Not placing in a bodybuilding show doesn’t make you a “bad” competitor.
It simply makes the sport highly competitive.
You cannot solely dictate “success” during a comp prep on the final stage outcome.
Rather, success during a bodybuilding journey will forever be a personal feat, regardless of placings.
There are competitors who win overall shows, open divisions, medal in top threes and the like - yet following the show they can still feel unsatisfied and be left with a sense of self-disappointment.
Why?
Because they know deep down that they were capable of even more, and that will personally bother them and itch at their subconscious until they create an opportunity to redeem themselves.
A shiny medal, a trophy, or a status is superficial and materialistic to bodybuilding competitors who pursue this lifestyle for the right reasons.
The feeling of success is personal. It’s internal. It can’t be rocked by subjective outcomes - it can only be dictated by objective proof that a competitor has executed their plan to the highest degree they were possibly capable of and thrived in the process.
This is why there are a select number of competitors who don’t place in bodybuilding shows, yet their high self esteem and found memories of the journey carry them through to feel victorious and motivated by their personal outcomes.
In contrast, there are athletes who are rewarded, yet internally they still feel empty-handed… because they know in their heart that they could have been even better, and they feel ashamed that their placings don’t truly reflect the mindset of a champion.
As time goes on it becomes more clear who gets involved in this sport for the right reasons - those who chase aesthetics, placings and status, and those who genuinely love how bodybuilding pushes them to evolve into the highest version of themselves.