By Janelle Poore
Utah bodybuilders will be oiling up and flexing their muscles Saturday, June 5, at the first annual Natural Utah Cup at the UVSC McKay Events Center.
Sixty bodybuilders from across Utah will come to compete in Utah''s first and largest natural bodybuilding competition. Unlike other competitions where athletes are randomly drug tested for steroid use, this competition will test every athlete by polygraph test to determine whether they have used steroids in the last 12 months.
'As a rule the athletes are not allowed to use drugs, as with any sporting organization,' said Biff Boswell, Utah National Physique Committee chairman and show promoter. 'However, this in the only competition where we will actually test every single competitor so that way we can ensure a level playing field for all those who enter.'
Thomas Hoff, a member of the American Polygraph Association, will administer a polygraph test to each athlete within a week of the competition.
'We have the best we can find,' Boswell said. 'He''s tested literally tens of thousands of athletes throughout his career, so he is very proficient and everybody uses the same tester.'
Natural bodybuilders do not use any kind of steroids while training or preparing for a competition. They focus on three aspects of their body - presentation, muscular development and symmetry.
Bodybuilders generally have a strict diet to follow in the months and weeks leading up to competition. While most athletes begin training about three months before the competition, Chad German, a competitor from North Salt Lake, has been training for the last six months.
'This will be my second contest this year, so I did one , and didn''t want to have to start over on a new diet, so I just kept going,' German said.
German has been lifting weights for about six years, and this is his fourth competition. He originally played hockey and was scouted to play professionally but was told he was too small. German will be entering three divisions in this competition - novice lightweight, men''s bantamweight, and the lifetime natural.
Fitness professional Wes Barney said he has quite a few bodybuilders coming to him to outline workout schedules, food plans and cardio recommendations.
'We outline so they know exactly what they''re doing every time they either put food in their mouth, take a supplement or workout,' Barney said.
Aside from bodybuilders enjoying what they do, the most important aspect of bodybuilding is learning how to eat properly, Barney said.
The Natural Utah Cup will have nine judges who have been selected throughout the past year and who have gone through rigorous qualifying rounds to prove their competence and ability to fairly and accurately judge the contestants.
'They come from all different professions, all types of walks of life, so that we have a nice diverse group of judges,' Boswell said.
Boswell said he plans on continuing this competition next year, hopefully adding Utah''s Strongest Man as part of the competition. But as far as this show is concerned, Boswell said he wants the viewers and competitors to have a good time.
'I want everybody to have the opportunity to participate in a quality show that is drug tested so it''s a level playing field,' Boswell said. 'That''s the importance of this show.'