Sports, fitness, and other related physical activities

We have a thread for martial arts, but not for sports (and other similar physical activities) in general. I thought I'd correct this.

First order of the day: What's the difference between "bodybuilding", "fitness competition", and "figure competition"? I get that all of them are about "who has the 'best' physique", but other than that, no source I've consulted has a clear answer.

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.

Troper Fitness Thread.

Bodybuilding is about size, fitness competition is about definition.

So, the judging criteria are different, as well as the types of exercise you put in to achieve the look (like diaphragm exercises so that a bodybuilder can hold his breath long enough for his coach to apply the spray tan).

And we have a Troper Fitness Thread.

If you meet me have some courtesy, have some sympathy, have some taste. Use all your well-learned politesse or I'll lay your soul to waste.

We actually do have a Troper Fitness Thread, but whatever. I'll respond here.

Bodybuilding in the competitive sense generally refers to demonstrating the maximal amount of muscle tone and mass specifically for aesthetic purposes. There is some debate as to whether or not bodybuilders can be considered athletes. I would argue that competitive bodybuilding is not, strictly speaking, an athletic activity as the competitor is not demonstrating what they can do with the musculature they have developed. It is closer to a swimsuit competition in that you're showing off how you look. Having said that, many bodybuilder are indeed quite athletic and they don't limit their activities to weight lifting.

Fitness competitions incorporate some of the rules and regulations of bodybuilding, but there is a far greater demand for performance. Competitors in this category tend to be faster, leaner and more agile than bodybuilders. In a fitness competition, you'll actually see people doing deadlifts, burpees, handstands, splits and dancing routines, especially for women.

Figure competitions are a sort of lighter version of bodybuilding, and they are typically used for female competitors wanting to strike a middle ground between muscle mass and muscle tone. Posing is an important part of these events, but a degree of athleticism is implied in some competitions.

I suggest looking into IFBB (International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness) to get a closer look into these distinct areas of training and competition.

This Wikipedia article does a decent job of explaining the difference, but it's important to note that the differences are especially pronounced in female competitions.

edited 26th Mar '14 10:23:39 AM by Aprilla

I persume that fitness and figure competitors don't go as far into losing "excess" body fat as bodybuilders do? Because while some of my search results imply that, others seem to imply the opposite... or that whoever tagged the result as "fitness/figure competition" conflated the term with traditional bodybuilding.

The Troper Fitness Thread sounds (and looks) more about tropers asking each other for advice on physical fitness exercises/practices, not for discussing the topic of sports and exercise in general. Unless the topic has digressed from that specific context and acquired a more general nature, that is.

edited 26th Mar '14 10:34:53 AM by MarqFJA

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.

There's nothing wrong with moving the discussion over there, and there's no rule saying that the Troper Fitness Thread is specifically for advice and feedback.

I personally see no reason why this thread can't be absorbed into that one.

Honestly, figure and fitness competitions are mostly female-oriented, and with women having a higher body fat percentage than men on average, there is going to be an emphasis on cutting and development of lean muscle.

edited 26th Mar '14 10:37:15 AM by Aprilla

<shrug> Well, if you say so — though threads cannot be actually merged on this site, so what we'd have to do is transplant the discussion there. I do, however, believe that threads have titles that reflect what they are rather than only what they started out as. Would anyone be opposed to a thread rename?

edited 26th Mar '14 10:37:16 AM by MarqFJA

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.

Just copy and paste this discussion into the Troper Fitness Thread. It's not like this is OTC.

Done.

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.

Looks good; locking this as a duplicate.

That was the amazing part. Things just keep going.