The FMS Hot and Hard 100: Vote Now!

Every year, in case you don't know, "gentleman's" magazine FHM carries out a readers' poll and publishes the results in a special issue. The UK edition even holds an awards ceremony in a plush London venue to publicise it. The subject of the poll and the title of the special issue is THE HOTTEST WOMEN IN THE WORLD.

More devoted FMS readers may be able to guess what's coming next, as I've mentioned this travesty before (see, for example, Still Muscle Loved Up for my thoughts on the so-called Hottest in 2012 chosen by UK FHM readers).

Every year, try as I might to ignore it, the amount of publicity generated makes that virtually impossible. Fully aware I'm not going to find a woman remotely representing my vision of what 'hot' means, I scan the Top 100 for any evidence of muscle. There might be a bit of 'celebrity' muscle, Jessica Biel maybe, and there's Jessica Ennis, the sole sportswoman in the top 50. And that's it.

At the risk of subjecting you to images you might find upsetting (if so, look away now), see how YOU feel about the UK Top 10 from 2013...







Now I, and I dare say you, dear reader, wouldn't have listed any of these women in our Top 10, Top 100, or Top anything. Obviously we're not your typical FHM readers.

Where's our list?

Well, hopefully, it's going to be here!

For a while now I've dreamed about compiling an alternative list to FHM's. A Hot and Hard 100. I could just choose 100 women myself, but I'd much rather make this a collective effort and get the input of FMS readers before compiling it.

So, this is your first call for votes for the FMS HOT AND HARD 100.

I don't want to make the process in any way complicated, but I think there do need to be a couple of rules...

1. You can vote for up to 100 women.
2. It's a Hottest of 2013, not Ever.

And that's pretty much it!

Rank the women from 1 (your favourite) to 100, or just list them in no particular order. I'll only take the rankings into consideration if there is a tie on the number of votes received.

Use the comment box below, or email 6ft1swell@gmail.com

I'll publish the final results in March (though I can't promise an awards ceremony in a plush London venue I'm afraid, unless there's someone out there willing to pay for it!)

To stimulate your thinking, here'a a list of just some of the women who were mentioned on FMS last year. I think it amounts to just over 100 names...

Jennifer Abshire, Megan Abshire, Brandi Mae Akers, Karina Akmens, Tarna Aldeman, Maryna Alf, Cristina Arellano, Sophie Arvebrink, Kate Austin, Oksana Balanyuk, Gabiela Bankuti, Graceyanne Barbosa, Olga Belyakova, Juanita Blaino, Julie Bourassa, Brigita Brezovac, Jenna Brown, Katia Callegari, Rene Campbell, Christal Cornick, Shannon Courtney, Lisa Cross, Michelle Cummings, Mara Dalila, Angela Debatin, Ana Delia De Iturrondo, Victoria Dominguez, Kristina Dybdahl, Brie Eubanks, Nuriye Evans, Viktoria Fadygas, Deniz Faith, Nathalie Falk, Amanda Folstad-Ptak, Nathalie Foreau, Skadi Frei, Anne Freitas, Jay Fuchs, Ariel Gail, Josee Gallant, Valerie Garcia, Karen Garrett, Linda Gartside, Lisa Giesbrecht, Mavi Gioia, Sherri Gray, Oksana Grishina, Susanna Hand, Rosanna Harte, Karolina Holubcova, Elena Oana Hreapca, Monique Jones, Tammy Jones, Suzy Kellner, Jennifer Kennedy, Gillian Kovack, Iris Kyle, Katka Kyptova, Maria Kuzmina, Selma Labat, Cindy Landolt, Jannika Larsson, Debi Laszewski, Cathy Le François, Marina Lopez, Kashma Maharaj, Juliana Malacarne, Rene Marven, Georgina McConnell, Kristine Mele, Emery Miller, Karina Nascimento, Helle Nielsen, Branka Njecovec, Kourtney Olson, Yaxeni Oriquen, Federica Ortu, Minna Pajulahti, Frida Palmell, Kim Perez, Shawna Pierce, Jamie Pinder, Alina Popa, Jana Purdjakova, Danielle Reardon, Larissa Reis, Annie Riveccio, Joanna Romano, Nataliya Romashko, Andrea Rosu, Jill Rudison, Michelle E. Russell, Angie Salvagno, Virginia Sanchez Masias, Michela Schaar, Jessica Scofield, Geisi Silva, Joelle Smith, Alyssa Stroud, Marthe Sundby, Penpraghai Tiangngok, Susanna Tirpak, Shayla Turcotte, Eva Andressa Vieira, Heidi Vuorela, Ria Ward, Wendy Watson, Melissa Wee, Michelle Williams, Nathalia Yariz, Yeon Woo-Jhi and Aleesha Young....

And I haven't even included Crossfitters or other athletes who might make your top 100. In fact, I haven't included a LOT of women who might make your top 100!

So, get voting!

A possible Top 10, based solely on the women who have got the most hits and comments on FMS in the past year might, in alphabetical order, look something like...


British pro Rene Campbell; muscle phenomenon Shannon Courtney


Naughty naughty Lisa Cross; Italian muscle bomb Mavi Gioia


Abs Queen Oana Hreapca; internet fitness sensation Cindy Landolt


Pre-voting favourite Alina Popa; Arnold Amateur champ Virginia Sanchez Masias


Britain's physique star Ria Ward; newly-blond Aleesha Young

Now, isn't that better than the FHM list?!

Don't forget to vote!

[And just in case you are interested, the FHM Top 10 was, top to bottom, left to right, Mila Kunis, Rihanna, Helen Flanagan, Michelle Keegan, Kelly Brook, Kaley Cuoco, Pixie Lott, Kate Upton (photographed for Sports Illustrated!!!), Cheryl Cole and Georgia Salpa.]

Pictures of muscle women ONLY tomorrow, I promise!

Pic of the Week

Sexy Sophie Shows It Off

Three women. At least two different species...



Enjoy!

Suzy vs Car

Returning from holiday, FMS was truly shocked to see these pics of Suzy Kellner...



On 20th December in Florida, Suzy, along with her friend Sylvia Andrassy, had been hit by a car that had failed to stop at a red light. Sylvia suffered a broken hip.


Suzy's injuries

However, the shock was offset somewhat by Suzy's own reporting of the incident.

On the day itself on her Facebook:
Dear Friends, it was a car accident. The idiot man not stop at the red :(((. I'm strong ;))) I go a few days to relax [in hospital] after working out in the gym!

And then, the next day, 21st December:
Dear Friends, Thanks to everyone for the good wishes. Slowly recover[ing]... Sylvia is broken at the hip... Sylvi and I were born again on December 20!
I AM indestructi!!!!! xoxo



Since then, 'Suzy the Indesrtucti' hasn't posted any more news about her own or Sylvia's injuries, but she has been posting. Hopefully, this means that both she and Sylvia are recovering well. FMS would like to add our best wishes to the many that have been sent to her from her fans around the world.



Get well soon Suzy!

Tube of the Week

Eagle-eyed readers will have noticed the 'Tube Videos' page has disappeared, and not before time. Granted, there were some corkers there, but, despite the best intentions, I never got round to updating it, so I decided to bin it altogether. Instead, your fix of outstanding female muscle clips available on YouTube, Daily Motion and so on will be provided by a new feature (drum roll please) Tube of the Week.

XYZ632, the creator of the clip says: I always wanted to do a compilation of female bodybuilders doing Most Muscular poses, so here it is. I hope you enjoy it! ;)

I'm pretty sure you will. TWELVE most muscular minutes encompassing women from way back right up to Rene Marven on stage last year. And a pumping soundtrack too.



A full list of the women in the clip known to the creator is available in the description on the YouTube page. If you can help with identification why not drop him (I assume it's a 'him') a line? And even if you can't, why not drop him a line and show your appreciation for what must have been hours of work?

What's next I wonder... Moon poses? Abs rolls? Posing suit malfunctions?

The mind boggles.

Enjoy!

Around the World: IRAN

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

Our very first post in the series looks at Iran.



Remember Shiva Bagheri? She was a fitness competitor in the early-ish days of fitness. If the name is unfamiliar, perhaps the body will jog your memory...



In fact, Shiva is an LA native and these days runs her own dance studios in West Hollywood, Shiva's Dance and Fitness. She was neither born nor has she ever lived in Iran. And as such, Shiva is the archetypal Iranian/Persian muscle woman.



She is one of the estimated four or five million people of Iranian descent or birth who live outside of the country, part of the Iranian diaspora that has largely been created by emigration from the country in the wake of the 1979 Revolution that brought about the establishment of a theocratic political system there.


Ania Anvaryfar (left) and Mona Porsaleh (right), for example, are both based in Toronto, where the Poursaleh family settled after moving away from Iran in 2002.


Sheida Tehrani was born in Tehran but now lives in Kuala Lumpar, where she earns her living as a personal trainer and fitness competitor.


Sashli Amirfatemi Stjärnqvist (left) and Salomeh Adham (right) are both women of Iranian descent who now build up their muscles in Sweden.

You can also find the Iranian diaspora represented in the sport of Crossfit.



Azadeh Boroumand emigrated to Canada with her family in the late '80s.



Now a US resident, she decided to sit out the Games last year, citing the physical, mental and emotional toll that qualifying had taken on her.



However, she does plan to compete again in 2014.

'Azadeh' means 'freedom' in Farsi, something that is in short supply in Iran, especially where women are concerned. This is, after all, a society in which a cleric can stand in front of a crowd and quite confidently proclaim that 'women who do not dress modestly lead young men astray and spread adultery in society, which increases earthquakes'. Yep. You read that right. Immodest dress = Adultery = Earthquakes. Adultery incurs the wrath of Allah, and it's Allah who makes earthquakes you see.

In such a climate, it's not surprising that it's hard to find out much about female bodybuilders, or indeed any female sportswomen, who are Iranian and still in Iran. Female athletes, for example, must wear hijabs when they compete, and are consequently largely absent from international competition.

However, via France24's Observers series, one Iranian female bodybuilder has dared to speak out about her life, her sport, and the difficulties she has in her country.

Step forward, Soudabeh Sabour.



Until recently, she says, Iranian women weren’t really interested in bodybuilding, mainly because of the way they dress – when you wear Islamic dress, you don’t really care what your body looks like underneath. But with the advent of foreign channels on satellite TV, Iranian women have been awakened and getting their body in good shape has become more important for them.



Soudabeh works as a personal trainer (for women only, obviously) in a Tehran gym, and claims to have over 150 clients, although only 5 or 6 of them really want to achieve a professional bodybuilder’s body definition; the others want to stop when they get just a little muscle. As in most places, maybe all, muscular definition on women is not regarded as desirable in Iranian society. Sometimes strangers or even my own friends make fun of me, Soudabeh says, in perhaps the only instance of shared experience she has with women elsewhere in the world! However, in Iran, there is much much more than the odd comment to contend with.



We can’t hold competitions, even women-only ones, Soudabeh says. And it's not for want of trying. I did ask the national bodybuilding federation [men-only] for permission to hold a competition, but was rejected. Gym owners refuse to host 'underground' unsanctioned competitions for fear of recriminations from the authorities if caught. There are, however, rumours that 'virtual contests' take place via social media, although FMS has had no luck in trying to confirm that this is the case.



I hope we will one day be allowed to organize real competitions, says Soudabeh, or else I fear there may be no future for women’s bodybuilding in Iran.



It's a depressing thought. The talent the country has is clear to see from the women of Iranian origin who have prospered in more accommodating climates. However, given Soudabeh Sabour's tenacity in the face of almost unimaginable obstacles, perhaps all is not lost for female muscle in Iran after all.

Not yet, anyway.

You can follow Iranian Muscle Girl's Society on Facebook to keep up with Iranian muscle women, inside and outside the country, and show your support for Soudabeh.