Since my competition, I’ve had a lot of people ask me how much it costs to compete. Luckily for you, I kept a very detailed log of everything I was spending on my journey to the stage. If you didn’t read about my show experience, you can see it here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 & Part 4.
I’m going to be honest, I spent MUCH more than I thought I would. I’m also the type of girl who likes to use a coupon for everything so I made sure to get the best deal possible on everything I purchased and I still spent a ton.
Here’s a look at the breakdown of all my expenses for my fitness show.
Total Costs:
- Shoes: $46.74
- Suit, bikini bite & shaper pads: $ 94.66
- Swarovski diamonds for suit: $35.29
- Chicago Luvabull sportswear costume: $92.17
- Stage Jewelry: $35.99
- Robe: $30
- Stage Tan: $54.71
- Entry Fees: $125
- Hair: $145
- Makeup: $81
- Travel (gas): $70
- Hotel: $180
- Coaching: $205
Total: $1,195.56
After I added up the costs I couldn’t believe how much it costed! I know many girls don’t compete because of the cost and now I completely understand! Luckily, if I decide to do another show, I will have some of the things I need and won’t have to spend money on the shoes, robe, makeup etc.
Even though my total is high, I did find a few ways to save money during this journey. Here are a few tips on how to save money to compete.
How To Save Money-
- Look on Deal Sites. Look on groupon.com, livingsocial.com or deal sites like this for stage jewelry. They always offer swoarvski jewelry.
- Stone Your Suit Yourself! I used suitsyouswmwear.com and bought the most basic suit and added the stones to it myself using E6000 glue. The gems suck on perfectly too throughout the show. I was worried they would fall off but they didn’t at all. I actually enjoyed stoning my suit myself. It was fun! (I got my swarovski crystals here – make sure to go with flat backs like these so you can glue them on)
- Use Coupon Codes! I used snaz75.com to order my huge 5″ clear shoes for the show and used the coupon code BODY75 to get 10% off. I’m not sure if that coupon code is still valid but you should try!
- Make Your Own Sportswear Costume! I made my own sportswear costume. I just bought some sew on letters from ebay.com, a sports bra which I cut and modified myself and some bikini bottoms and pom poms for my Chicago Bull’s Luvabull costume. I also stoned this costume myself because I wanted more bling (using the same E6000 glue which was the only stuff that actually held!)!
- Do Your Own Hair and Makeup. I chose to have my hair and makeup done professionally, however you could do it yourself if you’re good at it and save a lot of money.
- Stay Local. Find a competition that is close to you so you don’t have to spend money on gas and a hotel. There are SOOOO many competitions around the country that you could pick from. I chose to do one in Chicago because that’s where I grew up, however I had to travel and get a hotel for it.
- Rent a suit and/or sportswear. There are a few sites like divaexchange.com where you can rent a suit instead of buying one and stoning it yourself.
Do you have any tips on saving money for a fitness, bikini, figure or bodybuilding competition? If so, leave a comment below!!
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Thanks for recommending Diva Exchange on your blog!!
Competitors can also sell any suits and competition items on Diva Exchange to make a return on expenses – as well as finding great deals to purchase gently used suits, heels, jewelry, etc.
Best of luck competing in the 2013 season!! It’s going to be a fun one!
I do my own tanning which helps keep costs down 🙂 Competitors can also find used suits at reasonable prices on siouxcountry.com in the “Suits For Sale” forum!
T.
I did my own tanning too. I used JanTana (jantana.com) that I rubbed on. I still had to buy the kit but it was cheaper than getting it done at the show.
You look absolutely STUNNING and you make fitness/ bikini competitions not soo daunting with your advice on how to do it on a budget!!! Keep it up, clearly you’re doing something right! 😉
Thank you!!!
Kudos! That was exceptional 🙂