(More) Summer Lovin': Sizzler

Not an "official" Sunday Sizzler, but it is Sunday and this woman is volcano hot, so...

Kim is one half of "The Dynamic Duo", a couple "working on their fitness" and documenting that work on their shared Instagram. Don't be scared though, I say "shared", but you could count the pics that feature Mike on one hand, while you'll need more than one hand to count the pics of his hot and hard better half posted today.

We're posting just the one.



We think it'll make you want to see more...

Enjoy!

Summer and Summer Lovin' ends here. FMS is back to normal tomorrow.

(More) Summer Lovin': That Intellectual Look

A few years ago an old friend of mine (real not online), very successful in his field of business, decided he was going to get himself some glasses. He didn't need to wear them, there was, and as far as I know still is, absolutely nothing wrong with his vision. He just felt he needed to look a bit more intellectual in meetings, where he was often up against guys who "just looked so f***ing intelligent" with their specs on.



There's quite a lot of him in C. Moore Glootz - the bluster, the sideways point of view, the egocentricity (not that he isn't a lovely guy underneath all that!). Strangely though, some recent research reported in the UK media has suggested that not only was my old friend correct in thinking wearing glasses makes you look smarter, but also that there may actually be a link between having poor eyesight and being intelligent.




Research commissioned by Scrivens Opticians & Hearing Care and carried out by OnePoll.com found one third believe spectacle wearers look more intellectual than those who don't have prescription eyewear. The research also found 32 per cent of glasses wearers think they are perceived 'differently' when they wear glasses.
[The Sun, 31 January 2018]


Built to last: Gaby Quiros is smart enough to find the Corinth Canal

A new study published in the journal Nature Communications has found that needing to wear glasses is associated with higher levels of intelligence. In the study, the largest of its kind ever conducted, researchers from the University of Edinburgh analyzed cognitive and genetic data from over 300,000 people aged between 16 and 102 that had been gathered by the UK Biobank and the Charge and Cogent consortia. Their analysis found “significant genetic overlap between general cognitive function, reaction time, and many health variables including eyesight, hypertension, and longevity”. Specifically, people who were more intelligent were almost 30% more likely to have genes which might indicate they’d need to wear glasses.
[The Guardian, 30 May 2018]



Whether what's brought it on is the (sometime) glasses wearing Swoon of the Year Shannon Seeley, or my recent deep exploration of Amanda Machado's Instagram, or something else entirely, over the last couple of weeks I've been actively searching for and collecting images of bespectacled muscular beauties for FMS.


Jana Beeckman makes sure everything matches

Am I entering some kind of brawn plus brains period?


Rachael Chaskey has read at least one book

Anecdotal evidence on the forums abounds with suggestions that some muscle women are, in fact, just as "meat-headed" as (I imagine all) male BBs (to be). I've never seen FBBs as anything less than brilliantly intelligent simply because they've chosen right, chosen the correct answer if you like - a life devoted to Bodybuilding.



So I dismiss that kind of forum chatter. For one thing, there are the actually academically qualified and professionally high-achieving types (see below), but what about Cory Everson, who plotted a career into the mainstream that remains unrivalled? What about Denise Masino or Lisa Cross or Brandi Mae Akers, who have turned their talents to money-making via muscle erotica? What about Emery Miller, chatting away to her fans on cam and managing to be engaging and apparently knowledgeable across a wide range of subjects? The most popular Female Bodybuilders, more often than not it seems to me, appeal not only to our baser physical instincts, but can also reach the largest of erogenous zones - our brains.


Doctor Alex Mossbarger

In a thread called "Female Bodybuilders with a High IQ", Bettina Kadet (now Salomone) (optometrist), Kathy Connors (well-read, knew "an impressive amount" about a minor African conflict according to a head who met her), Cerra Aredia (lawyer), Dina Al Sabah (polyglot, BSc, MSc, MBA), Dr. Michelle Neil, Dr. Dena Westerfield, Heather Darling ("accomplished" lawyer), the late great Renee O'Neil (BSc, MSc, missile defence program director), Chris Lydon (did Neurobiology and French, then graduated from Yale Medical School before discovering Bodybuilding), and, of course, Kristy Hawkins (chemist) all get shout outs.



None of them - as far as I know - are famous for wearing specs though...




Neither are many of the women we've featured today, and some I was genuinely surprised to find wearing glasses - Cass Martin, for example, Michaela Aycock, Ashlee Potts, and Megan Elizabeth Colvin. Only one or two - Paige Sandgren being the obvious example - are more commonly seen with than without eyewear, and much of Paige's geeky-girl-next-door appeal stems from that very fact.



Do the rest of them know what my old friend worked out and the later research confirmed (sort of) - that glasses really do make you look more intelligent?



It's win-win as far as I can tell. If they really do need to wear the glasses then research shows they are likely to be have clever genes anyway. And even if they are wearing them solely for effect, well that just shows how smart they are too. Either way my suspicions are confirmed. Muscle women are as brainy as they are beautiful.



Enjoy!

Pic of the Month: August

A clear winner for July's poll, with a whopping 75% of all votes cast (admittedly there weren't a LOT of votes cast but still, fair play, and I'm going to persevere with the polls as long as anyone bothers to vote!), it's Emma Tall and the pic that has been called "You Can Run (But I Can Hide in the Bushes with My Camera)".



And so to our five muscle beauties for August. Same as always - check them all out, choose your favourite then follow the link at the bottom to vote with a single click.

SAMMICA CASH - SHE'S A KNOCKOUT



Traps, delts, pecs, abs and biceps. What more could you want? (Actually, don't answer that, we don't want your "tattoo removal" comments.) Anyway, all those beautiful muscles plus our first acknowledged "glove bra". Well done Sammica! There are two types of fighters, she tells us, the first strike all over the place hoping one will land, the other, assured of their prowess and capabilities, hit once and destroy an opponent's desire to continue the fight! Look out for Sammica at the Tampa Pro this weekend.

JACQUELYN HICKERSON - FOCUS



Probably a bit artful to really win a popular vote (he said, playing the reverse psychology card on the clearly very cultured and knowledgeable readership), but there's a reason why Jacquelyn is surrounded by blur. I’m still learning to mentally blur things in my surroundings/life/mind that are unimportant, insignificant, or derailing, she says. I’d rather have a clear focus on what’s imperative. See? Visual representation of mental process. How often do you get that from your muscle goddess? [well, actually... -ed.] Swell loves what's inside the head of this beautiful, eloquent, witty young woman almost as much as the rest of her. Almost.

MARGA OVERBY - IN MY HOUSE (I WISH!)



I do love a topless back double biceps, especially when there's a thong involved too. Marga Overby was, I believe, last seen on stage in 2015, but if this pic is recent (and I've not been able to confirm that it is) then it looks as though she'll be back on stage again soon. Sadly, she won't be topless (from the front or rear) and sadly (and fairly obviously) this wasn't taken at my house (where the door frames are much wider).

BLAKELEE ORTEGA - A GROWING CONCERN



She'd be properly scary if she wasn't so damn cute, said FMS after bringing you "aspiring Physique competitor" Blakelee for the first time on the blog back in January. Progress has been made since then, and if you haven't been following her on Instagram, you should see what you've been missing. The moment when a young muscle women decides to go "full beast" is something I don't think I will ever tire of. As you read this, Blakelee will be just a single day out from her first show - the Knox Classic. I, for one, won't only be looking out for images from Tampa this weekend.

SHANNON COURTNEY - v.2018



New breasts, a bit of facial work, and she's kind of let the definition and size go a bit, but as far as I'm concerned, a new rush of Shannon pics on the forums means she's still got "it". There are, of course, those who don't like what they see so much - "I really miss the old Shannon" etc. - but there's many many more who, like me, are more than impressed with v.2018. She's maturing like a fine wine, reckons one (still) Shannon fan. Full-bodied and fruity. She's perfecting muscular sensuality, says another. I could go on, but I'd rather finish typing sooner rather than later and I think you can guess why...

So there they are, our August five.

When you are ready, vote HERE. It only takes a moment.

Thanks in advance. Enjoy!

Woman of the Week: Thea Dougher

I first became aware of her by the name she's more commonly known as, Thea Renee (sometimes with, sometimes without the last name Schuler added as well), a few years ago. Big, blond, beautiful and tattooed, I remember being impressed, she may even have featured on the blog - though I can't recall in what capacity - at some stage.



She seemed to disappear, I'd read something about her getting married - or did I dream that? Anyway, off the radar she went, until the back end of last year, when a bunch of images appeared on GwM, along with "news" that she had a new Instagram moniker - crazy_fitfreak. She looked fantastic - bigger, more beautiful. And as 2017 turned to 2018, it looked more and more as though Thea was preparing for something.



Ah yes! That's right... MILITARY.

Scrolling through her IG one night jogged the memory, explained why she wasn't on the radar (geddit?!), why I'd been so keen in the first place (tough as nails, uniform) and why the only YouTube video I could find of her was a 2014 contest in Guam.



The something she was preparing for turned out to be the NPC Los Angeles Championships, where she competed, not under Schuler, but her married name of Dougher - Thea Dougher. Despite my suspicions that she'd got married some time ago, she was in fact a bride only this year, and quite the outfit she got married in. However, at the time I checked the pics of the contest, I didn't know any of that, so I wasn't expecting much from the Physique winner, because experience tells me that at regional NPC shows, it's best not to expect too much, even of the Physique...

WOW!!!




Even then - perhaps because I was a bit, you know, "worked up" - I didn't immediately equate this vision of muscular beauty with the (largely unglamorous and unsmiling) Thea I knew before. It was the back tat - "that horroble [sic] back tattoo" as it is known in some circles - that eventually made me realise exactly who I was looking at. Big, blond, beautiful and tattooed (yeah!) AND glammed, tanned and striking those poses with power and elegance, she really ticked EVERY SINGLE ONE of the boxes.



Full swoonspin. Felt pretty damn good up there! she said after prejudging. Looked good too, pretty much like my idea of Physique - a huge, powerful and yet very feminine woman. No surprise she won first in her class and Overall with a body (and styling) like that. She had a package, as Paige Sandgren once put it, that "the judges can't deny". So proud of what I brought to the stage and very happy with it all! she wrote as she celebrated. I’ve come a long way since my last show years ago.



We’ll see what happens next, she continues...



This was four years after her first show. And she apparently made her fella wait a few years. I'm seriously worried it might be 2022 before we see her on stage again, though I very sincerely hope not. Still, imagine how big she would be able to get by then...

Enjoy!

Summer Lovin': Natasha

Today, we catch up with Canadian stunner Natasha Aughey.

And not before time. It's been a while since we last saw her "lush muscle and beauty" here on FMS, far too long judging by some of her more recent Instagram posts.

Such as this, for example...



Let yourself wander, says Natasha.

Well this certainly made my mind wander, imagining all sorts of "if you go down in the woods today" scenarios. When I came round, I found my hands had wandered too.

More Summer Lovin' tomorrow...

MUSCLE! @Omaha Pro 2018

Before we get on to the rest of the muscle up on the stage in Omaha (for the Physique dreams at the show see Tuesday's post), let's stop by the Wings of Strength booth...



The Queen herself, Theresa, Kristina Nicole Mendoza, and (as far as I know) for the first time at one of these events, Pauline Nelson, as well as Boss Lady Lenda Murray. You don't have to search very hard to find pictures of fans (male and female) with these magnificent women, and nor do you have to search very hard to find one of more of them cosying up to women from the Physique division either.



Margie had already publicly suggested Valentina Mishina try the more muscular division during the Toronto show, and the charm offensive apparently continued here as well, with Lenda adding her own powers of persuasion. I will think about Female Bodybuilding, Valentina wrote on her Instagram. Maybe I will try the division. (Qualified) Good news! But don't pop your champagne cork just yet. This was, you may recall, Valentina's 7th show of the season, so "not this year" was her ultimate verdict.



There was, however, one new recruit in the Omaha line-up - Canadian beauty Amanda Smith made her FBBing debut, a week after competing in Physique in Toronto.

Looking suitably Amazonian, she explained her reasons to Hayley Delf...



I wonder whether there is an active policy among the WoS posse to woo more muscular Physique women into their cabal. It would be understandable - the future of pro Female Bodybuilding has got to come from somewhere, this year (and last) the line-ups haven't exactly been overflowing with entrants. It's pretty irrelevant whether it is in fact a concerted effort to bring more Physique women into the WoS fold, or whether it's just a combination of Margie, Lenda et al being so damn nice, the size of the prize money available in Female Bodybuilding these days, and IFBB Physqiue judges being so anti-muscle. Either way, it is at the very least getting some great Physique competitors thinking about having a slice of the Wings of Strength pie.



5th place Amanda sounds as though she's here to stay anyway. The comradery [sic] amongst these ladies is indescribable, she wrote afterwards. It’s like a family. And I’ve received a lot of positive feedback from people (which no doubt made a nice change given the kind of feedback she got in Toronto!). I think I’ve found where I belong.



So do we, Amanda. So do we.



A special mention should also go to Amy Hauck. Well over 50 now, Amy won her only previous pro outing in Pittsburgh last year, a Masters class with women up to 15 years her junior in it. This was, therefore, her first non-Masters pro appearance.



As well as going to "new" FBB Amanda for her 5th place, Rising Phoenix qualification points were bagged by Angela Rayburn (4th), LaDawn McDay (3rd), and Canadian beefcake Maria Mikola, who was, as in Toronto the previous week, runner-up.

And the winner...




In sexy "Jessica Rabbit red", Isabelle Turell.



Also seen during the weekend in blue for Dan Ray, bunny ears (just for herself, I think), and in purple for Awefilms - previews of which are available on their Instagram and (if not already seen) will make you glad you bothered taking the time to check.



She also wore the red for Wings of Strength, and was gushing in her praise.

Earlier in the year I was given a great opportunity to be an Ambassador for Wings of Strength. This was a huge honor for me as Bodybuilding is something I love and I love to meet fans and entertain them. I get to go around to shows and events spreading the word of Bodybuilding and meeting the awesome fans. Along with my fellow iron sisters it has been a very rewarding experience and journey. The people behind Wings of Strength - Jake Wood, Alexandra Bandida, Alina Popa - were very understanding with my contest prep, and really accommodated me around it and made a lot of things possible. I honestly could not have accomplished what I did in Omaha if it wasn't for Wings of Strength. They believed in me from day 1 and gave me the tools I needed to help me pave the way for my journey. I will be forever grateful.



With reviews like that, who wouldn't want to compete for them?!

Enjoy!