performing around 1,400 reps in a single training session will test anyone mentally so this routine is not to be sniffed at.

Franco Columbu’s Advanced Workout

Columbu’s advanced workout is targeted at serious bodybuilders and not only for those looking to compete on stage.

Each workout has been specifically formulated to target each muscle group for maximum hypertrophy, but for also shape and symmetry to build a traditional ‘golden era’ physique.

The advanced workout consists of 2 workouts performed 3 times a week for a total of 6 consecutive days with Sundays reserved for rest.

The training plan is split into the following:

• Back, Legs and Abs

• Chest, Shoulders, Arms and Abs

Whilst there are only two splits in this programme, don’t be fooled. Columbu was a notoriously hard-worker and would often go to leaps and bounds to truly challenge himself

In particular:

Much like Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Blueprint to Mass and Blueprint to Cut routines, Columbu’s advanced workout incorporates muscle building principles including supersets, tri-sets and giant sets to leave no stone unturned.

This is a no-brainer as the two were inseparable at the gym and would always push each other to reach the peak of their physiques.

Not only will training this way ensure that all of your bases are covered, you’ll be training each body part with optimal frequency followed by the occasional superset, tri-set and/or giant set to truly elicit muscle growth, size and strength.

Columbu is quick to mention that his advanced workout is only for those with at least 8 to 10 months’ worth of bodybuilding experience under their belt consisting of beginner and/or a combination of beginner and intermediate workouts.

Therefore,

We would suggest giving some of these beginner and intermediate routines a go first before jumping into his advanced workout including: Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Golden Six, Vince Gironda’s 8×8 or Jim Stoppani’s Shortcut to Shred.

If you choose to ignore this advice, proceed at your own peril.

Why?

Depending on which body parts you’ll be training, the working sets can typically range from 55 up to 90 which is a ridiculous amount of volume so the risk of injury is high if you don’t know what you’re doing.

However, if you’re up for the challenge, read on…

With that said:

Let’s get into each routine.

Franco Columbu Workout Review

Intermediate Workout

Advanced Workout

Monday: Back, Legs and Abs

Tuesday: Chest, Shoulders, Arms and Abs

Wednesday: Back, Legs and Abs

Thursday: Chest, Shoulders, Arms and Abs

Friday: Back, Legs and Abs

Saturday: Chest, Shoulders and Arms

Examination

Intermediate Workout

Columbu’s intermediate workout is a traditional silver-era full body training programme with 3 working sets to be completed per targeted muscle.

As mentioned earlier:

After completing this routine at the maximum of 20 reps per exercise, you would’ve performed well over 1,400 reps in your training session which is an absolute insane amount of volume.

For context, the average bro split (e.g. back, biceps and abs) will contain anywhere between 400 – 500 reps in a given session which is often performed at an intermediate/advanced level.

Thus,

This routine will undoubtedly push you out of your comfort zone and will yield some incredible results.

However,

Depending on what your fitness goals are, this may or may not be a good routine for you.

Namely, the high endurance reps are typically good for athletes who compete in high-level sports over a set period of time (e.g. football, boxing etc).

For the purposes of building muscle, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing when you’re at an intermediate level, but long-term, it will be quite easy to stagnate if you’re not proactively changing how you approach this routine (i.e altering the sets, reps and poundage).

Therefore,

If building muscle is your primary focus, it is advisable to drop the number of reps from 15 – 20 to 8 – 12. With this drop, you should also look to increase the poundage for each exercise to challenge the working muscle and promote hypertrophy.

For example, you might look to add 2.5kg (5lbs) to the bar on each side when performing barbell squats, bent over rows, bench press and barbell curls after 4 weeks.

Of course:

If you do adjust this plan, you are no longer performing Columbu’s routine in the way it was designed and will thus not achieve the results it was set out to achieve either.

Nevertheless,

There’s no harm in amending this routine to adapt it to your goals as the exercises themselves and the order in which they are performed are all excellent for building muscle.

Advanced Workout

Columbu’s advanced workout is arguably one of the most strenuous and thorough training plans that exist.

Not only does each day consist of a lot of volume, but you’ll be lifting anywhere between 75% – 90% of your 1RM (one rep max) on certain exercises that will also build strength and power alongside lean muscle mass.

In particular:

Training your chest, shoulders, arms and abs might prove to be the most taxing days of all as you’ll be performing a total of 28 exercises in comparison to 16 exercises on days where you’ll be training back, legs and abs.

If that wasn’t enough,

You will be building a set of washboard abs that will give Superman a run for his money, targeting them 5 times a week versus all other muscle groups being worked 3 times a week.

However,

It’s important to understand that Columbu was on an exorbitant amount of juice and thus, his body was primed to handle the amount of volume entailed and was able to recover a lot quicker than most.

With that aside:

There’s no denying that Columbu was one of the most hardworking bodybuilders that ever entered a gymnasium and this is reflected in his advanced training plan.

Thus,

No matter how advanced you are, his workout is not for the feint of heart and it’s important to listen to your body at all times and ensure you’re in the right frame of mind before beginning this plan.

It is very easy to lose motivation when the workout seems never ending, so stay focused on your goal(s) and the task at hand.

As mentioned earlier:

Columbu would throw in the occasional superset, tri-set and giant set to spice things up.

This has the benefit of not only placing the working muscle under significant stress, but it’s also a great way to burn a huge amount of calories and get out of the monotony of performing 3 or 4 sets of the same exercise consecutively.

As a result, this will ensure you maintain enthusiasm and avoid inertia.

In essence,

The advanced workout is designed to challenge you both physically and mentally so you must be willing to work your arse off in order to reap the rewards.

Notes

Cycle

Intermediate Workout

The intermediate workout is to be performed 3 times a week with a day of rest in between.

Columbu mentions you can perform this routine for a maximum of 6 months unchanged.

Advanced Workout

How long you should be cycling this workout was not clearly defined in Columbu’s book ‘Winning Bodybuilding’.

However,

Given the fact that you’ll be performing 6 training sessions each week and the amount of volume included, a good starting point is to cycle this for 8 – 12 weeks.

Duration

Intermediate Workout

The intermediat workout is designed to be as quick and efficient as possible.

Columbu prescribes that you spend no longer than 1 hour and a half performing this training plan with as little rest as possible in between sets.

He believed that if you needed to rest longer than 30 – 45 seconds you were simply going too heavy and therefore should scale the weights back so that you can perform this entire routine without stopping.

Advanced Workout

The advanced workout should be completed within 2 hours.

Like the intermediate workout, every set in the advanced workout should be completed quickly and efficiently, keeping rest times short (30 – 45 seconds) but striving to complete the entire plan without stopping.

Progression

As mentioned previously, the intermediate workout is to be performed unchanged for 6 months.

However,

Columbu prescribes additional progressive measures to the advanced workout to continue challenging yourself.

Below is a breakdown of what he recommends for each exercise:

Bench Press

Add additional weights and sets gradually.

Lying Laterals (Flys)

Add an extra set in your second or third week.

Dips

Add additional weights and work your way up to 4 sets within a few weeks.

Standing Barbell Press

Start with a moderate weight and increase the poundage on each set until you are able to get only six reps out of your final set (which should be your third set when starting the advanced workout).

Add a fourth set when you feel comfortable with it.

Seated Press Behind Neck

Perform the reps without pausing, 3 sets of 8 reps first. Slowly work your way up to 4 sets.

Lateral Raises

Work your way up to 4 sets, resting no more than 45 to 60 seconds between sets.

Wide Grip Chin Ups

This exercise is to be performed with additional weight using either a lifting belt or holding a dumbbell between your legs. Rest no longer than 60 to 90 seconds.

Bent Over Rows

Perform 3 sets of 8 reps first, adding a 4th set when you’re ready.

End Barbell Rows

Exercise is to be performed with 3 sets of 8 reps first with a 4th set added later on.

Leg Curls

To be performed with 3 sets of 13 reps in the first month, then add a set a month until you’ve reached 6 sets.

Barbell Front Squats

2 sets to be performed in the first month and 3 sets thereafter.

Calf Raises

In his book ‘Winning Bodybuilding’, Columbu mentions the following about performing calf raises:

“Most importantly, go all the way up and all the way down. Increase the weight constantly. Don’t be afraid to get into the multiple hundreds. I do 8 sets of 20 reps, as rapidly as I can, but four sets are plenty to begin with.”

Arm Training

For the first two months of advanced training, you’ll be required to perform seated incline dumbbell curls, lying tricep extensions, barbell curls, lying close-grip triceps press, preacher curls and triceps pushdown in straight supersets.

You’ll then be required to add the following exercises into your regime: concentration curls, triceps dumbbell extensions, reverse barbell curls, barbell wrist curls, dumbbell wrist curls and barbell reverse wrist curls.

Waist Training

Sit ups are to be performed on a decline bench with the overall ab routine to be performed twice through in your first month, three times through on your second month and four times through thereafter.

Note the above plan starts with performing each exercise twice through.

Cardio

Columbu recommends you perform regular amounts of cardio in order to improve overall muscle definition and losing stubborn fat.

In particular, his preferred form of cardio was running.

This included running 2 miles on a level grassy surface in under 17 minutes a few times a week.

He mentions in his book:

“I’m a devout believer in running, not just as a warm-up but as an actual supplement to my weight training. As a bodybuilder, you’ve already got the finest running tools: stamina, discipline, and tougher, stronger legs.”

In terms of using running as a way of warming up before embarking on any of his workouts, he prescribes listening to your body to dictate how long you should be running for:

“Just let your body tell you. You’ll know when you’ve reached the point where further running will borrow on the energy you need for training.”

Attitude

In Columbu’s book ‘Winning Bodybuilding’ a chapter is dedicated to highlighting the importance of having the right mental state for training effectively, something that is often overlooked when it comes to building muscle.

He states:

“You will also find it easy to talk yourself out of a proper workout if you enter the gym with unsolved problems.

Either deal with your problems before training, or find the discipline to put them out of your head until you’re finished.

You just cannot work out well while worrying. Your concentration has become broken, your movements are very likely to be uncommitted ones, and that usually means trouble.

At the very least, you’ll have an unproductive workout; far worse, you’re asking for an injury.”

Like Steve Reeves, Columbu also believed one should avoid socialising in the gym and to simply reserve your energy and focus to concentrate on each set and repetition:

“Resist the temptation to gab, look in the mirror, show off, or waste time.

Remember that most of us sleep one-third of our lives; there really isn’t all that much time. Make the most of what you have.”

Therefore, ensure you enter the gym with absolute tunnel vision and leave the chit chat and banter until you’ve completed your workout.

Recovery

Getting adequate amounts of rest and recovery is key for building muscle.

Ensure you are getting at least 7 – 9 hours of sleep each night in order to effectively recover from each training session.

Diet

When it came to nutrition, Franco Columbu strived to keep things simple yet effective, prioritising natural, whole-based foods above anything else:

“I always try to eat fresh natural foods, as close as possible to the diet which I had in Sardinia. Whatever your diet, you should keep it simple and as natural as you can. And to complement your bodybuilding more fully, you should try to eat three or four small meals instead of one or two large ones.

Let your appetite dictate your eating times, and don’t force yourself to eat. Your training should help your appetite along, even if you’ve never been a great eater.’

Below is what Franco Columbu typically ate throughout the day.

Breakfast

• 3 eggs

• 1 fresh fruit in season/a large glass of freshly squeezed orange juice

• Small dish of homemade plain yogurt (made with raw milk) with granola cereal

• A glass of mineral water taken with vitamins and minerals

Lunch

• Large fresh vegetable salad with a small amount of oil and vinegar dressing

• 1 cooked fresh vegetable (never frozen or canned)

• 1 large portion of fresh broiled protein (such as fish, chicken, steak, lamb or liver)

• Small glass of wine or a large glass of mineral water

Mid-afternoon snack

• 1 plate of selected imported cheeses with fresh fruit in season (usually pears)

Dinner

• Similar to lunch

Late evening snack

• Small dish of fresh yogurt (often homemade)

Throughout the day, Columbu would always aim to drink at least 8 to 10 glasses of mineral or bottled water.

He also didn’t believe in taking protein powder so much due to their usually high carbohydrate and sugar content, believing that such supplements weren’t easily digested and assimilated by the body effectively.

Thoughts

Intermediate Workout

After performing Arnold Schwarzenegger’s home workout to get me through the pandemic for a number of months, I decided to give Franco Columbu’s intermediate workout a crack when gyms slowly opened back up again to get me used to the feeling of lifting iron plates.

In particular,

The high reps were a great way of building up muscular endurance so that I could slowly start incorporating more loads and begin enhancing my physique.

Overall,

That’s where I felt the real benefit of this routine ended.

Whilst I did experience some muscle growth: especially on my chest and legs – I didn’t make tremendous gains as my overall muscle memory was still there to call upon.

Although this routine does have its merits (especially for those who are at an intermediate level), it does not benefit the serious lifter outside the realm of sports.

Advanced Workout

After performing the intermediate workout for a number of weeks, I transitioned over to the advanced workout and that’s where the gains were far more noticeable and pronounced.

In particular,

My chest, shoulders and arms all grew very significantly due to the sheer amount of exercise variations and volume formed as part of this plan on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

Additionally,

On days where I’d be training back and legs, performing three variations of squats with progressive overload after already performing a total of 6 sets split between leg extensions and leg curls proved to be quite brutal.

My legs were simply not used to this level of volume and often times, I wouldn’t recover in time for the following session to target these muscle groups again.

Perhaps this is where the use of anabolic steroids would’ve given Columbu the edge in the gym as I knew it wasn’t anything to do with a lapse in my approach outside of the gym as I made sure that my nutrition and rest were consistently on point.

Nevertheless,

I grew a keen fondness of performing ‘end’ barbell rows.

The greater range of motion sublimely targeted my upper and mid-back like no other exercise had done before, thus, the back development that came from performing this exercise in particular was pretty spectacular.

Not wanting to be that ‘guy’ at the gym, I would opt for standing on a small elevated block as opposed to a bench whilst performing this exercise, and I would highly recommend you to do the same.

All-in all,

The advanced workout routine does exactly what it says on the tin.

A perfect balance of developing size, symmetery and strength without all of the fluff in between (quite literally).

This routine will require some discipline and consistency on your part though, as training 6 days a week at a high intensity level requires you not to miss a beat.

So be prepared to have your work cut out.

Closing Off

There you have it.

A complete review of two routines from one of the greatest bodybuilders to ever live.

If you’re thinking of giving these workouts a go, or have any comments or questions about anything raised in this article, we’d love to hear from you.

Let us know what you think in the comments section below!

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