FBBUK: Fay Ellis

Fay Ellis, who first appeared last week on FMS with her thighs under her Instagram monniker Fay Simone, is a 31-year-old bodybuilder from the Swinton area of Manchester in that hotbed of UK female muscle that is the north-west of England.



Fay has only been competing for a couple of years, and - even to this untrained eye - her progress has been nothing short of spectacular. The picture above was taken soon after her competitive debut at the NAC British Open in 2013, where "little Fay" as she rather endearingly calls her-then-self now, finished 3rd in the Ms Figure class.



That was followed by another Ms Figure appearance at the NAC Universe in December 2013 - she finished 9th - and then eleven months later here she is at the NABBA UK in the Ms Athletic class, where she placed a rather controversial 3rd behind Sally Knights (right) and FMS fave Rebecca Maughan (centre, who won). What do you think? Compare, for example, Fay's and Rebecca's quads... Perhaps it was a case of Fay having too much for the class rather than Rebecca and Sally being "better"?



Either way, Fay had clearly improved a lot over the year, and as 2014 drew to a close, she resolved to be even bigger and even better this year. Can't wait to start prep and unearth the new beast from within in this off season, she said at the time.



Now whatever Fay and her trainer got down to during the rest of the winter of 2014 and the spring of 2015, by the time the summer arrived, her original plan to compete at the NABBA Britain finals had been scrapped. Instead Fay took to the stage at the UKBFF North-west on 3rd May, and for the first time she was a Physique competitor.




The best female physique on show all day, said John Plummer in his contest report. Fay Ellis showed a real 'wow' factor. Her classy routine marked her down as a definite British title contender. She was up against the much more experienced North-west champ from the last two years, FMS fave Jackie Hague (above, bottom left in the dark posing suit), but Fay was the clear winner. That euphoric feeling of happiness when they call you for first place, she recalls (the moment captured above, top right). My first show this year doing WPD... And my first time ever coming first!



She didn't have to wait long to have that feeling again. Exactly a week later and Fay repeated her success, once again beating Jackie into 2nd place at the USN Bodypower Classic. Just two shows as a Physique competitor, and she had two winner's medals.



Fay's trainer proudly showed off his work with the crazy ten-week transformation pic above. If John Plummer had been alone in thinking Fay was a serious contender for the British champs after the North-west qualifier, there were other believers now.



And during the five months between the Bodypower Classic and the British champs in Nottingham at the beginning of October, Fay seemed to be growing on an almost daily basis. Bigger, better - OMG! that BACK - and she sure seemed to be enjoying it!




Now if this was a Hollywood screenplay, Fay would not have things her own way at her next competition, and that's exactly how it panned out. Unfortunately I didn't place yesterday at UKBFF British Championships, she told her Instagram followers. It was a fab line-up, a few issues that we need to address. Everything went perfect up until about an hour before going on stage... then, you know, the smallest events, mis-happenings, mis-timings can spell disaster. But such is life! Onwards we roll.



And Fay's season is not quite over yet. Those guns will get one more airing before another off-season unearthing the beast within. The Amateur Olympia in Liverpool rolls around a week tomorrow. Maybe there'll be a Hollywood ending after all.



Her most recent Instagram post certainly suggests that her British championships setback hasn't turned her good vibes into bad vibes by any means. When the music's on and you start feeling ya self a bit too much while cooking... Yeah I live alone!



Enjoy!

FBBUK @UKBFF British 2015

The UKBFF British Championships took place over the first weekend of October in its now traditional home of Nottingham. It was, according to the UKBFF's own press, the biggest event in British bodybuilding ever, with over 600 competitors in total.

How many of them were female is hard to say, for reasons that will be explained anon, and the majority of the women were competing in the Bikini division - there were 35 the shortest class alone. There was no Women's Bodybuilding category at all for the second consecutive year, which I think is a shame, and I also think it is a shame that images of the show are so hard to come by - those that you can view (but not download) at Bodybuilding.com are not, generally speaking, of the highest quality.

The event, I think, has also suffered slightly from the fact that the Amateur Olympia in Liverpool has been scheduled just four weeks after the national championships. Given that they will be competing for pro cards at the Amateur O, the majority of competitors will see that, and not the UKBFF British, as the major show of this year.

The UKBFF has obviously had to jump through a few hoops for the IFBB to secure that event in Liverpool later in the month, and far be it from me to criticise them for that because ultimately it reopens a path to professional status for British women that has been closed for some time. However, I would say that if they can get it together to bring a major amateur show to these shores, they should also be able to get the full results of their national championships out a bit more quickly. It's now ten days after the show took place and, as far as I know, only the top 6 placings in each class are available. And it's not just this fan boy who's feeling the frustration...

Does anyone know where and if we can find the placings outside of the top 6? asked one interested female on the UKBFF Facebook page. And there was also a Bikini competitor with a similar query - Will the official scores/placings of everyone be published anywhere? asked Pollyanna Isabella - and she was one of the competitors!

Now, I don't want to spend the whole of this post firing potshots at the UKBFF, but jeez, when your own competitors aren't 100% sure where they placed, you have to ask yourselves whether you are really doing your best for them, don't you?

Anyway, the research team have turned up at least some information, and thanks to the wonderful women competing, there are, if not stage shots, then plenty of muscle-packed images from in and around the show to illustrate my "report" with.

So, here's what we have learned so far about the UKBFF British 2015...

AS IN MADRID, SO IN NOTTINGHAM

In the main, the women who we celebrated on Saturday for flying the flag at the Arnold Classic Europe also turned up and took the prizes in Nottingham.

KARINA SLOWRONSKA
Overall Bikini, Winner



The Pole who became a Brit continued to underline her position as the Best of British Bikini with her second consecutive national title. Before the show she asked her Facebook followers which of her self-made bikinis to wear at the show (below, left). Pink, like Karina herself, won. And within a week of this show she was off to Finland and the Nicole Wilkins Fitness Championships, where she finished runner-up.



Her win earned her a well-deserved pro card, so huge gratulacje to Karina!

EMMA PAVELEY
Fitness, Winner



And Britain's 2014 Fitness champ won again in 2015. Here she is backstage after her win making her trophy look even bigger than it really is (although actually it is pretty big), and all smiles with runner-up and bestie Vicky Cale (left) -who had also competed with distinction in Madrid - and Maggie Turner (right) who finished 3rd.

MICHELLE MORRIS
Bodyfitness 163cm+, Winner



And the third of our two-time British champs had also had a good show in Madrid at the Arnold Classic Europe. Michelle Morris won the taller of the two Bodyfitness (Figure) classes, successfully defending the title she had won last year. The pride of Scotland brought a killer combination of looks, poise and a perfect symmetrical body, said John Plummer in his "Day 1 report" - don't look for a "Day 2 report", it doesn't exist - on the UKBFF Facebook page. Many congratulations then to the very gorgeous Michelle. You have to go all the way back to 2010 to find a Bodyfitness winner who successfully defended her title, so her achievement should not be underestimated.

MOTHERS OF BODYFITNESS


The shorter Bodyfitness class top 6, left to right: Sophia Sammee (5th), Maggie Jaswinska (3rd),
Clare Barks (1st), Rebecca Maunder (2nd), Katarzyna Wegiel (4th) & Ann-Marie Trotman (6th)

CLARE BARKS
Bodyfitness up to 163cm, Winner



Clare had been part of Team GB in Madrid with Karina, Emma, Michelle et al, and had finished 8th in her height class there as well as 13th in the Masters class. The 2015 British champs was her 11th competition in the last two and a half years, and her very first win. Waking up a British Champion (or rather, not sleeping and lying awake all night) is an amazing feeling, she told her Facebook followers the day after.



Even more amazing was the fact that she gained a child that night as well.

OK, she didn't actually, but a report of the show did state that she was the mother of three children. I only have two children I think, she commented with a winky face. Clare has also managed to get herself a small but growing fanbase on the forums, thanks, in part, to shots of her magnificent midriff like the one above (how many mothers of any amount of children do you know with a midsection like that?) and this recent Fit Vids preview - her first, as far as I know, video work with a major site.

MICHELLE LEACH
Masters Bodyfitness, Winner



Another mother-of-two triumphed in the Masters Bodyfitness class. Michelle Leach only started competing two years ago - in Physique incidentally - and after winning that first ever show has enjoyed a number of regional UKBFF victories.



Michelle, from Hemel Hempstead, is trained by, and now works with, Eddie Abew, a familiar face to UK readers who used to watch the Active Channel for (workout tips from) UK muscle babe Carmen Knights training with Eddie in his Olympian Gym.

FMS FAVES M.I.A. Part I

REBECCA MAUGHAN



Pre-contest selfies of major Swell heart-throb Rebecca Maughan (see previously on FMS) had me swooning all over, and, more importantly, suggested that she was in the shape of her life before the contest and peaking at exactly the right time. I'd always thought Hull's finest was pretty damn near perfect anyway, but this time around she seemed to have reached a whole new level of gorgeous muscular perfection.



Well it just goes to show what I know that not only did the ravishing Rebecca not win, she didn't even place. She did, however, get a special mention in John Plummer's report though. Some superb physiques, he wrote of the taller Bodyfitness class, most notable Donna Murphy and Rebecca Maughan, didn’t make the top six as the judges took a firm stance against the more muscular competitors, he says.



All of which left Rebecca in the mood to drown her sorrows with a night out in Nottingham, ruefully showing off some of the bits of her "superb physique" which seem to be holding her back. Poor Rebecca now has to tone down those scrummy muscles or move up a division to Physique. Take a wild guess which I'd vote for!

PHYSIQUE


The top 3, left to right: Bianca Denham (3rd), Carly Thornton (1st), Hayley Brylewski (2nd).
I don't wish to be rude or anything but does this look like a "spot the odd one out" picture or what?

Well, we found out yesterday who won...



Carly's record as a Physique competitor matches the name of her tanning sponsors.

But what about the other placings? And what happened to some FMS faves?

HAYLEY BRYLEWSKI 2nd




Runner-up to Carly was the UK's self-styled "Muscle Princess" (pretty apt on this occasion), Lincoln's Hayley Brylewski. Yes baby! she said afterwards, brought my best condition, so happy! But she also admitted that in order to go one better she probably needed to work on her legs and continue to bring her waist in.

LINDA GARTSIDE 6th



And another FMS fave who managed to crack the top 6 was the former NABBA Ms Universe Linda Gartside. I think Linda was a little hard done by with her placing, but like Hayley, Gartside was looking on the bright side after the show. Had just the best day and the best prep, she said. Looking forwards to taking on board the constructive feedback and putting [it] into practice. The next stop for Linda is going to be that Amateur Olympia in Liverpool, "the biggest show of my life" as she calls it.

Now, eagle-eyed readers may have noticed another FMS fave above, lurking in the background to the left of Linda. #179, the beautiful Corinne Ingman.

FMS FAVES M.I.A. Parts II & III

CORINNE INGMAN



Now I can only assume from what we know about the fate of Rebecca Maughan in her Bodyfitness class that Corinne was another victim of "the judges firm stance against the more muscular competitors" given the evidence of some of the women who did make the Physique top 6, what we know about how "truly, disgustingly peeled" Corinne can get come show time, and the evidence we have of Corinne's leg situation just over a week out (above) and with six days to go to the British Championships (below).



This weekend didn't go to plan at all, said Corinne afterwards. I'm simply not satisfied with doing this for self-satisfaction! Her results at regional level point to national success - or at least a national level placing - but it's never worked out for her yet. Check out her Instagram and decide for yourself if she could be any more dedicated or thorough in her preparation. Nor could she be any more persevering in the face of such setbacks. Targets set, new focus! she promised after a bit of retail therapy had helped her get over the disappointment of the show. You have got to love her!

JACKIE HAGUE



Another FMS fave who was nowhere to be seen in the placings was also in a determined mood after the British Championships, and not (or not only) because she has carrot of the Amateur Olympia to look forward to either. How's this for a battle cry...?



You may not think you're good enough for the stage. You put your heart and soul into it, beat yourself up everyday, put yourself through it. But f***ing hell! Look around you! How many people even look like you do? Or put that much work in? Or give a shit about their bodies and health? Very few! So stop putting yourself down! You may not be DLB, Nicole Wilkins or anyone you admire, but you are YOU, and YOU stand out in the crowd. So look in the mirror and say "F***ing hell yeah!!!"



Wow.

FBBUK: Sarah Williams @UKBFF 2014

One of the saddest things I've read this year is the news that Female Bodybuilding had been "phased out" of UKBFF events. No Female Bodybuilding class in the regional qualifiers, no Female Bodybuilding class at the national championships. The federation that brought you the world class muscle of Lisa Cross (2010 UKBFF champion) and Rene Campbell (2011) has turned its back on British female bodybuilders.

However, come competition time at the UKBFF British Championships recently, hope for the future of female muscle within Britain's most important bodybuilding federation was provided by the triumph of the VERY muscular Sarah Williams.



Sarah had previously competed at the championships as a bodybuilder. In 2012, in fact, she had been runner-up to the smaller and considerably less muscular Rosanna Harte, and many had felt she'd been the victim of a judging travesty. Then, last year, having been a pre-contest favourite given her placing the year before, her appearance on stage apparently having forgotten to apply the pro tan was met with confusion, and, despite her size, she slipped down to fifth in the final placings.


Sarah, robbed at the UKBFF British in 2012


"Looking ghostly" - her words - in 2013

So Sarah got busy "sizing down" as they say, preparing to compete in Physique. It was a bit daunting at first, she says. But I made it simple like I always do, just started dieting a bit earlier, played with my diet a bit, and then just made sure my legs - I didn't train them the same way to get them to be proportionate to my top half.



Given that she is already more successful as a Physique competitor than she ever was as a bodybuilder, it shouldn't be too surprising that she already sounds like a true believer, that Physique was the home she had always been looking for. It [Physique posing] felt much more feminine, much more natural to me, she said after her win.

And it's good to know that being covered in rock hard muscle - she "shredded the competition" according to Flex Online - and getting that feminine feeling are not mutually exclusive. She was, by all accounts, the clear winner from the moment she stepped on stage. The only debate, writes John Plummer, centred on whether she was too muscular for women’s physique. Some felt she was a bodybuilder by another name; others felt her physique was perfectly suited to the international stage.



Thankfully, the latter of these two views won the day among the judges, and it seems likely that the theory that Sarah will be a strong representative for the UK in European competition will soon be tested. It's something I've always wanted to do, she says.

Check out Sarah's 2012 nemesis Rosanna Harte interviewing the new champ backstage after her win. Sadly, Sarah's fabulous body is all covered up, but if you like your muscle goddess' voice basso profundo, listening to Sarah will more than make up for that. And all delivered in Swell's own South London-Surrey border brogue.



Congratulations to Sarah!