THE IMPAKT LAB
MENS BODYBUILDING POSING
Practice posing!!!!
If you dont practice your posing, you will not be able to fully display your physique and
all of your hard work.
Below are the basic 4 quarter turns and compulsory poses.
These can be used as a reference tool for all the basic poses, but each individual
should pose in a way which best fits their physique.
For customized one on one posiing online or in person, contact me at
FRONT RELAXED
This is the main poses which will be seen most often during your show. Begin posing by tensing the legs first, then spread the lats and keep all the air in your chest. Practice breathing through your ches and keep the air in your lungs and your midsection tight.
LEFT SIDE RELAXED
After the front pose, the judge will say to "quarter turn right". They will now judge all competitors from the left side. Begin by posing with the legs first, tighten the glutes and obliques from the side and inhale, keeping all the air in your chest. Each organization will determine the degree in which your are allowed to turn the upper body.
REAR RELAXED
From the left side relaxed, the judges will say "quarter turn right" or "face the rear". Again, begin posing with the legs up, tightening the glutes and hamstrings. Take a deep breath and flare the lats and tense the low back to show of all of the tie-ins throughout the back.
RIGHT SIDE RELAXED
After the rear pose, the judge will say to "quarter turn to the right". They will now judge all competitors from the right side. Begin by posing with the legs first, tighten the glutes and obliques from the side and inhale, keeping all the air in your chest. Each organization will determine the degree in which your are allowed to turn the upper body.
FRONT LAT SPREAD
Begin by posing with the legs first. Determine which direction to point your feet and which stance width best shows off your leg development and structure. Some people go with a wide stance and some look better with feet together in narrow stance.
Place your hands on your hips and flare your lats, accentuating your shoulder to waist ratio. Keep the air in your chest and midsection tight.
FRONT DOUBLE BICEP
Begin again with the legs first. Vary your foot position to best accentaute your leg development and definition. There are many options as feet apart (as in the picture) to accentuate the tie -ins all the way to the hips, or stand feet together as in the front lat spread. Flex the biceps together and breath through your chest and keep your midsection tight.
SIDE TRICEP
Begin the pose with the legs first. Spike the calf to display your calf developement, slight bend at the knees to display your hamstrings and squeeze the glutes to fully display your definition and glute/ham tie-ins. Flex the obliques and inhale through your chest. Grap your wrist or hand from the opposite arm and flex your tricep.
SIDE CHEST
Begin the pose with the legs first. Spike the calf to display your calf developement or extend opposite side leg back to diplay calf development from behind. Slight bend at the knees to display your hamstrings and squeeze the glutes to fully display your definition and glute/ham tie-ins. Flex the obliques and inhale through your chest.
Clasp hands, palm up on the side being displayed to fully display your biceps. Bring backside arm across the body and squeeze your chest to display your chest development.
REAR SHOTS
Make sure to practice your transitions to display all of the definition in your back. Show off the hamstring, glutes, spinal errectors, traps and that hard earned "Christmas Tree"!
REAR LAT SPREAD
Begin pose with the legs first. Wide or narrow stance to be chosen depending on your comfort, balance and choose a stance to best match the width of the upper body. Spike the calf and flex both hamstrings and glutes. Place hands on hips, inhale to capture the air in your chest and spread the lats.
REAR DOUBLE BICEP
Begin pose with the legs first. Wide or narrow stance to be chosen depending on your comfort, balance and choose a stance to best match the width of the upper body. Spike the calf and flex both hamstrings and glutes. Inhale through the chest and slightly lean back down toward the judges. Bring elbow sligly above parallel to the floor, flex the biceps and tense all of the muscles in the back.
ABDOMINAL AND THIGH
Begin pose with the legs first. Flex at the knee and hips to diplay width and tie-ins to the hip (picture on the left)
or lock down quad to diplay conditioning and striations
(picture on the right).
Bring arms overhead keeping your biceps close to your ears and exhale and bear down to fully display your abdominals. Make sure not to lean too far forward and shadow your midsection.
SIDE SERRATUS
If called on by your organization. Its basically a side abdominal shot. Turn leg toward the judges to desplay your quads or you can pose your legs as in the side chest and tricep pose. Bring one arm up as in the abdominal pose and cross the backside arm across the body as in the side chest pose. The main emphasis is on the oblique/serratus/abdominal development, but dont forget to display and flex all muscle groupls, especially the quads and pecs.
MOST MUSULAR
There are many versions to the most muscular pose. Choose a pose which best accentuates your strongpoints and choose a leg position to best dispaly balance with your upper body and your conditioning and leg size. The pics to the left and right are a version of the crab. This version dipalys shoudler width and I have posed with two different leg positions. The other version of the crab is leaning forward to diplay more trap muscularity. The picture below is the hands on hips most muscular pose, if called out by your organanization.
