Ryan Irwin, Author at Natural Iowa Muscle

Competitor Profile for Beau Craig

Beau is the 2017 NANBF Natural Iowa Open Bodybuilding Champion and IPE Pro Card winner. Below is his insight when asked about his prep for the 2017 Natural Iowa. 1. What made you decide to compete? I have enjoyed lifting weights ever since I began back in high school in 2009. Back then, I never […]

NANBF Natural Iowa Championship Sponsors

We would like to give a shout out to one of our sponsors, Beef Cake Fuel! They are a locally owned and operated restaurant and meal prep company located in Des Moines, dedicated to bringing you healthy, delicious meals at an affordable price. In the gym, at work and life in general, their goal is to […]

NANBF Natural Iowa Sponsors

Are you getting ready to compete this fall??? One of the NANBF Natural Iowa sponsors from this year has a great opportunity for you! Statuesque make your memories last forever! They offer complete 3D renderings of you! These sculptures can be a small 2″ size (great for a Christmas tree or desk) or a large 14″ sculpture! […]

2017 NANBF NATURAL IOWA RESULTS

2017 marks the 23rd anniversary of the NANBF Natural Iowa and the competition lived up to it’s reputation!! With competitors from all over the country, there was some amazing physiques that was on the stage at Hoyt Sherman Place in downtown Des Moines. There were 7 open and 3 masters IPE pro cards awarded to […]

25 years of consistency

Today marks 25 years of when I decided to pick up a barbell and become a bodybuilder. I remember this day clearly; I approached my parents in the evening after wrestling practice towards the end of the season and made the declaration that I wanted to become a bodybuilder. I knew at the time that […]

Emotions are Powerful

Emotions are powerful, YOUR emotions are power. They drive you to do great hinges and maybe some not so great things. This is a truth: we all have them, we all manage them and they impact our lives greatly. My question to you is, who (or what) are you letting control them?? You see, emotions […]

6 Steps to Track and Reach Your Goals

The New Year is here and everyone is off to the races to achieve their big goals they set on January 1st! How to set goals is another whole topic that I address in many different spots, but this post is more for the journey on the way to achieve your big goals. Most people […]

Bodybuilding presentation should be routine

In the sport of bodybuilding, presentation is one of the components of judging criteria (including symmetry, muscularity and conditioning.) I am defining presentation as how one displays their physique. This obviously includes posing but other aspects such as skin color, grooming, etc. In the same topic of posing is the free posing routine, which is […]

Balance

As this year draws to a close and we look to set out goals for the upcoming year, there are many components to consider when doing so. In addition to reviewing the current/previous year as I advise in my workshops, a HUGE part of the goal setting process should be to identify and improve balance […]

Bodybuilding verse powerlifting competition prep, a comparison

Over the last two decades I have been blessed with the opportunity to compete in both the sport of bodybuilding and powerlifting, most recently at the IFPA Pro Elite Worlds for bodybuilding. While talking to another competitor from the East Coast at the check-in meeting the day before Worlds, he asked me what I enjoyed […]