Week 140 :: What Are The Differences Between Male And Female Bodybuilding?

[the_fake_webmaster]

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TOPIC: What Are The Differences Between Male And Female Bodybuilding?

For the week of: September 19th - September 25th
Tuesday @ Midnight Is The Final Cut (Mountain Time, US & Canada).

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Traditionally, bodybuilding is a sport mainly practiced by men. However, female bodybuilding came along and brought some equality in the sport among both genders.

What are the differences between male and female bodybuilding?

How do diet, training and supplementation differ?

What are some of the similarities between male and female bodybuilding?


BONUS QUESTION: Male bodybuilding seems to be more mainstream than female bodybuilding, why do you think this is?

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[Fatimus+Prime]

The reality is, other than the most muscular pose,there is no difference. Individual goals may differ, resulting in the misperception that all men train to be 300lb of shredded beast and women are training to be figure competitors.

Nutrition differences will be in numbers alone since the ratios will be the same. Women face a more difficult battle with hormone levels, but that will be the only difference.

The similarities are far too numerous to continue expounding on... so I will go for the bonus.

"Mainstream" seems generous. How often do you hear "I do not want to be that big or veiny." I hear it from men all the time. Society has instilled the idea that being femine is being weak and emaciated. That coupled with those men with child like physiques saying "I do not want a women whose arms are bigger than mine". It takes a lot more self confidence and determination for a woman to pick up any kind of weight training.

[mawt]

ok ive tried my best
gud luk to everyone else

[johnnyfry]

I had been trying to get to this one all week. Here is my 2 cents, good luck to all who post.

[OzzieJ]

Body Building ? The Great Equalizer


The major differences of male and female bodybuilding revolve around the duration of each sport and the media acceptance. Male and female competitive bodybuilding began in the United States in 1903, but female bodybuilding was abruptly stopped in 1905 and did not pick up again until the 1970s (1). Male bodybuilding has been accepted by the mainstream as evident by internationally recognized male bodybuilding icons like Arnold
Schwarzenager and Lou Ferrigno that have crossed over into TV and blockbuster films. For the most part, female bodybuilders have not obtained such critical acclaim and exposure.

Female and Male Bodybuilders submit themselves to the same type of hardcore training with a focus on muscular development, bodyfat reduction, muscle symmetry, striations, vascularity, etc. Male and female bodybuilders also may have a similar caloric and supplement strategy (relative to their individual bodyweight). Low Fat, Low Carb, and high protein diets flourish in this atmosphere. Supplementation strategies are also very similar in both groups (Creatine, Thermogenics, Multivitamin, etc.). Through this process both groups gain a greater understanding of body weight control, nutritional knowledge (2).

One area that may differ when it comes to training is based on the end goal of the male bodybuilder vs. female bodybuilder. The male bodybuilder faces the same judging criteria from stage to stage whereas the female bodybuilder faces different judging criteria that can cause confusion. In female bodybuilding history, the judging shifts back and forth from favoring a shredded/defined look that emphasizes muscularity to a ?softer? look that enables the competitor to maintain features that would be considered ?feminine? for society at large (1). Due to the changing criteria the diet, training and supplementation would differ (especially in the case that the female bodybuilder has a goal of obtaining a softer look). Some of these differences would include: adding extra fat intake, circuit training for higher calorie burn, light weights to reduce ?too much? muscle growth, etc.

It is absolutely true that male bodybuilding seems to be more mainstream than female bodybuilding. Male bodybuilding since its inception gained its appeal by offering the public a glimpse at the ?ideal? man that was a strong, vibrant, healthy, sexually appealing physique (1). Male bodybuilders became the aspiration, the ideal physique. The female bodybuilders developed a physique that blurred the lines of femininity and masculinity (as historically defined); they were not soft, small and fragile (1,2). As long as the media portrays soft and fragile as the ideal for women, the female bodybuilder will not have the same appeal as the male bodybuilder. But as time has shown these women continue to prove society wrong and gain strength by focusing on their craft and creating amazing physiques to prove that Strong Is Beautiful.



References
1. Bolin A. Bodybuilding. Berkshire Encyclopedia of World Sport [serial online]. 2005;1. Available from: SPORTDiscus with Full Text, Ipswich, MA. Accessed September 24, 2007.

2. Guthrie S, Ferguson C, Grimmett D. Elite Women Bodybuilders: Ironing Out Nutritional Misconceptions. Sport Psychologist [serial online]. September 1994;8(3). Available from: SPORTDiscus with Full Text, Ipswich, MA. Accessed September 24, 2007.

[gvroom]

Male and female bodybuilders have differences.

There is this hormone known as testosterone, which I'm shocked to not have seen mentioned yet, which has anabolic properties. Men have much more of it than women.

While it is not easily quantifiable, higher testosterone levels seem to correlate with an ability to develop and "carry" more muscle mass.

Women, at least naturally, are more inclined to have a higher bodyfat percentage. This is going to affect the look and/or the visibility of any muscle mass that they are carrying.

Both of these issues may require women to accept certain limitations and/or to compensate for these issues in some way.

Beyond the underlying physiology there are often differences in both social norms and body image goals.

Once you get past all these issues, bodybuilding is pretty much bodybuilding, train hard, eat soundly and make progress within the range supported by your genetic profile.