Written by Tyler DiGiovanni | BSBM
Fact checked by Sam Coleman, Co-Founder
FACT CHECKED
You’ve finally convinced yourself you’re going to do it. This is the year you’re going to enter a bodybuilding competition. You’ve worked hard in the gym, and now it’s time to show it off. Easy enough, right? Well, hold on; there’s a lot to consider before you arbitrarily pick out an upcoming bodybuilding show. I’m going to cover some things you should know before joining a competition, a lot of which I knew before I went into my first show. Let’s get into it.
1. Choosing the Right Federation
Research the Federations
Every bodybuilding federation has its own rules, judging criteria, and categories. There’s a significant difference in competition between federations that are for natural athletes (OCB, ABA, ANBF, just to name a few) and federations that don’t test for enhanced athletes (NPC, NABBA, WFF, etc). There’s nothing wrong with whichever direction of training you’re pursuing; just understand that in almost all situations, an enhanced athlete will beat a natural one.
Understand the Divisions
Every show will have multiple divisions, including:
- Women’s Bikini
- Women’s Bodybuilding
- Women’s Figure
- Women’s Fitness
- Women’s Physique
- Women’s Wellness
- Men’s Physique
- Men’s Classic Physique
- Men’s Bodybuilding
Do your research into which division will match your physique the best. While you’re free to compete in whichever division you wish, you’ll most likely do the best in the category that matches your body.
Within those divisions, you can compete in the following groups:
- True Novice
- Novice
- Teen/Collegiate
- Open
- Masters (35+, 40+, 50+, etc.)
- Wheelchair
If applicable, you can compete in one or more of the groups (i.e., Novice, Masters, Open). As long as the groups don’t contradict each other, most federations don’t have a problem with people competing in more than one group.
2. Training Commitment
Train Like a Competitor
Now that you’ve found your federation and division, you need to make sure you’re training with purpose. With a competition date that’s further out, you have time to do a bulking cycle. If your competition is closer, you’ll have to go right into a cutting phase. While you might not want to fully commit to a coach or trainer, it might be a good idea to see how much it would cost to sit down with one and see if they would be willing to give you a roadmap of the direction your training should go.
Since at SET FOR SET, we want to see everyone succeed, here’s a couple tips to get you started.
Focus on Weak Points
If you already have a great set of front delts that overpower your side and rear delts, it’s time you cut down on the overhead presses and start focusing on some raises. Have someone take pictures of you and analyze them with a critical eye. Are your right and left halves symmetrical? Do you look like Johnny Bravo with a huge upper body but tiny legs?
Don’t Forget About Recovery
With that goal firmly in your mind, it’s easy to be obsessed, thinking you should be training as much as humanly possible to make the most gains. Unfortunately, unless you’re going the enhanced route, you have to give your body a chance to rebuild. Don’t forget that muscle-building occurs during the recovery period after exercise. Overtraining can derail your whole contest prep.
3. Diet and Nutrition
Bar none, the most vital part to making sure you look your best on contest day. You can do your research online to figure out how to hit your macros and design a meal plan for yourself; heck, just look on our site, and you’ll find plenty of resources.
If you’re in a bulking phase, you’ll want to be in a calorie surplus, and if you’re cutting, you’ll want to be in a caloric deficit. While that sounds easy enough, to maximize results, you’ll need to painstakingly track every macronutrient you intake.
If you managed to figure it out and designed yourself a meal plan, be aware that in “peak week” your diet may need additional tweaks. Adjusting carbs, fats, and water intake can make or break the final product you bring on stage.
All that being said if you can afford it, hire a nutrition coach. They know exactly what it takes to have you look your best on comp day, including how to tweak your peak week. Be aware that depending on the level of involvement you choose for the coach (one-time meal plan, weekly check-ins, daily check-ins, etc.), it will most likely change how much you’re going to pay. Keep in mind that it might seem like a high cost, but if they can get you looking your best, then it’s worth more than saving a few bucks and showing up looking like you don’t belong there.
4. Posing Practice
Yes, you need to practice posing. You can bring an amazing physique, but if your posing is off and you don’t know how to display your body, you most likely are not going to bring home the gold (see Paul Dillett). Go back and watch Pumping Iron again, and see how seriously Arnold takes posing. Learn how to show off your strong points, hide your weak points, and build your stamina. Do a 20-minute posing practice, and tell me you don’t feel like you just had a brutal workout.
This is another area in which it would be wise to find a coach or someone who can give feedback on your poses. Filming yourself is also an option, but if you’re not sure what to look for, you’re not going to get as much as you can out of it. Whatever you do, don’t wait until the last week to start posing practice. Your transitions through the poses/routine won’t be as smooth as they should be, and your conditioning won’t be anywhere near what it should be. Know your mandatory poses, and be able to do them perfectly in your sleep.
Most divisions will require an individual posing routine. Just like your mandatory poses, you should know what to do without even thinking about it. Get feedback from someone you trust to be honest with you, such as a lifting partner. Even if they don’t know the nitty-gritty of bodybuilding judging, most of the time, they can tell if a routine flows nicely.
The last thing…SMILE!!! You should look confident and happy to be there. I remember looking back at my first competition pictures and thinking I looked like someone was forcing me to be there against my will. Practice smiling while you’re posing so it feels natural.
5. Mental Preparation
This will probably be one of the toughest things you do in your life. Lowered food intake, intense training, and missing out on social gatherings are just a few of the aspects that make getting ready for a contest difficult. Most people won’t understand what you’re doing and why you can’t “just have a small piece of cake.” At some point, you’ll most likely hit a wall or moment of weakness and want to say screw it and eat that pizza or go out drinking with your friends, but you need to remember that could set back what you’re trying to accomplish. Don’t let self-doubt creep in, and keep yourself motivated. You wanted to do this for one reason or another, make sure you see it through!
As for the competition, you’re going to get criticized. That is literally what the judge’s job is. Don’t take it as a personal attack; they’re giving you feedback on what you need to do so you can take home 1st place. You might think your rear delts are a weak point, but if you hear they are from a couple of judges, you know you’ll need to step up your training.
Now, after the competition, you may get a case of the “post-competition blues.” You’ve just spent months singularly focused on one thing, and now that it’s over, now what? Many people have reported feeling a void after their show. Plan some goals for after your competition to help get back to a somewhat “normal” routine.
6. Financial Considerations
Competing isn’t cheap. You have to pay for a gym membership, food costs, competition entry fees, travel costs (gas or a hotel if the competition is far enough away), tanning, posing gear, and coaching (diet, posing, training). Know that you’re most likely going to be spending at least $1,000 going into it. And that’s if you’re doing everything yourself. If you’re going a full coaching route, then it’ll be closer to $2,000 and up.
Some of these costs might be able to be negated with sponsorship opportunities, though. You can always reach out to supplement brands or your local gym to see if they would be willing to sponsor you.
7. Competition Day
The big day is almost here, so you want to make sure you’re good to go the morning of. The night before your competition, make sure your competition attire is packed, along with your meals and water. It’s also not a bad idea to have some sort of tanner to touch up any areas that are lacking. It’s also a good idea to bring some of your own bands to pump up. I’ve been to a competition that stated there would be weights there to use for pumping up, but when I got to the competition, there wasn’t anything there.
While everyone else there might be your competitor, remember, you all went through the same prep and are there to show off all your hard work. This is a great chance to make connections with other people that share a similar interest and might even be great resources for support in future comps!
Wrap-Up
A bodybuilding competition tests you physically and mentally like few other things you’ll experience in life. With the right preparation, mindset, support system, and guidance, competing can be one of the greatest experiences you have in your fitness journey. Stick with it, and even if you don’t win, you’ll be rewarded with the fact that you did something that the average person would never be able to accomplish. Stay focused, embrace the hardships, and savor every moment of your path to the stage.
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Tyler DiGiovanni
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