MAC Hires Bodybuilder Model: Inside the World of Muscle Makeup

Forget pageant queens and reality stars, no one lays the makeup on thicker than a female bodybuilder. If you were about to walk onstage in a thong swimsuit and have your muscles judged under dentist lights, you'd take your beauty regimen just as seriously.

The beauty industry was taken by surprise when MAC debuted its latest spokesperson, Jelena Abbou, a Serbian-American female bodybuilder with the kind of ripped physique more likely to be found in Muscle Milk ads than high end cosmetics campaigns. For those within the female bodybuilding world, however, it made perfect sense. "A lot of us use MAC," Monet Colbert, a makeup artist and former bodybuilder, tells Yahoo Shine. "It's designed for theatrical stage performances." That means it holds up under the double white lights designed to capture every muscle striation--and if you're not prepared, every wrinkle. 

 

After thousands of hours at the gym and meticulously crafted nutrition plans, the final step for female bodybuilders poised for competition is product. Lots of it. Popular standards of beauty vary by era, geography, and culture, but in the world of women's muscle mass, there's one hard and fast rule.

 

You've got be tan. "The reason female bodybuilders look so dark is because tanners help define cuts and shreds," says Colbert, who's started her own line of bodybuilding cosmetics called Shades of Monet. "It's all about the illusion being created." 

 

The kind of tanning bodybuilders do before a show makes Snooki look like an amateur. "There are two different kinds of tanners we use," competitive bodybuilder Bethany Carter Howlett tells Shine. "Some people use spray tan, while others will use a liquid roll-on with an applicator." Before any of that, however, Howlett uses a tanning bed to get a base--"otherwise you could end up with a green tint onstage," she explains. Professional tanners will show up at events with pop-up salons so athletes can begin a three-day tanning layering process. Competitors largely avoid tanning creams, says Howlett, because the moisture competes with the oil they apply to their muscles as a finishing touch. She uses spray-on cooking oil for an overall sheen that isn't too greasy.

 

The darker, more bronzed the tan, the sharper the muscle striations appear. That may win points with the judges, but a mismatched face blows it with audience members. "If your face doesn't match your tan that's going to work against you," says Colbert, "even if you've got the body judges are looking for."
 

 

Before meets, challengers and their makeup artists hunt for thick foundation closest to their body's impending fake tan. It's like an interior decorator matching pillows to curtains, only the stakes are higher. "Judges will pull you aside before the show if they don't like your makeup and tell you how to change your look before the show," says Howlett. 

 

It isn't all about skin tone. A big challenge is covering up dark circles under the eyes caused by water depletion just before the shows (a little dehydration adds muscle definition). Colbert uses thick concealer under the eyes and applies false lashes to brighten up their gaze. (If all else fails, there's always rhinestone eye stickers.) 

 

Usually, the stage outfit dictates the eye shadow palate. "Girls will match their suits to their eyes, so if they're wearing dark blues or dark purples, they wear a slightly lighter shade of the same color on their eyes," says Howlett. 

 

Another bygone look from years past: bleached blonde hair. "A lot more of us used to be platinum," says Howlett. "My hair was falling out in clumps from all the chemicals." Now brunettes are having a moment in bodybuilding, thanks in part to the competition's popularity in countries outside the U.S. 

 

Back in the '80s, you didn't have to choose between a bold eye-color and a bright lipstick. Nowadays, judges are looking for a slightly more natural look. "If you're doing a dark eye, you're going to want a softer lip--a coral color is popular," says Colbert. 

 

It's not enough just to have rippling abs. Judges want to see muscular definitions on the cheekbones, so Colbert usually applies a dark bronzer to sharpen angles. "You want to make sure cheekbones standout with a deeper bronzer," she says, "since your foundation is already so dark." Did I mention she can apply up to four layers of foundation just to ensure facial tones match the whole package?
 

 

Eczema and breakouts are common before competitions due to crash diets. "We're so depleted of water, our bodies can become toxic waste dumps by time we compete," says Colbert. To falsify that "healthy glow" competitors rely on heavy concealer and bleached white teeth. 

 

Hair is still a big part of the competition. Howlett compares the kind of coiffed, curled and spiked updos designed for showing off muscles to prom hair. "There are lot of cute sequined barrettes." Scrunchies? "Gosh no, you won't see any scrunchies or banana clips." 

 

"Now there are a lot more brunettes, and more ethnicities competing across the board," says Howlett. "It's funny bodybuilding, because it mimics what's popular in Hollywood and pop culture at large." 

 

The biggest hair trend to emerge in the past few years according to Colbert, is less hair. "Girls are going pixie short, some are using color beyond the standard blonde and brunettes," she says. "Now it's all about cuts that are a little edgy like bobs--no more Jheri curls." 

 

But in the niche world of bodybuilding beauty, you never want to follow a trend too closely. "If you look like everyone else, you don't stand out," says Colbert. "So you have to think about what you can do to look different from everyone else." Even non-bodybuilders can relate to beauty trend overkill. Remember the year we all had orange tans and we weren't even competing for a trophy?