I recently had the Honor and Opportunity to Compete at the 2011 NPC USA’s in Men’s Physique! This truly was a special time for many reasons; it was the LARGEST National NPC Competition to date with nearly 700 Competitors (roughly 100 of them Men’s Physique), it was the First NPC USA to include Men’s and Women’s Physique, and lastly it was my very first National Level NPC Competition! All of these things combined with the AMAZING Competitors, Fans, Family, and Friends made for one amazing experience!
I can remember over 10 years ago when I first started competing thinking to myself how amazing it would be to someday be able to compete with the best; to be on that level and know that I truly belong there! That has been one of my major Goals since beginning this Fitness Journey and to see it finally come true and Live it out is so very special! For the longest time I feared that it may not happen, as I competed in Bodybuilding and just wasn’t quite at the NPC National Level. I had qualified to compete many times, but never would allow myself to go to Nationals until I was on that Level! With the introduction of Men’s Physique, many others and I have found their niche! Men’s Physique is growing rapidly and the number of Competitors continues to Sky Rocket with each and every competition! This goes to show that this new class was past it’s due and what started with a spark will ultimately grow into a full on INFERNO!
One thing that many are commenting on and seeing is the differentiation in Judging from show to show; East VS West, State VS National, even Class VS Class and the important thing for everyone to realize and know with getting into this Division is that all new things take time to settle in! We all most certainly should be expecting there to be some Judging Variances and ultimately remember that the nature behind this Sport is that it is Judged and with that you ALWAYS will have a degree of subjectivity and knowing these things allows us all to prepare ourselves mentally and set ourselves up for success!
There currently are two main schools of thought with Men’s Physique Competitors right now; 1. Try to adapt your Physique to what you feel the Judges are wanting/looking for, which is somewhat of a moving target at this time. Or; 2. Bring your best Overall Physique and have the target be you! With these two being said, I would like to advocate for the latter; Being the Target! I feel that if we all put our full effort in each and everyday to becoming what we want to be and are happy with, that ultimately we never lose! You of course want to make sure that the things that will be necessary to compete in the division are adhered to, such as practicing posing, tanning, etc… But honestly beyond that, if you are at your best, nothing can take that away from you and you certainly don’t need a trophy to tell you! The example that I like to give is let’s say you picked out and have a pair of Board Shorts that you absolutely LOVE and are excited about wearing and then after the Competition you are told by someone that they did not like them… Should this change how you feel about them? ABSOLUTELY NOT! Are you going to change them just because someone said they don’t like them? You see where I am going… In Life, just as in Judging you will NEVER please everyone and only some of the time will you please most of the people, so by trying to conform, you really are ultimately chasing a moving target!
I didn’t place Top 5 at the USA’s, but I couldn’t have been happier, I stood on stage with some of the best competitors from around the Country and knew that I belonged, Family Members and Loved Ones there to support me, I met many new friends and caught up with old ones, I got to do something that many will never have the opportunity to, and overall just had an AMAZING EXPERIENCE! The Trophy would have been GREAT, but ultimately it would have just been a decoration! We all eventually forget material things and we can’t always bring them with us, but we NEVER forget the way we feel and that will always be with us, carried in our hearts!
I am proud to say that I met and hung out with many amazing competitors this weekend and even though it didn’t go quite as planned for many, they still held their heads high and walked away Champions and THAT is something that they will carry with them always! It truly is more than Physical!
By Derek M. Trombetta
-Stay Strong; It’s more than Physical-
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