female bodybuileers - a question of discrimination

[MTII]

I often hear a lot about female bodybuilders and how they look too masculine. ( not my opinion - i feel there is a happy medium) and because of that it seems like enrollment in female bodybuilding competitions is decreasing where the other divisions are growing steadily.

Do any of you women feel you are being hated on because you love the sport lifting and building yourself into the image you want? Or is it some other reason, and if so why?

In my opinion, I'd tell them " what you think about me is none of my business" especially if it is distracting you from your personal and career goals.

[Amanda76]

Most of the feedback on my development is positive. When I do overhear anything negative it's never to my face and...well, sometimes you have to consider the source and laugh (I still take that negativity as a compliment! LOL). I've got a ways to go before anyone could confuse any part of me as being masculine (when compared to a well-developed man) and I'm sure that makes a difference in how personally you're going to take the discrimination you're speaking of.

I don't think that it's simply discrimination that is causing other divisions to grow as women's bodybuilding shrinks. Women's bodybuilding division standards are at a level most women can only dream of achieving. I would like to become developed enough to do well in physique (now that it's an option), but don't imagine my genes would let me get anywhere near stepping on stage as an IFBB pro bodybuilder regardless of what kind of supplementation I was taking. For most women, becoming that developed is not a realistic hope no matter how badly they want it.

[kimm4]

I often hear a lot about female bodybuilders and how they look too masculine. ( not my opinion - i feel there is a happy medium) and because of that it seems like enrollment in female bodybuilding competitions is decreasing where the other divisions are growing steadily.

The other divisions are growing indeed. Let's be honest, the work it takes to compete in those divisions is nothing compared to what it takes to compete in bb. I'm not saying they don't work hard, but it's a completely different ball game.

I'm a cometitive bb and I love it. It's my passion, my hobby and I don't care what other people think.

Whatever division people choose to compete in is their choice. What does bother me is the constant fitness/bikini models on the cover of magazines. The idea of trying to jam down peoples throats and telling your readers "This is what women should look like today!" Really, according to who? They get article speads about competing, training, diet, etc...Please tell someone like me (a bb) what I can possibly learn about training from a bikini model?! Seriously, I couldn't type that last sentence with a straight face...

Not too long ago, I had seen a Musclemania poster at my gym. A huge organization known for bb. The poster had a figure girl, bikini, some type of male/female fitness model, but no bb's. To me, that was a huge slap in the face to the competitive bb's who have paid their dues to that organization for so long.

At this point it's all about making money and I don't expect anything to change.

[darins]

The other divisions are growing indeed. Let's be honest, the work it takes to compete in those divisions is nothing compared to what it takes to compete in bb. I'm not saying they don't work hard, but it's a completely different ball game.

I'm a cometitive bb and I love it. It's my passion, my hobby and I don't care what other people think.

Whatever division people choose to compete in is their choice. What does bother me is the constant fitness/bikini models on the cover of magazines. The idea of trying to jam down peoples throats and telling your readers "This is what women should look like today!" Really, according to who? They get article speads about competing, training, diet, etc...Please tell someone like me (a bb) what I can possibly learn about training from a bikini model?! Seriously, I couldn't type that last sentence with a straight face...

Not too long ago, I had seen a Musclemania poster at my gym. A huge organization known for bb. The poster had a figure girl, bikini, some type of male/female fitness model, but no bb's. To me, that was a huge slap in the face to the competitive bb's who have paid their dues to that organization for so long.

At this point it's all about making money and I don't expect anything to change.

lol, great post.

It's like the posters for the Olympia and Arnold Classic where they have previous winners plastered all over it, and Iris Kyle is relegated to the background of the photo basically as an extra. Stupid.

But hey, they're out to make money, and they know where that comes from. Women's BB is not it.

[IronOrchid]

My answer is always very simple: "It is better to have 10lbs. of muscles then 10lbs. of fat."

[mellie369]

I'm not a competitive bodybuilder, but I do have some mass on me. I get a few negative reactions here and there - had a girl on fb write me to tell me I looked like a man and when I didn't reply to her, she wrote me again and told me I was ugly. I laughed it off.

On a positive note, I work in a high school and get AWESOME and positive reactions from my students! They flex for me and with me and will shout down the hall to "see the guns!" and I play along. I think that if they are into it, it's good because I like to see my bodybuilding as a good example of taking care of yourself and dedication. I think that if I could get the students into the gym and working out - and caring about themselves, maybe they'll be less tempted to lead unhealthy and possibly dangerous lifestyles (i.e. drugs and such).

Recently someone posted a link to an article about female bodybuilders and some reactions were negative and some were positive and while I stayed off that thread, it kinda bugged me. I don't post links to articles about skinny men or people with full body tattoos (for example) and say, "ewwww gross! I'd never touch someone like that!" nah, I just live and let live. And of course it hits a little closer to home when people degrade female bodybuilders.


So ya, that's my thoughts on the matter

[Moltabella]

There's definite discrimination against women with muscle.

I've gotten stares and comments by males and females at the gym, and i've even had my gender questioned before, just because I'm bigger.

I think girls think saying "she looks so masculine" is a way of putting us down, which, for some, myself included, is kinda hurtful.

I take pride in my femininity and for someone to question it simply because i'm not dainty or tiny or shaped differently is so ignorant.

[acrawlingchaos]

There's definite discrimination against women with muscle.

I've gotten stares and comments by males and females at the gym, and i've even had my gender questioned before, just because I'm bigger.

I think girls think saying "she looks so masculine" is a way of putting us down, which, for some, myself included, is kinda hurtful.

I take pride in my femininity and for someone to question it simply because i'm not dainty or tiny or shaped differently is so ignorant.

I think the derisive comments you hear about female bodybuilders are the extreme examples you see, where chemical enhancements are used in excess. Last summer, I had the chance to see some IFBB competitive bodybuilders up close. Hormonal supplementation had deepened these womens voices, left a 5 o' clock shadow, and their jaws had started to square.

While I personally could care less what choices these women make regarding chemical enhancements, the women were not physically feminine.

With that being said, my girlfriend is very muscular, could walk to stage at anytime and still maintains her femininity.

[crysaunders]

The other divisions are growing indeed. Let's be honest, the work it takes to compete in those divisions is nothing compared to what it takes to compete in bb. I'm not saying they don't work hard, but it's a completely different ball game.

I'm a cometitive bb and I love it. It's my passion, my hobby and I don't care what other people think.

Whatever division people choose to compete in is their choice. What does bother me is the constant fitness/bikini models on the cover of magazines. The idea of trying to jam down peoples throats and telling your readers "This is what women should look like today!" Really, according to who? They get article speads about competing, training, diet, etc...Please tell someone like me (a bb) what I can possibly learn about training from a bikini model?! Seriously, I couldn't type that last sentence with a straight face...

Not too long ago, I had seen a Musclemania poster at my gym. A huge organization known for bb. The poster had a figure girl, bikini, some type of male/female fitness model, but no bb's. To me, that was a huge slap in the face to the competitive bb's who have paid their dues to that organization for so long.

At this point it's all about making money and I don't expect anything to change.

Hi, im not into bb but will be doing figure, I went to a seminar a few weeks back for this stuff. I had asked about bb and they told me that they want to get away from it and not even do it anymore. the reason they gave me because you can make money and no one wants to see women that way. So no they changed the name and if your too big you wont win. That is up here in Canada in the east. Its a shame thats its all about the money.

[rockangel]

Im not a "bodybuilder" but being female, i do hear a lot of comments about females and lifting. I get the comments myself "dont get too big", "wont you look like a man?", "i cant train like you, i dont want to be bulky". You know the normal.

While I do not care what a person chooses to do with their own body, I do think that the "enhanced" bb'ers, male or female, tend to turn people off the sport because it is a very exagerated look. In the men, i think it is a little more acceptable, but i do not know many men outside of competitions that actually want to get that big, or even in competitions, who ARE that big.

I think the physique round for females is a good idea to get the sport to grow and to go back to "mainstream". I am not sure if it is best for the women or not. I do agree that the other divisions are not on the same level as bb'ing. I know a lot of peopl dislike the bikini look and division, i myself like it. I think it is a more marketable look and one that does not require the extreme level of dieting that the others do. Personally that appeals to me because i think that it would be easier for the body in the long term (just my opinion from the research I have done), and the fact that I am trying to be marketable and not train competitors.

I would think that the reason that figure, fitness, bikini and model divisions are in the mags is because that is 1) a look that more people can achieve and 2) more acceptable within the "mainstream". I do not think it is think it is to teach female bbers anything as they seem a bit more geared to the newbs, the clueless, and the people who just want to be "told what to do". I mean, its easier to buy a $5 mag than to hire a personal trainer or coach. I always find something wrong in their articles and just shake my head at it.

For me, i get comments and just laugh at them, mostly i get how "tiny" i am, which i feel is not all that complimenting (though that is how it is meant). I think the other comments about not being manly or bulky come from the public having no clue and they percieve that weightlifitng makes you automatically look like Iris. I actually really like the more natural looking Fbb'ers, though i think it will never be a look i will get to. The less natural a person looks to me, the less i like the look.

I also wish there were more pics of females in the off season to show that the women do not walk around looking all shredded 100% of the time, and what the "daytime" look is for women with muscle. personally I think it would help.

[sy2502]

II have got some so-so comments about my muscle (my favorite was "you look like you work at the docks", my least favorite was "you look like you take steroids"). At the gym most women compliment me for the muscle although I get that they don't want to look like me, and guys in the weight area give me plenty of respect, so no problems there. Some people have told me that lifting so much was bad for me, they say it from ignorance and I don't mind.

For competitive BBing, I think the majority of bad reps comes from steroid use, and how much they transform the female body, and I understand that many people don't want to look like that, although I don't condone being outright offensive of the women who do. I have also noticed (but I may be wrong) that Figure competitors are getting softer. I remember on a magazine there was an article on Nicole Wilkins and one on a bikini competitor whose name I don't remember and I put their pics side by side, and I kid you not, they looked like they had similar muscle mass. That to me is pretty pathetic. The very fact that something like bikini is considered part of BBing (and how much success it has with the crowds) should answer OP's questions.

[MTII]

No lack of opinions here good stuff

[beatha]

I don't condone being outright offensive of the women who do. I have also noticed (but I may be wrong) that Figure competitors are getting softer

The very fact that something like bikini is considered part of BBing (and how much success it has with the crowds) should answer OP's questions.

^^^^ thumbsup.jpg
couldnt say it better