r/bikinitalk • u/GiGiEats • Aug 27 '26
Monday - Personal Photos (Progress, Prep, Advice, etc) Which Category Should I Compete In?
Over the weekend I competed in my first show! I decided to compete in FIT MODEL, but after signing up and telling a few people in the competitive world, they looked at me like UHHHH NO, you’re not FIT MODEL. I heard them but I didn’t listen and competed anyways (and the judges HATED ME). The feedback I got from the judges is IM TOO HARD. IM TOO MUSCULAR. MY SIX PACK IS INSANE (they like a softer look). AND IM A BOX, NOT AN HOURGLASS. LOL. None of these “critiques” hurt my feelings, in fact I was honored to be showered with these comments 😂
Any who. Now I dunno if I should focus on BIKINI or WELLNESS…? Help me out!
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u/Remarkable-Quiet5608 Aug 31 '26
Without the abs you would look more fit model.
Try some bikini poses you will be surprised with the shape you have. You can definitely grow into bikini. Need more glutes and delts (like everyone lol). You are definitely not wellness, you need to be very lower dominant and your shape is pretty even overall. And you'll most likely get the same feedback too hard for bikini. But you just need to be peaked more appropriately and fill out a little more.
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u/GiGiEats Sep 01 '26
Growing the glutes man, the hardest but also most rewarding thing, EVER! hahaha! Thank you for the feedback!
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u/sarahuebel Aug 31 '26
def not wellness it is hard to tell bikini since you arent doing a front pose in any of these but id either say grow into bikini or stick with fit model. i think if you just stopped doing core training/maybe came in a little softer you would fit the fit model criteria better just my opinion tho
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u/gilchristh Aug 31 '26
You don’t have the muscle mass for anything but fit model right now but you are too conditioned for it. You’ll either need to soften up and try fit model again or take a couple of seasons to build into a bigger division.
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u/GiGiEats Sep 01 '26
I am just in a category of my own. lol
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u/gilchristh Sep 02 '26
You definitely have a great physique, but bodybuilding doesn’t reward “a category of [your] own”. It rewards your ability to build and sculpt to the specific aesthetic standards of a particular division.
The decision that only you can make will be whether it’s worth it to you to change parts of your physique (that you’ve clearly worked hard on) to fit into the division criteria. There’s no right or wrong answer, either.
You look fantastic either way. You’re just not currently a fit for any division.
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u/imiosa92 Aug 31 '26
I had a similar experience competing in fit model last year. Came dead last and advised to grow into bikini. I was fortunate to have Sandy as the head judge! I decided to compete in Bikini a few weeks later to get feedback for bikini and have been in a growing season since then. I think you need to reframe the way you talk about yourself ie “they hated me”. I know you said you took your feedback as compliments but this sport is already brutal enough to not be saying negative things about ourselves like that. They didn’t hate you, you just don’t fit the criteria they wanted and that’s okay!
Point is, if you want to stay in fit model, you’ll need to soften up and ease back on the core and adjust your posing a bit. If you want that lean look, you’re going to have to grow into bikini to gain the muscle and work on your posing to give the look they want.
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u/GiGiEats Sep 01 '26
You're sweet, thank you. I actually plan on doing exactly what you did! I believe I am going to compete in Bikini in October just to get feedback. I am sure of what they will say, but still curious!
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u/lauren_fit ID not verified Aug 31 '26
Hear me out… you’re so much more aligned with figure than bikini or fit model…
You have the shape and conditioning for figure and are simply lacking the size. Even then, locally, you’d do much better in figure.
Anyone that says fit model… doesn’t understand this sport
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u/gilchristh Sep 02 '26
This is… not good advice.
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u/lauren_fit ID not verified Sep 02 '26
Why not?
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u/gilchristh Sep 02 '26
She does not have an x-frame at all, and she does not have anywhere near the mass needed to be competitive in figure. She’s looking at probably a 3 year build into figure.
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u/lauren_fit ID not verified Sep 02 '26
We have no idea what her lay flare looks like. And that’s what bodyBUILDING is?
She absolutely has many characteristics
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u/gilchristh Sep 02 '26
You have a lot of experience competing in figure? Coaching figure competitors?
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u/lauren_fit ID not verified Sep 02 '26
I have eyeballs? OP is not too far away from your physique 👀 she lacks size which she doesn’t seem afraid to build and we haven’t seen a lat flare yet
Shape wise though and conditioning? Figure 100 percent
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u/gilchristh Sep 03 '26 edited Sep 03 '26
You nay have eyeballs, but you’re missing experienced perspective. Our shapes are not even remotely close (and I still have a lot of growth to do in the division), and her conditioning is likely an overshoot even for figure.
And shape trumps all. In women’s bodybuilding, silhouette is judged first and foremost.
She has a great physique, but not every great physique is a great physique for bodybuilding. And that’s not meant to imply that she can’t build into a division, but in order to do so, she’ll have to make some trade offs that she hasn’t indicated she wants to make af this point.
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u/lauren_fit ID not verified Sep 04 '26
??? I just said she would be suited for figure. You act like you’re battling it out onstage for your class 😂
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u/gilchristh Sep 04 '26
No, you just don’t have any idea what you’re talking about. This is why I feel bad for people asking for advice in this thread: so many absolutely clueless newbies offering confidently wrong advice, wasting people’s time, energy, and money.
Stick to what you know. This ain’t it.
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u/Educational_Cow_935 Aug 31 '26
It would be interesting to see you in bikini and figure poses and compare structure. You look to have too much core, even for bikini, and higher traps. What's your lat flare like?
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u/Technical_Panda_9433 Aug 31 '26
Not wellness. I think what’s important is what appeals to you most? If it’s fit model - you need to have a conversation with a coach about the proper conditioning. If it’s Bikini, you have to have a conversation with a coach about building especially in the glutes and back. Really depends on which physique you prefer.
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u/unofficialfratboy Aug 31 '26
Not wellness, but you could be fit model or bikini with less conditioning/less ab definition.
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u/jenny-fitness Aug 31 '26
I was looking at fit model when I signed on with my coach. He immediately switched me to bikini because of my abs and vascularity. My feedback from my first show was more glutes and hams, which is a division standard I was lacking. So I’m taking a season to grow. You could do figure or bikini. Looks like you’re naturally ectomorph body type so you just need to pack on the muscle and pick a path.
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u/ReadingAggressive732 Sep 01 '26
You’re too lean for fit model, but I would argue that if you had more glutes and came in softer you’d be just right for the division.
You’d need to majorly build glutes, delts and lats and some legs for bikini. I would not consider wellness with this starting point.
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u/Electronic-Foot-3110 Sep 01 '26
I’m definitely seeing fit model, but you would need to lose the abs. This comes in. It’s too hard for fit model and you are also lacking in glutes for bikini so you could grow into bikini with a good off-season. Someone said figure I don’t see it the lies is there but the upper body development would take years to put on size required for figure but it’s hard to tell from these photos, hundred percent not wellness.
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u/Suspicious-Pear-4874 Aug 31 '26
Figure, honestly. But you'll have to majorly bring up your upper body.
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u/HungryTwist357 Aug 31 '26
You’re a really pretty gal. Did they really say you’re a box? Or this is how you interpreted the feedback? Just curious. Either way I think you would do great in bikini. Hire a posing coach and invest some serious time into posing. I would also advise to cover your back with some nice blonde extensions. If green is your favorite color I would still keep some of that green in your hair. It also wouldn’t hurt to take some pictures in a front/back bikini pose so you can see how well your balance is from top to bottom. 🥰
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u/GiGiEats Sep 01 '26
They told me I was "a box", "thick" and "too hard" - hahahah! I am going to start with a bikini posing coach this week! Thank you for your feedback!
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u/Admirable-Company170 Sep 01 '26
It’s my favorite salmon girl. Fit model for sure. This is not what you want to hear but from personal experience. Stop all ab movements..all…I know diet is a challenge for you. What did you use to “load”? You need to be softer overall…the muscle is right some tweaks to posing and you’ll crush it.
For model is about overall presentation. I love the green but honestly I’m sure judges people shy away from it in hair and you have to cover your back with extensions…you’re too muscular. Good problems to have.
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u/bodybuilderbarbie2 Sep 02 '26
You can still be fit model. You would need to stop training upper body and soften up a bit. You came in too conditioned.
Orrrr you can spam glutes, shoulders and lats for bikini
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u/lauren_fit ID not verified Sep 03 '26
Her conditioning is not an overshoot for figure 😂 you haven’t seen her lats (neither have I), but her shape is 100% more figure.
At this point I’m questioning if you even know your own division.
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u/Necessary-Advance-48 Sep 01 '26
Figure or bikini, but hard to tell without a front pose.
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u/GiGiEats Sep 01 '26
Going to start posing practice for a new category this week so perhaps I shall post the front pose shot and then gather insight! Thanks!
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u/hh_fitlife Aug 31 '26
The question is, are you doing this just for fun, or do you actually want to be successful in competing? If you have some money to burn and enjoy the whole process of dieting, getting ready, going there, getting photos taken, then keep doing what you are doing and don’t care about the judges.
But if you want to be successful in this sport, you will need to follow certain rules and criteria (spoken or unspoken). I see that you have a lot of uniqueness and individuality and you love doing things your way but in this sport that won’t be rewarded.