populations of bodybuilders from former eastern bloc states. olympic sport discussion in the early 2000s, the ifbb was attempting to make bodybuilding an olympic sport. it obtained full ioc membership in 2000 and was attempting to get approved as a demonstration event at the olympics, which would hopefully lead to it being added as a full contest. this did not happen and olympic recognition for bodybuilding remains controversial since many argue that bodybuilding is not a sport. the influence of social media the advent and expansion of social media has had a profound influence on the fitness and bodybuilding industry. platforms such as instagram, tiktok, and youtube are now flooded with fitness-related content, revolutionizing how we view and interact with fitness culture. gym clothing brands like youngla and rawgear are leveraging this platform to create a unique voice and presence. by recruiting fitness ambassadors—real people who embody their brand values—these companies are personalizing their marketing strategy and creating a more relatable image. these ambassadors, often fitness influencers or trainers, share their workout routines, dietary plans, and even gym clothing hauls, thereby promoting the brand. moreover, youtube has seen a surge in fitness content, ranging from gym vlogs to detailed discussions on workout gear. this not only provides consumers with an abundance of free resources to aid their fitness journey but also creates a more informed consumer base. consequently, this digital evolution is shaping a new narrative in the fitness and bodybuilding industry, one that is more inclusive, accessible, and consumer-centric. areas professional bodybuilding in the modern bodybuilding industry, the term "professional" generally means a bodybuilder who has won qualifying competitions as an amateur and has earned a "pro card" from their respective organization. professionals earn the right to compete in competitions that include monetary prizes. a pro card also prohibits the athlete from competing in federations other than the one from which they have received the pro card. depending on the level of success, these bodybuilders may receive monetary compensation from sponsors, much like athletes in other sports. natural bodybuilding due to the growing concerns of the high cost, health consequences, and illegal nature of some steroids, many organizations have formed in response and have deemed themselves "natural" bodybuilding competitions. in addition to the concerns noted, many promoters of bodybuilding have sought to shed the "freakish" perception that the general public has of bodybuilding and have successfully introduced a more mainstream audience to the sport of bodybuilding by including competitors whose physiques appear much more attainable and realistic. in natural contests, the testing protocol ranges among organizations from lie detectors to urinalysis. penalties also range from organization to organization from suspensions to strict bans from competition. it is also important to note that natural organizations also have their own list of banned substances and it is important to refer to each organization's website for more information about which substances are banned from competition. there are many natural bodybuilding organizations; some of the larger ones include: musclemania, ultimate fitness events (ufe), inbf/wnbf, and inba/pnba. these organizations either have an american or worldwide presence and are not limited to the country in which they are headquartered. men's physique due to those who found open-bodybuilding to be "too big" or "ugly" and unhealthy, a new category was started in 2013. the first men's physique olympia winner was mark wingson, who was followed by jeremy buendia for four consecutive years. like open-bodybuilding, the federations in which bodybuilders can compete are natural divisions as well as normal ones. the main difference between the two is that men's physique competitors pose in board shorts rather than a traditional posing suit and open-bodybuilders are much larger and are more muscular than the men's physique competitors. open-bodybuilders have an extensive routine for posing while the physique category is primarily judged by the front and back poses. many of the men's physique competitors are not above 200 lbs and have a bit of a more attainable and aesthetic physique in comparison to open-bodybuilders. although this category started off slowly, it has grown tremendously, and currently men's physique seems to be a more popular class than open-bodybuilding. classic physique this is the middle ground of both men's physique and bodybuilding. the competitors in this category are not nearly as big as bodybuilders but not as small as men's physique competitors. they pose and perform in men's boxer briefs to show off the legs, unlike men's physique which hide the legs in board shorts. classic physique started in 2016. danny hester was the first classic physique mr. olympia and as of 2022, chris bumstead is the 4x reigning mr. olympia. female bodybuilding the female movement of the 1960s, combined with title ix and the all around fitness revolution, gave birth to new alternative perspectives of feminine beauty that included an athletic physique of toned muscle. this athletic physique was found in various popular media outlets such as fashion magazines. female bodybuilders changed the limits of traditional femininity as their bodies showed that muscles are not only just for men. nikki fuller posing the first u.s. women's national physique championship, promoted by henry mcghee and held in 1978 in canton, ohio, is generally regarded as the first true female bodybuilding contest—that is, the first contest where the entrants were judged solely on muscularity. in 1980, the first ms. olympia (initially known as the "miss" olympia), the most prestigious contest for professionals, was held. the first winner was rachel mclish, who had also won the npc's usa championship earlier in the year. the contest was a major turning point for female bodybuilding. mclish inspired many future competitors to start training and competing. in 1985, the documentary pumping iron ii: the women was released. it documented the preparation of several women for the 1983 caesars palace world cup championship. competitors prominently featured in the film were kris alexander, lori bowen, lydia cheng, carla dunlap, bev francis, and mclish. at the time, francis was actually a powerlifter, though she soon made a successful transition to bodybuilding, becoming one of the leading competitors of the late 1980s and early 1990s. the related areas of fitness and figure competition increased in popularity, surpassing that of female bodybuilding, and provided an alternative for women who choose not to develop the level of muscularity necessary for bodybuilding. mclish would closely resemble what is thought of today as a fitness and figure competitor, instead of what is now considered a female bodybuilder. fitness competitions also adopted gymnastic elements. e. wilma conner competed in the 2011 npc armbrust pro gym warrior classic championships in loveland, colorado, at the age of 75 years and 349 days. competition in competitive bodybuilding, bodybuilders aspire to present an "aesthetically pleasing" body on stage. in prejudging, competitors do a series of mandatory poses: the front lat spread, rear lat spread, front double biceps, back double biceps, side chest, side triceps, most muscular (men only), abdominals and thighs. each competitor also performs a personal choreographed routine to display their physique. a posedown is usually held at the end of a posing round, while judges are finishing their scoring. bodybuilders usually spend a lot of time practising their posing in front of mirrors or under the guidance of their coach. in contrast to strongman or powerlifting competitions, where physical strength is paramount, or to olympic weightlifting, where the main point is equally split between strength and technique, bodybuilding competitions typically emphasize condition, size, and symmetry. different organizations emphasize particular aspects of competition, and sometimes have different categories in which to compete. bulking and cutting lukas osladil posing onstage with a variation of the most muscular pose the general strategy adopted by most present-day competitive bodybuilders is to make muscle gains for most of the year (known as the "off-season") and, approximately 12–14 weeks from competition, lose a maximum of body fat (referred to as "cutting") while preserving as much muscular mass as possible. the bulking phase entails remaining in a net positive energy balance (calorie surplus). the amount of a surplus in which a person remains is based on the person's goals, as a bigger surplus and longer bulking phase will create more fat tissue. the surplus of calories relative to one's energy balance will ensure that muscles remain in a state of anabolism. the cutting phase entails remaining in a net negative energy balance (calorie deficit). the main goal of cutting is to oxidize fat while preserving as much muscle as possible. the larger the calorie deficit, the faster one will lose weight. however, a large calorie deficit will also create the risk of losing muscle tissue. the bulking and cutting strategy is effective because there is a well-established link between muscle hypertrophy and being in a state of positive energy balance. a sustained period of caloric surplus will allow the athlete to gain more fat-free mass than they could otherwise gain under eucaloric conditions. some gain in fat mass is expected, which athletes seek to oxidize in a cutting period while maintaining as much lean mass as possible. clean bulking the attempt to increase muscle mass in one's body without any gain in fat is called clean bulking. competitive bodybuilders focus their efforts to achieve a peak appearance during a brief "competition season". clean bulking takes longer and is a more refined approach to achieving the body fat and muscle mass percentage a person is looking for. a common tactic for keeping fat low and muscle mass high is to have higher calorie and lower calorie days to maintain a balance between gain and loss. many clean bulk diets start off with a moderate amount of carbs, moderate amount of protein, and a low amount of fats. to maintain a clean bulk, it is important to reach calorie goals every day. macronutrient goals (carbs, fats, and proteins) will be different for each person, but it is ideal to get as close as possible. dirty bulking "dirty bulking" is the process of eating at a massive caloric surplus without trying to figure out the exact amount of ingested macronutrients. weightlifters who attempt to gain mass quickly with no aesthetic concerns often choose to use the this method. muscle growth bodybuilders use three main strategies to maximize muscle hypertrophy: strength training through weights or elastic/hydraulic resistance. specialized nutrition, incorporating extra protein and supplements when necessary. adequate rest, including sleep and recuperation between workouts. weight training main articles: weight training and strength training intensive weight training causes micro-tears to the muscles being trained; this is generally known as microtrauma. these micro-tears in the muscle contribute to the soreness felt after exercise, called delayed onset muscle soreness (doms). it is the repair of these micro-traumas that results in muscle growth. normally, this soreness becomes most apparent a day or two after a workout. however, as muscles become adapted to the exercises, soreness tends to decrease. weight training aims to build muscle by prompting two different types of hypertrophy: sarcoplasmic and myofibrillar. sarcoplasmic hypertrophy leads to larger muscles and so is favored by bodybuilders more than myofibrillar hypertrophy, which builds athletic strength. sarcoplasmic hypertrophy is triggered by increasing repetitions, whereas myofibrillar hypertrophy is triggered by lifting heavier weight. in either case, there is an increase in both size and strength of the muscles (compared to what happens if that same individual does not lift weights at all), however, the emphasis is different. nutrition the high levels of muscle growth and repair achieved by bodybuilders require a specialized diet. generally speaking, bodybuilders require more calories than the average person of the same weight to provide the protein and energy requirements needed to support their training and increase muscle mass. in preparation of a contest, a sub-maintenance level of food energy is combined with cardiovascular exercise to lose body fat. proteins, carbohydrates and fats are the three major macronutrients that the human body needs in order to build muscle. the ratios of calories from carbohydrates, proteins, and fats vary depending on the goals of the bodybuilder. carbohydrates carbohydrates play an important role for bodybuilders. they give the body energy to deal with the rigors of training and recovery. carbohydrates also promote secretion of insulin, a hormone enabling cells to get the glucose they need. insulin also carries amino acids into cells and promotes protein synthesis. insulin has steroid-like effects in terms