Eligibility

Competitors are required to be current members of the LTNB to compete in any events. Any participants not fulfilling the Membership requirement are subject to disqualification. LTNB events are open to participants from any state and any country. Competitors must be able to speak English for purposes of polygraph screenings. Competitors must be age 16 or over. Competitors under 18 must have parental consent. Competitors cannot have used any substance on the WADA Banned substance list. Additionally, muscle implants or injections of any kind are prohibited in the LTNB. This includes Synthol, or any such substances. Elective cosmetic surgeries are also prohibited in most cases. We will allow medical exemptions for women who have had breast cancer and/or nursed/weened children.

Championships

The PRO/AM is our annual event. It's considered the top title within the organization this is part of the road to earing a cash allowance for the top 5 Competitors

Drug Testing

All participants are required to pass polygraph screenings prior to competitions  In addition to polygraph testing, pro qualifying placement winners must pass a urine and WADA compliant drug test. Each competitor must also pass an initial polygraph and WADA compliant blood test upon completion of the Lifetime Natural Verification Process. 

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The LTNB is the only league that maintains a lifetime ban on any substance banned by WADA. The LTNB uses polygraph screenings as one of its means of screening for banned substance use because many anabolic steroids and other banned substances are no longer detectable in urine within several weeks from last use, and growth hormone use cannot be detected with the routine urine testing done for anabolic compounds.

 

Categories

Categories offered include; Men's Classic Bodybuilding, Men's Fit Physique & Women's Classic Bodybuilding, Women's Fit Physique 

Divisions

Divisions offered at events are based on age and level of experience. Divisions offered at a particular event are based on the number of verified lifetime naturals within each division who are scheduled and registered for the event within the open role call time frame. This is typically within 2 weeks of the competition date

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• Debut: First competition ever. Competitors cannot have ever competed in any category with any organization.

• Novice: Cannot have placed first in any class besides Teen, within any division, within any category, with any organization or at any independent event, with the exception of cases where first place was won in a class where the competitor was the only one in the class.

• Open: Open to everyone regardless of age and level of experience.

• Age: Age as of day of contest must fall within the stipulated age range (Ex: Age 50 & Over).

• Teen: Ages 16-19. *under age 18 with parental consent

• Junior: Age 22 and under. *under age 18 with parental consent

Classes

When divisions have more than one class, we will divide groups into as equal as possible parts by height based on total number of entries in a division. Formation of classes within divisions at a show is at the associations discretion and could sometimes be done by using specified height or weight ranges. 

 

TEEN PARTICIPANTS

 

• The required minimum age for participation is 16. Proof of age must be provided at the time of contest check-in.

• A parent or legal guardian must accompany the minor to check-in and be present backstage.

 

• A signed waiver is required of all minors as well as their parent/guardian and will be presented during check-in.

Scoring

This is where the LTNB breaks away from the pack. Our goal is to have standardized judging criteria that will be made available to each competitor. We will implement our judging in three distinct and data driven criteria as follows:

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1. Dexa Scan

Each competitor will undergo a Dexa scan via our professional mobile Dexa scan team with a Registered Nurse on site. The score card will include the competitor's overall body mass index (BMI), bone mass density (BMD), lean muscle mass (LMM), and body fat percentage (BFP). This data will be evaluated for balance, muscularity, and overall body composition and given a score.

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2. Muscular Measurements 

An LTNB certified official will take measurements of each major muscle group for thickness, shape, density, length, and width.  These measurements will be tabulated into our proprietary Overall Visible Muscularity Matrix (OVMM) that will also include the data from the DEXA scan results.   

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3. Stage Presence & Side by Side Comparisons ​

The final phase of competition judging will culminate with individual posing routines, and side by side comparisons. 

 

The scoring system for the posing routine consists of two main components:

 

 Difficulty Score (D-score) and the Execution Score (E-score)

• Difficulty Score (D-score): This score reflects the complexity of the posing routine. It is calculated by summing the difficulty values of the highest-rated elements performed, along with any connection bonuses. The D-score is open-ended, meaning there is no theoretical maximum, but elite and professional posing will warrant ' D-scores typically ranging between 5 and 7.

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• Execution Score (E-score): This score starts at 10.0 and deductions are made for errors during the routine. Deductions range in value from 0.1 to 1.0. The E-score is determined by all judges, with the top and bottom scores dropped and the three remaining scores averaged out to determine a final E-score. The final score is calculated as: Final Score = [Difficulty + Execution] - Any neutral deductions.

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The scoring system for the side-by-side comparisons also has two main components:

 

• Poise and Hold ( P&H-Score) The competitors will be put through all mandatory poses to evaluate which athlete can maintain their poise while holding each pose for a minimum of 7 seconds each. 

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• Execution and Detail ( E&D-Score) Each athlete will be evaluated on their ability to hit each pose with precision while showing their particular strengths and ability to hide potential weaknesses. 

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  Each judge takes all criteria for a category into account and assigns one overall score for each contestant in the form of rank during the group comparison rounds. In cases of ties, competitors ranked higher by the majority of all judges are awarded the higher placements In cases of three-way ties, the head judge's scores are referenced to determine tie-breaking placements. 

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LTNB PRO QUALIFIERS

LTNB pro cards are awarded in the Open, Masters Age 35+ (women), or Age 40+ (men) divisions. However, there must be a minimum of 5 competitors in each division to be eligible for a Pro card.

 

Competitors who win a pro-qualifying placement in a Masters Age 35+ (women) or Masters Age 40+ (men) divisions are eligible only for their Master Age pro divisions. Masters competitors who win pro-qualifying placements in an Open division are considered eligible for both Pro Open and Pro Masters contests.

Competitors who qualify as pros for any category are considered eligible for all pro categories of their sex. Competitors may not compete in more than one category at any given pro show.