The Rock's Potential New Show...A Potential Opportunity for Fit Female Talent?!

For those that have followed bodybuilding, one of the biggest supporters of the industry is one of the biggest names in Hollywood and wrestling history, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. While he has never stepped on a bodybuilding stage as a performer, he lives the lifestyle as most people who've seen him can attest to that. Announced today on his social media accounts, which has MILLIONS (AND MILLIONS!!) of Rock fans (and followers), his productions Seven Buck Productions (along with Flynn Pictures Company) has sold a script to USA Network (home of Suits, Royal Pains, Mr. Robot, WWE Raw and WWE Smackdown Live) for a one-hour original series called Muscle Beach.

BIG NEWS: Our @sevenbucksprod along with our producing partner Beau Flynn's @flynnpictureco sell a script titled "MUSCLE BEACH" to USA Network! Written by Jeremiah Friedman and Nick Palmer. An original hour long drama series who's found the perfect home at USA - a network who's been on fire with their brilliant dramatic television. "Muscle Beach" is set in a legendary bodybuilding gym in 1980's Venice Beach where a colorful tribe of lost souls struggle to reinvent themselves by bench-pressing their way to a bigger, better American dream, no matter what the cost. As the series explores the body obsessed fitness movement that took the nation by storm during the supersized Reagan 80's, the excess of the era and the many temptations of Los Angeles will expose the dark side of chasing dreams. 

As a kid growing up in the 80's it's exciting to produce a series that stays true to our brand and dig deep into an iconic time in bodybuilding and unique Venice Beach culture - the 80's. 

The 80's was a crazy time in Venice Beach with many lost souls. A very crazy time... #SevenBucksProds #FlynnPictures #USANetwork #OriginalDramaSeries #MuscleBeach

BIG NEWS: Our @sevenbucksprod along with our producing partner Beau Flynn's @flynnpictureco sell a script titled "MUSCLE BEACH" to USA Network! Written by Jeremiah Friedman and Nick Palmer. An original hour long drama series who's found the perfect home at USA - a network who's been on fire with their brilliant dramatic television. “Muscle Beach” is set in a legendary bodybuilding gym in 1980’s Venice Beach where a colorful tribe of lost souls struggle to reinvent themselves by bench-pressing their way to a bigger, better American dream, no matter what the cost. As the series explores the body obsessed fitness movement that took the nation by storm during the supersized Reagan 80's, the excess of the era and the many temptations of Los Angeles will expose the dark side of chasing dreams. As a kid growing up in the 80's it's exciting to produce a series that stays true to our brand and dig deep into an iconic time in bodybuilding and unique Venice Beach culture - the 80's. The 80's was a crazy time in Venice Beach with many lost souls. A very crazy time... #SevenBucksProds #FlynnPictures #USANetwork #OriginalDramaSeries #MuscleBeach

A photo posted by therock (@therock) on Jul 20, 2016 at 10:30am PDT

Assuming this does get picked up by USA Network, how cool would it be to see some women from the fitness industry not only have cameos but be a part of this show as actual cast members! Now, of course the only divisions that existed back in the 1980s were men's and women's bodybuilding, but still the thought of a show being on a network such as the USA Network would be huge for the bodybuilding industry and give some people a well-deserve platform to showcase that they are much more than people who lift. I mean think about it...Nicole Wilkins, Erin Stern, Wendy Fortino, Amanda Kuclo, Tina Nguyen, Latorya Watts, Juliana Malacarne, Dana Linn Bailey, Ashley Kaltwasser (just to name a few)...on NATIONAL TELEVISION?!?! Imagine how many new eyes will be on the bodybuilding world should this come to fruition! With the Rock being involved, it's almost guaranteed that new eyes will watch just out of curiousity, and that in turn will lead to more fans knowing who these women and men are. It worked for American Gladiators, it worked for WWE, why can't it work with one of the hardest-working men in Hollywood?  

We will definitely be keeping up with this news and keeping you all informed on what could go down. Assuming this does happen and women are involved (I would be shocked in they weren't in some capacity), who would YOU like to see be part of Muscle Beach? Email us at fitgemsnation@gmail.com, send us a Facebook message, send us a tweet, or leave a comment below. 

IFBB FIBO Pro Germany

For those that don't know, there is going to be an IFBB show in Germany this year (on April 16, to be exact)! This is a special contest, as this is the ONLY contest to be held in Germany and one of the few outside the U.S. This is also one of the few contests for competitors of women's bodybuilding and women's fitness this year as well.

As of press time, there are only TWO competitors in both divisions. For women's bodybuilding, competing thus far are Skadi Frei-Seifert and Andrea Zürche. For women's fitness, competing thus far are Minna Pajulahti and Regiane Da Silva. However, not on the list but hoping to compete in women's fitness are Camala Rodriguez and Stacy Wright.

Ladies in women's fitness and women's bodybuilding, if you want a chance to see a different country and compete to get a chance at competing in the Olympia at the same time, I highly encourage you to enter this contest. If you need money, send out emails to your fans, family, and friends. Post it on your websites and Facebook fan pages and profiles. A little can go a LONG way.

For more on the FIBO Pro, go to http://www.pro-championships.com/index.php.

Hope to see many of you make the journey to Germany in a few months!

FitGems Nation Facebook Fan Page...I GAVE IN!!! LOL

Yep, you read that correctly. I've finally broke down and gave in to the fan page movement. I've seen what a fan page has done to many of my friends and readers on here, so I was like, what the heck? I'll give it a try and see what happens.

Everything I do on the FitGems Nation blog and website will be updated on the fan page. That includes any updates from the HDPhysiques blog, as well as the Save Fitness Now blog. Of course, like the site itself, it's interactive, so feel free to begin discussions, post pictures, videos, etc. My fan page is your fan page. Me casa es su casa.

To join the fan page, go to http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/FitGems-Nation/172803974346?ref=ts.

2010 Ms. International Results (Iris In a Class of Her Own: Everyone Else Fighting for Runner-Up)

Let's be completely honest here, everyone that was fighting for the Ms. International title was fighting to see who would end up being the runner-up...well, that was the case the minute Iris Kyle stepped on stage during prejudging. This woman seems to have absoultely no weaknesses when it comes to her conditioning, which is second to none in the business. She could seriously give some of the male bodybuilders a run for their money in terms of conditioning. She's that good. With this win, she now has the record for most Ms. International titles with five. Don't be surprised if she topples her own record next year with a sixth title.

Yaxeni Oriquen, another multi-time Ms. International Champion, took runner-up honors. She was smaller than she's been in previous competitions, but still looked great nethertheless. Apparently it seems like Yaxeni has taken Dayana's spot as Iris's biggest competition. We will see what happend when they clash again at the Olympia later on this year.

Third place went to Debi Laszewski. Debi has been coming into her own as of late, as last year she was the Ms. International Runner-Up, and 3rd Place at the Olympia last year as well, her highest placing to date at that contest. If she keeps this up, then she just might...JUST MIGHT..be able to challenge Yaxeni and Iris for female bodybuilding's top honors.

Lisa Aukland took fourth place, keeping her top 5 streak in tact for what has gone on for quite some time. She's always a major threat heading into a major contest, and almost a surefire bet in a open contest.

Betty Parsio continues her own personal streak by placing fifth. I was told that she was the most vascular of the bunch. Much like Lisa, she's a serious threat wherever she goes. As she gets older, she seems to get better in every competition she's in...and she's been in quite a bit of competitions.

Rounding out the top 6 was Dayana Cadeau. While she no longer seems like the thorn to Iris's side as far as championship threat is concerned, Dayana can still go with the best of them, and is among the most elegant of any female bodybuilder our there today. This might be a pet peeve of mine, but I don't think it would hurt for Dayana to smile just a little bit more. That's just me though.

All six ladies will get the chance to showcase their stuff again in September, as they qualified for the 2010 Ms. Olympia.

Rest of the Best:
Zoa Linsey made a great Arnold debut, placing 7th. I was told that Zoa was one of the coolest people to be around at the entire Arnold. Zoa strikes me as someone who's humble and doesn't let success get to her head. That kind of attitude will take her far in life. :) Alina Popa made her Arnold debut as well, and placed 8th. More fine-tuning and she could go places as well. Elena Shportun, last year's Arnold Amateur Women's Bodybuilding champion placed in a respectable 9th place, while Brenda Raganot rounded out the top 10. Antoinette Thompson, Jeannie Paparone, Dena Westerfield, and Mah Ann Mendoza rounded out the Ms. International field.

FULL RESULTS:

1. Iris Kyle
2. Yaxeni Oriquen
3. Debi Laszewski
4. Lisa Aukland
5. Betty Pariso
6. Dayana Cadeau
7. Zoa Linsey
8. Alina Popa
9. Elena Shportun
10. Brenda Raganot
11. Antoinette Thompson
12. Jeannie Paparone
13. Dena Westerfield
14. Mah Ann Mendoza

Do you agree or disagree with the placings? Share your thoughts on the comments below.

2010 Phoenix Pro Coverage Review Part 1 (Boards, Twitter, and Webcast)

I gave my thoughts on the actual competition, now I'm going to give my thoughts on the coverage of the competition. Reminder, I'm talking about the FEMALE part of the sport, not the MALE part.

Folks, you will not find another board that will provide live coverage for female physique sports better than Siouxcountry. You're just not. Up-to-the-minute coverage, photo and video links posted almost instantly, not to mention that since it's a board, you can post your opinions, thoughts, and observations about the show with ease.

Hardbody News (going by BBcomContests) did a fantactic job Twittering results instantly and keep people on the know for those that had Twitter. Between the sites, it was almost like you were there.

The webcast itself wasn't half bad at all, and to me well worth the 20 bucks. It didn't have the lag time that I was afraid was going to happen. The one thing that kinda bugged me was that it seemed a bit pixelated to me. But other than that, I'd thought it went off without a hitch. Personally, I hope more show webcasts are in the future.

There's one more part of coverage that I want to talk about, but I'll get to that in another post. And that is in regards to the Hardbody News Interactive Chat, which was..in one word, INCREDIBLE. Wait 'til you read my review on this. :)

2010 FitGems Sponsorship Update

As of this writing, there are 23 competitors who are vying for the 2010 FitGems Sponsorship.You can view everyone that is competing by clicking here.

What does the winner of the 2010 FitGems Sponsorship get? As of February 10, the sponsorship package consists of the following:

*A MINIMUM of $225 USD towards the contest of your choosing (updated on February 4, 2010), paid via PayPal (yes, I upped the prize money by $25 from the last update)
*A entire page dedicated to the winner on both EFBBN and FitGems Nation
*Your own website (if you don't have one already) or MySpace/Blogger layout (if you have one) created by Kirk Ashley of Imageworks Jamacia


Also, just for participating, each competitor in the sponsorship contest will have their own Yahoo fan group created by Eldor of EBBFN.

Not bad for a first time, huh? Well, it's not too late to contribute nor its it too late to enter.You have until the end of February to enter, and for those that want to contribute to the sponsorship, you also have until the end of February. Click here to learn how you can contribute to the sponsorship, or you can always contact me via email. Put on the subject line "SPONSORSHIP CONTRIBUTION"

How will the winner be chosen? By a secret panel that will be chosen over the next few days. They will be checking to make sure each competitor is meeting the requirements and will chose who they feel is the one that deserves the sponsorship. No one will know who will be voting other than myself. I will have no say in the matter of who will win. The winner will be announced sometime during Arnold Weekend. Besides the winner herself, I'll make the announcment first via Twitter.

I think I covered everything. If you have any questions, feel free to email me at admin@fitgemsnation.net. Please put on the subject line "2010 SPONSORSHIP".

Good luck to everyone!!!

2009 FitGems Awards (Vote for your favorites!!)

Thanks to you, here are the nominations for 2009 FitGems Awards. You can vote once everyday until February 1st at Noon Eastern Time (when voting will close):

Pro Female Bodybuilder of the Year
Iris Kyle
Heather Armbrust
Lisa Aukland
Betty Pariso
Debi Laszewski

Pro Figure Competitor of the Year
Nicole Wilkins-Lee
Zivile Raudoniene
Krissy Chin
Erin Stern
Heather Mae French

Pro Fitness Competitor of the Year
Tanji Johnson
Adela Garcia
Tracey Greenwood
Shannon Meteraud
Tina Durkin

Amateur Female Bodybuilder of the Year
Margaret Negrete
Holly Geerson
Suzanne Germano
Elizabeth Schneider
Theresa Hendricks

Amateur Figure Competitor of the Year
Tiffany Procopio
Mandy Henderson
Nicole Coleman
Andrea Lyons
Debra Lavette

Amateur Fitness Competitor of the Year
Kayde Puckett
Victoria Larvie
Ariel Khdar
Lena Squarciafico
Stacy Wright

Amateur Bikini Competitor of the Year
Kimberly Castle
Melissa Grady
Rebecca Staggs
Ali Sonoma
Debra Dunn

Breakout Pro Female Bodybuilder of the Year
Betty Adkins
Gale Frankie
Heather Armbrust
Debi Laszewski
Kristy Hawkins

Breakout Pro Figure Competitor of the Year
Ava Cowan
Andrea Watson
Mindi Smith
Kristal Richardson
Krissy Chin

Breakout Pro Fitness Competitor of the Year
Kayde Puckett
Trish Warren
Nicole Duncan
Myriam Capes
Nita Marquez

Breakout Amateur Female Bodybuilder of the Year
Sarah Hayes
Angie Robertson
Suzanne Germano
Theresa Hendricks
Amber DeFrancesco

Breakout Amateur Figure Competitor of the Year
Wendy Fortino
Mindi Smith
Monica Mark
Ava Cowan
Andrea Watson

Breakout Amateur Fitness Competitor of the Year
Venus Nguyen
Lena Squarciafico
Stacy Wright
Annette Perry
Kayde Puckett

Breakout Amateur Bikini Competitor of the Year
Ali Sonoma
Kimberly Castle
Venus Ramos
Jennifer Buckles
Melissa Grady

One to Watch in 2010
Pro Female Bodybuilders
Isabelle Turell
Diana Stanback
Beni Lopez
Heather Armbrust
Nicole Ball

Pro Figure Competitors
Andrea Watson
Ava Cowan
Ann Titone
Krissy Chin
Meriza DeGuzman

Pro Fitness Competitors
Kayde Puckett
Myriam Capes
Victoria Larvie
Trish Warren
Nicole Duncan

Pro Bikini Competitors
Kristal Marshall
Stacey Oster
Shelsea Montes
Kat Holmes
Monique Minton

Amateur Female Bodybuilders
Theresa Hendricks
Amber DeFrancesco
Suzanne Germano
Natalie Rae Ariel
Dana Richards

Amateur Figure Competitors
Wendy Fortino
Skye Fisher
Tori Truelove
Carla Gutierez
Laura Bailey

Amateur Fitness Competitors
Venus Nguyen
Lena Squarciafico
Stacy Wright
Annette Perry

Amateur Bikini Competitors
Sherrie Carnicle
Kimberly Castle
Venus Ramos
Rebecca Staggs
Jennifer Buckles

Female Physique Misc.
Competitor Who You Would Love to See Return To the Stage in 2010
Lisa Reed (fitness)
Mimi Jabalee (women’s bb)
Jenny Lynn (figure)
Davana Medina (figure)
Stacy Simons (fitness)

Female Competitor Site of the Year
Tracy Bodner (http://www.tracybodner.com/)
Trish Warren (http://www.trishwarrenfitness.com/)
Candice Houston (http://www.candicehouston.com/)
Natalie Rae Ariel (http://www.natalieraeariel.com/)
Monica Brant (http://www.monicabrant.com/)

NPC Show of the Year
Nationals
North Americans
USAs
Emerald Cup
Jr. Nationals

IFBB Show of the Year
Olympia
Arnold
Ft. Lauderdale
Atlantic City
Europa Super Show

Female Physique Site of the Year (non-competitor) (NOTE: FitGems is NOT eligible due the fact that FitGems is running the contest)
HDPhysiques
FTVideo
Siouxcountry
FBB, Fitness, and Figure Admires
Shemuscle.net

Photographer of the Year
Issac Hinds
Satio Photography
GeneX
Dan Ray
MaryAnn Glascock

Blogger of the Year
Rebecca Staggs (A Mile in These Shoes) http://rebeccastaggs.blogspot.com/
Issac Hinds (Hardbody News) http://www.hardbody.com/news
Scott (Scott’s Corner for Women’s Bodybuilding) http://www.scottscornerforbodybuilding.com/
Julie Lohre (Julie’s Blogger) http://julielohre.blogspot.com/
Roman (Female Muscle Universe) http://femalemuscleuniverse.blogspot.com/

Supporter of the Year
Sioux (Jason Lan)
F.A. Harper (AirHarp)
Andy Vogel (Muscle Angels)
Issac Hinds (Lift Studios/Hardbody News)
Carl Burkins (dallas3)

Supplement Company of the Year
Optimum Nutrition
Gaspari Nutrition
BSN
MAN Sports
Custom Muscle/ NutritionMarket.com

It was not easy to narrow down the nominations. Here are the ways to vote.

1. Email your votes at admin@fitgemsnation.net (Put 2009 FitGems Awards in the subject line)
2. If you have Twitter, you can Twit your votes to http://twitter.com/fitgemsnation
3. If you're a member of the FitGems Nation site (http://www.fitgemsnation.net/), MySpace page (http://www.myspace.com/fitgemsnation), or Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=33407438502) , you can send me a private message (PM) with your nominations.
4. And...of course, you can leave a comment below with your votes.

Do you have to vote for ALL the categories?! It would be nice if you could, but I won't make you vote for everyone of them. These awards were created to honor the achievements of everyone that played a big part of this industy in 2009. You have until Feb. 1 at noon to vote, and the winners will be announced during the first week of February.

GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE!!!

Kiana's Back!

Yep, you read that right. Kiana Tom, one of the top fitness personalities in the world, is on the show business again. For those that are unfamiliar, Kiana was part of Bodyshaping on ESPN in the early 90s. She then went on to host her own show called Kiana's Flex Appeal, and as they say in Hollywood, the rest is history. She became beyond just a fitness icon; she became a household phenonenon. She wasn't THE one that made women having muscles acceptable, but you'd be lying to yourself if you said that she didn't have SOME part to it.

Well, now the woman that revolutionized the fitness industry will be making her return, but for a different type of audience. She will be focusing on mothers, as she is one herself. Plus the show is online, which is a smart move in today's world. Her new project is called Fit Mom TV, and will launch on January, 1 2010.

Here is what the official Fit Mom TV website says about the new online show:

“Kiana’s Fit Mom TV” is a brand new, 1st of it’s kind, fitness series on the web – just for moms. Kiana Tom, founder and host of Kiana’s Fit Mom TV makes fitness simple and highly doable for moms to incorporate exercise into their busy lives.

Internationally renowned fitness expert, Kiana Tom, leads moms through exercises that can be done at home or in the gym, using hand weights and household items. Workout routines are demonstrated to target common trouble areas for women such as the tummy, hips, thighs, butt and arms. Kiana Tom, mother of 2 young children, will share her personal fitness tips and tricks to getting back in shape quickly after having a baby and staying in shape with as little as 30 minutes per day, which can be accomplished in doable 10 minute increments.

Kiana’s Fit Mom TV is brought to you by the producers of the #1 rated fitness series on ESPN, “Kiana’s Flex Appeal” and takes the proven, successful format and tailors it just for moms! Kiana’s Fit Mom TV features workouts that can be done around a busy moms schedule, multi tasking exercises to get more done in less time, problem solving exercises to fix women’s common trouble areas, workouts for the gym and home, healthy recipes, tips, motivation and interviews with some of the most inspiring, fittest moms in the country. Fit Mom TV is for all moms who share the passion for health and fitness – all around the world.

“Kiana’s Fit Mom TV” will officially launch on www.fitmomtv.com, on New Year’s Day, January 1, 2010, just in time for those New Year’s Resolutions. Visitors to the site before January 1, 2010 can sign up for the Fit Mom TV email list to get Mom specific exercises delivered to their inbox and get a chance to win Kiana’s Fit Mom TV swag.

“Fit Mom TV fills the need for quality fitness programming to help busy moms get into shape while balancing family, children, work, household and daily demands. Moms are the center of the family unit – if we are fit, healthy and feeling good about ourselves, everyone is much happier. We receive thousands of emails from around the world – from India, Germany, Italy, Dubai, soldiers in the middle east, moms who are marines – all over the USA – you name it. The common concerns for busy moms are “time and energy limitations and not knowing what to do.” Fit Mom TV will answer all of those concerns. The Internet is the perfect vehicle to reach millions of moms – 24/7. As a busy mom of 2 young children, I don’t have time to watch television, but I can access the Internet anytime that is convenient for me according to my schedule,” explains Kiana Tom, Founder, Host and mother of 2.

I'm not one to tell anyone what to do, but I would suggest for all mothers out there to check this out and see how this could help you. As a fan of Kiana and a regular watcher of Flex Appeal, I can assure you this will be a good thing. Who knows, maybe this will be the birth of more fitness shows across the internet for everyone. I mean, the internet is THE place to go these days for pratcially everything. Just a thought.

Be that as it may, We at FitGems Nation wish Kiana the best of luck in her new venture and hopes lives are forever changed in a good way! :)

For more info, go to http://www.fitmomtv.com.

2009 FitGems Awards

I tried to do this last year, and I came unprepared. This time, everything is set and ready to go. This is the first OFFICIAL FitGems Awards! Awards season is fastly approaching, so I'd thought I'd do something for all of you out there. I've created several categories in which you will nominate all month long your favories from each category.

The categories are:
NPC Show of the Year
IFBB Show of the Year
Female Physique Site of the Year (non-competitor) (NOTE: FitGems is NOT eligible due the fact that FitGems is running the contest)
Female Competitor Blog of the Year
Photographer of the Year
Blogger of the Year
Industry Blog of the Year (by a fan, industry member, company, etc.)
Supporter of the Year (through shows, message boards, donations to competitors, etc.)
Supplement Company of the Year
Supplement of the Year
Pro Female Bodybuilder of the Year
Pro Figure Competitor of the Year
Pro Fitness Competitor of the Year
Amateur Female Bodybuilder of the Year
Amateur Figure Competitor of the Year
Amateur Fitness Competitor of the Year
Amateur Bikini Competitor of the Year
International FBB of the Year
International Fitness Competitor of the Year
International Figure Competitor of the Year
International Bikini Competitor of the Year
Female Competitor Site of the Year
Breakout Pro Female Bodybuilder of the Year
Breakout Pro Figure Competitor of the Year
Breakout Pro Fitness Competitor of the Year
Breakout Amateur Female Bodybuilder of the Year
Breakout Amateur Figure Competitor of the Year
Breakout Amateur Fitness Competitor of the Year
Breakout Amateur Bikini Competitor of the Year
Competitor Who You Would Love to See Return To the Stage in 2010
One to Watch in 2010:
Pro Female Bodybuilders
Pro Figure Competitors
Pro Fitness Competitors
Amateur Female Bodybuilders
Amateur Figure Competitors
Amateur Fitness Competitors
Amateur Bikini Competitors

Yep, that's a lot to categories, but on the bright side, that means a lot of chances for you or one of your favorites to be nominated. You can nominate up to five people for each category. You can either send in your nominations through the official site, email, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, or leave a commment below this blog post with your nominations. Nominations will end on December 31st at noon Eastern/11 Central. After the nominees are in, beginning on January 1, 2010, you will then vote for who you think should win what category. Each winner will be notified sometime in February.

Everything (the winners AND nominees) are decided by YOU, so if you don't get involved and make your voices heard, you can't complain.

Good luck to everyone!! :)

BodySportTV: Open for Business!

The great folks of BodySport (Terry Goodlad and Ana Tigre) have launched their own version of YouTube, but it's more tailored to the fitness community. The video sharing service is called BodySportTV.

According to Ana Tigre on Siouxcountry, you can register for free and upload your own videos of training, interviews, photoshoots, or anything else you would like to share. For those that want to make a name for themselves, I would definitely recommend checking out BodySportTV. I mean, YouTube has launched the carrers of many people in entertainment, imagine what BodySportTV can do for the fitness industry.

Check out BodySportTV at http://www.bodysporttv.com.

My 2009 Olympia Predictions

We are mere hours away from the start of prejugding, and all the women (Fitness, Figure, Ms. Olympia) will be performing today, with the Fitness Olympia and Ms. Olympia finals being tonight. I'm about as lost as a needle in a haystack when it comes to predictions, but I'll post them anyways:

Ms. Olympia

1. Iris Kyle
2. Yaxeni Oriquen-Garcia
3. Heather Armbrust
4. Betty Adkins
5. Dayana Cadeau
6. Lisa Aukland

Fitness Olympia

1. Adela Garcia
2. Tracey Greenwood
3. Julie Palmer
4. Tina Durkin
5. Shannon Meteraud
6. Trish Warren

Figure Olympia

1. Gina Aliotti
2. Jenny Lynn
3. Heather Mae French
4. Kristal Richardson
5. Jessica Putnam
6. Felicia Romero

I would absoultely flip out if I had one of the categories right. Don't see it happening though, but we'll shall soon see. Best of luck to everyone this weekend!!!

The 2009 Olympia is set!

For those that are unsure about who's competing, here's the FINAL list of competitors from the biggest event of the year:

Ms. Olympia
Iris Floyd Kyle (defending champion)
Betty Adkins
Yaxeni Oriquen-Garcia
Lisa Aukland
Dayana Cadeau
Debi Laszewski
Heather Armbrust
Betty Pariso
Rosemary Jennings
Gale Frankie
Tina Chandler
Nicole Ball
Kristy Hawkins

Fitness Olympia
Tracey Greenwood
Julie Palmer
Tanji Johnson
Regaine Da Silva
Tina Durkin
Shannon Meteraud
Trish Warren
Mindi O'Brien
Myriam Capes
Adela Garcia
Nicole Duncan
Bethany Wagner

Figure Olympia
Gina Aliotti
Jenny Lynn
Sonia Gonzales
Brenda Smith
Teresa Anthony
Huong Arcinas
April Roundtree
Felicia Romero
Monica Brant
Kristal Richardson
Nicole Wilkins-Lee
Heather Mae French
Kristi Tauti
Jessica Putnam
Erin Stern
Krissy Chin
Meriza DeGuzman
Amy Fry
Patricia Mello
Larissa Reis
Alicia Harris
Sherlyn Roy

Who will make history and become a legend this weekend? We shall soon see, won't we!?

Follow HDPhysiques on Twitter!

Yep, HDPhysiques is now in the Twitter universe!

For everything up-to-date on everything that's a part of the HDP world (HDPhysiques.com, HDPhysiques.net, and the official blog, as well as exclusive content and sneak peaks of upcoming HDP models for Twitter followers only), follow them here:

http://twitter.com/hdphysiques

REMINDER: FitGems Q and A Chat is TOMORROW!!!

This is a reminder to all of you that tomorrow night at 7PM Eastern/6PM Central, there will be a live question and answer chat, as the topic this month will be the man behind FitGems. I hope many of you will take part in this event, as I'm willing to open up and answer whatever you may have for me.

For starters, I'll explain in detail how and why I created FitGems, how I got employed by HDPhysiques, how I got involved in the sport in the first place, and why I love it so much, my thoughts on the past, present, and future of this sport and its competitors, among other things.

The chat is set to last one hour at the most, as I know you and I have things to do.

http://www.fitgemsnation.net/page/q-and-a-chat

If there's something you want to ask me and you WON'T be able to make the chat, just email me at admin@fitgemsnation.net.

This is your big chance to get to know someone who's been a fan/supporter of the industry since around middle school and wants to give back into a great sport. Hope to see many of you tomorrow at 7PM Eastern/6PM Central!

IFBB Advisory Notice regarding Video Rights

For those want to capture video footage at pro events...you might want to read this before getting any bright ideas:

This was taken directly from the IFBB Website
(http://www.ifbbpro.com/news/advisory-notice-082009/):




Can't say I didn't warn ya! :)

Poll Results for June and New Poll for July

Wow...can you believe we are halfway through with 2009?! Time files, doesn't it! With that, it's time for the results of last month's poll, and a new question to be asked:

Last month, I asked If the NPC/IFBB were to give you a chance to reconstruct ONE female division, which would you choose? And overwhelming 70% of you chose women's bodybuilding, while 20% chose figure, and just 10% chose fitness. I'm not gonna lie; I was shocked by these results. I'll post how I feel about the divisions sometime after the Olympia.

This month's question has to do with publicity in the business: Which form of publicity do you feel is the best in the female muscle industry? The choices are,

• television
• internet
• magazine

The Olympia is fast approaching, and there's more contests on the way? Who will join the Olympia Class of 2009? :)

Fitting Observations: Is Brittani Simpson a future superstar in this industry?

Crossing over to a different division (fitness/figure to bodybuilding and vice verse, or fitness to figure and vice verse) is nothing new. It's been done for quite some time now. Some have competed in either fitness or figure, and put on muscle for about a couple of years to become bodybuilders, while those in bodybuilding have taken off some muscle to become fitness/figure. Now imagine having the right balance of muscle to not only do bodybuilding, but figure as well...for the same contest...and actually doing well in BOTH divisions. That's exactly what Brittani Simpson did at the 2009 Emerald Cup.

For those that are unfamiliar with the Emerald Cup, it's arguably the best regional shows in the nations, and one of the best ran shows period. A lot of big stars have come from the Emerald Cup, and I feel Brittani is going to be one of those stars.

Before I go on, how about you get a little visual aid of Brittani from the Emerald Cup earlier this year:



(Brittani competing as a bodybuilder at the Emerald Cup 2009)



(Brittani competing as a figure competitor at the Emerald Cup 2009)

Brittani isn't your typical physique star. Prior to competing, she has been involved in dance, cheerleading, rock climbing, wakeboarding, snowboarding, and just about everything in between. (Source: Twixpix) In addition to having that in her resume, she's also a mother of two.

In her first year competing (2008), she competed in the Vancouver Natural (yes, her physique is natural) and won her class, won the overall title at the 7 Feathers Classic, and placed in the top three at last year's Emerald Cup. And then she kicks off 2009 in a big way by placing in the top three in both bodybuilding AND figure in her classes. Call me crazy, but that screams future pro to me. According to a video interview she did for Hardfitness (click here to view the video), look for her to make her national debut this November at the NPC Nationals.

She's only been competing for a couple of years now, but I feel it will only be a matter of time before she turns pro. Whether she will get it for bodybuilding or figure remains to be seen. Regardless of what she gets it for, look for Brittani to do big things in the years to come. And with her being a natural athlete, that says a lot about her character and determination. At this point, the only person that's gonna hold her back is herself, and I doubt that it will happen anytime soon. :-)

Brittani, on befalf of the FitGems Nation, we wish you the very best of luck in the future and hope you serve as an inspiration to working mothers around the world. The world is yours for the taking. GOOD LUCK CHAMP!!!

For more on Brittani, check out her website at http:///www.brittfit.com and her blog at http://wwwbrittfitcom.blogspot.com/.

Twitter FitGems Nation!

Yep...I've gotten involved in the Twitter movement. HEHE...

For everything up-to-date on the FitGems Nation site, blog, HDPhysiques blog, and other things that I'll be doing involving the industry, Follow us on Twitter! :-)

http://www.twitter.com/FitGemsNation

Fitness TV Shows?!?! Hmmm...

What is your favorite fitness show of all time, and who would you like to see have one in the future? This is something I've been thinking about for quite some time now.

My favorite of all time is Kiana's Flex Appeal. She was one of the ladies that helped make women have muscles acceptable in the mainstream world. For you Kiana fans out there, she's on ESPN Classic every weekday morning (Monday-Friday) at 7am Eastern/6am Central.

As far as who could have a show of their own? Here's what I posted on Siouxcountry when I brought up the same topic eons ago:

Jennifer Gates: inspiration to mommies everywhere.
Christine Pomponio-Pate: see Jennifer. Plus she's part Italian. I could see her as the "Italian Kiana Tom". LOL.
Julie Shipley-Childs: a cancer survivor who overcame a good deal to be a top star in the fitness world.
Elanie Goodland: a mom and grandma and looks INCREDIBLE! If that doesn't say "inspirational", I don't know what does!
Adela Garcia: An inspiration...and who doesn't like Latinas?

Click here to view the entire discussion I brought up several months ago on the same board.

Do you have any suggestions? Leave a comment below.

Here's the results for last month's Poll of the Month:
I asked After a year in effect, do you consider the new figure guidelines a success or failure? 66% of you said that it was a failure, while 33% said that it was a success. Agree? Disagree? Leave a comment below and let us know what you think.

This month's question is: Do you have high hopes for the bikini division? Personally, if there anything like the overall winner of the Arnold Amateur (Ali Sonoma), then I think it's gonna be a nice addition to the NPC and IFBB. But that's just my opinion.

Oh yeah...HAPPY APRIL, EVERYONE!!!

WOMEN'S BODYBUILDING LIIIIIIIIIIVVVES!!!

You doubt the power of the fans? You doubt female bodybuilding exist? You think it's dying? How about you tell the folks at Siouxcountry and Unreal Muscle that? Both sites (as well as its members) went above and beyond the call of duty to not only make sure that Tampa would have female bodybuilding in 2010, but in the process, they were able to help bring it back for this year as well. Here's the official statement from Tim Gardner, the promoter of the Tampa show:

2009 REINSTATEMENT CONFIRMED

It was quite the painful dilema on March 17th to publically announce that I would have to cancel the IFBB female bodybuilding division from the 2009 IFBB Tampa Pro Bodybuilding Weekly Championships' schedule. After the announcement reached the bodybuilding community, a few individuals reached out to me and asked what could be done to bring female bodybuilding back to Tampa in 2010. I simply replied that just that particular division alone budgets out to $12,000 which does not include any costs of the venue, judges, stage set, hotel, advertising, transportation, trophies, etc. and that I would require it by December of 2009 to inform the IFBB office of my 2010 intentions.

Two weeks later, we fast forward to what has miraculously transpired to only a short ten days of effort to raise, collect and dedicate not $12,000 but $17,000 to the IFBB female bodybuilding sponsorship of our Tampa production.

I know what you are thinking, April's Fools, right? As surreal as this seems, this is 100% fact. With IFBB Pro Debbie Bramwell at the helm, siouxcountry.com, photographer John Hawley and approximately twelve individuals plus Ed and Betty Pariso as its supporting cast shot out of the gates by way of paypal to pledge $3,400. Great pace for a December '09 target date! Lo and behold, I wake up on Saturday the 28th to an anonymous email stating that his website community, unrealmuscle.com would contribute the balance of $8,600 and asked would that solidify a 2010 Tampa event? I replied that I would inform Mr. Manion of our intentions and start planning for 2010. Later in the day a second email appears asking if the 2009 female portion could be reinstated since the sponsorship budget was covered so early and also if additional funds were raised if it were possible to be added to the female bodybuilders' prize money? Again, another reply of I will inform Mr. Manion and we will also have to confirm the sponsorship deposits before making a public announcement of that magnitude.

Ladies and gentlemen of our vast and prestigious IFBB and NPC family, I am so honored to report today that the 2009 IFBB Tampa Pro Bodybuilding Weekly Championships will be intact just as its inaugural season with IFBB open men, IFBB 202 lb. men and IFBB open women bodybuilding in conjunction with the NPC Tim Gardner Extravaganza Bodybuilding, Fitness, Figure & Bikini Championships.

After careful discussion with Mr. Manion, his vote of confidence and the strong support from siouxcountry.com and unrealmuscle.com, I decided to reinstate the female portion and bring it back stronger for the athletes and fans alike. We have increased the prize money and added two more places to our contest as such:

1st - $5,000 *
2nd - $3,000 *
3rd - $1,500 *
4th - $1,000
5th - $500
* Olympia qualification

There will also be a best poser award of $500.

This is a true testament to our bodybuilding community supporting its sport of passion without segregation of its forms of disciplines. This is short of being unbelievable, especially in spite of our current economic environment. I cannot speak highly enough of the positive impact that siouxcountry.com & unrealmuscle.com have placed on our entire sport and not just for the love of female bodybuilding but the love of our organization(s). This will set a new precedence of enthusiasm and pride that will hopefully be contagious for all of our IFBB shows, the platform for our champion athletes.

Thank you.
Tim Gardner
www.ifbbtampapro.com

This alone should show you that as long as there are fans out there, then this sport will continue to live. Yes, it's just one event, but usually it's one event that sparks something bigger and better. Who knows what this will lead to in the future? Hopefully better things.

I'm a member of both of these sites, and I can't honestly be more proud and honored to be a member at both Siouxcountry and Unreal Muscle. To me, they did more than saved a show, they helped save a sport.

Yes We Can?! No..no..no.

YES WE DID!