guardianactual
MuscleChemistry Registered Member
Choosing Your First Contest
You have to choose a contest that is most applicable to your physique level. If you are a teenager then you can enter the teenage or junior division. Some shows also have "Novice" division for first time competitors.
Although there may be exceptions, most bodybuilding contests are broken down into weight divisions.
Men's Division:
Bantamweight: Up to 142 lbs
Lightweight: 143-156 lbs
Middleweight: 157-176 lbs
Light Heavyweight: 177-198 lbs
Heavyweight: over 198 lbs
Women's Division:
Lightweight: less than 114 lbs
Middleweight: 115-125 lbs
Heavyweight: over 125 lbs
Most competitors try to compete at the top of their weight class. It is better to compete as a "ripped" middleweight then compete as a "smooth" light heavyweight. You will make a far greater impact on the judges by competing ripped and in top shape, then appearing smooth and bulked up.
Scoring
There are usually anywhere between 5-9 judges (both male and female) that judge a bodybuilding contest. Each judge has been evaluated and certified. Contests are scored using a ranking system. After each round, the judges rank the competitors from first to last. At the end of the contest the competitor with the lowest score wins. This system means that a competitor doesn't have to win every round, but have the lowest overall score.
The Symmetry Round
This round is where you will make your first impression on the judges. You'll be asked to stand facing the judges with your hands at your sides. Even though this is called "standing relaxed," Do not relax! You must keep your muscles tensed and under control at all times while you are on stage. The judges may be looking at you at anytime so you need to be ready.
You don't realize how hard posing is until you have done it. And I don't mean hit a 5 second pose. I mean standing semi-flexed for 10+ minutes. Your heart rate will go up, you will sweat, and may even begin to have muscle cramps.
The judges will ask you to "quarter turn to the right", you will turn 90 degrees to the right and let the judges view your physique from the side. Keep your entire body tensed and tight at all times.
Then the judges will ask you again to "quarter turn to the right", you will be facing back on to the judges and they will view your physique from the rear. Make sure to tense your back and legs.
Then you will be asked again to "quarter turn to the right", you will be side on to the judges and they will view your physique from the opposite side. Keep your muscles tensed and your abs tight at all times.
Then the judges will ask you to "quarter turn to the right", you will be facing the judges and they will have one final analysis of the competitors.
Although muscles size is taken into account during the symmetry round, the judges are primarily looking at symmetry, proportion, and definition.
The Compulsory Round
This is where you really get to show the judges your development. This round consists of 7 compulsory poses; each designed to show the judges different aspects of your physique. You must have these 7 poses down pat before you step on stage.
The 7 compulsory poses are:
Front Double Biceps
Front Lat Spread*
Side Chest
Side Triceps
Back Double Biceps
Back Lat Spread*
Abdominals and Thighs
*Women do NOT have to do the Front and Back Lat Spread.
During the compulsory round you are compared with your competitors. The judges usually call out 2-3 competitors and have them run through the seven compulsory poses together. Then the judges will call out another 2-3 competitors and have them run through the compulsory poses. They will continue this procedure until they have all of the competitors ranked from first to last.
1. Front Double Biceps
There are two ways to do this pose, with a stomach vacuum or with your abs flexed and crunched. The vacuum method allows for a broader shoulders base and lat spread, while the abdominal crunch method is impressive if your midsection is ripped. Practice both ways and do the variation which you feel makes you look the best overall.
You should hold your arms in such a fashion as to give each arm an equally balanced look. If you're biceps are less than perfect, try holding your forearms at almost right angles with your elbows and fully twist your wrists to bring out the biceps peak. It is usually more impressive when the upper arms are slightly above parallel with the floor.
2. Front Lat Spread
To get a full lat spread, you must learn not to shrug your shoulders, but to hold them down. This will make your lats look fuller and make you look bigger.
While pushing your fists against your sides, attempt to pull your shoulder blades apart and spread your lats outward. To make this look good, you will have to have great scapula flexibility. After practice and some stretching you should be able to perform this move precisely, spreading your lats to their full potential.
As with the front double biceps you can do this pose with a stomach vacuum or with your abs flexed and crunched. The vacuum method allows for a broader shoulders base and lat spread, while the abdominal crunch method is impressive if your midsection is ripped. Practice both ways and do the variation which you feel makes you look the best overall.
Make sure to bend your knees slightly and tense your legs while doing this pose.
3. Side Chest
With this pose there are a couple of different leg positions that you can use. Choose the position that makes you look the best. One position requires your back leg (away from the judges) to be held relatively straight and bent only a few degrees at most. While your front leg will be bent with your toes pointed and calves flexed.
The other position is as if you'd been frozen halfway through a forward step. Your back leg is slightly bent and behind the torso. Your front leg is slightly bent and in front of the torso. Make sure to tense your leg muscles.
No matter which leg stance you choose, the upper body portion of this pose will be the same. The only difference would be which side of the upper body is used. For the left side, simple reverse these instructions.
Expand your rib cage and chest. Bend your right arm at 90 degrees with your palm facing up making a fist. Keeping your right arm pressed against your side (especially your upper arm) will give that arm an even more massive appearance. Meanwhile, your left arm should extend across your abdomen grasping the wrist of your right arm with your palm facing down and pushing against your body. Flex everything in this position.
4. Side Triceps
As with the side chest, there are a couple of different leg positions that you can use for this pose. Choose the position that makes you look the best.
One position requires your back leg (away from the judges) to be held relatively straight and bent only a few degrees at most. While your front leg will be bent with your toes pointed and calves flexed.
The other position is as if you'd been frozen halfway through a forward step. Your back leg is slightly bent and behind the torso. Your front leg is slightly bent and in front of the torso. Make sure to tense your leg muscles.
No matter which leg stance you choose, the upper body portion of this pose will be the same. The only difference would be which side of the upper body is used. For the left side, simple reverse these instructions.
Extend your right arm down your side, reach behind your back with your left arm and grasp your right wrist. Keep your left palm toward the rear. With your arms anchored in this position, you will be able to pull your muscles to bring out the bulk and definition of your triceps, shoulder, and chest.
Experiment keeping your right arm perfectly straight and rotating it in different directions to bring out different striations on your delts and triceps. Keep your right triceps pressed firmly against your side to flatten and widen the muscle, making it look larger. You should keep your stomach tight and expand your chest.
5. Back Double Biceps
The back double biceps pose is similar to the front double biceps pose except for a few important differences. Your calves and hamstrings have to be flexed. It will not look good if you get the top half of your body right and the bottom half is relaxed.
Your arms should be pulled back toward the judges as well as your wrists. Your elbows should be more frontward (away from the judges) than your hands. With your spine rounded, your shoulder blades should be spread and your back muscles should be flexed. To really bring out the lower back, tense your abs. You can turn your head from side to side to show the muscles of your trapezius. Remember to keep all of your body flexed.
6. Back Lat Spread
The back lats spread is similar to the front lats spread. The only difference is that you round out your torso, so that it's forward, while pulling your elbows ahead of the midline of your torso. An effective way to start this pose is with your lats originally crunched together. When you pull them apart to expose your entire lat spread, it is a more dramatic way of going into the pose.
Your calves and hamstrings have to be flexed. It will not look good if you get the top half of your body right and the bottom half is relaxed. Remember to keep all of your body flexed.
7. Abdominals And Thighs
Put your strong leg about one foot in front of the other. The toes of your back foot should angle outward, while your front foot's toes point forward. With your front leg tensed, flex your quads and calves to bring out your muscle definition.
Different bends and angles will bring out various muscles better. You can switch angles mid-way through the pose if you like. With an interlocking grip, place your hands behind your neck and angle your arms upward. Flex your biceps and chest, while strongly tensing your abdominal region. This will make you look quite impressive. Keep flexing it all thoroughly and be sure to stand as straight as possible. Remember to keep all of your body flexed.
The Free Posing Round
In a close contest the free posing routine can be the difference between winning and losing. With a good posing routine you can win the audiences approval and they will start screaming your name or number, and in a close contest the judges often vote based on the audiences response.
The first step to creating a great posing routine is picking the music. You must choose music that suits your physique. Some of the larger heavyweights like to use powerful classical music, but most likely that wouldn't suit a lightweight or middleweight.
Some people like to use upbeat dance type music. This is good for posing to and it can really get the audience involved. Another type of music that is often used is heavy metal. You need a powerful physique to match with the powerful music. If you have trouble picking what type of music to use in your routine, you should listen to a wide variety of music and picture yourself posing to the various songs on the radio. Eventually a song will catch your attention and then you can build your routine around it.
At the amateur level posing routines are usually 90 seconds in length. Get your music copied onto a CD by itself with no other music on the CD. Write your name and competitor number on the CD with a permanent marker. You'll usually pass your music into the contest officials at the weigh in.
Also make a note on your CD to let the music man know if you would like to have your music start before you step on stage or when you are center stage. Make a back up copy of your music and keep it with you backstage. If anything happens to your original CD, you'll always have a backup.
You have to choose a contest that is most applicable to your physique level. If you are a teenager then you can enter the teenage or junior division. Some shows also have "Novice" division for first time competitors.
Although there may be exceptions, most bodybuilding contests are broken down into weight divisions.
Men's Division:
Bantamweight: Up to 142 lbs
Lightweight: 143-156 lbs
Middleweight: 157-176 lbs
Light Heavyweight: 177-198 lbs
Heavyweight: over 198 lbs
Women's Division:
Lightweight: less than 114 lbs
Middleweight: 115-125 lbs
Heavyweight: over 125 lbs
Most competitors try to compete at the top of their weight class. It is better to compete as a "ripped" middleweight then compete as a "smooth" light heavyweight. You will make a far greater impact on the judges by competing ripped and in top shape, then appearing smooth and bulked up.
Scoring
There are usually anywhere between 5-9 judges (both male and female) that judge a bodybuilding contest. Each judge has been evaluated and certified. Contests are scored using a ranking system. After each round, the judges rank the competitors from first to last. At the end of the contest the competitor with the lowest score wins. This system means that a competitor doesn't have to win every round, but have the lowest overall score.
The Symmetry Round
This round is where you will make your first impression on the judges. You'll be asked to stand facing the judges with your hands at your sides. Even though this is called "standing relaxed," Do not relax! You must keep your muscles tensed and under control at all times while you are on stage. The judges may be looking at you at anytime so you need to be ready.
You don't realize how hard posing is until you have done it. And I don't mean hit a 5 second pose. I mean standing semi-flexed for 10+ minutes. Your heart rate will go up, you will sweat, and may even begin to have muscle cramps.
The judges will ask you to "quarter turn to the right", you will turn 90 degrees to the right and let the judges view your physique from the side. Keep your entire body tensed and tight at all times.
Then the judges will ask you again to "quarter turn to the right", you will be facing back on to the judges and they will view your physique from the rear. Make sure to tense your back and legs.
Then you will be asked again to "quarter turn to the right", you will be side on to the judges and they will view your physique from the opposite side. Keep your muscles tensed and your abs tight at all times.
Then the judges will ask you to "quarter turn to the right", you will be facing the judges and they will have one final analysis of the competitors.
Although muscles size is taken into account during the symmetry round, the judges are primarily looking at symmetry, proportion, and definition.
The Compulsory Round
This is where you really get to show the judges your development. This round consists of 7 compulsory poses; each designed to show the judges different aspects of your physique. You must have these 7 poses down pat before you step on stage.
The 7 compulsory poses are:
Front Double Biceps
Front Lat Spread*
Side Chest
Side Triceps
Back Double Biceps
Back Lat Spread*
Abdominals and Thighs
*Women do NOT have to do the Front and Back Lat Spread.
During the compulsory round you are compared with your competitors. The judges usually call out 2-3 competitors and have them run through the seven compulsory poses together. Then the judges will call out another 2-3 competitors and have them run through the compulsory poses. They will continue this procedure until they have all of the competitors ranked from first to last.
1. Front Double Biceps
There are two ways to do this pose, with a stomach vacuum or with your abs flexed and crunched. The vacuum method allows for a broader shoulders base and lat spread, while the abdominal crunch method is impressive if your midsection is ripped. Practice both ways and do the variation which you feel makes you look the best overall.
You should hold your arms in such a fashion as to give each arm an equally balanced look. If you're biceps are less than perfect, try holding your forearms at almost right angles with your elbows and fully twist your wrists to bring out the biceps peak. It is usually more impressive when the upper arms are slightly above parallel with the floor.
2. Front Lat Spread
To get a full lat spread, you must learn not to shrug your shoulders, but to hold them down. This will make your lats look fuller and make you look bigger.
While pushing your fists against your sides, attempt to pull your shoulder blades apart and spread your lats outward. To make this look good, you will have to have great scapula flexibility. After practice and some stretching you should be able to perform this move precisely, spreading your lats to their full potential.
As with the front double biceps you can do this pose with a stomach vacuum or with your abs flexed and crunched. The vacuum method allows for a broader shoulders base and lat spread, while the abdominal crunch method is impressive if your midsection is ripped. Practice both ways and do the variation which you feel makes you look the best overall.
Make sure to bend your knees slightly and tense your legs while doing this pose.
3. Side Chest
With this pose there are a couple of different leg positions that you can use. Choose the position that makes you look the best. One position requires your back leg (away from the judges) to be held relatively straight and bent only a few degrees at most. While your front leg will be bent with your toes pointed and calves flexed.
The other position is as if you'd been frozen halfway through a forward step. Your back leg is slightly bent and behind the torso. Your front leg is slightly bent and in front of the torso. Make sure to tense your leg muscles.
No matter which leg stance you choose, the upper body portion of this pose will be the same. The only difference would be which side of the upper body is used. For the left side, simple reverse these instructions.
Expand your rib cage and chest. Bend your right arm at 90 degrees with your palm facing up making a fist. Keeping your right arm pressed against your side (especially your upper arm) will give that arm an even more massive appearance. Meanwhile, your left arm should extend across your abdomen grasping the wrist of your right arm with your palm facing down and pushing against your body. Flex everything in this position.
4. Side Triceps
As with the side chest, there are a couple of different leg positions that you can use for this pose. Choose the position that makes you look the best.
One position requires your back leg (away from the judges) to be held relatively straight and bent only a few degrees at most. While your front leg will be bent with your toes pointed and calves flexed.
The other position is as if you'd been frozen halfway through a forward step. Your back leg is slightly bent and behind the torso. Your front leg is slightly bent and in front of the torso. Make sure to tense your leg muscles.
No matter which leg stance you choose, the upper body portion of this pose will be the same. The only difference would be which side of the upper body is used. For the left side, simple reverse these instructions.
Extend your right arm down your side, reach behind your back with your left arm and grasp your right wrist. Keep your left palm toward the rear. With your arms anchored in this position, you will be able to pull your muscles to bring out the bulk and definition of your triceps, shoulder, and chest.
Experiment keeping your right arm perfectly straight and rotating it in different directions to bring out different striations on your delts and triceps. Keep your right triceps pressed firmly against your side to flatten and widen the muscle, making it look larger. You should keep your stomach tight and expand your chest.
5. Back Double Biceps
The back double biceps pose is similar to the front double biceps pose except for a few important differences. Your calves and hamstrings have to be flexed. It will not look good if you get the top half of your body right and the bottom half is relaxed.
Your arms should be pulled back toward the judges as well as your wrists. Your elbows should be more frontward (away from the judges) than your hands. With your spine rounded, your shoulder blades should be spread and your back muscles should be flexed. To really bring out the lower back, tense your abs. You can turn your head from side to side to show the muscles of your trapezius. Remember to keep all of your body flexed.
6. Back Lat Spread
The back lats spread is similar to the front lats spread. The only difference is that you round out your torso, so that it's forward, while pulling your elbows ahead of the midline of your torso. An effective way to start this pose is with your lats originally crunched together. When you pull them apart to expose your entire lat spread, it is a more dramatic way of going into the pose.
Your calves and hamstrings have to be flexed. It will not look good if you get the top half of your body right and the bottom half is relaxed. Remember to keep all of your body flexed.
7. Abdominals And Thighs
Put your strong leg about one foot in front of the other. The toes of your back foot should angle outward, while your front foot's toes point forward. With your front leg tensed, flex your quads and calves to bring out your muscle definition.
Different bends and angles will bring out various muscles better. You can switch angles mid-way through the pose if you like. With an interlocking grip, place your hands behind your neck and angle your arms upward. Flex your biceps and chest, while strongly tensing your abdominal region. This will make you look quite impressive. Keep flexing it all thoroughly and be sure to stand as straight as possible. Remember to keep all of your body flexed.
The Free Posing Round
In a close contest the free posing routine can be the difference between winning and losing. With a good posing routine you can win the audiences approval and they will start screaming your name or number, and in a close contest the judges often vote based on the audiences response.
The first step to creating a great posing routine is picking the music. You must choose music that suits your physique. Some of the larger heavyweights like to use powerful classical music, but most likely that wouldn't suit a lightweight or middleweight.
Some people like to use upbeat dance type music. This is good for posing to and it can really get the audience involved. Another type of music that is often used is heavy metal. You need a powerful physique to match with the powerful music. If you have trouble picking what type of music to use in your routine, you should listen to a wide variety of music and picture yourself posing to the various songs on the radio. Eventually a song will catch your attention and then you can build your routine around it.
At the amateur level posing routines are usually 90 seconds in length. Get your music copied onto a CD by itself with no other music on the CD. Write your name and competitor number on the CD with a permanent marker. You'll usually pass your music into the contest officials at the weigh in.
Also make a note on your CD to let the music man know if you would like to have your music start before you step on stage or when you are center stage. Make a back up copy of your music and keep it with you backstage. If anything happens to your original CD, you'll always have a backup.
