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And you thought she was huge before...

Aleesha Young gets a full workup in the new upgraded labs. She wasn't the only one that needed a shower to cool down.

An Area Orion female muscle growth and breast expansion morph based on a photo from muscle-fantasies. Thanks for all your support and let the growth continue.

Forged Steel

Diamonds may be a girls best friend, but these iron women know how to truly accessorize. Nothing says female strength like female bodybuilders and muscle women with cold hard steel.

Pictured (l to r): Heather Policky, Adrien Nichole, Unknown, Michi Ritz, Jeannie Paparone, Christa Bauch, Kristy Hawkins

Lisa Cross: Licensed to Thrill

Lisa Cross is sponsoring a spy themed art contest at FemaleMuscle. The winner will receive a one month free membership to LisaCross.com and publicity on various muscle media outlets. Contest ends February 29, 2012. Click for more details.

Pumped Up: The Decline of Female Bodybuilding

An ABC News special report on female bodybuilding from 1999. Fascinating how things haven't changed in more than a decade. Support Female Bodybuilding

Mz. Devious Tears It Up

Busty Sexy Flexy Danielle stopped by Area Orion to liven things up. She's a force of human awesomeness and we want to thanks her for these amazing photos. Check out her Clips4Sale page for more.

Ms. Gardner is currently undergoing treatment at Area Orion and we hope to have her results posted soon.

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New Physique competitor Joelle Smith shows off her insane hard curves in an artistic nude. I love strategically placed shadows on a ripped woman.

An Area Orion breast expansion morph based on a photo by Patrick Ellis. This concludes the A-Z lab runs. Stay tuned.

Nuggets

News from the Female Muscle world.

11 women who plan to compete in the first ever IFBB Pro Physique Show
11 women are on the official list for the 2012 IFBB Desert Muscle Classic Pro Physique. The show will take place on February 25th in Mesa, AZ. If more enter, they will have to pay the IFBB Pro League a $200 late fee. Beni Lopez, Dana Linn Bailey, Jennifer Smythe, Jullian Reville, Karina Nascimento, LaDrissa Bonivel, Marilena Echohawk, Marina Lopez, Pam Franklin, Susan Salazar, Tracy Bodner

New powerlifting world-record holder is a 13-year-old girl from Colorado
Like many female powerlifters, Abbey Watson doesn't typically get a lot of press attention. Holding eight different world records for her relatively slight weight class -- 105.75 pounds -- as well as 23 U.S. and Colorado state records, Watson is the kind of peak performer who has forced the general public to take notice. To achieve that success, Watson spends at least three very early mornings each week in the gym, doing deadlifts and squats while surrounded by very large men.

Another Pro Couple Breaks Up
IFBB pros Steve Kuclo & Amy Peters broke up. One of their wedding photos was on our banner in the Summer of 2009. The ending of their relationship was made public on Facebook (Steve has nearly 5000 friends). Some may consider this gossip, but Steve & Amy were the most well known pro couple that I am aware of since Jessica & Peter Putnam broke up. Sad to see a marriage end, but this could be the beginning for something better for the both of them. I wish them well.

Jodie Marsh urges kids to fight back bullies
In a new documentary that she's starring in, the glamour girl-turned-bodybuilder is showing kids they don't need to live in fear and tells victims how to fight back. But as well as helping others who have suffered, filming the show made Marsh come to terms with her own painful demons. The 33-year-old says she has always been bullied, from her schooldays to her first shot at fame in the reality show Essex Wives, to her brief stint in Celebrity Big Brother.

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Hungarian fitness model & figure competitor Noemi Olah is one of the most beautiful women on the planet. No surprise she was also crowned Miss Hungary. Be careful though, this beauty queen can kick your ass, especially after a trip to Area Orion.

An Area Orion female muscle and breast expansion morph.

Is CrossFit Killing Female Bodybuilding?

Female bodybuilding's downward spiral has been evident to us fans for years. Lack of support within the industry, no media coverage, mass exodus to lesser divisions like Physique and disrespect from the world at large. Add miniscule winnings and lack of corporate sponsorships that are lucrative to competitors in Fitness, Figure & Bikini. Seriously, why bother?

Enter CrossFit, which is gaining serious steam and could take the bodybuilding/fitness world by storm. It's a sport for competitive muscular women with a wide appeal and quantifiable results and goals, something bodybuilding doesn't have (1). I can't remember the last time I've seen a bodybuilding competition on TV, yet the CrossFit Games: The Fittest On Earth is broadcast on ESPN2 and backed by major sponsor Reebok.

Female bodybuilders and Fitness models are beginning to take notice. Across the Twitterverse more and more are including CrossFit into their training or making the switch completely. Natural female bodybuilder Toni West announced that she is training to compete at the CrossFit Games Open in February. Women compete in bodybuilding because of their drive, passion and little else. Who wouldn't want to be involved in something exciting and new that celebrates strong women.

Could this kill female bodybuilding completely? As more move to CrossFit, bodybuilding will surely take a hit. But how could it get much worse? Maybe bodybuilding promoters will take notice and step up their game. It's doubtful.

Like Powerlifting, CrossFit is a tangent sport that could possibly help bodybuilding in the long run. Increased exposure with mainstream CrossFit might bring more fans. Who's to say that CrossFitters wouldn't compete on the BB stage either?

I'm a proponent of any endeavor that supports strong women and hope CrossFit breathes new life into bodybuilding. If not, at least I'll have something interesting to watch on ESPN2. Support Female Bodybuilding

Cindy Phillips Before & After

Bodybuilders are made through hard work and it's fascinating to see the transformation. Here's Canadian female bodybuilding darling Cindy Phillips in 2001 when she was 17 at Cheerleading Camp. In 2003 she placed 2nd in one of her first bodybuilding contests, then won her pro card in 2007. Cindy hasn't competed in a while but is thinking of trying out Women's Physique.