Judges will evaluate competitors on the following criteria:

Posing/Presentation – Posing/Presentation refers to how well the competitor presents himself or herself and displays their physique on stage as well as adherence to USBF posing guidelines. Competitors should present themselves with poise, good posture and confidence and should utilize posing that enhances their physique (i.e. no overly exaggerated elbows, arms too far from midline of body, or inability to display symmetry). Competitors should be able to quickly and smoothly transition between poses.

 

Symmetry – Symmetry refers to the evenness of development of the competitor’s physique and how well the parts of the physique flow together. It includes the balance and proportion of the competitor from side to side, top to bottom and front to back. Symmetry is a measurement of evenness of development between all muscle groups and proportion when viewed from all sides. No body part or muscle group should stand out from the rest.

 

Muscularity – Muscularity refers to muscle size and development relative to the competitor’s frame, including shape and size. The level of muscularity is determined by the extent of development in relation to the size of the competitor’s skeletal structure. Also, to be considered is the shape and contour of the developed muscle and muscle groups. Bodybuilding competitors should display: 

• Greatest level of muscularity is as compared to all other categories.

• Well-defined muscles that flow evenly.

• Full, round delts that flows into the biceps and triceps.

• A taper in the lats that flow into the oblique with fluid lines into the sweep of the upper thigh. Taper into the waist may not be as significant as that of Men’s Physique or Men’s Classic Physique. Can appear a bit more “blocky” in the midsection, but not distended in the stomach.

 

Conditioning – Conditioning refers to the level of differentiation between adjacent muscles delineating sections or fibers within the same muscle group and the degree of firmness (hardness) of muscle tone.  Leanness is important but an overly dieted appearance is neither advantageous nor desirable. Bodybuilding competitors should display: 

• Visible muscle separation and deep cuts with striations.

• Visible ab cuts.

• Visible cuts between delts, biceps and triceps.

• Visible quad/hamstring separation.

• Round, firm glutes with visible tie-in to hamstrings.

• Muscles should be full and round.

• The following are examples of common terms used in the bodybuilding industry. These words can be helpful to assess what should be descriptive to the physiques being judged in this division: Striated, vascular and dense.

• Should not display stringy-looking muscularity (an emaciated look).

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Round 1: Quarter Turns

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Round 2: Group Comparisons:
Each class is brought out to front center stage as a group and guided through quarter turns to display their physique from all sides. After the quarter turns competitors will be directed through the mandatory poses which consist of:

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• Front Double Biceps

• Front Lat Spread

• Side Chest of Choice

• Side Triceps of Choice

• Rear Double Biceps w/ Calf Flexed

• Rear Lat Spread w/ Calf Flexed

• Abdominal & Thigh

• Hands On Hips Most Muscular

• Crab Most Muscular

Round 3: Individual Presentation
Competitors will perform a 60 second posing routine to music of their choice (Pros are allowed up to 90 seconds). Costumes and/or props are permitted, but are not required. If costumes or props are utilized, they should still allow presentation of the physique.