i eventually want to compete at bb shows. i've been reading and researching my fair share of information about the sport. still quite new to the sport but getting confident as far as the basic concepts of bulking, cutting, and refining my workouts.

i've talked to only a few of amatures who compete and they all had trainers and coaches who helped them with training, diet, fat comp, ect. they said that having a trainer or a coach who has bodybuilt and competed makes it much easier to prepare for shows.

my question: is possible to truly be competitive in the sport if you go it alone? i want to compete naturally for at least my first few shows until i feel it's time to go to the dark side.

im in california and i don't have any connections to qualified trainers who i think could help me train. what is the best way to go about finding a coach?

my genetics are pretty awesome. since i stopped training the olympic lifts as much and focused on bb type workouts i can see my muscles reacting favorably (with the exception of getting stuck at plateaus every once in a while). however, i don't want to step on stage and feel like a fool. when it comes down to it, i have so much to learn in terms of posing and refining my body.

thanks you guys