A man with "real life Popeye arms" has claimed that he works hard to maintain his 31 inch arms; eating nine pounds of carbohydrates, seven pounds of protein, and drinks three gallons of water every day. Moustafa Ismail, a Massachusetts bodybuilder, has denied that his arms are the result of steroids or some other illegal substance, but many remain unconvinced and have accused him of using steroids to achieve his biceps, which have been described as "real life Popeye arms."
The 24 year old bodybuilder, originally from Egypt, has claimed that he began his intensive weight-lifting regimen when someone at his uncle's wedding poked fun at his overweight body. He was so offended that he decided to do something about it, and has worked ever since at trying to develop the largest biceps on the planet.
Despite many affectionately referring to Popeye, the cartoon character with over-large biceps, when speaking about Ismail, he himself has said that he does not care much for spinach. He has said, "They call me Popeye, the Egyptian Popeye. I like chicken, beef, anything but spinach," according to Boston Herald.
The bodybuilder has said that he eats massive amounts of seafood, poultry and protein shakes to provide him with the fuel to participate in two hour workouts every single day. He has been rumored to be able to lift up to 600 pounds in weights.
He has admitted that he takes vitamin and mineral supplements but has adamantly denied any suggestions he has used steroids or other such drugs to gain his biceps. One of his main problems in every day life is trying to find shirts that can fit over his massive arms. The rest of his body is relatively normal and in proportion, and it is just his arms that are so huge, which has caused a problem in finding clothes that can accommodate him.
He has been recognized by the Guinness Book of Records as having the largest upper arm muscles in the world, which has brought him huge amounts of publicity – not all of which has been pleasant. He acknowledges that he has lost sleep at times over some of the negativity, but ultimately he has said that the criticism "is motivation for me - it's not something that's gonna put me down. The "real life Popeye" moved to the United States in 2007, residing in the Franklin, Boston area.
