FST7-TIP: Posetips with Hany Rambod

Jan 3, 2024

By Nutrition Monsters

In the world of competitive bodybuilding and physique contests, muscle mass and low body fat are only half the equation. Posing is everything. It is the ultimate biomechanical translation of your hard work in the gym to the stage. A perfectly executed posing session can physiologically make the absolute difference between winning and losing.

Hany Rambod, the legendary 24-time Olympia-winning coach and the mind behind Evogen Nutrition, analyzes the performance of the newest Team Evogen Elite athlete, Schuyler Reeves, after his first competition. Here are the crucial anatomical guidelines from The Pro Creator to perfect your presentation and eliminate common mistakes.

1. The Front & Back Double Biceps Pose

When setting up the double biceps pose—both front and back—many athletes make a crucial biomechanical mistake in the angle of the arms. Hany advises not to bring your forearms too close to your biceps. When you bend your arms too much, you shorten the visual line of your arms and flatten the muscle belly.

Additionally, it is essential not to curl or supinate your wrists too much. By keeping the wrists neutral and stable, you create a wider, more powerful frame and ensure that the biceps physiologically swell to their maximum without the forearm muscles disrupting the visual balance.

2. The Side Chest Pose

The side chest pose is designed to showcase the three-dimensional thickness of your physique but requires strict control over your breathing and posture. A common physiological pitfall is that athletes tend to shrink as soon as they pull their active chest muscle back. This immediately destroys your posture and makes you look visually smaller and narrower on stage.

The Pro Strategy: Take a deep breath into your chest to maximize your lung volume, hold your chest proudly up, and rotate your shoulders in a controlled manner toward the judges. This physiological expansion guarantees a significantly wider, fuller, and more dominant appearance.

3. The Front Lat Spread Pose

In the front lat spread pose, it’s all about creating the ultimate V-shape by pushing the latissimus dorsi (the broad back muscle) maximally outward. To perform this biomechanically correctly, you must keep your elbows and shoulders tightly back.

The most common mistake in this pose is rolling or turning the shoulders too far forward. This closes off your chest and physiologically makes you appear narrower. Stay broad and dominant by lifting your chest and consciously spreading your shoulders wide.

The Post-Competition Phase: Maintain Physiological Control

After months of extremely strict dieting and physiological exhaustion during competition preparation, most athletes fall into a common trap after the show: uncontrolled overeating (binging). Your body is in a metabolically highly sensitive state and absorbs every calorie at a record pace.

To maintain control over your physiology and not lose your sharpness completely, it is necessary to weigh yourself regularly during this process. It is completely biologically normal to gain up to 10-15 lbs (about 4.5 to 7 kg) in the first week after your competition due to reloading fluids and glycogen. However, make sure to resume your cardio routine and planned nutrition structure as soon as possible to get back on track.

Pro Tip from Hany Rambod: Protect Your Blood Pressure

Immediately after a competition, when your body is slightly dehydrated, you must absolutely avoid excessive salt intake. An acute, massive influx of sodium can physiologically push your blood pressure into a danger zone, which is directly risky for your health and cardiovascular system.

Be extremely careful with your post-show meals. Avoid excessive consumption of sushi overloaded with salty soy sauce, and do not add extra salt to fried or fatty foods. Enjoy your recovery phase, but do so with scientific intelligence.

The Evogen Strategy for Optimal Post-Competition Recovery

The transition from a bone-dry competition physique to a healthy, anabolic off-season status requires smart biochemical support to protect your cells and relieve your organs:

Intra-Workout Mineral Balance: When your physiology stabilizes after the competition and you resume training, a stable electrolyte balance is crucial to prevent blood pressure fluctuations and severe cramps. Drink Evogen Amino K.E.M. during your sessions. This formula not only provides all 9 essential amino acids (EAAs) for immediate muscle preservation but also contains a premium electrolyte matrix and coconut water powder to perfectly regulate fluid balance at the cellular level.
Clean Muscle Saturation: Prevent your body from developing digestive issues or bloating from heavy, fatty foods right after prep. Feed your muscle cells post-workout with Evogen IsoJect. This ultra-pure, cold-filtered whey isolate contains zero sugars and fats. Thanks to the patented IGNITOR™ enzyme technology, amino acids are absorbed lightning-fast, giving your muscles anabolic building blocks immediately without burdening your digestion.
Controlled Pump Without Stimulants: Want to benefit from the massive influx of carbohydrates in the weeks after your competition for brutal muscle growth, without putting extra strain on your blood pressure with heavy caffeine doses? Then use the stimulant-free pre-workout Evogen EVP 3D combined with the liquid Evogen EVP AQ (liquid glycerol). This increases nitric oxide production and forces fluid deep into the muscle cells through healthy osmotic pressure for a maximum 3D pump.

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FAQ

Why am I not allowed to curl my wrists during a double biceps pose?

If you curl your wrists (flexion) or supinate too much, you overactivate the muscles in your forearms. This draws visual attention away from the biceps and shortens the anatomical line of your arms. By keeping your wrists straight and stable, you force the biceps to contract into a perfect, visually larger peak.

How does shrinking in the side chest pose make me look smaller?

When you pull your chest back and let your shoulders drop, you reduce the diameter of your ribcage and press your collarbones inward. This creates a physiological narrowing of your silhouette. By taking a deep breath into your chest and lifting your sternum, you maximize the visual surface for the judges.

Why does my weight increase so drastically in the first week after a competition?

During competition preparation, your muscle glycogen stores and intracellular fluid volume are physiologically completely depleted. As soon as you return to eating normally (or more) after the show, your body immediately stores every gram of carbohydrates as glycogen. Because each gram of glycogen binds several grams of water, your body retains a large amount of fluid in the cells, leading to a rapid weight gain of 10-15 lbs.

Why is excessive salt intake immediately after the match dangerous for blood pressure?

After a competition, your body is extremely sensitive to osmotic shifts due to dieting and fluid restriction. A sudden, massive intake of sodium (such as through soy sauce or fast food) physiologically draws a large amount of water directly into the bloodstream. This rapidly increases the circulating blood volume, which can lead to an acute, dangerous rise in blood pressure.

How does Evogen EVP AQ help me keep my muscles full without affecting my blood pressure?

Evogen EVP AQ uses pure liquid glycerol instead of heavy stimulants or excessive mineral spikes. Glycerol increases osmotic pressure in a safe, controlled way and forces fluid to hydrate specifically intracellularly (within the muscle cell wall). This gives you that full, three-dimensional 3D look and muscle pump without overloading your cardiovascular system with heavy neurological stressors.