CANADIAN PHYSIQUE ALLIANCE September/October 2020 | Page 35

the darker positions on stage.
Hire a posing coach
This is so important. It is also important to hire someone that has had a lot of time on stage
either competing or working with competitors. There are many reputable posing coaches all
across Canada that are IFBB Pros and or national level competitors that have years of experience
competing. Work with a posing coach to help you understand which poses work best for you
and for the federation you are competing in. All federations have different mandatory poses and
acceptable/non-acceptable posing. They are as different as the physiques they look for. Keep in
mind that many of the pros at the highest level of competition have a posing coach. Even with a
mirror, it's hard for you to know how you look while you're posing. In fact watching yourself in a
mirror can actually be detrimental for you as you will not be able to see yourself on stage and it
could throw you off. Your coach should be your mirror and you should get accustomed to how
your body feels when you hit your pose perfectly. You will spend less time thinking about it and
have more time to stop and smile for the judges and photographers. A good posing coach will help
you fine tune your poses so that you look your best. And most likely they already know all of these
tips. As a photographer, we often tell people to have their coaches or friends take photos of them
practicing their routines with their cell phone rather than video. Cell phones have a delay so you will
get used to holding your poses. Still photos also get you if you do not hold long enough and will
show what photographers will get if you move too fast. Video does not give you this information
and all seems fine.
In summary, enjoy your time on stage, pace yourself, show your best for your individual presentation,
fight hard during comparisons and hire a posing coach to assist you in fine tuning your posing.
In closing, I would like to say have fun! Give it your best! Make it all count! Looking forward to seeing
each one of you on stage!
Judi
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