INTERESTED IN COMPETING IN THE FIGURE CLASS

Do you want to take your training to the next level?
Are you committed and hard working?
Are you up for the challenge?

Competing in figure, for me was one of the most challenging goals I have ever set for myself.

I have always enjoyed my training and I was reasonably happy with my figure.

I remember once training in a gym and was captivated by photographs of figure girls in glamorous bikinis, tanned and toned in all the right places. I thought to myself I would love to do that but was a little apprehensive, asking myself questions, could I do that, could I really be as good as those girls, have I got what it takes, could I stand on stage and be scrutinised by the audience and judges, pretty scary stuff I thought. Although I had doubts I was also intrigued, the not knowing if I could do it made me want to do it more. To cut a long story short I did it and achieved more than I ever expected to.

My goal is now to help other women achieve their goals,
to pass on my knowledge and experience. I was lucky I had an experienced trainer to guide me the way; without the guidance I have no doubt that I would not have achieved all that I have and wouldn’t have the opportunity to guide others.

What’s involved

Training
The workouts are hard and you will probably be expected to train harder than you do at the moment. The programmes are designed for the individual and are constantly changing to keep the body off guard in order to make all those important changes. Everyone is different so the programmes will differ from person to person.

The workouts become progressively harder. When the body has made its adaptations and the training becomes less hard your programme will then be changed to trigger
a response.

When you have a show date to focus on you become switched on and just get on with it, motivation is high and in a funny sort of way you actually enjoy it.

Diet
Diet for me, and if you ask any competitor is the hardest of all!
Eating good clean basic foods, regular, day in day out, drinking your water to hype your metabolism and worst of all NO CHEATS!
The diet in my opinion has to be done slowly to avoid the loss of muscle tissue and can take months to achieve the look you need. The diet differs from person to person.

Posing & Routine
You need to be able to show your figure to the best of your ability and most organisations usually focus on shape and symmetry. In the figure class you are expected to have a toned figure with just enough body fat to show roundness to the muscle groups and not to be overly lean. Some girls get this so very wrong and can come in too smooth or too lean, you have to have the right balance.

Out on Stage
You are expected to have a good awareness of posing and displaying your figure correctly can make all the difference. The poses take time to master and they need to be right on the day.

The poses include quarter turns which are semi-relaxed and include front, back and side stances.

Followed by compulsory poses which are – front double biceps, front lat spread, side chest, back double biceps, back lat spread and front or side poses.
The routine - This is where you get the stage to yourself for a whole 1min and 30 secs. The routine
can be anything you feel comfortable with together with some compulsory poses in between to show yourself to the best of your ability. Some organisations will allow gymnastic moves and props etc but will depend on the rules.

The routine takes time to put together and practise to make it perfect, you have to know your routine inside out upside down.

Bikini /Shoes & Tan
These are the only three things you will be wearing on show day, they have to be perfect. The bikini has to be made to fit your figure in order to flatter your physique, get it wrong and it can make all the difference in your overall look.
Shoes – Again these have to be right for you, heel size has to be correct to suit your figure and they too have to be comfortable.
It is always best to do your posing practise in your shoes in order to be able to balance in them on stage. The posing on stage is very hard and you can be up there for quite some time, if the shoes are uncomfortable and you are wobbling around trying to get balance this will undoubtedly reflect in your posing.
The tan has to be applied to perfection and be dark enough to show definition under the lights.
This sport brings the best out in you and you don’t have to be an Olympic athlete to take part. All that is required is self motivation and self discipline. Anyone can do it!

There you have it!
Are you ready for the challenge!

The hi’s and the Low’s of a competitor
Show day - You have worked hard and dieted hard for months, you did everything right, you cut no corners, you are the best you can be and now it’s all in the hands of the judges. This has to be the most nerve racking part and you have to be prepared for the result. If you win that ‘s just great, walk away with a big trophy and the sense of great satisfaction, but what if you placed lower than you expected, it’s like a punch in the stomach, you feel like you let yourself down in some way, confused at what the judges were looking for etc etc.

To be a good competitor you have to be prepared for this and put your feelings of disappointment behind you, forget it and move on!

Looking at a loss positively, taking a knock can make you stronger and more determined to improve for the next time and can add fuel to your fire so to speak if you put that negative energy to good use. Your training can become even more focused than before and your determination to improve and make changes and that’s what makes a great competitor. Someone who keeps
on getting up and giving it a go!
Win or lose you are a winner because you are the best you can be!

There you have it!
Are you ready for the challenge?