Social media star Sam Sulek made the successful leap into competitive classic bodybuilding in February, winning his debut appearance. Now, he has his sights set on earning a pro card at the 2025 Arnold Amateur. Here’s Sulek’s short but sweet back workout just days out from the event.
Sulek was up early for this workout, filmed just 4 days before he is due to take to the stage in his second and most important competition to date. “Time for an early lift and cardio session,” he told his four-million-plus YouTube subscribers. The bodybuilder explained that this close to the Arnold, he’s running low on carbs and is therefore not looking for an intense workout like one would expect during the bulking phase. The big man still likes to get two sessions in per day, however, splitting them into lifting and cardio workouts. The purpose of this particular back workout is for the social media star to gain a pump and some “back stimulation,” he explained. “But nothing too wild, and I definitely do not want to freakin’ tweak anything.”
Sam Sulek’s Back Workout To Dominate 2025 Arnold Classic
Single-arm cable pullovers: 3 Sets
Seated low-to-high cable rows: 2 Sets
Seated high-to-cable rows: 1 Set
Workout Breakdown
Sulek says that single-arm pullovers hit him deep in the lats. “For me, at least, when I do one (arm) instead of both, I can actually feel it, totally tense, all the way down to here,” he explained, pointing to the lowest point of his latissimus dorsi on the side of his lower back. He still chose to go heavy, working towards failure without risking injury by not throwing in too many different sets or additional moves.
For his second exercise, Sulek turns to a seated low-to-high cable row, this time working both arms at the same time. He keeps his body still while focusing on the squeeze between his shoulder blades at the very top of the lift and maintains a slow and controlled motion to utilize his time under tension, taxing the upper back. “Let’s finish with some pulldowns and I think that will be it,” he said.
Pulldowns work in the opposite direction to the previous move, using the cable to row from high-to-low. Still, Sulek will be hitting his upper back and lats again as he pulls the load. By remaining seated, he is once again able to reduce the work that is done by other parts of the body in order to isolate the back. When replicating this exercise, be sure to feel the stretch at the top of the lift before bringing the cable back down.
The popular bodybuilder followed up his workout by giving his fans a glimpse of his current progress, revealing a cut physique benefitting from the time of day: early morning, pre-eating. Sulek nails a front double biceps, lat spread, rear double biceps, and twisting back double biceps to preview his appearance at the 2025 Arnold Amateur.
“I’m essentially beginning to really flatten out,” he said of the process. “Over the course of these coming days, I’ll get a bit lighter, be in a perfect state to get extra dry, and then the pressure’s off.” With his diet complete, Sulek will add some extra carbs after check-in and will be ready for his attempt at an IFBB Pro Card this weekend.
