Two-time Olympia 212 winner Shaun “Giant Killer” Clarida aims to win his first Arnold Classic title when he steps onstage in Columbus, OH, on the weekend of March 2-5, 2023. Clarida gave his fans an inside look at his training by sharing a chest workout video on his YouTube channel. The video’s most notable highlight occurred during the first exercise — the Incline Dumbbell Press.
After multiple lighter sets, Clarida performed a set of 13 reps with 140-pound dumbbells. A spotter assisted him from the bottom of the reps when necessary. The set was a testament to Clarida’s strength, considering he has recently competed at around 180 pounds, though he’s recently shared his 190-pound physique. The video can be seen below:
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After a back-off set, Clarida moved on to Incline Smith Machine Presses, working with a higher angle than he did on the dumbbell presses. He explained why he started the session with two incline exercises:
With upper pecs being my main focus, I want to hit those first. When you have a lacking body part…I recommend doing it at the beginning of the workout.
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Clarida worked up to a heavy set of eight reps, followed by a drop set to failure. He also performed seated cable chest presses, incline cable flyes, push-ups with his hands elevated on weight plates, and machine flyes. A sample version of Clarida’s workout can be seen below:
Shaun Clarida’s Chest Workout
- Incline Dumbbell Press — 4-5 sets of 12-15 reps, 1 lighter set of 12-15 reps
- Incline Smith Machine Press — 3 sets of 6-8 reps, 1 drop set to failure
- Seated Cable Chest Press — 2 sets of 15 reps
- Incline Cable Flye — 2 sets of 15 reps
- Push-up with Hands Elevated — 2 sets to failure
- Machine Pec Flyes — 2 sets of 15-20 reps
Clarida is no stranger to competing against Men’s Open competitors. In 2021, he entered and won the Legion Sports Fest Pro, making him the first man to qualify for both the Mr. Olympia and 212 Olympia contests in the same year. He ultimately chose to compete in the 212 and won his second Olympia title in Las Vegas, NV, in December 2022.
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The New Jersey native will compete in the 2023 Arnold Classic against fellow Olympia 212 winner Kamal Elgargni, two-time Mr. Olympia Mamdouh “Big Ramy” Elssbiay, 2021 Arnold Classic winner Nick Walker, and six other competitors.
Featured Image: @shaunclarida on Instagram
