girlfriend at 3 weeks out from show

[nandro]

her first show in figure.
i won't put any other details on height, weight and such as not to skew any opinions. tell me what you guys think and fire away. i need input so we can make her a better competitor.

 

[Big A]

Don't get her any leaner. Also, get her not to stick out her ribcage so much because the ribs are too visible and that makes one believe that she is too lean or not enough muscle or both.

Apart from that, it's a nice balanced physique.

 

[nandro]

yeah, the rib thing bothers me but she's always been like that. i'll try to adjust her torso a bit so as not to stick out so much. she has only been training for about 7 months, 2 1/2 months of that was dieting! i know she needs to be more muscular but that won't be a problem next year. she has great potential in my opinion with the long sleek lines, wide shoulders, and small pelvis. my friend mary (won the arnold) has been helping her and said for her to drop down more for her legs...which she has already done. we will hold steady unless i get a different consensus. btw.... she will remain all natural. i don't care what anyone say....many of those national and pro girls up close looks hideous. i said up close, not some retouched magazine shot.

 

[JessFit]

Hey Nandro,

First off, I'd like to say that I think it is awesome that your girlfriend is doing a show. I wish her the best!

I would agree with Big A that she doesn't need to get any leaner.

From what I see in the pictures she needs to work on her posing/how she is holding herself. I have attached some front/side/back/and relaxed shots of myself. Hopefully that will help.

If you have any other questions don't hesitate to ask. I wish your girlfriend the best with her training. God Bless!

Jess

 

[JessFit]

Oh, I didn't read that she was getting help from Mary, oops. . . She is in GREAT hands then.

I completely agree. Figure competitors do not need to use anything! In fact, head judge Sandy Ranalli spoke about how the look of figure is going to be changing. She said that some of the amatuer girls could make great bodybuilders. She went on to say they want a more toned down softer look. The don't want the women to be really soft and have no muscle at all, but they don't want them to be big and shredded either.

Agian, I wish your girl the best!

 

[JessFit]

Sorry I forgot to add one thing . . .On her side quarter turn she needs to put both hands to her sides (look at the side quarter pic I put up). The judges will tell the women to put their hands to their sides b/c only the pros are allowed to stand with one hand behind.

 

[nandro]

thanks jess, i'm a big fan of yours btw. true beauty. i'm all confused on the posing. some say one way, and others say different. we spent hours with mary lado posing and what you see is what mary told her to do. i had my girlfriend posing very similar to the way you are doing it and we changed it. man, she will be pissed to find out she's been doing this wrong! i did tell her that maybe ifbb posing is not the same as npc.

i just read your last post. ah hah! i was right about ifbb posing differently. jess, you've helped me more than you'll ever know! btw...where's your front pose?

 

[JessFit]

Nandro,

Thank you for your kind words!

I don't want to step on Mary's toes. All I know is that I learned how to pose from Mike Davies. He has helped many of the top pros (Jenny Hendershot, Mari Kudla, Adela Garcia, Valerie Waugaman etc.) and all of his amatuer clients ALWAYS look polished on stage.

The side quarter stance is supposed to be done with both hands by your side (for amatuers). At the local level I have seen judges let that slide, but at the National level the head judge will ask all of the girls to put their arms to their sides. If they don't listen they will call the girl out who is posing wrong.

Posing is VERY important. I don't care if you are the best conditioned girl on stage with the best package. If you don't know how to carry yourself or you don't know how to pose it can really hurt you. . .

Don't let your girl get frustrated. Just make sure she is practicing alot. I practice 2-3 X a week leading up to my shows. It helps alot, trust me.

Have a great day and write if you have any other questions. . .

Here is my front shot: You want your hands close to the sides of your legs. If you have your arms out really wide it takes away from the shape of your shoulders. Some women feel they need to have their arms out really wide to make themselves appear bigger, but that isn't the case.

 

[nandro]

about the side pose. she's asking me if the side pose is basically the same as the front and back pose except you are facing sideways (duh) and the hands are slightly in front.

 

[JessFit]

You are correct. She just needs to flex her arms a little to show the muscle definition, curve her lower back to stick her bootie out a bit, keep her chin up, and look at the competitor's head in front of her. . .

It is tough to do this over the computer, that is why practice is crucial. I wish I could work with her one on one. . .

Hope this helps!