Ultimate Muscle Protein is a staple in my kitchen. It’s the best protein for building a lean and shapely physique. |
By: Julie Lohre, IFBB Professional
All of us girls want to look good in a bikini. Age doesn’t matter. It doesn’t even matter whether we are actually planning on wearing one or not. What’s important is that we look good! In this article I’m going to present a complete program for you to achieve your dream bikini shape.
News Flash! If you’re inclined to compete, there’s now another reason to look good in your bikini. The NPC has instituted a new division in women’s competition... Hello Bikini!
The Bikini division is for the woman who would like to compete but has trouble gaining the amount of muscle development needed to be competitive in figure. Bikini judges will focus on overall shape and conditioning and put less emphasis on the muscularity and extreme leanness that has become the norm for Figure.
Don’t get me wrong. Women competing in this division must still be tight and in great physical shape. To be clear, this is not a Hawaiian Tropic swimsuit contest, it is still a physique contest - just more like a Shape magazine model than a Pro Figure Competitor.
The rules:
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Ultimate Muscle Protein is a staple in my kitchen. It’s the best protein for building a lean and shapely physique. |
- Bikini contestants will be divided into classes by height usually up to 5’4” and over 5’4”.
- Posing for bikini will involve comparisons in a front stance and back stance. These stances should display the competitor’s physique in a way that accentuates her strengths and downplays her weaknesses.
- Bikini contestants will be judged in a two-piece suit that can be ‘off the rack’ and heels.
Training for Bikini
It is important that a Bikini competitor consistently includes weight training and cardio in her workouts to improve her physique. Your first step should be to evaluate your current condition and determine what your strengths and weaknesses are. Do you need to lose fat? Gain muscle? Do a little of both? It is important to identify the changes you need to make and to set out a plan that will get you there. The following plan is one that I developed for a woman who wants to compete in Bikini and needs to gain a little bit of muscle, but also wants to focus on losing fat, and on tightening her glutes, thighs, and abs.
NOTE: This is an advanced training program meant for a woman with at least one year of weight training experience. If you are newer to exercise or have not been training consistently for the past six months, begin slowly. Don’t try to perform the entire program. Instead, break down the workout as needed by decreasing reps, the amount of weight you use, or take more rests. Always listen to your body and workout within your safe limits. For example, if the program asks you to do 25 reps of an exercise, start with 10 (or even fewer in particularly difficult exercises) and add one or two reps each week until you can perform the recommended number. Or, if you can’t get all the reps listed, do as many as you can, take a short rest, and then do a few more. If need be rest again and then complete your set.
This plan includes 4 days of training and a fifth day of aerobic classes. I recommend you start with the following program. There’s a cardio component included in each workout. Gradually add 30-minute cardio sessions if fat loss is one of your main goals. Try to do your extra cardio first thing in the morning on an empty stomach, but anytime is ok. Start with 3 extra cardio sessions and if you need more fat loss slowly increase the number of days that you do cardio until you hit six.
Julie Lohre’s FitBody Bikini Training Program
Workout One:
- Warm-up and stretch
- Upper Body Weight Training Circuit I
o Do the following exercises as a circuit for 15 reps with no rest between exercises within the circuit. Rest 30 seconds between each circuit and repeat this circuit 3 times.
DB Bench Press
Overhead DB Press
Lat Pulldown
- Cardio burst – Treadmill intervals (1 minute fast or at incline, then 1 minute slower) for 10 mins
- Upper Body Weight Training Circuit II
o Same as Circuit I - 15 reps per exercise, no rest between exercises, 30 seconds rest at completion of all 3 exercises, repeat 3 times.
Bicep Curls
Rope Press Downs
DB Incline Flyes
Lateral Raises
- Cardio burst – Treadmill intervals for 10 mins
Workout Two:
- Warm-up and stretch
- Cardio burst – Bike for 5 mins as fast as possible followed by 5 mins at a high resistance
- Bodyweight Exercise Pyramid
o Do the following exercises as a circuit. Try for 25 reps of each exercise. Rest as needed. (Intermediates and beginners adjust reps to your ability.)
Assisted Pullups (try 75% of your bodyweight – or assist yourself with feet on a bench)
Lying Leg Raises
Pushups
Calf Raises (no weight but use a step or block for a good stretch)
Bench Dips
Ball Crunches
- Cardio burst – 15 mins Stepper
Workout Three:
- Warm-up and stretch
- Lower Body Weight Training Circuit I
o 15 reps each, no rest between exercises, rest 30 seconds between each circuit, and repeat this circuit 3 times.
Walking Lunges
Plie Squats
Lying Leg Curl
o Cardio burst – Perform 100 Jumping Jacks, 50 Squat Jumps and 50 Bench Rebounds – rest as needed. (Intermediates and beginners adjust reps to your ability.)
- Lower Body Weight Training Circuit II
o Same formula as previous circuit
Straight Leg Deadlift
Bench Step Ups
Deep Squat Pulses (feet wide and toes turned out)
- Cardio burst – Stepper intervals for 10 mins (hard 1 min, easy the next)
Workout Four:
- Warm-up and stretch
- Pullups and Crunches - Alternate sets of 10 pullups (adjust reps if needed or use assistance) and 20 weighted crunches for 10 minutes; rest as needed.
- Cardio burst – Steady State Elliptical – use a difficult intensity level (incline or resistance) for 10 mins
- Bodyweight Exercise Pyramid
o Do the following exercises as a circuit performing 25 reps of each exercise. Rest as you need. (Intermediates and beginners adjust reps to your ability.)
Bench Rebounds
Ball Curl Ins - Hamstring
Bench Dips
Oblique Medicine Ball Twists
Close Hand Pushups
Bench Press Smith Tosses
Plank Holds (30 seconds)
- Cardio burst – 10 mins Elliptical Intervals
Workout Five – Cardio Class of your choice like spinning or step aerobics
Diet & Supplements for Bikini
In order to get a tight, competitive physique, diet will be key for most women in the Bikini division. A clean diet that focuses on lean protein and includes modest amounts of complex carbs and healthy fats will help you lose fat while building shapely, lean muscle. Below is a sample day for a woman that is approximately 145 lbs at 20% who wants to lose fat while gaining a modest amount of muscle.
Sample One Day Menu:
Breakfast
1 cup egg whites, scrambled with ½ c veggies
1 slice of Ezekiel bread with 1 tsp sugar free jelly
1 cup diced cantaloupe
Snack
Cream Cheese rollups – 4 slices of turkey breast (4 oz) and 1 tbsp fat free cream cheese spread thin on the turkey and roll up – add a piece of lettuce if desired and ½ a grapefruit
OR
Ultimate Muscle Protein Shake (2 scoops with ice and water)
Lunch
Chicken and Rice mix
½ c brown rice
4 oz grilled chicken
1 cup diced grilled vegetables – onions, zucchini, bell pepper
2 tbsp chopped avocado & 1 ½ TBSP shredded low fat cheese
Snack
½ cup reduced fat cottage cheese
Dinner
Chicken quesadillas – 4 oz chicken, 1 low carb tortilla, ¼ c fat free cheese and 1 tsp fat free sour cream
- Add in mixed veggies like mushrooms, onions, peppers as desired.
Tossed salad with 1 tbsp light vinaigrette dressing
Snack
Ultimate Muscle Protein (1 scoop mixed together with a little bit of water for pudding)
Suggested Supplements:
Super Pak – 1 in the am
Ultra 40 - 2 with each meal
Muscularity – 2 with each meal
Lean Out – 2 before each meal
7 Keto Musclean – 3 in the am and 3 before meal 3
Glutamine Select – 1 scoop before cardio and before/during your training
Thoughts...
In my opinion the Bikini division is a great addition to NPC shows and should be a huge step in bringing our sport to the mainstream. Each woman should be able to step back and decide what look they want to work toward. This new category will open NPC doors to many women who would like to use a competition as a motivator to achieve their best possible physique.
I offer on-line personalized training and competition prep where I work with each of my clients individually to help them decide if they would be more competitive in Figure, Fitness or Bikini. The key to remember is that you should strive to transform your body into what YOU want. When your show is over, you want to be sure that you have made the changes that make you happy and feel good about your body.
*Be sure to check out Julie’s Figure & Bikini Contest Prep camp on Feb 27th & 28th in the Northern Ky/Cincinnati area. It includes a full MOCK COMPETITION at a local theater along with workout sessions, posing practice, competition seminars and much more! For more information, check out www.JulieLohre.com.
