Costs of a Bodybuilding Prep

How Much Does a Bodybuilding Prep Really Cost?

Hi All!

I wanted to touch on the costs that go into a bodybuilding prep so you all may be more equipped with learning what goes into it. As a college student who has worked side jobs for most of my life, I have been able to afford it because I made bodybuilding a priority. If you love something (any hobby, sport or passion), you will create time and money for it - no matter what boundaries you need to face. 

Where to start?!

First I want to outline all the costs included with just prep (before show day), and then the costs included with show day. I also broke show day down for males and females since it is very different. 

Cost of a 12 Week Bodybuilding Prep

Coaching costs between 100-300$/month depending on the coach you find and how high level they are. Most coaches that you find will be around 200$/month and give you full nutrition plan, full workout plan (with workouts, reps, sets and cardio), and supplements. Coaches should also be educated on steroids, so if you choose to do them they can help you. It's usually not an added cost to have your coach give you a steroid regime to use (Side note: I do not use steroids, but they are very common in bodybuilding. Steroids can also run you hundreds of dollars and years of side effects). 

Food is probably the biggest cost of prep itself. You eat much more meat which does cost a lot, however you are not spending money on going out to eat, so in the end you probably save money on prep. I spend just around 100$ a week on groceries which is enough to supply me with 5 meals a day. Eggs and chicken are great sources of protein which are not too expensive and are usually found in a bodybuilding diet. The rest of the food you eat will generally be less expensive - carbs (potatoes, rice, oats), and veggies (frozen veggies, fresh veggies).

Supplements can be an added cost that is important to consider.  With a bodybuilding diet, you should be getting all your micronutrients from veggies, however supplementing with vitamins can help you feel better. Supplements like Vitamin D and C, Fish oil, Multi-vitamin, and probiotics are almost always recommended. This can cost about 80$ initially and then another 20$ a month to buy more as you run out. If you are using a protein power (30$/month), pre-workout (40$/month). A total of 200-300$ for a 3 month prep depending on how much you need to buy.

Gym membership - Obviously a necessary for bodybuilding prep can cost anywhere between 30-130$/month depending where you go.

Posing coach/posing lessons are another necessity. You could be the MOST conditioned on the stage, but if you do now know how to pose - you won't win. Posing is a MUST for bodybuilding. To learn the poses, you need someone teaching you, touching you and moving you to hold poses. One posing lesson can be 50-100$ for an hour, less (30/40$) if its a virtual lesson, even less (20$) if its a group lesson. I would recommend you get at least 2-3 posing lessons in before your first show. But, you should be posing at least 4x a week on your own leading up to your show day.

Total 12 week prep cost- $2550

600$ coach

1200$ food

300$ supplements

300$ gym

150$ posing

Cost of a Bodybuilding Show Day

Show day is where you will blow a lot of the wallet if you are a female in the sport. We ladies need to look all pretty and glam to step up on stage, which means extra costs for hair, nails, etc. I do want to preface by saying YOU CANNN 100% cut down these costs. I will make note of where you can be a little cheap if you need to be. If you are a man, this list looks very different (see below). 

Necessary Costs

$150 NPC Card needed to compete in any NPC show that year.

$100 per division you want to compete in ($100 if you want to be in novice, another $100 for open, another $100 for any other divisions you want to compete in). For most people, you only enter into one division. 

$300+ Bikini**

$50+ Shoes

$50+ Jewelry**

100$ Show day tan

100$ Show day makeup**

80$ Show day hair**

60$ Mani/Pedi**

$15 -Shaving supplies (need to shave all hair everywhere) Usually use Nair, or a lot of good shaving creme and razors.

$100+ Hotel (if your show is far from home)

How to Save Money Bodybuilding

Some of these things, you can totally do yourself to save money. However, I find there is a benefit to pay for some of these services on show day, so you don't have to stress about it.

**A bikini - you can buy and bling a bikini yourself and end up spending less then 100$

**Jewelry - you can find cheap jewelry on amazon that will look exactly like what you need

**Tan - this is really something you should have the show provided tan service do. However, you can buy the tanning lotion (make sure it is for bodybuilding) and do it yourself. This will be a lot more difficult, and could end up looking bad on stage. Only do this if you know what you are doing and need to save money. Most will opt for the show provided tanning service.

**Hair - I do my own hair every show and have been fine. I keep is straight and simple. If you feel confident in your hair styling skills, you will be fine to do this yourself. The only time I would recommend paying for hair is if you need to get extensions. Most girls will just curl or straighten their hair and use a ton of hair spray.

**Makeup - another one you could do yourself. But keep in mind, show day makeup is not like normal makeup. The makeup artists know what they are doing to make sure your face does not get washed out on stage (because of the bright lights) and you look gorgeous from head to toe. I think paying for makeup it absolutely worth it until you get enough experience to learn how to do it yourself. There are a lot of YouTube videos on how to do it yourself. I consider myself as skilled as a 10 year old with my makeup, so I would rather dish out the $100 for a pro.

If you opt out of makeup, hair and try to save money EVERYWHERE it's possible, you will still end up spending around $500 on show day.

Costs of a Bodybuilding Show for Men

I do not consider myself an expert in the mens bodybuilding field, however if you are curious how much a male spends...its a lot less then the females. Here is a basic breakdown of some show day costs for males. 

$150 NPC Card needed to compete in any NPC show that year.

$100 per division you want to compete in

$50-150 Posing Shorts, or briefs

$100 - Show day tan

$15 -Shaving supplies (need to shave all hair everywhere) Usually use Nair, or a lot of good shaving creme and razors. 

$20 - hair cut if you want to ball out and look *extra* good on stage lol. 

*Hotel Costs* - Dependent on if you need to travel

Total Show day Cost Full Version ~ $1,100+ on the low end

Should You Compete if You Are on a Tight Budget?

Bodybuilding is expensive, but don't let the cost of competing stop you from doing it. If you love it, you will find the funds to pay for it. The day you compete will be fun, amazing, and you will feel SO proud of yourself - no matter how you place. You finally get to showcase everything you have worked for. You will want to feel all the glam and glitz of the makeup, hair, and bikini for your big day. I hope this blog post gave you a better idea of the costs of bodybuilding so you can make better decisions about starting the sport!