Muscle Insider’s 2026 Contest Coverage for the
Xtreme Natural Muscle Pro/Am is presented by
One amateur competitor at the October 18 Xtreme Natural Muscle Pro Qualifier will take home a prize package valued at approximately $1,000, but this award won’t be decided by the judges.
On Sunday, October 18, some of Canada’s top natural physique athletes will take the stage at the Xtreme Natural Muscle Pro/AM in New Westminster, British Columbia. Muscle Insider will be there covering the action, and this year, we’re bringing something new with us.
With the support of Optimum Nutrition, the official sponsor of Muscle Insider’s contest coverage for the event, we’re introducing the first Muscle Insider People’s Champion Award. Bodybuilding contests are decided by judges, but the People’s Champion Award is about recognizing something that doesn’t appear on a scorecard: the connection between the athletes onstage and the people who helped get them there.
What Is the Muscle Insider People’s Champion Award?
Anyone who has attended one of Dean and Leigh Brandt’s shows knows the audience isn’t usually shy about making itself heard. That’s exactly the kind of energy we love seeing at bodybuilding shows, and it’s part of what inspired this new award.
Contest prep can be an incredibly demanding and individual pursuit, but very few competitors make it to the stage entirely on their own. There are spouses and partners who support months of dieting, family members who rearrange schedules, and friends and training partners who provide encouragement when prep gets difficult. There are also coaches, teammates and supporters who travel to the show and fill the seats when it’s finally time to step onstage.
The Muscle Insider People’s Champion Award is our way of recognizing that support while giving those people an opportunity to become part of the show. So, competitors, bring your people. When you step onstage, tell them to make some noise.
How Will the People’s Champion Be Chosen?
There won’t be an audience ballot or online vote. Members of the Muscle Insider team covering the Xtreme Natural Muscle Pro/AM, along with the Optimum Nutrition representative on-site, will be watching and listening throughout the amateur Pro Qualifier.
We want to see which competitors generate the kind of crowd support that can change the atmosphere inside a venue. Cheering, yelling, friends and family making themselves heard, and maybe even a cowbell or two. At the end of the Pro Qualifier, the Muscle Insider and Optimum Nutrition teams will select one amateur competitor to receive the inaugural Muscle Insider People’s Champion Award and take home the complete prize package.
Nearly $1,000 in Prizes from Muscle Insider and Optimum Nutrition
Optimum Nutrition stepped up in a big way when we brought them the idea for the People’s Champion Award. In addition to sponsoring Muscle Insider’s contest coverage, Optimum Nutrition has provided a substantial supplement package for our first People’s Champion, helping bring the total retail value of the prize package to approximately $1,000.
The winner will receive:
- Optimum Nutrition Amino Energy
- Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine
- Optimum Nutrition Serious Mass
- Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard 100% Isolate
- Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard 100% Casein Protein
- Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard 100% Whey Protein
- Optimum Nutrition Platinum Hydro Whey
- Muscle Insider × LBHK (Lift Heavy Be Kind) duffel bag
- Muscle Insider shaker cup from Perfect Shaker
And when we say this is a big prize package, we mean it. There’s even more gear than we could fit inside the Muscle Insider duffel bag when we unveiled the award, but we’ll figure out how to pack it all up for the winner.
Optimum Nutrition Steps Up for the Athletes
The People’s Champion Award started with a simple idea at Muscle Insider, but bringing that idea to life required the right partner. Optimum Nutrition didn’t just agree to sponsor our contest coverage. When we shared the concept for the award, they stepped up with a prize package that gives us an opportunity to do something meaningful for one of the amateur athletes competing that weekend.
For Muscle Insider, contest coverage has always been about more than reporting placings. It’s about supporting bodybuilding and physique competition, recognizing the athletes who put in the work to get onstage, and helping showcase the community surrounding the sport. The People’s Champion Award gives us another way to do exactly that.
Xtreme Natural Muscle Pro/AM Returns to New Westminster
Promoted by Dean and Leigh Brandt of Xtreme Promotions, the Xtreme Natural Muscle Pro/AM takes place Sunday, October 18, 2026, at the Anvil Centre in New Westminster, British Columbia.
The Canadian Physique Alliance lists the amateur competition as a Natural Canadian Pro Qualifier, while the same day will also feature the Xtreme Natural Muscle IFBB Pro Show, an IFBB Pro League event.
For the amateur athletes, the stakes are significant. The CPA’s 2026 qualification rules state that the Xtreme Natural Muscle Pro Qualifier awards an IFBB Pro Card to the overall winner in each eligible open and masters division, subject to IFBB Pro League competitor requirements.
Prejudging begins at 9:00 a.m., with the finals scheduled for 4:00 p.m. Competitors and spectators can find additional registration, ticket and event information through the official Xtreme Promotions Xtreme Natural Muscle Pro/AM show page.
Bring Your People. Make Some Noise.
For every athlete competing October 18, months of preparation will come down to a few moments under the stage lights. The judges will be watching, but so will we.
If you’re competing at the Xtreme Natural Muscle Pro Qualifier, there’s one more thing to add to your show-day checklist:
Bring your people.
Friends. Family. Training partners. Whoever helped you get to that stage. And tell them not to be quiet.
The judges will decide the placings. The Muscle Insider and Optimum Nutrition teams will be watching and listening to see who becomes the first Muscle Insider People’s Champion.
Subscribe to the free Muscle Insider newsletter for the latest fitness industry news, contest coverage, and product releases.
Image note: Some images in this article were created or modified using artificial intelligence for illustrative purposes.