Please Note: I’m not speaking on behalf of the NPC and I am not an official of the NPC, these are simply my observations on what I’ve seen from a few shows thus far.
I visit a number of message boards once or twice a day and post mainly on the popular female message board Siouxcountry.com. It never ceases to amaze me, no matter what happens at any given show someone is crying the blues. Fitness, Figure, Bodybuilding and now Bikini are subjective competitions. The physique I prefer may be different than the person next to me, it’s the nature of the beast. If you enter a show remember this and don’t go on message boards complaining. Bitching and moaning and being overly vocal about your thoughts as a competitor does nothing for you. Ever notice how the winners are never online complaining? It cracks me up to read people (mainly women) complaining about the new bikini contest and being confused about the look. It’s pretty clear there is a distinction between the Figure & Bikini, at least to me. Is it perfected yet? No. It will take some time but the overall comparisons between Figure and Bikini speak to this.
NPC JR USA Bikini Class Winners.
NPC JR USA Figure Class Winners.
As you can see the Figure women have more muscle and the most noticable difference are the capped delts. The bikini women are fit, toned, athletic and carry far less muscle than the Figure women. I wouldn’t say the Bikini women have no muscle, they do but it’s a softer, toned look. A tan definitely helps and in my opinion is necessary for a bikini competitor. You’re under hot bright stage lights if you’re not tan your muscle tone will get washed out. The two biggest things that don’t translate in photos (and are crucial to the bikini division) are presentation and suit selection. Bikini competitors who wear a competition suit like they would in Fitness/Figure look out of place. A cute, well fitted bikini off the store rack or custom made bikini looks 100x better than a regular Fitness/Figure competition suit. If the suit is cut right and flattering to your body it makes a world of difference. Presentation can definitely make or break a competitor. The women who place higher in Bikini can…
1) Walk in heels with confidence and not stumble.
If you aren’t used to walking in heels and lack the ability to “work it” then you should practice. It shows when you aren’t confident on stage. You look like a deer caught in the headlights. Remember whatever you’re thinking shows on stage. If you’re nervous and scared you display it on stage and it’s usually unintentional.
2) Have some sass.
Don’t go out there and frown, scowl or be frumpy. Work it. You’re in shape, you’ve worked hard, paid your entry fee so go out there and have fun. Don’t over due it and look trashy but hit a few poses.
3) Act as if it’s a photo shoot.
Over exaggerate by popping one hip to the side. From the back pop your butt out a little bit. Every booty has a crease so when you pop it out just a tiny bit you eliminate that and it looks better. Catch the judges attention when you present your physique.
Those are the three biggest things that stand out to me when it comes to presentation in bikini. You’re not on stage for long so don’t rush your presentation but also don’t be out there for an uncomfortably long time. If you hit a front, back and then front again in 5 seconds you 1) won’t capture the judges attention and 2) will end up with no photos and be pissed after the fact.
The thing to remember is the judges can only judge what is on the stage at that given day. The bikini division is new and the word needs to get out to women beyond the core audience already involved. There weren’t a ton of bikini competitors in the first pro qualifier however the class winners looked good. There were one or two divisions where the judges didn’t have much to compare so they had to reward what they felt was the best of the group.
Bikini Class winners from the back.
Figure Class winners from the back.
