Meet Moustafa Ismail, Egyptian Bodybuilder’s with 31-Inch ‘Popeye’ Biceps
He’s been dubbed the “real-life” Popeye thanks to his 31-inch biceps, but this body builder actually loathes spinach.
Moustafa Ismail moved from his birthplace in Egypt to the U.S. with his wife so he could use better bodybuilding facilities
Moustafa Ismail has spent ten years pumping iron twice a day, with the result that his upper arms now have the same circumference as a grown man’s waist.
The 24-year-old’s “guns” are of such cartoonish proportions they have been crowned the biggest in the world.
Known to his friends as “Big Mo”, the Egyptian bodybuilder eats as much as 3lbs of chicken, 1lbs of steak or fish and four cups of almonds washed down with two gallons of water and three litres of protein shakes a day.
The muscle man was so dedicated to bulking up his arms he moved his whole family to America to gain access to better workout equipment.
The body builder’s arms measure a circumference of 31inches.
Moustafa said: “People always you remind me of Popeye the sailor man, this makes me laugh the truth is I don’t have any spinach in my diet I can’t stand the stuff.
“I’ll stick to my chicken I think. Actually I think my arms are now bigger than the cartoon character.”
Moustafa, who lives with his wife Carolina, 30, started bodybuilding ten years ago in a bid to keep fit.
But after hitting the gym he received hundreds of compliments on his bulging biceps and decided to concentrate all of his efforts on making them even bigger.
Five years ago, when he failed to win a place in the Egyptian bodybuilding team, he swapped his home country for the USA.
Mr Ismail moved himself and his girlfriend from Egypt to the U.S. purely so he could use better weightlifting facilities to pursue his aim of bulking up his arms
He now trains at least twice a day and can lift an incredible 500lbs.
Moustafa admits to taking protein shakes to help with his bodybuilding but puts his bulging body down to genetics – his father was an Egyptian wrestler.
He has a daily exercise regime of 5am until 8am during which he concentrates on cardio, strength-training and body sculpting, using heavy and light isolated weights.
And when Moustafa is not pumping iron he’s pumping gas at the two petrol station he owns near his home in Massachusetts.
Moustafa said: “My friends in the gym just couldn’t believe how much my arms seem to grow so I began to really focus on getting bigger.
“Working out makes my mood better. You’re just focusing. And I like that in this type of sport you can see your improvement in your shape.
“I know they are growing, my chest, my shoulders, my arms. I love the weights.”
Moustafa’s biceps have now been confirmed as a record and he will appear in the Guinness Book of World Records 2013, which launches in London on Wednesday.
