What is Women's Physique?
I have set out to answer the burning questions that many WPD competitors are asking/joking about, "What is Women's Physique?" and "What are the Judges looking for anyways?!"
First we need to examine how and why WPD was born. WPD is a spawn of Female Bodybuilding. We were told it was created to be a platform for women in between figure and bodybuilding. Seems simple enough? But now we are in the second year of WPD and confused regarding what it is supposed to be.
Female bodybuilding when it began was essentially a division for muscular women to finally display who they were: Muscular. Feminine. Strong!
Finally these competitors had their own spot on stage, a source of validation but also a place to display pride in being a strong woman.
I wouldn't hesitate to say these women believed this was who they were and this was their identity. As the sport of Female Bodybuilding has matured it became judged more like Men's Bodybuilding – judges looked for symmetry, size, muscularity, dryness, an athlete who was shredded.
Until two years ago, the option was either down-size to figure or up size to FBB, which left a huge gap for many women. The in-betweeners should be very grateful to the NPC & IFBB. They have provided a division to accommodate a wider spectrum of women. Yet WPD is unique in another sense. FBB has its stereotypes, as does Figure. In both, of those divisions there are unspoken and spoken standards for how competitors must look to win. I believe WPD transcends those boundaries. Look at the types of women competing if you don't believe me! They are all different shapes, sizes, degrees of muscularity, levels of conditioning, punk rock, beauties, borderline bodybuilders, etc.
WPD is not only a platform to accommodate women who just didn't fit elsewhere, but a place to display personality! As a WPD competitor I believe the focus should be displaying who you are.
What makes you special? What makes you proud? What makes you feel beautiful? What makes you a unique super woman? You do that, and I guarantee you will have fun and, best of all, be happy with what you have done.
Here is my one disclaimer: If WPD is about showcasing who you are as a person that means being and presenting the best you. The risk of doing that is, of course, the best you may not be who the judges want. Can your ego handle that? Best to answer that question before you step onstage.
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