Fitness and figure competition is a class of physique-exhibition events mainly for women but also men. While bearing a close resemblance to bodybuilding, its emphasis is on muscle definition, not size. The class was introduced when bodybuilding's popularity began to decline.

Fitness and Figure are distinct forms of competition. In the older Fitness discipline, female competitors showcase their physiques (which are less massive than bodybuilders') while performing a demanding, time-limited, aerobic/dance routine. In a Figure contest the most important attributes are a curvaceous-yet-trim body and facial beauty. The guidelines are similar and many contestants move back and forth between the two disciplines. The Figure division emerged when the numbers for Fitness pageant competitions started to dwindle. Typically, Fitness and Figure competitions are held in conjunction with bodybuilding contests.

Body building has traditionally been seen as a male-appropriate activity, and beauty pageants were the main way for women to compete. Various authors have documented the struggle faced by pioneering women body builders as they entered the competitive body building world in the 1970s. Gold's Gym is said to have prided itself on being ‘ovary free’ until the late 1970s. Women's fitness competitions started in the 1980s, and have shown a significant increase in popularity since.

Wally Boyko produced the first women's Fitness competition in 1985, at the National Fitness trade show in Las Vegas, Nevada; it included a swimsuit round, an athletic routine, and an evening gown segment. Louis Zwick, then the producer of American Muscle Magazine (a bodybuilding TV show on ESPN), aired a segment on the pageant, and in 1989 launched Fitness America (now Fitness Universe). The International Federation of BodyBuilding & Fitness held its own, sanctioned fitness pageant—Fitness Olympia—in 1995.

In 2001, the National Physique Committee (the major sanctioning body for bodybuilders) held the first women's Figure competition: the Figure Nationals at Borough of Manhattan Community College's Performing Arts Center in New York City. It was a qualifier for, and precursor to, the 2003 International Federation of BodyBuilding & Fitness Figure Olympia in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Fitness Universe organization launched their own Figure division in 2005.

A typical fitness competition consists of a swimsuit round and a routine round. In the swimsuit round, the competitors wear two-piece swimsuits and high-heeled shoes, presenting their physiques with a series of quarter- or half-turns toward the judges and audience. Physique guidelines for fitness competitions typically suggest a small amount of muscular mass; clear separations between muscle groups (but, no visible striations); and, leanness. The swimsuit must cover at least fifty percent of the gluteus maximus muscle; no thongs or G-strings are allowed. The routine round requires a physically active stage performance; most competitors attempt aerobic, dance, and/or gymnastic routines.

Fitness contests sanctioned by the International Federation of BodyBuilding & Fitness (IFBB) are the Fitness Olympia and the Fitness International. Fitness contests sanctioned by Wally Boyko Productions are the National Fitness Sanctioning Body (NFSB) Ms. Fitness USA and the International Fitness Sanctioning Body (IFSB) Ms. Fitness World. Fitness contests sanctioned by the Fitness Universe organization are the Fitness America Pageant and the Fitness Universe Pageant.

Figure competition is a newer sub-category of fitness contests. Figure shows exclude the routine round common to fitness shows. The competitors are judged solely on muscular symmetry and definition; as in fitness shows, muscle size is downplayed. Figure competitions appeal most to women who want to compete in a body competition, but wish to avoid fitness shows' additional athletic and creative demands (the routine round), or bodybuilding's demands for heavy muscle mass.