Champions of Power and Grace

No creative effort went into the title of today's post, "Champions of Power and Grace" is actually the name of the IFBB pro show in Raleigh, North Carolina last weekend.




Among the power and grace on show in the Women's Physique line-up were the very gorgeous Allison Schmohl; Figure phenom turned Bodybuilder Jamie Taylor, making her Physique debut at the age of 45(!); Lauren Rutan and her thrillingly shredded legs placing in the top 5 again; and one of my top new swoons of 2018 so far, Sarah Fechter. Each of these women would be worthy of their very own post, as would Figure Olympian Jessica Reyes Padilla in her first (and hopefully not last) Physique show; the shredded glutes (among other parts) of the magnificent Valentina Mishina; Jill Diorio and her calves of plenty; and the ever glorious Katie Lee.

None are getting more than that brief mention today simply because this show had power and grace to burn. There were 29 women in the main Physique line-up, with another 6 competing only in either the 35+ or 45+ Masters Physique classes as well.

The check-in pictures, other assorted candids, plus the weekend's social posts are enough to keep a smile on your face for days. Or maybe that should be for a week.




Among others, these four images have helped maintain my cheesy grin. OK, so Katie gets another mention, hitting her (obligatory) most muscular the night before; there's Sheronica, backstage (where we'd all like to be at one of these shows), not even flexing that mighty shoulder; there's Liz Montalbano with her massive medal and her mighty peaks (note the Bramwell-like under-bicep veins); and here's Melissa Pearo, mature glammed and tanned muscle beauty in glorious, groin-activating close-up.

Anyway, and with extra apologies to all the power and grace we have ended up ignoring completely, FMS has selected five of the competitors for a closer look.

And we may as well continue with Melissa...

MELISSA PEARO
(4th, Open)



How this gorgeous hunk of womanhood can be surrounded by empty seats is beyond me. She's as deserving of a permanent, adoring entourage as any Physique dream.



Of course on her Instagram she's not short of compliments. Working on my selfie skills, she claimed in the week before this show. If you get any better at it... responded one of her followers. No need to expand. Melissa is surely well aware of the power she has.




Love how deep her tan always is. So dark, so sexy. Love how she threatens to wear post-show photoshoot outfits onto the flight back home. She can't resist an on stage most muscular either, which is never a bad thing. She's what Physique is all about, reckons another "Pearoist". A beautiful woman with a tight and sexy body. Her muscles - especially her biceps - look so thick and hard when she flexes them.

ANNE FREITAS
(8th, Open)



Since she switched to Physique Anne has - perhaps unsurprisingly - got a lot less forum attention than she did during her Bodybuilding glory days. Nevertheless, the mission she and her husband/trainer are on appears (to me anyway) to be pretty much the same - to develop a truly other-wordly physique, to almost become an alien life form!




Here she was as shredded as I've seen her for some time (and when you are talking about Anne that is very very shredded indeed). The toll the final part of her preparation has taken on her is there for everybody to see on her face. I find that kind of dedication, the sheer will to go that far, quite hypnotic. I don't know if I'm attracted or repulsed by this sight, but either way I'm transfixed. I can't stop looking at her!



She makes an interesting backstage comparison with the rising star of the class, don't you think? No such facial toll on Valentina (yet!), and Anne is giving away a few inches and a few years, but if you think Valentina's muscles are massive (and they are) just look at the thickness of Anne's side pec, and how she (at least) matches Mishina's quads. We always meet nice and pretty people at each show, Anne wrote of this meeting. Nice to meet you, Valentina responded. Your condition[ing] is amazing.

CANDREA JUDD-ADAMS
(unplaced, Open; 11th, 35+; 7th, 45+)



Candrea is another woman who doesn't get so much attention from the female muscle lovin' community, but she's had me following since the first time I saw her thoroughbred body on stage. My reward has been regular clips of Candrea grunting away in the gym (or anywhere else she can get a good pump on) - my excitement rising as I imagine her making similar, perhaps more prolonged, noises in er, let's say a different, more intimate context. I (and her other 3,000 or so followers) have also been rewarded with regular topless back shots, particularly when she's deep into her prep. The above, taken before last year's Olympia, is just one (special) example.




She wasn't, in my own ignorant opinion, at her absolute best here, but that is quite a chassis she has, and she is always a glorious sight from behind. In my own personal version of the washed-up-on-the-island-of-Amazons fantasy, the Queen, the most dominant of them all, looks very much like Candrea. Her dark, powerful body is decoratively painted (as is their custom, and she - as Queen - has the most beautiful decoration) but otherwise she's naked, and her muscles glisten in the hot sun...



Power and grace personified, an "ebony powerhouse" as one forum poster puts it, her body "hot and delicious". Here she is a few days before her previous show, crying out to be oiled right up (I imagine!). I do like how she adjusts her clothing in these shots.

SHERONICA HENTON
Winner, Open



The big winner on the day was the pre-show favourite, the gorgeous Sheronica looking powerful and graceful both on the day and as she prepared for her first contest of 2018. Her 5th at last year's Olympia means that she didn't need the automatic qualification that came with first place here, and, as she explains at the end of the clip (you may not have got that far) the Olympia may be the only other show she does this year.




She really is a class act these days, and despite what some moaners have been saying on the forums about her victory here, Sheronica's rise to the upper echelons of the Physique world has coincided nicely with her rise into the top 30 of the Hot and Hard 100 - one of those rare occasions when fans and judges are in agreement.



She rather plays down her devastating sex appeal on her Instagram, but in the last year or so this endearingly quiet, modest muscle beauty has also been doing more and more glamour work, including this welcome addition to a mini-genre that (as far as I know) goes back to (real) fire-fighter Sandy Riddell. I don't think Sheronica is actually a firefighter, but such hotness does carry a fire risk, so there is a link there... just.

JESSICA MCKENZIE
12th, Open



"Shero" may have gone home with the title and the (not very sizeable) cheque, but for FMS - and, it seems, many in the female muscle lovin' community - the Queen of Power and Grace was, on her pro debut, the utterly glorious Jessica McKenzie.



Jessica's (Bodybuilding to Physique, amateur to pro) progress
Top: (left) 2015 Jr USAs, (right) 2015 Nationals
Bottom: (left) 2016 USAs, (right, Physique) 2017 North Americans

We've followed Jessica since she first flexed her mighty biceps into the collective consciousness with three national level shows in 2015. Comparisons with a young Lenda Murray were noted, as were forum comments such as "she has the most shapely biceps I have ever seen". The following year we were rather upset when the judges failed to give Jessica a placing that came with a pro card at the NPC USAs. What a woman, we gushed. What a LADY she is! And after last year's USAs we hoped her switch from Bodybuilding to the (much more competitive) Physique class would herald a change in fortunes for her. It didn't at that show, but at the IFBB North Americans soon afterwards, a runner's-up spot in her class made her an IFBB pro.



The irony is that since moving to Physique, Jessica has (to my eyes anyway) actually got bigger. Competing as a pro for the first time here she had obviously done a lot of work on her legs (to thrilling effect), and also came in as ripped as I've ever seen her. Perhaps this is why she placed so low (although in a 29-woman line-up, 12th on your first pro outing is certainly no disgrace), perhaps it was the "oops! sorry, forgot - I used to be a Bodybuilder" close-fisted double biceps that kept her out of the top 10.




As always though, Jessica places far less emphasis on the placing than the experience, and she had a very good time. OH WHAT A NIGHT! she exclaimed (her caps). For years, I have dreamed of stepping on the pro stage; tonight that dream came true. To hear my name called out among 30+ of the best pros from all over the world is something that mere words cannot explain. Being up on stage performing tonight made me feel free. Free to express my passion for the art of Bodybuilding.




What a lady! What a QUEEN!!!

Check out all the power and grace on NPC News Online.

Enjoy!

Around the World: Saudi Arabia

Around the World is an occasional series celebrating the female bodybuilders of a particular country, and examining any issues peculiar to muscle women there.





The state-sponsored explosion of female-only gyms in Saudi Arabia last year was truly a seismic shift in a country where previously the involvement of women in any sporting activity was pretty much forbidden. So it was sad to hear that one of those gyms had had its licence suspended after a video filmed there and circulating on social media was accused of "promoting the gym disgracefully and breaching the kingdom’s code of conduct", according to the Saudi General Sports Authority's Chairman.

We are not going to tolerate this, he continued. The General Sports Authority asserts that it will put an end to such misdemeanours that are deemed offensive to society. All such irresponsible people will be under pursuit. Under Saudi law, publishing material through social media that is "inconsistent with public order or morality or religious values" is a crime that can get you five years plus a £500,000 fine.



The clip in question stars a woman identified as a "Tunisian kickboxer" who was - she's since been fired - a trainer at the Riyadh fitness centre performing a series of (impressively powerful) kickboxing moves, and also (apparently because this isn't in the part of the clip I've seen) doing some zumba. What's landed all concerned in such hot water though is not so much what she's doing but what she's wearing.



Saudi women can now lawfully obtain driving licences, attend sporting events (in three cities!), and access some state services without the permission of their male "guardian". Female students are even allowed to carry their mobile phones while on campus now, but wearing lycra and a singlet while working out in an all-female gym is, it seems, a clear and present danger to society. The General Sports Authority's swift response is to be applauded, tweeted a media adviser to the young, "reforming" King Salman. We are on the path to moderation, but without social breakdown, he added.



However, not all the female fitness news coming out of Saudi Arabia is so comically reactionary. In the west coast city of Jeddah "tucked away from prying eyes", 41-year-old trainer Halah Alhamrani's FlagBoxing gym – its motto "Fight Like A Girl" - offers the ladies classes in callisthenics, boxing, kickboxing, and even (whisper it!) Crossfit.



Despite (or perhaps because of) its low profile, Alhamrani's gym - relying on "word-of-mouth publicity" - achieves exactly what the state wanted these all-female gyms to achieve. A rich and prosperous country Saudi Arabia may be, but having effectively stopped female participation in any sporting activity for generations, the country now finds itself with a sedentary, obese, and diabetic female population. This not only costs the state in terms of healthcare, but is also such an epidemic that it even threatens the reformists' stated aim to have women making up a fifth of the workforce by 2030.



But as well as encouraging women to exercise for their physical well-being, FlagBoxing gym (and, I would imagine, others like it) are also enabling their members to "find their voice". On a daily basis, women who have never done sports walk into my class, some with their mothers, says Alhamrani. They walk out more confident, and the mothers say to me "Thank you for offering my daughter such an empowering feeling". Changing out of their abaya gowns in the locker room seems to transform them. They "can't wait to come back". They say being at the gym is "like going to a party".



And I suspect that this, for all their talk of public morals, is really what the authorities are so damn worried about - EMPOWERMENT. A female population fit and healthy for work is what they need; a confident, vocal, organised female population (who can punch the shiite out of their husbands) is quite possibly their worst nightmare.



More about these stories can be found on the Emirati news source The National, who reported on both FlagBoxing gym and the recent Riyadh gym closure. Also the story was covered on Emirates Woman, in the Saudi English language Al Araby, and in the British press via the Express and the Mail, and you can also watch Arab News' FlagBoxing gym report (starring Halah Alhamrani herself) on YouTube.

Woman of the Week: Ayme, Ayme, Ayme

Remember Ayme De Oliveira, the bodybuilding flight attendant ("my passengers don't notice my muscles") whose story went global in late 2016? Of course you do. The rest of the world might have forgotten about her (as predicted by FMS at the time) but the female muscle lovin' fan community - who had cottoned on to this Essex girl's charms long before the mainstream media did - certainly hasn't. Sexy, glamorous, feminine and with proper muscles (especially her yummy abs) - how could we?



Lately though, she's been getting much more than her fair share of attention as she prepares for her next contest (and first in a while I believe), a PCA show within the Bodypower Expo this weekend. Her (always well-stocked) Instagram has become essential daily viewing for at least the last month and a half. Ayme is quite the muscle exhibitionist, which is quite understandable given she's got so much to flaunt.



Look at her choice of outfit here. That body in that outfit just obliterates everything else in the room. Her companion, colleague and fellow fitness fanatic "rachaelfitfly" must be a game girl to walk around all night being virtually invisible next to Ayme. You didn't notice her?! OK, just look to the right of Ayme... You can do it, just take your eyes off Ayme and go right a bit... See her now? There she is... Oh I give up.



What's perhaps even more impressive even than her ability to make other women just disappear, even more impressive than Ayme in what she reckons is the best condition of her life, is the fact that she has achieved such great condition while still working long-haul flights to the US - currently Orlando and Las Vegas in case you are thinking about booking a flight on the airline where the flight attendants wear red. Defo gonna rip this jacket, warns Ayme. Seeing that first hand really would be "Economy Delight".



So while her veins and striations have started to crisscross her gorgeous muscles, Ayme has been crisscrossing the Atlantic on a regular basis. Prep is hard enough without a job like hers, but the last thing she's doing is complaining. I chose the career I wanted, she says, I chose the physique I desired and I worked. And she's now working harder than ever if the results of this prep are anything to go by.



One big plus of regularly drying out a bit while in the air, however, are what she calls her "landing shreds". And of course with Ayme can't help herself sharing them with us!




I mean it in a good way, explained one forum poster recently. This woman is a freak. She is cabin crew for Virgin Atlantic and she has a young child AND she still manages to maintain this physique. Note that Ayme isn't just "maintaining", she's actually improving, but yes, she is absolutely astonishing, isn't she? Just so... ALPHA!



Can't wait to feed my muscles buckets of carbs, said Ayme this week *feeling flat". It fascinates me how they react. I can't wait to see how she looks on stage this weekend. And I dare say this muscle beauty will cause a fair few reactions in the audience.



Ayme on Instagram

Enjoy!

Vika Victorious

Vika certainly seems to love showing it off, said FMS when we first met the 2016 Ukrainian Bodyfitness champ in January, and that confidence (/arrogance) is also apparent in her contest shots, I think. She looks very comfortable and very happy up there. You wouldn't know the Europeans was her first international competition.



"The Europeans" we were talking about was last year's EBFF Championships, Vika's first international competition, and she placed 3rd in her Bodyfitness class. She was back at the Championships again last weekend, and this time she achieved two firsts - it was her first show as a Physique competitor, and she placed first in the Open Physique class.




Nothing is more pleasant than winning, says Vika, it was a real honour to stand on stage and hear the Ukrainian anthem. (It's also been the case for a while that there is nothing more pleasant than perusing Eastlabs' contest galleries, but as you can see, those days are over and their images now come with the dreaded watermark.)



Still, Vika is as proficient as any at sharing her own souvenirs of her contest experiences, so thanks to her we can enjoy (unwatermarked) images of her trip to Santa Susana before the tan went on, and later as she reflected on her triumph.



My [Physique] debut and I became European champion, she says. I'm very happy!



And not finished for 2018 yet. A day of rest after the show and she was ready to go again. I've eaten delicious food, breathed in fresh sea air and warmed myself in the Spanish sun, she said. I completely rebooted and am ready for competitions to come.

Physique competitions.



Vika on Instagram

Enjoy!

Pic of the Month: May

First things first, our April Pic of the Month winner is...



Valentina Mishina's Meat Feast

By some distance too, with 47% of all the votes.

Поздравления to Valentina, our first ever Pic of the Month winner.

And so to this month's five.

Check them out then follow the link at the bottom to vote with a single click.

AMY NEELANDS: WITNESS THE THICKNESS



She has a private IG account (I'm still hoping to be accepted as follower #320), so there's not much I can tell you about Amy other than that she describes herself as a "giant foody", "photographer" and "bodybuilder" in that order. She also says she is a "rock & roll, hillbilly delux with a nice pick 'em up truck!" Some of which I understand. Anyway, none of that hits the nail on the head like one forum poster did in his comment on the above pic: Absolutely gorgeous meaty tattooed beast! Indeed.

MIREA HENRIQUEZ: FULLY PUMPED



Right now, with her next contest (Olympia Amateur Spain) fast approaching, Dutch Physique star Mirea is posting a truly awe-inspiring pic per day - sometimes several. We had to choose one, so we did - partly because it gives the viewer such a great angle from which to fully appreciate the thickness of her pecs, partly because of the wide, intense eyes, and partly because of those veins exploding all over her forehead.

ROSIE HARTE: (MUSCLE) PIT LICKIN' GOOD



Just over a year ago, ol' Swell here was confessing his sthenolagnia had taken a somewhat maschalagniacal turn, ie. I was into "muscle pits". Not armpits as such, but something better, MUCH better - a confluence of muscle, a glorious meeting of bicep, delt, lat and pec. Rosie seems to have brought out the feeling again. I'm even enjoying deluding myself that Rosie read that post then made this picture just for me!

MEGAN ELIZABETH COLVIN: BODY ART



First of all, let me say that I think Megan, aka "Miss Mightyy Mouse" is absolutely gorgeous, and she has great hair. Nevertheless, this upper body close-up literally made me gasp when I first saw it last week, so if you want to check how gorgeous she is and see her magnificent mane for yourself, you'll have to check her Instagram. Before you do though, take a very good gander at those hard abs, those veiny (and thrillingly pointy) pecs, and last but not least those mightyy traps and shoulders... Megan is doing an amazing job at filling the hole in my life left by Sierra Mangus' step back from the limelight. What's that? The tats are "too much", are they? Well, fine. It's your loss.

TOKS MACAULAY: CONTEST READY



I'm no expert, but I doubt very much this particular pic is 100% natural, but anyway, WOW! Judging by the posing suit (and the shredz), Toks was not about to go on stage at a contest with any IFBB links, and all the better for it - why shouldn't the ladies display all the muscles they've worked so hard for, especially ones that look so good?

Choose your favourite then go HERE to vote.

We'll post the winner next month when we invite you to vote for June's best.

Enjoy! And thanks in advance for voting!

PCA TV

With over 20 shows this year alone in the UK, the Physical Culture Association can rightly claim to be "the largest bodybuilding and fitness organisation in the UK".



Last year, UK Bodyfitness swoon Danielle Osborn - a class winner at the Arnold Classic Europe - tried her luck in the Athletic Figure class at a PCA show after not doing so well at the UKBFF British Championships. She won - and got to flex her lovely muscles while doing so. A really incredible experience, she said afterwards.

On the forums, fans were starting to appreciate the PCA's female classes - everything from Wellness and traditional Bikini to Trained Figure (like NABBA, but flexing in thongs and heels), with classes like Athletic Figure and Trained Bikini (basically like trad Bikini - in heels - but ripped, and in thongs!) adding to the curiosity value.

"Shame the videos are such low quality," lamented one fan.

Well, the PCA have fixed that this year.

Their YouTube channel, PCA TV, seems to have no lesser ambition than to bring you every routine from single British show in 2018. There are, I make it, 60 female routines across 8 classes in glorious HD from the early April PCA Saxon Classic alone.

Trained Figure winner there - and also later on in April at the PCA Scottish Championships - was Karen Gibson, also a NABBA Trained Figure athlete.

Here's her Saxon Classic winning routine.



Currently being put up are routines from (what I believe is) the biggest PCA show of the year so far, the PCA UK East Coast, which was held in Hull at the very end of April.

And there in the Trained Figure class another name (and body) familiar to regular FMS readers - Fay Ellis (aka Fay Simone), another woman who has found a home in the PCA after not really getting on with the UKBFF (in her case as a Physique competitor).



I'm not sure if Fay won - one thing the PCA still aren't very good at is getting their results out quick. However, I'm confident they'll fix this failing before too long.

They've certainly done a terrific job of fixing the quality of their clips!

Explore the PCA YouTube channel here.

And you can follow Danielle Osborn, Karen Gibson, and Fay Ellis on Instagram.

Enjoy!

One-Armed Wonders: Healing Power

Rumours that admissions during Nurse Practitioner Vanessa Cichon's shifts have been steadily rising as her Instagram following has grown are, as yet, unconfirmed.



What has become known, however, is that looking at images of Vanessa may cause a sharp rise in heart rate, shortness of breath, and loss of higher brain functions.



I suddenly feel the urge to get some medical attention myself.



Ladies, she advises, the weights are where it’s at!

Ladies, listen to the nurse.