Cut down size to compete in Physique category, what's your opinion?

[RobMash]

Cut down size to compete in Physique category, what's your opinion?

[Timmon]

I think heavyweight women struggle to move to Physique. It is the same as when there were a few women who moved from bodybuilding to fitness, before Physique came along. Bad move, few if any successful transitions.

Lightweight and increasingly middleweight competitors have an easier time, as Physique is now easily within grasp of lightweight competitors, and now middleweight as well.

For heavyweight, i think there needs to be a period of very light training to lose as much size as possible, then rebuild to Physique standards.

Looking across the world, the added complications are criteria, which vary. Enter a european competition, and ab poses are not required, so abs are actually comparatively under developed on European athletes, compared to USA athletes. There are a few other missing criteria too. So the Arnold contests in the USA are different to the Arnold contests in Europe. Crazy.

The lady I am most impressed with recently is Marina Lemenovskaya, who returned to stage after 5 years to enter Physique, and after a couple of test local contests where she placed 2nd, she won the International German Championships . So a 2 time Arnold Amateur Bodybuilding champion (Middleweight in 2010, Lighgtweight in 2011, no Middleweight category in 2011), won a major Physique contest after 5 years. Time to adjust her Physique. Having said that, her pecs, remarkable in 2010 and 2011, are actually more cut and bigger than when she won an international contest!  http://saradas.org/index.php?topic=425310.msg1784537#msg1784537

Maybe in another few years, Heavyweight FBB's will move easily to Physique as well. 

[M7]

From what I see, Physique is just female bodybuilding without a heavyweight division. I thought they wanted the competitors coming in "softer", but from what I've seen they're still rewarding the most ripped/defined. I understand why they started Physique, but it seems pointless to have another fbb category if it isn't going to consistently differentiate its rules and guidelines. As far as cutting down size, that should be the women's personal choice how big they want to get, not the powers that be.

[CookyMonzta]

I'm not so sure it'll make any difference, because it took maybe 4 years (1989-93) for FBBers (especially in the heavyweight division and in the pro ranks) to become quite ripped and bigger.  It's been at least 2 years since most contests have done away with women's BB, and already I'm starting to see some physique competitors looking almost as big as the FBBers of the early-1990s, who were not that much smaller than the FBBers of 2010.  Given a few more years, you might not be able to tell the difference between a physique girl in 2020 and a female BBer in 2000-2010.

[Sar-Net]

1 The  IFBB (International F-up Body Building) has no fricking idea of what a female bodybuilder should look like, hell they can't even do the men's side right anymore.
2 Women should be up in arms about these idiots screwing up the contest realm and about them basically saying a woman can't have much muscle.
3 The simple fact is some women have stocky body types that while they can make great bodybuilders they will never fit in Physique, or in any of the twigagories for that matter.
4 There needs to be a new contest realm(Or at least a total rework of the current mess.) with real women's bodybuilding.  A realm where things like Shape, symmetry,  etc. are stressed as well as size.  A realm where dieting is kept to safe levels so the women's faces don't look like warmed over death and safe bodyfat levels are stressed.  A realm where the shape of posing suits is selected to flow over the natural joints and contours not a suit selected so schmoe's mite catch a crotch shot when the women are in motion.  A realm where the women have professional hair, makeup, and spray tans provided at the contest.  A realm where the women get real prize money.  In short a contest realm where the women are shown in their best light and are allowed to get as muscular as fits their body's genetic gifts.

What really gets me about the twigagories is the contests are still stressing the overly depleted, warmed over death look, with all the over dieting.

Physique really seems to be stressing an antisymmetrical, over dieted, body shape and look.  This just seems to me to be really messed up.  There are some up and comers whom have incredible shapes but are marred by incomplete development.  The look seems to be impressive lats, pathetic pectorals, pathetic arms, pathetic shoulders and traps, impressive  thighs, pathetic calves, impressive glutes, and lest I forget a bad boob job,  so its a hodge podge of bodyparts, some developed some not.
 

[MrBogus]

I don't get the purpose of this?

Is Alina Popa moving from bodybuilding to physique competition? If so just post the news. If it is just speculation or made up what is the point? Even if it is true, it is not like she is gonna base her decision on what schmoes on this forum think.

From her social media presence I cannot find any talk of her planning to go physique.

[oriander2000]

Also, it's a misleading title: it looks like it asks generally, but it narrows down to just two competitors in a borderline hypothetic situation. I agree with Mr. Bogus, what's the purpose?

[RobMash]

I don't get the purpose of this?

Is Alina Popa moving from bodybuilding to physique competition? If so just post the news. If it is just speculation or made up what is the point? Even if it is true, it is not like she is gonna base her decision on what schmoes on this forum think.

From her social media presence I cannot find any talk of her planning to go physique.

The purpose of the the polls is just discuss and know the opinion about some "trends" in this case about the decision to Cut down size to compete in Physique category and nothing more like every discussion on the forum.
The polls refers to Alina Popa and Aleesha Young just because there are the the most representative athletes in bodybuilding. There isn't any news about their transition to physique it's just a speculation.

[luis3iguel]

Well I saw the most successful physique competitors are like the Fbb lightweight in the 90's I don't know if return the classic bodybuilding in the future some few ladies wanna be the extreme of her bodies can be example Natalia Trukina or Aleesha Young if the competition be a good prices for the women's competitors now in the IFBB are Females Bodybuilders maybe can change the rules and the criteria for judge

[Gandalf]

There should be a heavyweight division to demonstrate what women can achieve, it's their choice if they want to do it long-term or not but there should be a choice and encouragement if they want to put the mass on.

[RobMash]

Yes I'm agree physique competitors are like the Fbb lightweight in the 90's but it's really different the attitude of the poses. Fbb in the 90's show muscles much more proud on the routines, they are much more charismatic and whimsical.Now physique competitors seem to be afraid to show muscles and the routines are much less spectacular
 

[Saradas.Org]

[krajo]

All the "cutting down" is just proof that the federations and/or organizations "promoting" fitness contests (to call this some way), are way lost.

This seems to be the only sport / discipline / activity, where "more", "stronger", "faster", "harder" does not apply as better... Besides there seems to be no argument on male bodybuilders needing to get smaller and/or weaker to be awarded better.

They have a sport in their hands... Not a show business. If so, they should create a wrestling-like federation, where wrestling is as real as it needs to be for the big screens, and each and every word said is scripted.


This is really sad... For the athletes. They do try hard to train as if all this was a sport.