guardianactual
MuscleChemistry Registered Member
Which Poses?
You should watch as many bodybuilding shows as possible. Record contests that come on T.V. or order contest videos and watch them over and over again. This will help you to visualize your own routine. If you can, try and get help from an experienced competitor. Be creative and design a routine to highlight your strengths and hide your weaknesses.
The purpose of a posing routine is to show your physiques strong points, hide your weak points, and entertain the audience and judges. Emphasize your strong points early in your routine to get a good first impression. Organize your poses so that you can move smoothly from one pose to the next. Generally you start with a few front poses, move to a couple side poses, and then move to a couple back poses, etc.
Practice your routine over and over until you can do it in your sleep. Start practicing your routine at least 6 weeks before the contest. Make sure to pace yourself. Often you see novice bodybuilders rush their routines and get ahead of their music. Take your time when onstage. Hit a pose, hold it for a couple of seconds, and then smoothly move into another pose.
It is a good idea to bring a headset and an extra CD of your music with you to the bodybuilding contest. Find a place backstage by yourself where you can rehearse your routine so it is fresh in your mind before you have to go out an perform in front of the judges and audience.
Always appear confident onstage. Smile as much as possible and make eye contact with the judges and audience. Keep your head up, maintain perfect posture at all times, including walking on and off the stage. Keep your muscles tensed at all times while onstage. There will be plenty of time to relax after the show, during the contest give it your best.
The Posedown
Unlike the first 3 rounds where your poses are arranged and your routine is rehearsed. The posedown is made up on the spot. The posedown usually involves 3-5 of the top competitors. You will all line up onstage and then the judges will tell you to pose down and hit your best poses.
It is difficult to prepare for a posedown but there are some strategies to help give you the edge. For example, if your opponent has strong arms and your arms a weak do not compare arm poses together. When you opponent hits an arm pose you should do another pose such as abs and thighs, etc. The idea is to offset their strong points with your strong points.
However, if your opponent does a side chest pose and you have a strong side chest pose stand there and accept the challenge. Similar to the free posing routine you want to emphasize your strong points and hide your weak points.
Click To Enlarge.
Pre Contest Diet
Male bodybuilders usually need to lower their body fat to 5% or lower in order to get "ripped" and women need to lower their body fat to 10% or lower. This is unhealthy if such a low bodyfat percentage is maintained overtime. You should strive to "peak" for the contest and then gain a little body fat afterwards to be strong and healthy.
The goal is usually to gain as much muscle mass as possible during the off-season and then shed the excess bodyfat while maintaining muscle mass during the pre contest.
Most bodybuilders today try to keep within 15-25 lbs. of the contest weight. A lightweight should not have to lose more then 15 lbs. to make his weight class. And a heavyweight should not have to lose more then 25 lbs. to make his weight class.
If you fall within the above ranges then you should start your pre contest diet 12 weeks before the contest. This allows you enough time to lose 1 - 2 lbs. per week without losing hard earned muscle mass. If you have more body fat to lose, then you'll have to start your diet earlier to give yourself enough time to get in contest shape.
Click To Enlarge.
Shaving
Around 8 weeks out from the contest you should shave off your body hair. This will allow you to accurately evaluate your physique and exactly what kind of condition you are in. It is hard to see how lean and muscular you are if you're covered in body hair.
For guys who have never shaved before it is a good idea to use hair cutting clippers to get rid of the majority of the body hair first. Then use a razor to get rid of the stubble afterwards. Shaving is quite time consuming, it could easily take a large competitor 2+ hours to shave off all their excess body hair. Then keep it off by re-shaving weekly. It takes a bit of practice, you don't want to nick yourself before the show.
You should also order your posing trunks well in advance. Regular swimming trunks are not suitable for bodybuilding posing trunks. There are several different manufactures of posing suits. My personal favorite brand of posing trunks is Andreas Cahling at: http://www.andreascahling.com
The first time you put on a pair of posing trunks can be a bit intimating to say the least. Most trunks have only enough material to cover the "essentials". But the high cut posing suits will reveal muscularity in the hips and legs and look better on stage.
Tanning
During the last 6 weeks before the contest you should be tanning regularly to build up a good base tan.
On Friday morning before a Saturday show you need to start applying Pro Tan. This is a paint on self tanning product that will give you a deep dark colour. The darker you are, the more muscular you will appear. You'll need to apply at least 6 coats of Pro Tan in order to get dark enough for the bright stage lights.
You should watch as many bodybuilding shows as possible. Record contests that come on T.V. or order contest videos and watch them over and over again. This will help you to visualize your own routine. If you can, try and get help from an experienced competitor. Be creative and design a routine to highlight your strengths and hide your weaknesses.
The purpose of a posing routine is to show your physiques strong points, hide your weak points, and entertain the audience and judges. Emphasize your strong points early in your routine to get a good first impression. Organize your poses so that you can move smoothly from one pose to the next. Generally you start with a few front poses, move to a couple side poses, and then move to a couple back poses, etc.
Practice your routine over and over until you can do it in your sleep. Start practicing your routine at least 6 weeks before the contest. Make sure to pace yourself. Often you see novice bodybuilders rush their routines and get ahead of their music. Take your time when onstage. Hit a pose, hold it for a couple of seconds, and then smoothly move into another pose.
It is a good idea to bring a headset and an extra CD of your music with you to the bodybuilding contest. Find a place backstage by yourself where you can rehearse your routine so it is fresh in your mind before you have to go out an perform in front of the judges and audience.
Always appear confident onstage. Smile as much as possible and make eye contact with the judges and audience. Keep your head up, maintain perfect posture at all times, including walking on and off the stage. Keep your muscles tensed at all times while onstage. There will be plenty of time to relax after the show, during the contest give it your best.
The Posedown
Unlike the first 3 rounds where your poses are arranged and your routine is rehearsed. The posedown is made up on the spot. The posedown usually involves 3-5 of the top competitors. You will all line up onstage and then the judges will tell you to pose down and hit your best poses.
It is difficult to prepare for a posedown but there are some strategies to help give you the edge. For example, if your opponent has strong arms and your arms a weak do not compare arm poses together. When you opponent hits an arm pose you should do another pose such as abs and thighs, etc. The idea is to offset their strong points with your strong points.
However, if your opponent does a side chest pose and you have a strong side chest pose stand there and accept the challenge. Similar to the free posing routine you want to emphasize your strong points and hide your weak points.
Click To Enlarge.
Pre Contest Diet
Male bodybuilders usually need to lower their body fat to 5% or lower in order to get "ripped" and women need to lower their body fat to 10% or lower. This is unhealthy if such a low bodyfat percentage is maintained overtime. You should strive to "peak" for the contest and then gain a little body fat afterwards to be strong and healthy.
The goal is usually to gain as much muscle mass as possible during the off-season and then shed the excess bodyfat while maintaining muscle mass during the pre contest.
Most bodybuilders today try to keep within 15-25 lbs. of the contest weight. A lightweight should not have to lose more then 15 lbs. to make his weight class. And a heavyweight should not have to lose more then 25 lbs. to make his weight class.
If you fall within the above ranges then you should start your pre contest diet 12 weeks before the contest. This allows you enough time to lose 1 - 2 lbs. per week without losing hard earned muscle mass. If you have more body fat to lose, then you'll have to start your diet earlier to give yourself enough time to get in contest shape.
Click To Enlarge.
Shaving
Around 8 weeks out from the contest you should shave off your body hair. This will allow you to accurately evaluate your physique and exactly what kind of condition you are in. It is hard to see how lean and muscular you are if you're covered in body hair.
For guys who have never shaved before it is a good idea to use hair cutting clippers to get rid of the majority of the body hair first. Then use a razor to get rid of the stubble afterwards. Shaving is quite time consuming, it could easily take a large competitor 2+ hours to shave off all their excess body hair. Then keep it off by re-shaving weekly. It takes a bit of practice, you don't want to nick yourself before the show.
You should also order your posing trunks well in advance. Regular swimming trunks are not suitable for bodybuilding posing trunks. There are several different manufactures of posing suits. My personal favorite brand of posing trunks is Andreas Cahling at: http://www.andreascahling.com
The first time you put on a pair of posing trunks can be a bit intimating to say the least. Most trunks have only enough material to cover the "essentials". But the high cut posing suits will reveal muscularity in the hips and legs and look better on stage.
Tanning
During the last 6 weeks before the contest you should be tanning regularly to build up a good base tan.
On Friday morning before a Saturday show you need to start applying Pro Tan. This is a paint on self tanning product that will give you a deep dark colour. The darker you are, the more muscular you will appear. You'll need to apply at least 6 coats of Pro Tan in order to get dark enough for the bright stage lights.
