Women Bodybuilding: Then & Now (Part 1) :

Everyone has either heard of or is familiar with the sport of competitive bodybuilding. The female component, which is known as women bodybuilding, began in the late 1970s as women began to participate in competitions. Now, more than three decades later, women bodybuilding is a large part of the sport and has begun to garner the respect that it has strived for since it's inception.

Although physique contests for women can actually be documented in the 1960s, they were little more than bikini contests. The first true women bodybuilding competition is regarded as the one held in Canton, Ohio in 1978. Promoted by Henry McGhee, the first United States Women's National Physique Championship was the first competition where the entrants were judged solely on their muscularity as opposed to how well they looked in swimsuits...