Below is the complete 2026 UK bodybuilding competition calendar covering all major uk bodybuilding shows. Including PCA, UKBFF / IFBB, 2Bros Pro / NPC Worldwide, Pure Elite, NABBA, IBFA, UKUP, WFF, BPA, FMC, FitX, WNBF UK, UKDFBA, NPA, BNBF, ICN, OCB, Miami Pro & Miss Fitness Angels. Dates may be subject to change, please also refer to federation websites and Social Media in case there has been an amendment. 

If you’re unsure of which federation to pick or which suits you, scroll to the bottom of the calendar for a breakdown of each.

Use the drop down menus below to choose the TYPE, FEDERATION, LOCATION OR MONTH for more accurate results

uk Bodybuilding federations descriptions

Natural bodybuilding federations (Drug tested)

WNBF UK – The largest natural bodybuilding federation in UK within a Globally recognised International federation offering pro status for tested athletes. First timer and novice friendly.

UKDFBA – UK drug-tested federation linked to DFBA European championships.

BNBF – One of the oldest drug-tested bodybuilding federations in the UK.

NPA – Long-running UK natural bodybuilding federation hosting the NPA British Championships.

ICN UK – In it’s infancy in the UK, international natural federation with strict drug testing.

OCB – In it’s Infancy in the UK, Natural bodybuilding federation offering qualification for OCB professional status.

Open bodybuilding federations (non drug tested)

PCA – One of the largest UK federations with many regional qualifiers and beginner-friendly shows.

UKBFF – The traditional UK bodybuilding federation and route to IFBB international competition.

2Bros Pro / NPC Worldwide – UK pathway to the IFBB Pro League and Olympia qualification system.

NABBA – Historic bodybuilding federation famous for the Mr Universe contest.

IBFA – Traditional bodybuilding federation with classic physique and bodybuilding divisions.

UKUP – UK federation offering bodybuilding, physique and bikini categories with international WABBA links.

WFF – International federation running UK qualifiers for global championships.

Granite City – Scotlands bodybuilding federation

Fitness model federations (non drug tested)

Pure Elite – Large international federation focused on physique, bikini and fitness model categories.

Miami Pro – Popular fitness model federation known for physique and commercial model divisions.

FMG – Fitness Model Global federation focused on aesthetic model-style physiques.

Miss Fitness Angels – Female-focused federation specialising in bikini and fitness model categories.

The post UK Bodybuilding SHOW DATES/ CALENDAR 2026 appeared first on Pro Prep.

WNBF Pro Dr. Andrew Chappell & the ProPrepCoaching Team

The following is not intended to be an exhaustive list of milestones, approaches and timelines vary. The deadlines and elements highlighted here however were considered important by the ProPrepCoaching team. You can download a printable PDF of the check list at the bottom of this article.

Offseason 18 to 9 Months Out

• Identify the show(s) your planning on doing, and then establish a Prep Start Date where you will move from the offseason to comp prep
• Read the Rules of your fed & division you plan on competing in, ask any questions you have about the federation with officials at this point.
• If you’ve never posed before start learning how to do it.

24 to 20 Weeks In Advance

• Start your diet, you want to lost 0.5% bodyweight per week, if you need to lost 10% of your bodyweight that means at least 20 weeks!
• Contacted potential photographers for photoshoot 20 weeks in advance
• Start Posing Practice twice per week (20 weeks Out), Routine music for routine (10 weeks to go latest)
• Sending posing videos to the coach from 20 weeks out
• Order your Bikini with 20 weeks to spare, theirs often que when it comes to getting it made, they will update your measurements as you go along. Guys get your trunks

20 to 16 Weeks Out

• Researching what’s going to happen on the day, Watch shows on YouTube, ideal go and watch a show the sooner the better, Show season begins in March.
• Sign up for the show 16 weeks prior, no later than 4 to 6 weeks before, everything costs money, unless your wealthy you’ll probably want to spread the cost of: (tanning, hair/makeup, photos)
• Consider the song your going to pose to if you need to do a routine

14 to 12 Weeks Out

• You should have your song for your posing routine by now
• Posing Practice 3 to 4 times per week at 12 weeks out.
• Routine practice once per week
• Skin Prep: Exfoliation and moisturinsing once per week
• Ab training twice at least per week, including vaccum training

10 to 8 Weeks Out

• Show season should be nailed down
• Photographs and videos to coach should be weekly
• Weekly weight loss targets
• Logistics of how you’re going to get to the event should be planned out
• Tanning: Sun bed usage for the stage starts here

6 to 4 Weeks Out

• Book Hotels and Travel (Trains/Buses, Planes)
• Booking Tanning and Photography, or when available
• Organise Spectator Tickets 4 week before deadline
• Posing Practice is 5 times per week
• Skin Prep: Exfoliation and moisturinsing two to three times per week
• Hair Removal: shaving, waxing, hair removal creams should start here
• Abdominal training three times per week, including vaccum training
• Stop all banned in competiton or non informed sport supplements here

3 Weeks Out

• Last opportunity to practice a peak week
• Last opportunity to pull out of an event
• Abdominal training four times per week

2 Weeks Out

• Peaking plan should be in place, you should understand the process prior to starting the week prior to the show.
• Post show recovery process should be understood and in place

1 to 3 Days Out

• 2 days out last time for skin prep/shaving
• Travelling to an international event, Be there at least two days before the competition
• Where the time zone is different/long haul, Be there at least three days before the event.
• If the event is over 3 hours away by train or car, consider staying over night for a show
• Photos/video to your coach in the morning and the evening every day
• Meet in person on the day if possible
• Get your tan the night before
• Prep all your meals for show day

Show Day

• Photos/video to the coach in the morning or see them in person
• Get your tan sorted
• Go have fun!
• Have post show pizza and beer!

ProPrepCoaching specialisings in helping people get in the shape of their lives. Founded by WNBF Pro’s Stephanie Noble & Dr. Andrew Chappell if you’re interested in natural bodybuilding, strength sports, body transformations, photoshoots or lifestyle coaching then we want to work with you. Our team of specialists are all experts in unlocking your potential.

Natural Bodybuilding: www.wnbfuk.com

Instagram: @WNBF_UK

The post Competition Prep Milestones Check List appeared first on Pro Prep.

After months of dedication, discipline, and hard work, stepping off the stage in a bodybuilding competition is a moment of triumph. As you bask in the glow of your accomplishments, it’s time to indulge in a well-deserved post-show meal. Choosing the perfect meal can be an exciting part of the celebration, but it’s important to approach it with balance and mindfulness.

Here’s a guide to help you choose the ideal post-show meal that satisfies both your taste buds and your body’s needs…

1- Reflect on Your Cravings and Desires: Take a moment to consider the foods that truly excite and satisfy you. Whether it’s a particular cuisine, a favourite dish, or a decadent dessert, honouring your cravings can enhance the enjoyment of your post-show meal. It’s an opportunity to celebrate your achievements and indulge in something you genuinely desire.

2- Opt for High-Quality Ingredients: While you may be tempted to give in to all your cravings, aim to choose high-quality ingredients that nourish your body. Prioritise whole foods such as lean proteins, complex carbohydrates, and a variety of vegetables. These nutrient-dense options will provide your body with the essential vitamins, minerals, and macronutrients it needs for recovery.

3- Strike a Balance: Seek a balance between indulgence and nourishment. Include a balance of macronutrients in your meal to aid in muscle recovery and replenishment of glycogen stores. Incorporate lean proteins like chicken, turkey, fish, or plant-based options, paired with complex carbohydrates such as sweet potatoes, quinoa, or whole grains. Add a generous portion of vegetables to provide fibre, vitamins, and minerals.

4- Mindful Portions: While it’s tempting to indulge in a large meal, be mindful of portion sizes. After a competition, your body may not be accustomed to larger quantities of food, and overeating can lead to discomfort. Enjoy your meal and listen to your body’s hunger and satiety cues. Eat until you feel satisfied, not overly full.

5- Hydration is Key: Remember to hydrate your body after the competition. Competing can be dehydrating, and adequate hydration is essential for optimal digestion, nutrient absorption, and overall recovery. Accompany your meal with plenty of water or other hydrating beverages to rehydrate your body.

6- Don’t Forget About Digestion: After a period of strict dieting, your digestive system may need some time to adjust. Consider including foods that are easily digestible and gentle on the stomach, such as cooked vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy fats. Avoid heavy, greasy, or overly processed foods that may cause digestive discomfort.

7- Embrace Moderation: While it’s an opportunity to enjoy your favourite foods, remember that moderation is key. Indulge in the flavours you love, but be mindful of portion sizes and avoid going overboard. This will help you strike a balance between enjoying your meal and maintaining a healthy relationship with food.

8- Enjoy the Experience: Make your post-show meal an enjoyable experience. Set aside dedicated time to savour and appreciate each bite. Engage all your senses and be present in the moment. Share the meal with loved ones, celebrate your achievements, and relish the joy of nourishing your body after a demanding competition journey.

Remember, the perfect post-show meal is a personal choice that reflects your desires and celebrates your hard work.

By choosing high-quality ingredients, striking a balance, practicing moderation, and enjoying the experience, you can create a memorable and satisfying post-show meal that honours your achievements while nourishing your body. There is nothing wrong with celebrating your hard earned work. Enjoy yourself.

Interested in how to manage the Post Show Period and all that comes with it? Head over to our YouTube click below…

Finally if you want to make sure you’re getting the right advice and want to ensure you are navigating a female prep with health as a priority we encourage you to speak with us.

We use an evidence based approach to get our clients into stage ready condition. As always if you think we can help you then hit that link and book a free call with us today – Click Here.

The post How to Choose the Perfect Post-Bodybuilding Contest Meal appeared first on Pro Prep.

Genetics

Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard. When it comes to bodybuilding though, genetics matter….they really matter. I don’t care how hard you work, sometimes you just overcome your genetic limitations in the sport of bodybuilding. What exactly are good genetics though and why do people have a hard time getting their heads around the genetics in bodybuilding?

In nature having good genetics means an organism is perfectly suited to its environment and as a result can pass on its genes to the next generation. When we say someone has good genetics in bodybuilding, we usually mean they have some trait(s) that give them an advantage over their peers that will be rewarded by judges. Just like in nature bodybuilding favours certain characteristics to be successful. In this way, it’s no different to other sports like basketball that favours taller players, or horse racing/gymnastics which selects for small athletes, or strongman where the largest athletes prevail.

How Do Genetics Work And What Are Genes?

No discussion of genetics would be complete without first discussing genes and the importance of the environment. At the cellular level DNA is the building blocks which contain the blueprint for life. These blueprints are called genes. Genes encode for amino acid sequences that when combined make proteins. When we say environmental factors, we mean both the external environment to the cell within the body, and the environment out with the body. For example, if your body detects an increase in blood sugar levels then genes encoding for the protein insulin are expressed in the pancreas, while genes which are responsible for the proteins that created GLUT4 transporters in muscle cells are expressed.  In this way you can see that genes are expressed both in terms of the internal and external environment. Another example is where a training stress is placed on a muscle, this sends a signal to the cell nucleus where your DNA is stored, and a gene is expressed which tells the cell to start making more protein leading to a larger muscle cell. If you engage in cardiovascular activity a different signal is sent to the cell which leads to the cell expressing different genes that encode for more mitochondria which allow the cell to generate more energy during aerobic activity. There are over 22,000 individual genes within the human body of which there are different flavours which may be more or less effective at producing a particular protein, which in turn we call talent. The some of an individuals genes are inherited from your parents. So if both your parents were championship bodybuilders there’s a high probability you’ll have inherited some combination of genes that give you an advantage for muscle building over the general population.

Nature vs Nurture

The key here is that for the gene to be expressed, there needs to be environmental stimulus. It’s always a combination of nature and nurture. So, someone can possess a great set of genes, but unless they are subject to the correct environment those genes will never be expressed. So you can have great genes to build muscle, but unless you pick up a barbell or do a manual job, don’t expect to be muscular. Single genes also don’t tend to matter as much as you might think. Ever heard of the sprinter gene ACN3 for example? (click here to read about the ACN3 gene) If you have it then you’re more likely to be better at producing strength and power. However, it takes combination of 100s of genes to contribute to a physical trait or in some cases like someone’s height it could take 1000s. Having the ACN3 gene might confer a 0.5% advantage, but then again you might possess half a dozen genes that reduce your ability to build and strength and power by 0.1% each. Remember there are 22,000 genes it’s not a single gene game and we’ve yet to identify what all these individual genes do. This is where individuality comes in, and certain combinations of genes, combined with different environmental stressors can yield vastly different results. Someone of Afro-Caribbean decent might for example have what it takes to be a great sprinter, but unless the talent is nurtured in the right environmental conditions, they might have trouble running to catch a bus.  There is of course a baseline which we all work from otherwise things like medicine wouldn’t work, however it does explain things like why your friend might be lactose intolerant, but the rest of their family isn’t, or why two friends starting the gym at the same time doing the same program can end up with vastly different results.

The Bell Curve Matters

Lots of human traits follow the classic bell curve pattern. In the example above you can see response to exercise training is no different. Some people will obtain fantastic results from a training program. However most people (68% to be exact), will cluster around the mean and median and obtain more modest results, in this case between 10 to 25 % increases in muscle mass from a 12 week bicep training program. In more extreme cases or at the tails, 16% could be characterised as being low and high responders. If you want to break it down even more at the extreme end of the tails, the high responders (0.1% to 1%) increased their muscle mass by up to 55%, do the math and you realise thats around 2 people from 585. These people are likely to have what it takes to be champions the others in the top 16% will also likely be able to go on and have promising careers as bodybuilders, those who fall within the middle 68% can expect to have more modest bodybuilding careers.

Should I Get My Genes Tested?

Lots of companies offer you the ability to test your genes. I’ve done it myself. The problem as mentioned above however is that having a specific gene needn’t necessarily mean it manifests in a particular trait. As well as having the genes, your body also employs regions of DNA called Exons and Introns, which act to increase or decrease the expression of genes, there’s also another layer that we call epigenetics and imprinting which perform a similar function. Epigenetic imprinting can completely silence the expression of a gene making it’s function null and void. The complicated nature of genes therefore means any genetic testing you have performed is usually only ever correlative. E.g. having one particular gene might mean you express one particular trait or another. Some genes are more researched than others, but even where they are, it’s difficult to quantify in most cases how much of a difference this might make. The FTO gene for example, which is noted to be associated with obesity, might lead to a 1% greater increase of becoming obese over a lifetime, which really seems neither here or there, in an individual dedicated to a health and fitness lifestyle or from a higher socioeconomic status where social standing is known to make a large contribution to body mass index. If I use myself as an example for a second the DNA test I had performed suggested from 41 traits that amongst other things I disliked coriander, that I’m more likely to be extroverted, that I was less likely to suffer from male pattern baldness, I’m likely to be good at remembering my dreams and that I was likely risk averse. In reality, I don’t really mind coriander, I’m probably more extroverted, I have a good hairline, I can’t say I’ve ever been very good at remember my dreams and I’m probably fairly average if not slightly above average when it comes to risk taking. For those keeping score, you could probably done just as well with a coin flip. Genetic testing is cool, but don’t expect a gene specific diet or training program to confer any real world advantage over more general fitness or healthy eating advice, not at this point anyway. This is just one of the reasons why the Scientific Advisory Committee for Nutrition’s current position stance doesn’t support genetic testing.

What Genes Are Good For Bodybuilding?

Well there are lots of traits that can be advantageous for bodybuilding. By virtue of the fact someone has decided to compete though it probably means they possess many of the advantageous traits compared to the average person. Provided an individual is otherwise healthy with no underlying health conditions here are some phenotypical traits which I would consider as important for bodybuilding so count yourself lucky if you have some of these. As an aside, it’s rare you see people with all these traits. A good competitor might have 5, 6 or 7 out of the 10, but it’s only the truly special athletes who are 10 out of 10s.

Advantageous Genetic Traits For Bodybuilding

Below is a list of traits advantageous for bodybuilding alongside an assessment of my own potential for these traits.

• The Ability to Build Muscle
  • I’m above average here, probably in the top 15 to 20% of individuals, I’m a 7 out of 10

• The Ability to Lose Weight Quickly While Preserving Muscle
  • Losing fat and preserving muscle has never been an issue for me some are better at this than me but I’m not too shabby, probably 7/8 out of 10

• High Recovery Capacity
  • When I was younger I was always capable of producing a high amount of work and recovering, again probably a 7/8 out of 10

• Great Skin
  • I have good skin, I have no issues with allergies and tanning has never been an issue, 7/8 out of 10.

• The Perfect Skeleton
  • My shoulders are broad and my limb lengths in proportion which support a lot of muscle, however my hips are wide, 6/7 out of 10

• Body Mechanics for Movements
  • My limb lengths and proportions are even making my performance in the big compound lifts uniform, 7/8 out of 10

• Great Muscle Insertions, e.g round muscle bellies, with insertions and origins close to the end of the limb
  • My arms and legs are great in terms of insertions, but I could have better calves, and back insertions. So some muscles could be rounder, but it’s not all bad, probably a 7 out of 10.

• Great Muscle Detail, Striations etc
  • I have good detail in my arms, chest, abs and back, but I never really have crazy detail in my legs or glutes. It’s not for a lack of trying, 7 out of 10

• Resilient Joints, or Injury Resilience
  • Some of my joints are better than others, I’m probably pretty average here, 6 out of 10.

• A High Pain Threshold
  • When I was younger I did some crazy things in the gym. I had good pain tolerance but I never considered myself above the norm with my peers, 7/10

• Stress Management/ Mental Resilience
  • If there’s one thing I think I do better than most it would be this. I’m just better at compartmentalising and switching off compared to others, 8/9 out of 10.

Combine these traits with a personality (that’s also considered to be between 30 to 75% genetic) that’s emotionally stable and conscientious and you’ll have a very good bodybuilder. I’ve seen some great bodybuilders in my life, I don’t know if I’ve ever truly encountered a bodybuilder that had all these 10 things, the shape of the muscle and the skeleton is often where a lot of bodybuilders come unstuck. I have relatively ok genetics but really what sets me apart is my mental application. See below the improvements you can make when harnessing that.

Coming To Terms With Your Own Genes

A lot of people who come into competitive bodybuilding having been successful athletes in the past. They’re competitive people by that very nature. What they tend to struggle with is three things, 1) coming to terms with their own genetic shortcomings; 2) the amount of time required to build a top-level physique; 3) how someone seemingly with a lower skill level/professionalism or work ethic can obtain superior results.

Expectations vs Reality

Expectations

In most sports time spent improving your skill, fitness or tactics gives you a real advantage over your peers, a couple of months working on a skill can manifest in real improvements in your level. Moreover, a lot of sports favour younger athletes and people can be world class between the ages of 19 to 25. This is because a lot of sports favour, strength, power, and endurance all of which are associated with youth. There’s also a lot of transferable skills between sports. You find a lot of multi event athletes in sport. People who given the time are good at lots of sports. For example, they can usually if they play racket sports pick up another one, or do multiple athletic/throwing or team sports.

Reality

Bodybuilding is different. A power and strength sporting background helps since these sports single out those athletes that were more muscular however bodybuilding favours the older athlete. it’s not unusual for a guy in their 30s or 40s to win the class at a national or world finals. Moreover, you can work hard on your training form, posing, and dietary regime, but the payoff can take years rather than months this makes the barrier to entry high. It’s not like Sunday league touch rugby where you might be good to play in a couple of weeks. Furthermore, you can do everything right and by the book, but unless you have the correct genetics you may always struggle to climb the ladder in competitive bodybuilding. That doesn’t mean that you can’t get better and be the best version of you, but it does mean you may have to be more realistic about what you can achieve. Just like other sports you also get extremely talented individuals who just seem to have it with very little experience or time lifting they can just build muscle and grow like a weed. This is the thing successful people can have the hardest time coming to terms with. It’s also one of the reasons why the average trainer seems to accuse everyone of taking steroids. Since someone elses gains far exceeds their own, and seemingly with half the amount of effort.

Genetic Privilege

“Comparison is the thief of joy” – Theodore Roosevelt. Once you come to term with your own genetic limitations it can help you become less critical of yourself and help you rationalise your progress. Blaming your genetics however shouldn’t be a get out. It is however helpful to appreciate the wide range of human abilities. For example, two people on a diet and one will lose weight at an astounding rate week after week, no problem at all, while the other might have to struggle for every lb of fat loss. You can see this illustrated perfectly in the example below from training studies looking at how some people build huge amounts of muscle and strength following same training program, while others make very little improvement at all.

It’s equally important to appreciate if you have good genetics that people are unlikely to find things as easy as yourself, this is a concept that I call “genetic privilege”. I see this a lot from bodybuilders who are inexperienced at coaching or in those who don’t come from a science background. The mantra to just work harder reflects the understand of the range of human possibilities. As athletes these people never struggle to do well, however if they start to work with clients they start to appreciate not everyone finds it so easy.

What Can You Do With This Information?

Well as stated above, your genetics shouldn’t be used as an excuse, but what they can be is useful for is setting expectations and taking the pressure off yourself. For example your muscle shape and limb length is determined by your genetics. You might be able to improve your shoulder to waist ratio by building bigger shoulders and lats, however if your hips are 34 inches compared to one of your peers with a 27 inch set of hips then you need to be realistic. You’re probably never going to have a wasp like waist, but you probably have other strengths like being able to support greater loads on your back and build a larger set of legs. Moreover, provided you’re eating enough energy, have enough protein in your diet, your diet is diverse in fruits and vegetables, allow yourself enough time to recover, you always focus on excellent training technique, you follow a periodised program and you’re implementing progressive overload techniques you’ll progress and build muscle, even if it’s not at the same rate as someone else. It can also help you take the pressure off yourself, that the love of lifting or doing bodybuilding competitions is the real aim rather than relentlessly trying to win if you don’t have the top tier genetics. Remember it’s always you against you and the only person you should be comparing yourself to is yourself. If you’re struggling to make progress and you’re ticking all the boxes above and applying the then it’s time to experiment with different training protocols like higher or lower frequency training for example. However, in my experience a failure to employ the basic principles mentioned above is usually the thing holding people back rather than their genetics and it’s usually bad exercise technique.

Patience Is A Virtue

One of the biggest things most trainers would benefit from is learning to have patience. People often get side tracked falling into the bulls***t trap of believing in bogus training programs, fad diets and junk supplements. Time is what really matters when it comes to progress, that and doing the basics mentioned above. So here’s a few pointers with time in mind: a training program should last for a minimum of 6 to 8 weeks, periods of anabolism/bulking should last for at least 20 weeks; cutting programs should last at a minimum 12 to 16 weeks. If you want to get really ripped diet for even longer. If you want to get bodybuilder muscular and lean think in terms of 3 year blocks, I’m talking 6 to 9 years, If you want to be a British champion start thinking 10 years of training and read my article on how long It takes to be a professional bodybuilder (click here).

Finally if you want to make sure you’re getting the right advice and want to make sure you’re not wasting time going down the wrong path then work with a Pro. We would love to help you have an informal chat with us to get to know us our approaches and so we can talk about your goals Click Here.

The post Genetics and Bodybuilding appeared first on Pro Prep.

Effective supplements

Straight out of the gate the following supplements are effective at increasing your exercise performance / muscle mass either directly or indirectly.

• Caffeine
• Creatine Monohydrate
• Isotonic Sports Drinks
• Sports Gels
• Protein Powders
• Beatroot and Cherry Extract
• Beta-Alanine

The International Olympic Committee (IOC), International Society Of Sports Nutrition (ISSN), American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), Australian Institute of Sport (AIS), and English Institute of Sport (EIS) consider the aforementioned effective. There’s enough evidence around dosages and improvements in performance that these supplements could be recommended by an accredited sports nutritionists and sports scientist.  Now let me tell you why everything else you’re being marketed is most likely garbage.

Introduction

If you’re reading this article, then you’re in the process of doing research into fitness supplements. You’re probably thinking about buying one to try out, maybe you want to gain an understanding of how it might improve your performance, or perhaps your sceptic and you’re looking for an informed source. Either way, I promise you that if you make it to the end of this article you will have a much firmer grasp of why 99% of supplements are garbage (this includes supplements out with the fitness world). This article is written for the “evidence based” trainer, the individual who wants to understand the science and apply it. If that sounds like you, then let’s get into it.  If you don’t want to get into the weeds then just stick with the list of supplements above.

The problem with sports supplements

Before we talk about turkesterone we need to talk about the problem with supplements in general. The main issue people have in trying to identify if a supplement is any good or not, is the fact that they don’t understand how research works, and what constitutes good research,  how to interpret research. Nor do they have the time to spend looking into it. If more people however took the time and understood how to do research, then people wouldn’t get hoodwinked by junk supplements. In this article I’m going to explain a few of research concepts to help you navigate the health and fitness research space, then I’m also going to talk about turkesterone. Probably the main reason why you came here, but first let’s talk about science.

About Me

I have been involved in the fitness industry for over 20 years. During that time, I have been sponsored by supplement companies as a competitive bodybuilder and, as a consumer, have tried well over 100 different sports supplements.

As a natural health and fitness professional, coach, mentor and dedicated athlete myself with decades of experience, I have made it my mission to understand what supplementation is actually meant to do, supplement training, nutrition, and recovery. That means digging into the research and evidence behind what genuinely works, and calling out what is simply a trend or a way to take your money. You can read about my work and follow me on instagram here

I also run WNBF UK, the leading natural bodybuilding federation in the UK. Educating athletes on drug testing standards and banned supplement lists WADA and what it truly means to be natural is extremely important to me. As a result, clear, honest education around supplementation, what is helpful and what can be damaging, has become a fundamental part of my life’s work.

Supplement Research

The problem supplements have is they often lack any scientific rigour associated with them. A lack of scientific rigour however never stopped anyone selling anything though. Let’s be clear most supplements have absolutely zero scientific studies to back up their claims or justify their use.  When there are studies, a lot of the time the research is underwhelming, not applicable or limited, e.g. too few studies to substantiate a claim. Turkesterone and other test boosters can easily be included on this list. Moreover, the supplement industry is not well regulated, which leaves companies or individuals free to make outrageous claims and under-dosed their products. It is amazing to think that so many people got duped by the “Liver King”. Moreover, consumers caught up in marketing hype are often far too trusting of supplement companies and the influencers who market their products. Some of the time they’re literally praying on the lowest common denominator and their insecurities to sell these products.

How we work out if something works

It wasn’t until I went to university that I found out what a scientific study actually was. Before that when I did research, I thought that meant literally reading blogs. Now you can find research studies by visiting websites like Pubmed and Google Scholar. These are databases that allow you to search for scientific studies. If you want to know about Turkesterone and muscle mass for example, just type it in the search bar and see how many hits you get. Now broadly speaking you can categorise research into one of two categories: observational or experimental.

Observation research: this involves large cohorts and is the domain of epidemiologists. It can be retrospective (looking backwards), or perspective (following trends over time). Public health or demographic studies like a census are observational. They provide a snapshot of information at a point of time. A health study might look at links between supplement use and mortality rates and then try to assess if there’s a link for example. These studies can identify associations and can be useful. As you can imagine there are a lot of reasons why people might live longer in a group taking supplements vs not taking them. We often say these types of studies are great for hypothesis generating, but to prove causation you need to do experiments.

Experimental research: you come up with a hypothesis (maybe generated from your observational study), which is a theory of how the world works and then you do an experiment to test your idea. If after multiple experiments the hypothesis still rings true, you can be confident you’re onto something. Experimental research is where you really want to look to see if something works or not, this is where you get the good data.

Now experiments can be done on cells in the lab, (in vitro), or on living systems (in vivo) like animals or humans. Cell work is great for testing how things work like molecule at a cellular level. While animal models can provide a proof of principle and are usually the next step. Although there’s a lot of shared biology and there are obviously things you can do in animals you can’t do with humans, eventually you really need to prove your hypothesis in humans.

The Best Kind Of Research

The gold standard method for testing is the randomised controlled trial (RCT). RCTs randomly assign volunteers to different groups: a treatment group (supplement), and a control group (placebo) for example. By comparing the outcomes of your groups, researchers can determine whether the treatment is effective. The experiment can be a one off (acute), or over a period (longitudinally). It depends on what your testing and your research question. Placebos are essential, they allow researchers to control for the placebo effect. The placebo effect is a psychological phenomenon where a person’s performance/symptoms or condition improve because they believe they are receiving the treatment. For example, one of the trials we ran on citrulline malate identified the placebo as superior to the supplement – See below.

Okay, so you’ve got yourself a hold of some experimental research that’s peer review and it’s tested your supplement. Next you have to read the thing, papers are broken down into different sections, but what you really want to know is, what did they do, the methods, and what did they find, the results. If you understand the area then sometimes everything else is superfluous. Want you really want to know is: does the supplement helps you put on muscle when combined with resistance training? You then need to start asking questions: who was this experiment performed on? Was it on men or women, where they young or old, experienced trainers or not, did they control the conditions of effectively, did they look at appropriate outcome measures, what was the dosage they used, did they do the test on enough participants, how big was the actual effect of the supplement etc. etc. Also don’t get side-tracked a supplement trial in post-menopausal East Asian women measuring cycling performance might be interesting but the findings aren’t applicable to the 20 year old Caucasian males trying to get jacked.

Assuming you find an appropriate research study the question is, can you find more? Single studies are interesting, but science relies on reproducibility. People in different labs doing similar experiments seeing if they can replicate each other’s results. When we investigated citrulline malate for example we identified around 8 different relevant studies, as many of them had positive effect as negative effect. So, prior to launching our own investigation, we weren’t really sure if the supplement was likely to work or not. We found no effect of the supplement across two studies we performed, however to this day I still couldn’t be sure if it works or not.

Reviews

If something has been researched enough you can find reviews. These are papers summarising the research on a topic and are usually a great place to start. Supplements like creatine and caffeine, have a ton of reviews all discussing mechanisms of action alongside supporting and negative studies performed in humans. They usually on balance can suggest if something is worthwhile or what still needs to be done. There are different types of reviews, systematic reviews, meta-analysis, narrative reviews etc. The meta-analysis however is often considered the best place to look if you want a summary of the evidence and a treatments effect. Once enough data has been collated and is considered of highest quality, you start to see a consensus on the effectiveness of something.

Now, it’s important to keep in mind that research is an ongoing process and new studies can change our understanding, science never stands still. Moreover, it is possible to be at the cutting edge of something and an earlier adopter. if you interpret the data and like what you see then you’re free to try it out. The key though is that you follow the data, moreover if you are an early adopter then remember until there’s enough research any claims you might make are essentially anecdote.

How Supplement Companies Actually Do Research

With all that in mind, now let me give you an example of the level of scientific scrutiny that typical goes into the development of a supplement. Someone somewhere has identified an ingredient they’d liked to develop into a supplement. Or in other words they’ve found some ingredient that has some potentially bioactive molecule. Perhaps this molecule does something in a plant, insect, or bacteria, this might even have been shown to be the case, using cells. The supplement researcher looks at their textbook containing biochemical pathway and rationalises, maybe this molecule can do the same thing in humans. They rationalise perhaps this might lead to an increase/decrease in some anabolic pathway or catabolic process. They then make the supposition that having more of this molecule is therefore probably a good thing for humans, and hey presto you have yourself a sports supplement!  What you’ve got is a hypothesis. You need to do an experiment to see if it works or not. This type of textbook mechanistic reasoning doesn’t constitute a proof of principle or evidence. Moreover indirect effects don’t always translate into real world performance. A 1% increase in oxygen delivery to working muscles might make zero difference to muscle mass obtained in a 12-week resistance training study. You need to be able to prove your ideas work in the real world rather than just on paper or a cell line.

Let’s talk Testboosters

Turkesterone fits into the category of test boosters or potentially pro-hormones/SARMS. It’s important to point out that Pro-hormones/SARMS are effectively steroids and shouldn’t be considered sports supplements. Now we all know testosterone helps build muscle. People inject it, they work out, they eat protein, and they get larger muscles. We wrote a whole article on how much of an edge steroid give you, if you want to read it then click here to check it out (https://proprepcoaching.com/science-of-bodybuilding/steroids-in-sports-how-much-of-an-edge/). Testosterone is produced by the testes and injecting it causes the testes to shrink. The reason for the testes shrinking is that testosterone is regulated by a negative feedback loop involving the hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and testes. See the diagram below for an explanation of this.

The hypothalamus, a small area in the brain, produces gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) which stimulates the pituitary gland to release luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). These hormones then travel to the testes, where they stimulate the Leydig cells to produce testosterone. The testosterone in turn travels through the bloodstream and reaches the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. The hypothalamus and pituitary gland detect the rise in testosterone, and respond by decreasing the release of GnRH and LH, respectively, which subsequently decrease the production of testosterone by the testes. This keeps the levels of testosterone in the body within a healthy range, which is essential for maintaining the proper function of the reproductive system, as well as for overall health.

Testosterone boosters aim to increase the body’s own natural production of testosterone or by suppressing the production or oestrogen. They work by interacting with the testosterone pathway at some point either providing more molecules to help manufactory the hormones required or by acting as constitute parts in the pathway. The third possibility and this is more reflective of a pro-hormone/SARM is they can directly interact with muscle cells performing the same action as testosterone.  The problem of all this is the negative feedback loop explained above limits their effectiveness. I could think of circumstances where they may be effective to elevated a depressed natural levels, however once testosterone is boosted to a critical level, the body’s own natural production is then down regulated. As a result, any effect from these products is likely short lived and what you really want to know is does it work over a 12 to 24 weeks training cycle and does it have any effect on healthy young men trying to build muscle mass.

So what about Turkesterone?

Turkesterone is a phytoecdysteroid which found in several plant species including Ajuga turkestanica, Vitex species, Triticum aestivum, and Rhaponticum acaule. Phytoecdysteroids are similar to ecdysteroid, and beta-ecdysteroid. These ecydsteroids are involved in malting and reproduction in arthropods (which includes things like scorpions, crabs, and spiders). The prefix Phyto refers to the fact that turkesterone is a plant derived ecydsteroids. At face value plant poisons involved in causing anthropods to excessively malt and die aren’t something you’d immediately suspect would be bioactive in a human. There are obvious biological differences, between humans, insects and plants. There’ is however shared biology, otherwise we couldn’t develop drugs from plants, and things like anti-depressants wouldn’t work in lobsters (or so Jordan Peterson said so). Interestingly, ecydseterone is on the WADA watch list although being on the watch list doesn’t always constitute an effective supplement as Bezuglov et al. (2021) points out.

“there are over 400 different phytoecdysteroids isolated from plants with at least 4 different types of potentially active turkesterone”

The studies

After searching via PubMed, Google Scholar, Examine.com, Google Search and then looking at references in the studies identified, we can identify 7 relative studies. There are more, but I was looking for studies related to improvements in muscle mass or performance related to ecydsterone. Five of the studies were in rodents, and 2 were in humans. I also found 4 review articles. What’s more it isn’t clear from any of these studies if they’re looking at ecydsterone, phytoecdystrone or beta-ecdysterone and that’s a problem, the nomenclature is all over the place. So we don’t actually know if these studies are investigating turkosterone or some other type of ecydsteroid. When you research B-vitamins you look at specific ones (1,2,3,4,5,6,9,or 12), they don’t all do the same things. That aside if you read the rodent studies, 5 are from the same lab and author, while the only one showing no effect is from the different lab. The rodent studies are performed on healthly mice, castrated rats, diabetic rats and geriatric rats. Again, useful for a proof of principle, but results aren’t necessarily applicable. As for the human trials, both contradict each other, one found a positive effect, the other found no effect. So let’s look at these the human trials:

Wilborn et al. 2006

45 healthy males with at least one year of resistance training under their belt, aged of 20 were recruited. The subjects were placed in one of four (11 per group) treatments: placebo;  800mg/day of methoxyisoflavone; 30mg of 20-hydroxyecdysone (turkesterone); or 500 mg of sulfo-polysacharides. The participants embarked on a 4 day per week upper and lower body training program for 8 weeks. At baseline, week 4 and week 8 the researchers took bloods and performed a battery of tests. The researchers found no difference between the placebo or any of the supplement groups on: fat free mass, body fat %, 1 RM bench press or leg press, sprint peak power, active testosterone, free testosterone, cortisol, urea nitrogen, and creatinine. There was no difference in anything they measured. Now you can point to limitations in this study, these are free living individuals after all. However, the good thing about this study is the fact it was longitudinal, randomised and they tested a huge number of relevant variables like muscle mass and strength. They also tested this supplement in a population of people likely to use it.

Isenmann et al. 2019

This study was similar, although they did some on muscle cells in a lab also. 40 male participants, aged 25 with at least 1 year of training took part in a 10 week training study. The product they tested was called Peak Ecdysone (you can buy it). This is a Beta-Ecdysterone and not Turkosterone, although it’s purported to acts similarly to Turkosterone. Once again we had 4 groups: placebo, Ec1 (ecdysterone 12mg, 200mg leucine ), Ec2 (ecydsterone 48mg, 800 mg leucine), control (ecdysterone 12mg, 200mg leucine, And no training). So a higher dose was used here, 4 times the amount suggested by the manufacturer. Bloods and performance testing was done initially at 5 weeks and week 11. They found no difference in bodyweight between groups, however the high dose group managed to gained 2kg more muscle mass compared to the placebo group, while the placebo group managed to lose 0.35kg of muscle mass. This seems unusual particularly since the control group (which did no exercise) managed to increase their muscle mass over the same period.  There was no difference in counter measure jump or 1RM back squat, although there was a difference in bench press 1RM strength between the placebo and both treatment groups. The placebo group did improved their counter measure jump, back squat, and bench press though despite losing muscle mass. Looking at the bloods there was no difference between the groups in testosterone, luteinizing hormone or thyroid hormone between any of the groups, although IGF-1 was higher in the treatment groups.

These results are somewhat messy, based on both studies it seems clear that the ecdysterone supplements do not affecting testosterone.  Looking at the cell line part of the study, they found muscle satellite cells treated with the ecydterone grew to a similar degree as dehydrotesterone. This shows which shows in principle that if you can get it in there, it may have some effect of course the question is always, what constitutes a physiologically relevant amount. It also suggests it may be more likely to work like a prohormone/SARM than a natural testosterone booster.

So what are we to make of all this?

Well if you read the review papers Das et al (2021) points out that there are over 400 different phytoecdysteroids isolated from plants with at least 4 different types of potentially active turkesterone (turkesterone 22-acetate, 22 oxo-turkesterone, 11-hydroxy-Δ24-capitasterone and turkesterone 20,22-acetonide). They also point out at least 12 different potential uses for phytoecdysteroids including but not limited to: antioxidants, anti-inflammatories, antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, anticancer, antidiabetic, anabolic etc. As the paper points out though despite the potential of these molecules there’s very little in the way of in vivo or clinical studies and that a great deal of replication work is needed to confirm their pharmacological, or in this case sporting performance potential. At this point you really must agree with the authors of the review. Ecydsteroids, they’re interesting, but no serious sports scientist or nutritionist is going to recommend them until there’s more data to support the use. Two studies showing contradicting results isn’t really going to cut It. Perhaps in ten year’s time when there’s a dozen studies on it we can make a more informed decision, but for now at least I’m out.  Ultimately guys this is the problem with most supplements. Once you peel back the curtain and start looking, what you often find isn’t exactly inspiring, usually it’s like this, a handful of trials with conflicting results. If it seems too good to be true, it usually is.  

References

• Chappell, A.J., Allwood, D.M., Johns, R., Brown, S., Sultana, K., Anand, A. and Simper, T., 2018. Citrulline malate supplementation does not improve German Volume Training performance or reduce muscle soreness in moderately trained males and females. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 15(1), p.42.
• Syrov, V.N. and Kurmukov, A.G., 1976. Anabolic activity of phytoecdysone-ecdysterone isolated from Rhaponticum carthamoides (Willd.) Iljin. Farmakologiia i toksikologiia, 39(6), pp.690-693.
• Syrov, V.N. and Kurmukov, A.G., 1976. The anabolic properties of turkesterone phytoecdysone and turkesterone tetraacetate in experiments on male rats. Problemy endokrinologii, 22(3), pp.107-112.
• Syrov, V.N., Kurmukov, A.G. and Sakhibov, A.D., 1978. Effect of turkesterone and nerobol on the activity of the protein synthesizing system of mouse liver. Voprosy meditsinskoi khimii, 24(4), pp.456-460.
• Chermnykh, N.S., Shimanovskiĭ, N.L., Shutko, G.V. and Syrov, V.N., 1988. The action of methandrostenolone and ecdysterone on the physical endurance of animals and on protein metabolism in the skeletal muscles. Farmakologiia i toksikologiia, 51(6), pp.57-60.
• Lawrence, M.M., Zwetsloot, K.A., Arthur, S.T., Sherman, C.A., Huot, J.R., Badmaev, V., Grace, M., Lila, M.A., Nieman, D.C. and Shanely, R.A., 2021. Phytoecdysteroids do not have anabolic effects in skeletal muscle in sedentary aging mice. International journal of environmental research and public health, 18(2), p.370.
• Wilborn, C.D., Taylor, L.W., Campbell, B.I., Kerksick, C., Rasmussen, C.J., Greenwood, M. and Kreider, R.B., 2006. Effects of methoxyisoflavone, ecdysterone, and sulfo-polysaccharide supplementation on training adaptations in resistance-trained males. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 3(2), p.19.
• Isenmann, E., Ambrosio, G., Joseph, J.F., Mazzarino, M., de la Torre, X., Zimmer, P., Kazlauskas, R., Goebel, C., Botrè, F., Diel, P. and Parr, M.K., 2019. Ecdysteroids as non-conventional anabolic agent: performance enhancement by ecdysterone supplementation in humans. Archives of toxicology, 93, pp.1807-1816.
• Lafont, R. and Dinan, L., 2003. Practical uses for ecdysteroids in mammals including humans: and update. Journal of insect science, 3(1), p.7.
• Parr, M.K., Botrè, F., Naß, A., Hengevoss, J. and Diel, P., 2015. Ecdysteroids: A novel class of anabolic agents?. Biology of sport, 32(2), pp.169-173.
• Das, N., Mishra, S.K., Bishayee, A., Ali, E.S. and Bishayee, A., 2021. The phytochemical, biological, and medicinal attributes of phytoecdysteroids: An updated review. Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B, 11(7), pp.1740-1766.
• Bezuglov, E., Talibov, O., Butovskiy, M., Khaitin, V., Achkasov, E., Waśkiewicz, Z. and Lazarev, A., 2021. The inclusion in WADA prohibited list is not always supported by scientific evidence: a narrative review. Asian Journal of Sports Medicine, 12(2).

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Natural Female Bodybuilding Prep UK

Coached by Steff Noble, Pro Athlete and experienced UK Natural Bodybuilding Coach

Searching for a natural female bodybuilding coach in the UK is very different from searching for a general online PT.
Natural bodybuilding requires strict drug tested standards, long term planning, and a coach who understands female physiology, not shortcuts.

At Pro Prep Coaching, I specialise in natural female bodybuilding prep in the UK, working with women competing in drug tested federations, across the whole world. Including natural transformations that don’t end in stage.

The most notable Natural bodybuilding federation in the World is WNBF. I run and host WNBF UK events and prepare athletes for stage from complete beginner to Pro Athlete. I prepare those athletes and fitness enthusiasts for all manner of goals who want to test their physical ability naturally.

This article breaks down what real natural transformation and natural contest prep looks like, who it is for, and how coaching should actually work.

What Is Natural Female Bodybuilding Prep?

Natural female bodybuilding prep means preparing your physique for competition without performance enhancing drugs, under federations that use polygraph testing and drug testing. WNBF, WNBF UK, PNBA, ICN, NPC, INBA, BNBF, NPA, UKDFBA, PCA NATURALS, 2 BROS NATURALS, NBW, ANBF. To name a few.

This requires:

• Longer timelines
• Smarter calorie manipulation
• Sustainable training progression
• Hormone and recovery awareness
• Psychological support through prep phases

This is not crash dieting.
My approach to contest prep is strategic, evidence based coaching. Taking your body and mind on a journey to do something 99% of people cannot do safely and sustainably whilst learning key skills you will learn for long term health and general life.

Why Female Athletes Need a Specialist Natural Bodybuilding Coach

Female competitors face unique challenges during prep:

• Metabolic adaptation
• Hormonal fluctuations
• Stress sensitivity
• Recovery capacity
• Post show rebound risk

As a female drug tested bodybuilding coach in the UK, my approach prioritises:

• Long term health alongside stage condition
• Strength retention and muscle density
• A clear post show exit plan
• Education so athletes understand the process, not just follow instructions

Natural prep done properly should leave you stronger, not broken. I have prepped for 2 decades safety as one of the leading PRO natural female bodybuilders and coaches in the industry. I have tried and tested evidence based principles on myself to ensure they worked, worked with 100s of women through the years to build their confidence and teach them ways to do this sport in a healthy and rewarding way. In order to coach to this level it is my belief you need to have walked the walk and tried numerous approaches to ensure you have the authority and ability to coach with conviction and certainty.

Case Study: Natural Female Bodybuilding Prep UK – my client chelsea doherty went from amateur to pro.

Athlete profile

• First and second season natural competitor
• UK based natural athlete in Scotland
• Lifestyle background before prep – Midfwife who had a love for health and fitness and has been training through our specific offseason programing to build on her enjoyment of training.
• Competing in WNBF standards

Coaching focus

• Extended improvement and growing (hypertrophy) phase before dieting
• Training performance driven, not cardio obsessed
• Ensuring continued loss through dieting phases whilst on high calories.
• Gradual fat loss phases
• Regular check ins with full feedback weekly

Outcome

• Stage ready conditioning within natural limits
• Strong muscle retention
• Smooth peak week
• Healthy post show recovery

This is what natural female bodybuilding prep in the UK should look like.

Who This Type of Coaching Is For

This coaching is for women who:

• Want to compete naturally or want to transform their body naturally
• Value health and longevity
• Want education, not just a meal plan
• Are serious about standards and integrity

If you are searching for a UK natural bodybuilding coach who understands female prep properly, this is exactly what Pro Prep Coaching does.

Final Thoughts

Natural female bodybuilding is demanding.
It requires patience, trust, and a coach who has walked the process alongside athletes, not just read about it and who really cares about your transformation not just physically but mentally. My coaching is about building you into the 360 athlete and person I know you can be.

If you are looking for natural female bodybuilding prep in the UK, working with a drug tested bodybuilding coach, your coaching choice matters more than your macros.

Natural bodybuilding competitions and Natural female physique transformations demand integrity, patience, and proper coaching.

If you are searching for:

• A diligent prep coach in the UK or worldwide
• UK natural bodybuilding coach
• drug tested bodybuilding coach female or male

Pro Prep Coaching exists specifically for this level of athlete.

Interested in just having a conversation to learn about us and to see if we might be a good fit for you? Join me on a half hour free infromal chat about your goals so we can get to know each other . Click here

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Why You’ve Got To Have A Back

it’s a classic bodybuilding cliché, but I’m going to say it anyway “shows are won from the back”. It’s cliché for a reason, there’s a truth in it. Very often you’ll be sitting watching a competition with two or three competitors duking it out for the top spot. The judges are unsure who to go for based on the front or side shots. Finally, the competitors turn to the back and decision for the judges becomes obvious. One competitor is streets ahead of the other when it comes to the back, while another is severely lacking in this department. Lee Haney, Dorian Yates, Ronnie Coleman, Jay Cutler, Phil Heath, and Kai Greene were all great bodybuilders, and although many pretenders challenged them for the top titles, the always won the back shots. So, if you want to do well, you have to have a good back so when the judges call for those rear shots you can stand out or not be brushed aside. It’s not just the back though, competitors need to have a strong posterior chain as well, the glutes, hamstrings and calves all require attention, but that’s an article for a different day (click here to read our article on glute training).

Back Training Considerations

So what’s the deal with back training? Well like legs, the back is one of those body parts that’s often neglected, lagging behind the mirror muscles. As such when it comes to training back, many trainers lack the ability to properly train it and they often lack the ability to engage the muscles with a strong mind muscle connect. So, if you’re new to back training be sure to spend the first few months of your back sessions with slow tempo, higher reps focusing on developing a contraction and the feel of training the muscles of the back. Trust me it will serve you well. Now the back muscles are also the largest and most complex muscles in the body, consisting of multiple muscle groups that are responsible for various movements such as pulling, lifting, and stabilising the spine. What this means is back training is the most complex area to train of the body, unlike leg training, chest, or shoulders, which all involve pushing. The back requires far more angles with both horizontal and vertical pulling, alongside trying to minimise the involvement of the arm muscles and in some instances the rear deltoids. With this in mind using monkey hook grips and straps can be a good way to overcome arm involvement. Just be sure to keep training your forearms (click here for the article on arm training). In this article, we’ll discuss the importance of back training, the different muscles in the back, and some effective exercises for targeting each muscle group.

Importance Of Back Training

The back muscles play a crucial role in overall body function, as they are responsible for maintaining good posture, and maintaining spinal health. Neglecting your back training can lead to imbalances and weaknesses in your upper body, which can negatively affect your performance in other exercises such as bench press, shoulder press, and even squat and combat sports. Moreover, those who neglect their back training in favour shoulder and chest regimes tend to develop injuries, not only in the upper and lower back, but also in the shoulders and pecs as a result of excessive rounding the shoulders. In sports like rowing, combat sports like boxing or power sports like rugby or American football, a strong back is also essential to ensure maximal force development, endurance, power and strength.

To achieve a well-rounded physique, it’s therefore essential to train your back from multiple angles, using both free weights and machines. Free weights, such as dumbbells and barbells, are great for developing strength and stability in the back muscles, while machines can provide a more controlled and isolated movement, allowing you to focus on specific muscle groups. The addition of specialist equipment like bands, chains, and kettle bells can also be useful to help target the back in sports specific ways.

Muscles Of The Back

Before we dive into the exercises, let’s look at the different muscles in the back and their functions:

• Latissimus Dorsi (Lats) – The lats are the largest muscle in the back, responsible for adduction, extension, and medial rotation of the shoulder joint. They also play a significant role in pull-up and rowing movements. The larger these muscles are the more impressive your V-taper is likely to be. So lots of pulling and rowing movements are required to develop this area.

• Trapezius (Traps) – The traps are a triangular-shaped muscle that runs from the base of the skull to the middle of the back. They are responsible for shrugging, rotating, and retracting the shoulder blades. If you want to develop a thick and impressive neck, then this is the area you’re going to want to focus on.
• Rhomboids – The rhomboids are a small muscle group that runs from the spine to the shoulder blades. They are responsible for retracting and stabilizing the shoulder blades and actually sit underneath the trapezius muscles

• Teres Major and Minor – Situated laterally to the Rhomboids and Trapezius,  the teres muscles are part of the four rotator cuff muscles which also include the supra and infraspinatus. As part of this complex the Teres Major and Minor stabilise the humoral head, as well as extension and adduction of the arm. Like the Rhomboids above, reverse flying movements are effective in targeting this area.

• Erector Spinae – The erector spinae muscles run parallel to the spine and are responsible for extending and stabilizing the spine. Although you can’t see them since they are hidden by the trapezius, latissimus dorsi, and rhomboids, these muscles run the entire length other spine. Isometric movements are useful for targeting these muscles along with back extensions for improving posture. Larger movements like the deadlift however are required to develop truly thick erectors.

Exercises For Back Training

There is no shortage of back training exercises which are both free weights, and machine. At their core though, most of these exercises are based around 5 basic movements with variations on arm position, body angle, chest/back support, width of grip and angle of grip. With that in mind, some may find more benefit using different variation of these exercises. Moreover, others may find they get a greater mind muscle connection employing one exercise over another. As discussed in previous articles, periodisation (click here) is an important concept that trainers should employ to get the most out of their training, by employing different exercises as part of different programs.

Lat Pulldowns & Pull Ups

Lat pulldowns and pull-ups are a staple exercise for building a strong and defined back. They primarily target the lats, but also engage the biceps, traps, and rhomboids. To perform this exercise, sit on a lat pulldown machine and grip the bar with an overhand grip. Pull the bar down towards your chest, keeping your elbows close to your body. Pause briefly at the bottom before slowly returning to the starting position, make sure to emphasis the stretch. For the pull – up take a grip outside your shoulder width, similar to the style of grip you’d use for a bench press and aim to pull the top of your chest to the bar. Try to minimise any swinging, and If you’re really good at them be sure to add additional weight with a belt. There’s no shortage of different handles, or machines you can use that also mimic this movement, so find that’s most effective for you and make it a corner stone of your back training. Just be sure to emphasis the stretch you get while training the lats.

Bent Over Rows

Bent over rows are a compound exercise that targets the lats, traps, rhomboids, and erector spinae. To perform this exercise, hold a barbell with an overhand grip and hinge forward at the hips, keeping your back flat and your core tight. Pull the bar towards your chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together, then slowly lower the bar back to the starting position. Personally, I prefer the Pendley variation of this movement which involves a wider grip and a more bent over stance to minimise the amount of body English being used. Can also be performed as a “Seal Row” on a bench and with DBs on an incline bench, or as a single arm movement with the dumbbell row.

Seated Rows

Seated rows are a great exercise for targeting the middle back muscles, including the lats, traps, and rhomboids. To perform this exercise, sit on a cable row machine with your feet on the footrests and grip the handles with both hands. Pull the handles towards your chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together, then slowly release back to the starting position. This exercise can also be performed using exercise machines, and there are no shortage or plate loaded rows from a variety of angles.

Deadlifts

Deadlifts are a compound exercise that targets the erector spinae, as well as the hamstrings, glutes, and traps. To perform this exercise, stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and grip the bar with both hands using an overhand or mixed grip. Lift the bar off the ground, keeping your back straight and your core tight. Pull your shoulder blades together and drive your hips forward to stand up straight, then slowly lower the bar back to the ground. These can be done as stiff leg deadlifts, conventional deadlifts, from blocks, with chains or bands. If you want to target the lower body and hips more these can also be performed in a sumo style or with a trap bar.

Pull Downs & Pull Overs

Often considered as a finisher or isolation movement, these can be performed with dumbbells across a bench, cables with a rope or most notably using a pull over machine. Dorian Yates swore by the Nautalis pull over machine as being one of the number one reasons why he manage to develop such a great set of lats. Few exercises seem to hit the lats quite like a pull over, the trick like most of these movements is to focus on maximising the range of motion and controlling the weight with a consistent and smooth tempo, while getting an excellent stretch when your elbows are extended parallel to the head.

Thickeners, Width, Sculpting and Program Considerations

One the most common misconceptions around back training is there are exercise superior for developing back thickness or a 3D look. Conversely there are also exercises useful for building width, or the X frame. Finally, there is also a belief there are exercise superior for developing detail in the back. As always things are more complex. Although some exercises obviously target certain areas more effectively than others e.g Lat pull downs vs shrugs for the lattisumus dorsi. All exercises will build thickness to varying degrees and all will enhance the amount of detail in the back. If you gain muscle in your latissimus dorsi for example from doing lat pull downs and pull ups, not only will you gain muscle laterally helping you develop you a v taper, but you’ll gain muscle in the horizontal plane adding that 3D dimensions to your physique. Moreover, the more muscle you have in your physique and the lower your body fat levels, the more detail you’ll see when hitting your back shots. If you don’t have the back muscle, you’ll not have the detail.

Don’t get the wrong end of the stick on this point, not all back exercises are created equal. Compound exercises like the deadlift, bent over row, or T-bar row will recruit a great number of muscles when performed. On the contrary, they’re also the most taxing and energy sapping exercises, and although they may recruit many muscles in the back, they might not target an individual muscle quite as well as an isolation exercises like a single arm cable row. A useful strategy therefore is for the trainer to design programs which combine compound and isolation exercises to help manage fatigue, or to do more than one session in the week, focusing on some combination of the both. For example: sessions might focus on machines vs free weights and isolation exercises vs compounds with rep ranges manipulated around heavier and lighter sessions. The final considerations revolve around weaknesses and or touch up training, where an individual has great back development, they may wish to avoid twice per training sessions. With all this in mind it’s time to put all this knowledge into action check out the sample training programs below. Try this plan for 4 weeks and see how you get on.

Sample Training Programs For Back Training

Here are two sample training programs, each with about 15 sets per workout, to help you build a strong and defined back.

Program 1: Free Weight Emphasis

Program 2: Machine Emphasis

Summary

Back training is a vital component of any well-rounded fitness program. By using a combination of free weights and machines, you can target all the major muscle groups in the back and achieve a strong, defined, and healthy back. Remember to train from multiple angles to hit the complex anatomy of the back and incorporate exercises that target specific muscle groups for optimal results.

Combined the a sound training program/principles with proper nutritional support and a coach will help you achieve your desired results. If you found this article useful and think we can help you at ProPrepCoaching then get in touch with us let’s have a chat about your goals – Click Here

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Arm Training

I once read a quote somewhere that said in bodybuilding “your arms can never be too big”. When I first started training have a well sculpted large set of arms was the dream, all my action hero ideals had great arms, Stallone, Van Dame, and of course the granddaddy of them all Mr Olympia Arnold Schwarzenegger. 15-year-old me didn’t know how to get them, but he sure as hell knew that he wanted them. That was over twenty years ago, and a lot has changed since then, but somethings never change, the quest to get an even more impressive set of arms. So how do you go about doing this then? Well there are a number of different approach you could take. Right out of the gates it’s worth pointing out that without the right dietary approach and recovery schedule you’ll struggle to develop a great set of arms. Moreover, without the correct technique, good form, and a well-developed mind muscle connection you’ll also struggle to develop your arms. Finally, it’s worth mentioning that genetics are important, the shape of your arms and your ability to build muscle here is somewhat predetermined and an approach that works for one person might not work for yourself. So with all that aside, let’s get into it.

How To Programming

When it comes to programming for bodybuilding, it’s important to implement progressive overload. This means that session on session, week on week, you as the trainer should always be looking to challenge yourself. You can progress in multiple ways, but usually means either lifting more weight on a single exercise, or as part of the whole session, performing more repetitions, doing more sets, reducing the rest time between sets, or increasing the frequency you train that muscle group per week. The goal should always be progression; however, every program has a shelf life, this is the point at which you can no longer progress with the variables. On top of that, people also get bored, so it’s important to change things up and keep them fresh if you want to stay motivated. Goals of a specific program or “mesocycle” vary, however you should be looking to change programs every 6 to 16 weeks as part of a larger “macrocycle”.  In this respect programming should always fit into the wider context of a year-round goal. This context is important, as at times you may find yourself training arms, once, twice or three times per week through a variety of different rep ranges and alternating exercises. There is no perfect plan, only the one that makes the most sense for that phase of the macrocycle.

Programming for the arms specifically its always worth remembering that the arms play an important role as accessory or secondary muscles when it comes to pushing (triceps) or pulling (biceps & forearms) sessions. Moreover, even within the context of pushing or pulling movements, the arms often play a role in stabilising as antagonist muscles. The biceps although not directly involved still play a role in stabilising the arm pressing movements for example. What this means is that regardless of the split you do, be it push, pull, legs, bro split, full body, upper lower etc. your arms will be getting a lot of indirect work. It also means that where you train the arms directly and fatigue induced will have an indirect consequence for the larger exercises involving the back, chest or shoulders. For example. if you have sore triceps from the day before then don’t expect to perform as well on the bench press. With that in mind experience has taught me that between 9 to 12 sets per week of direct work for the biceps and triceps is usually enough for most people, while around 6 sets seem to be enough for forearms. Now you can split this over the course of the week with a few exercises per session, although personally I’ve always preferred to do direct arm work. The reason for this is because where you have dedicated sessions to muscle group, you’re likely to be more focused and be able to put more effort into training that muscle group, particularly when sets of arms are often thrown in at the end of a session. So how do you train your arms?

Training The Arms

The Biceps and Forearms

The biceps, located on the front of the upper arm, are responsible for flexing the elbow. To effectively target the biceps, it’s important to understand the anatomy of the muscle. The biceps brachii, the muscle commonly referred to as the “biceps,” has two heads: the short head and the long head. The short head is located on the inner portion of the arm, while the long head is located on the outer portion. Alongside the Bicep brachii, there is also the Brachialis and Brachioradialis which also play a role in flexing the elbow and supinating and pronating the forearm. There are of course more muscles of the forearm such as the Flexor Digitorum profundus and Felxor Palrmaris longus which play a role in flexing the fingers so are therefore important when it comes to grip. What this all means of course is that different exercises place a different emphasis on each muscle and for this article we will be primarily focused on the Biceps brachii, Brachiallis and Brachioradialis.

As with most muscle groups, compound exercises work well at providing an overall stimulus. Barbell curls are a an excellent compound which will target the whole arm, particularly the outter heads of the brachii and brachiallis, although the narrower grip you use the more you can shift the emphasis onto the inner head of the brachii, this is where an ez bar can also be particularly useful. Dumbbell curls on the other hand (no pun intended) which require the rotation (supination and subsequent pronation) of the wrist offers greater recruitment of the inner head of the brachii and the brachioradialis. Seated movements or movements which emphasis pronation (palms facing up) also place more emphasis on the inner brachii head. Exercises selection for an arm session should therefore always include some combination of barbells, dumbbells, cables or single arm movements. As well as barbell curls, personal favourites for me include barbell curls, preacher curls (with either an ez or straight bar), seated incline dumbbell curls, cable overhead curls and concentration curls. The program gaol will always determine the rep range selected but as a general rule I usually opt for lower rep (5 to 8) on the bigger movements, e.g. barbell curls, compared to higher reps (12 to 15) more isolation work like concentration curls.

Forearms is an area which is often overlooked by trainers and weak forearms stand out when it comes to classical posing such is their prominence in the old school shots. Wanted good forearms is also about grip. You need to train grip strength. Some of our clients who do a lot of strongman training or did strength sports when they were younger never really used wrist supports where as most need to use them as they progress to help get stronger. The moral of this story is you need to train the forearms if you want them, and don’t be overly reliant on your wrist wraps or straps. You should force yourself to do at least some of the work during your back sessions without them.

When it comes to training the forearms hammer curls can be effective as well as being a great timer saver. They can be incorporated into your bicep training sessions as the brachialis, brachioradialis and outer head of the brachii are all targeted. Hammer curls work well performed with dumbbells as well as with cables. To directly target the flexors of the forearm, exercises such as wrist curls and reverse wrist curls are effective. These exercises place the forearm in a position where the flexors are the primary muscle group being worked. One of our all-time favourite exercise for the forearms is a wrist roller. Agony and burning doesn’t even begin to describe it. For those who have used one, you know what we mean. Some light weights placed on the end of a simple rope which you wheel against gravity is extremely effective. Three sets of these combined with some wrist curls and hammer curls can add some much-needed density to the forearm. For those doing more strength training-based work the farmers walk is also a personal favourite. Higher reps seem to be more productive for forearm training, probably owing to their size and make up of slower twitch muscle fibres, so aim for sets of between 15 to 25 reps.

The Triceps

The Triceps brachii, located on the back of the upper arm, are responsible for extending the elbow. Commonly referred to as the “triceps,” it has three heads: the lateral head, medial head, and long head. Shaped like an upside-down horseshoe the triceps are a much larger muscle group than the biceps, so maximising their development can really bring a whole new dimension to the arms. The triceps are also far stronger than the biceps and increasing your strength here can really make a difference to pressing movements like the bench press, or overhead press, so expect to be handling much more weight. Like the biceps different exercises will emphasise the different heads of the triceps. Straight out of the gates the biggest compound movement you can expect to do for triceps is the close grip bench press. Simply put, it’s a big movement where you can expect to use a lot of weight which targets both the long and the medial head of the triceps, although if truth be told it hits all three heads well. It’s a great movement that should be in every arm training plan. While on the topic of bench it’s also mentioning though if you do a powerlifting, it’s likely you’ll be getting a great triceps hit with the tucked elbow style of benching, compared to the more elbow flared style you typically see amongst bodybuilders.  

Other great movements for the triceps include the French press or skull crushers. The name of this one seems to be used almost interchangeably, but I’m referring to the movement performed lying down on a bench with the arms extended followed by flexion at the elbow until the weight comes down to your forehead. Hence the name expression skull crushers. Not to be confused with a behind the neck triceps extension, another useful movement. Skull crushers fit into the compound movement category and unlike the close grip bench offer much more of a hit on the lateral head of the triceps while still producing a stimulus to the medial and long heads. The only problem with this one though is that some people do experience some elbow pain with this movement. Dips performed with an upright posture, along with diamond push ups can also be useful exercises where isolation exercises are preferred while the fact, they’re bodyweight movements can be use to add in as AMRAPs (As Many Reps As Possible) at the end of the session where you’re looking for a great triceps burns. For me though an often-overlooked triceps exercise is kickbacks. As a single arm movement, I don’t think there’s many better. Stabilising the shoulder is key for this movement to eliminate momentum, but when executed properly kickbacks effectively isolate the lateral head of the triceps. One of our teams preference is to use a dumbbell for this one, but a cable also works well. Just like bicep training with compound lifts we always prefer to work with more weight and lower rep rangers by comparison to the isolation movements usually performed with cables or dumbbells. However don’t be afraid to train your triceps with a variety of rep ranges.

Closing Thoughts

Advanced training techniques such as super sets as agonist/agonist or agonist/antagonist muscle groups, tri sets, and giants can be awesome for getting a great pump and a massive time saver. So don’t be afraid to try setting up circuits. Equally partials or matrix sets where you do exercises like bicep curl 21’s can also be fun. Single arm movements can also be great for developing that mind muscle connection, but you should be mindful of doing these when training with a partner as they can take up a lot of time and disrupt a session. Drop sets are also a personal favourite can be a safer way to perform set extenders when compared to cheat reps. The key to arm training is of course form. I’m emphasising this for the second time, because it’s just that important. Particularly if you have weak arms. The trainer should always have in the back of their mind while performing the set the goal of the exercise. Swinging the weight or using momentum can take the tension off the muscle and reduce its effectiveness. There’s nothing wrong with the occasional cheat rep or advanced training technique, but it shouldn’t be your modus operandi.

Sample Arm Training Program: Once Per Week Microcycle

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The post Building Big Arms & How To Program to Make them Even Bigger! appeared first on Pro Prep.