Frank Mannarino

[candyNYC]

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[Dentistclark]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I love my short arsed bodybuilders! There's something so hot about all that muscle packed on a small frame. At 5'4" this kid's a perfect example......and he's only 21......damn!

[Mdlftr]

Man, he's THICK!

5'5", 240-250# in this video. He has HYOOOGE muscles for his size and just at any size!

This is what you think of when you think of short guys getting huge!

He's got some serious variocose veins where his pecs and delts tie-in, so that might hurt him in competition, but otherwise he looks
"more than fine" to me!

Mdlftr

[spokenthunder]

As a short guy, this is really inspirational for me! Thank you for sharing!

[Mdlftr]

http://www.rxmuscle.com/videos/iatra...s-and-abs.html

Because some of you mentioned "how far he's come" about Frank Mannarino, I googled him and found this video.

Age 17 -High School Junior (2009)
Lifting at that time, for 1 1/2 years
Did wrestle at age 15, not since
In the video Frank works arms, doing quarter reps on the preacher bench with 70 pound dumbbells. He is working on his biceps peak here. He admits he uses lighter weight when he works his lower bis in a full range of motion exercise.

Later in the video he does Roman chair situps. At this point he works abs every day. He also flexes, does a most muscular "relaxed" pose and smiles for the camera.

Definitely worked hard for what he has! Serious props to him!

Mdltr

[falseyedee]

i agree this guy is supper hot. love all that muscle packed onto a small frame. he had a respectable physique when he was 17. now he's just a beast. amazing growth and amazing physique. totally hot.

[bigbearny]

he's such a hot thick muscle-beast.. and before someone else says it.. probably on steroids.. but does it matter?

[Mdlftr]

Originally Posted by bigbearny

he's such a hot thick muscle-beast.. and before someone else says it.. probably on steroids.. but does it matter?

Well, in this context, since we're all admiring his muscular development, probably not! Plus since he's only 5'5", I'm guessing he's 90% natural! He doesn't have any of the puffiness, especially around the face, that you'd associate with steroids.

I think he honestly IS "all that" - natural or pretty close to it.

Mdlftr

[bigbearny]

was just heading off the inevitable comment.. I wasn't sure and could care less.. for a group of people into all sorts of muscle growth the "he's on 'roids" comment gets thrown around a lot.. who cares? muscle is muscle.. Synthol is another matter though

Originally Posted by Mdlftr

Well, in this context, since we're all admiring his muscular development, probably not! Plus since he's only 5'5", I'm guessing he's 90% natural! He doesn't have any of the puffiness, especially around the face, that you'd associate with steroids.

I think he honestly IS "all that" - natural or pretty close to it.

Mdlftr

[BIGJOEY]

one can be on anabolics and not show the supposed signs of being puffy. It would depend what your taking. puffiness is a sign of deca and dbol being used together which causes the body to hold water to protect the joints. you can do a lean bulk on anabolics with out used anabolics that cause you to hold a lot of water. Also if your competing in the npc odds are your on something to get to the top. I am speaking as a npc competitior who has done big reginal and a pro qualifying show.

[Bull]

Of course he's on steroids. He went from a beach body to a monster almost overnight. That's due to the fact that he has the genetics to respond well to roids, and is very short. A twenty pound gain on a duy 6'4" hardly shows; on a guy 5'4" it's a total transformation. That's why bodybuilding is a short man's sport. If it weren't for the prejudice of the judges, short guys would nearly always win. As it is, it's rare to see a major bodybuilder who is over 5'10".

[burlemarx]

Originally Posted by Bull

Of course he's on steroids. He went from a beach body to a monster almost overnight. That's due to the fact that he has the genetics to respond well to roids, and is very short. A twenty pound gain on a duy 6'4" hardly shows; on a guy 5'4" it's a total transformation. That's why bodybuilding is a short man's sport. If it weren't for the prejudice of the judges, short guys would nearly always win. As it is, it's rare to see a major bodybuilder who is over 5'10".

THANK you. jesus christ. finally someone admits the truth: Bodybuilding is a Short Man's sport. now i can go back to complaining about being 6'1 and how hard it is to gain noticeable muscle mass at this height!

[burlemarx]

but on the plus side, being 6'1 is the perfect height for hunting down an overjuiced, puffed up, 5'4" muscle shortie and tossing him around the bedroom...

[hulkoutlvr]

this means I don't get to complain at 5'1" anymore?

[bulkybud]

Originally Posted by hulkoutlvr

this means I don't get to complain at 5'1" anymore?

Don't complain, be proud.

Most of the shorter guys in my gym who are dedicated to their training are powerhouses- they certainly can out lift me in about everything.

One of the strongest guys in our gym is close to 5'. Most people are in awe of him because of his powerlifting records.

bulkybud

[Mdlftr]

Originally Posted by burlemarx

but on the plus side, being 6'1 is the perfect height for hunting down an overjuiced, puffed up, 5'4" muscle shortie and tossing him around the bedroom...

....plus at 6'1" with longer legs, you can easily run him down--- Gotcha!

As for WHAT you do with him after you've got him....
I leave that to your fertile imagination....~sinister laugh..minor chords on the sound track..."Bwahaha haha!"

[theunknown]

Sure, being short is great in that point of view. Not so good when you have to pull down the cable thingie to do cable flyes.

Though my calves are bigger since I have to jump really high to reach the pull up bar.

[burlemarx]

Originally Posted by theunknown

Sure, being short is great in that point of view. Not so good when you have to pull down the cable thingie to do cable flyes.

Though my calves are bigger since I have to jump really high to reach the pull up bar.

unf. all this talk about Muscle Shorties jumping to reach stuff. it's really turning me on

[theunknown]

don't know if I qualify as one, but I'm glad you're enjoying it.

[hulkoutlvr]

Short guys can really look like beasts, but I bet carrying all that muscle is hard on their frames.

[Doctor9]

Well....hard on their frames - not so much.

1) Shorter limbs, assuming standard muscle size, give more *bulge* for the same *amount* of muscle.
2) They tend to be stronger because with the exception of the ankle- the body joints are 3rd-class levers, which are more efficient the *shorter* they are....so being stronger is easy....
I think their frames will adapt, just like everyone elses

[bulkybud]

Originally Posted by theunknown

Sure, being short is great in that point of view. Not so good when you have to pull down the cable thingie to do cable flyes.

Being too tall can be worse.

This huge 6'5" gorilla I worked out with a couple of times said he couldn't fit in most lat - pull down machines and couldn't extend his arms fully even with the seat set at its lowest.

At least the machines can be adjusted for shorter folks.

bulkybud

[Mdlftr]

Originally Posted by bulkybud

Being too tall can be worse.

This huge 6'5" gorilla I worked out with a couple of times said he couldn't fit in most lat - pull down machines and couldn't extend his arms fully even with the seat set at its lowest.

At least the machines can be adjusted for shorter folks.

bulkybud

Agreed -- At 6'3", I find that I can hit my head on the lat bar if I stand up too quickly. The leverage on equipment like the preacher curl for my long arms isn't optimum, either! But, hey, you go with the body you've got -- and make it better!

[theunknown]

Sorry to hear that. I had no idea that at there were problems at those heights. I think there might be a work-around to the lat pull down machine problem. Preacher curl might be worked around by using an incline bench to replicate the angle of the machine but you would be limited to using dumbbells.

[bulkybud]

Originally Posted by theunknown

Sorry to hear that. I had no idea that at there were problems at those heights.

That was my point- being taller than normal has its problems too.

I'm about 6 foot tall and grew up with a younger brother who sprouted up to 6 foot 5 inches. While he was prized for his height in our high school basketball team I was also able to see the problems he had in regard to clothes, arranging a long enough bed to sleep on, finding automobiles he could fit in, etc.

My conclusion is I think you should find a way be comfortable at the height you are- with all of its benefits and deficits.

There are certainly some of each.

bulkybud.

[Mdlftr]

Originally Posted by bulkybud

That was my point- being taller than normal has its problems too.

I'm about 6 foot tall and grew up with a younger brother who sprouted up to 6 foot 5 inches. While he was prized for his height in our high school basketball team I was also able to see the problems he had in regard to clothes, arranging a long enough bed to sleep on, finding automobiles he could fit in, etc.

My conclusion is I think you should find a way be comfortable at the height you are- with all of its benefits and deficits.

There are certainly some of each.

bulkybud.

Excellent point, Bulkybud! Given that many of us on this forum may be discontented with our our body builds because we think we're not muscular enough -- show of hands -- o.k., put 'em down! --- It makes perfect sense to appreciate some of your physical characteristics which you cannot change - like height!

I wouldn't trade my height for anything. I wouldn't mind more muscle, so that's what I'm working on!

Mdlftr

[burlemarx]

Originally Posted by bulkybud

That was my point- being taller than normal has its problems too.

I'm about 6 foot tall and grew up with a younger brother who sprouted up to 6 foot 5 inches. While he was prized for his height in our high school basketball team I was also able to see the problems he had in regard to clothes, arranging a long enough bed to sleep on, finding automobiles he could fit in, etc.

My conclusion is I think you should find a way be comfortable at the height you are- with all of its benefits and deficits.

There are certainly some of each.

bulkybud.

a guy that i worked out once with a long time ago, who was a seasoned gym rat of ~25 years, said that tall guys actually have it the worst when it comes to bodybuilding. it's not just what i've already stated about how hard it is/how long it takes to gain noticeable muscle mass when you're taller than 5'10 or so. in addition to that, my Gym Rat Friend said that most machines at the gym -- Nautilus, Hammer, you name it -- are specifically designed for short people. more specifically, they are designed with the average combined height of men and women in mind -- which makes sense, because women are most likely to use machines than free weights. so if you think about it, these machines are designed for a genderless human of a height somewhere around 5'6 or 5'8.

anyway, the Gym Rat Friend's point was that these machines are not only not designed to accommodate very tall men (say, dudes in the 6'3 and above range), but they can actually be extremely dangerous for very tall men. as an example he cited cases where tall guys with proportionately long arms were constantly bashing their elbows against the support structure of Hammer bench machines, because the machines were designed with a shorter human (with short little arms) in mind. these injuries ranged from "ouch, my elbow" to really severe cases where... well, do the math. if you're benching 3 plates on each side and your elbow suddenly comes crashing into a steel support beam with all that weight.... yeah. not pretty.

[mikelmm22]

Hard to believe he is only 17 years old in the RxMuscle video. What does he look like now, at 23?

[GTlifter]

I guess because I find myself in the taller category and after reading some of the comments on here I definitely like the kid, I completely agree with burlemarx, super tanks are awesome.

I do agree it's easier for short guys to look bigger at lower weights (everyone packs on mass at varying rates) I mean it's why they have different categories at the Mr. Olympia.

I don't like some of the negativity I get from this topic on tall guys (me being 6'0 even) I guess I want to prove the average people wrong and be as big as the short guys on a taller frame. I think I have the genes and it always about consistency and hard work. It will be harder of course but I think of it in the same realm as if we are taller should we not able able to handle more weight on our frames. So it's always about pushing the limits. I look at the Ruhl, el Sonbaty and Kovacs and they being a taller bodybuilder is harder but definitely possible.

[bulkybud]

Originally Posted by GTlifter

I guess I want to prove the average people wrong and be as big as the short guys on a taller frame.

Go GTlifter! As a 6-footer myself, I like to think that I have more frame to build muscle on.

And if I have to build more muscle to fill out that frame than someone shorter, then let's do it!

I like to think that 5-foot, 6-foot, or more- work with what you have and make it look good.

bulkybud.