Female Body Building

The ladies began competing in body building classes during the 1970’s. The sport is the same for each sex. The basics are the same, but of course the judging is a bit different.

Women’s Nutrition and Body Building

A woman has markedly different needs when it comes to nutrition and body building. The female body processes certain chemicals differently. Men have an advantage in the body building forum because they naturally have a higher store of testosterone which builds muscle and women have a naturally higher store of estrogen which promote the storage of fat. This does not mean that women cannot successfully build lean muscle, it just means it needs to be approached a bit differently. A woman’s diet if it is geared toward bodybuilding should consist of the following elements:

- Smaller meals through out the day (more than 3 less than 8)
- Eat before bed time ( high protein low fat)
- Take the right balance of supplements

Eating smaller meals through out the day will keep the metabolism up while the female body builder works out. Eating a meal right before bedtime that is high in protein low in fat will keep the body working through out the night using that protein while the body rests. Supplements should be taken daily.

- Protein Supplements
- Carbohydrate Supplements
- Daily Vitamin Supplements

Protein supplements (whey protein is favored by female body builders) gives the body the extra boast of protein that it needs to build those muscles.

Carbohydrate supplements provide the female body builder with energy through out the day.

Daily vitamin supplements usually focus on amino acids, and other necessary nutrients.

Fat Loss

Fat loss in the woman’s body can effect the way the female body works. If the fat content in a woman’s body dips too low than interruption of the menstrual cycle may occur. So fat loss needs to be monitored.

Anabolic Steroids

Many female body builders turn to anabolic steroids to build lean muscle mass. This can cause a host of undesired side effects. Most anabolic steroids contain testosterone which is normally found naturally in a women’s body, but raising these levels artificially can lead to more male like responses in the female body. An increase in facial hair, male pattern baldness, deepening of the voice all have been documented side effects of anabolic steroid use in women.

The absolute best practice for a female body builder is to achieve the results through compound exercises, resistance training, weight training, diet, nutrition and natural supplements.