“I Was Nine Years Old”: Bodybuilding Icon Ronnie Coleman Saw His Mother Struggling and Was Forced to Take Major Steps as a Child

The bodybuilding world has created many gems in the form of champion bodybuilders. Be it Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jay Cutler, or the legendary Ronnie Coleman. In fact, the 8x Mr. Olympia winner is etched in the history books of bodybuilding.

The former police officer took up the sport professionally after discovering a passion for it. However, Ronnie didn’t get his achievements served on a plate.

The bodybuilding icon has suffered several medical issues over the years and had a rough childhood. In his book, “Yeah Buddy! My Incredible Story’, that published in 2018, the champion talked about his childhood struggles in detail.

Ronnie Coleman had to work at a young age

While the icon had been a multi-time champion of Mr. Olympia, he had witnessed a lot of obstacles back in his childhood. The icon, in his book, recalled how he began working at the age of nine to support his family.

He mentioned in his autobiography, “When I was nine years old, I decided that I wanted to get some type of employment and make my own money.” Ronnie started off doing small chores for a general store in Louisiana. He later went on to work as a cotton chopper, which required a lot of manual labor. The bodybuilder also worked as a busboy for a restaurant.

While nine might seem like an insanely young age to begin working, Ronnie had a different perspective. He justified his actions in his book and explained why working for him was always normal. Ronnie wrote about how he normalized working at a young age when he saw his mother working hard. The star figured that hard work was a necessity.

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Despite having to work at such a young age, the bodybuilder did not regret it. In fact, he attributes his passion and current position to that work ethic. He considered working a blessing and the greatest thing that ever happened to him. The former Mr. Olympia wrote that he often wondered how he would’ve turned out if he hadn’t taken up working at a young age. 

While The King had a difficult childhood and later enjoyed a massive fame, Ronnie exceled at storytelling, too. The bodybuilder has expressed his thoughts and experiences in his book very vividly, which gave the readers a good view of his perspectives. 

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Although the champion has now retired from the sport, he still hustles hard toward his passion.