Tall people have it tough.

[Big Lench]

Ok. I've heard this being batted around quite a lot so i thought i would ask on here to see what everyone else thinks and if it is actually true or not.

Is it harder for tall people to build visible muscle?

Writing it that way doesn't explain it particularly well but its the best way i could think of. If a tall guy and a short guy (say 6'5" and 5'5") are both lifting the same weight on an exercise. will the short guy SHOW more muscle development?

It seems to me that he will because the tall guy has a larger area to fill with the muscle so it will be stretched out more and be less apparent, even if he is equally strong or stronger, than the shorter guy.

Or conversely because the taller guy has a larger ROM will he have to work harder? which in turn may build more muscle?

What do you think?

[dowdy16]

its all physics and levers, i dont think the shorter man will be able to develop more muscle, he'll just be able to shift the weight for more reps.

lets take the bench press as a nice example
the short man will no doubt have shorter arms and shorter levers, therefore he will move the weight a smaller distance upwards than the taller man with the longer arms.

Torque = force x distance

force is the weight on the bar and the distance is the distance from the shoulder to the elbow, or elbow to wrist, depending on which part of the movement you are focusing on (theree is a pretty decent explanation on wikipedia)

i am studying pharmacy at uni so i dont have a physics background, please feel free to correct any of this if its wrong

[Big Lench]

Yeah i don't think the short guy would develop more muscle what i mean is it would be more visible in the kind of bodybuilding aesthetic way. Assuming they both develop the same amount of muscle but on the shorter guy the muscle only has a smaller area to cover so it would bunch up more so to speak than it would on the tall guy.

Take an elastic band as an example of the muscle. For the tall guy the 'band' is stretched out more so it becomes thinner but for the shorter guy it isn't as stretched so it is thicker. So say on a bicep it would bulge more on the shorter guy and look better than on the tall guy.

As for it being harder for tall people to lift the same weight i think it is Work = Force x distance. The force (weight your lifting) is the same for both guys but the distance is greater for the tall guy because of his longer limbs so therefore he has to do more work.

Would having to do more work build more muscle though? or is it doing more work to build the same amount of muscle as the small guy?

[MJ.23]

Quote

its all physics and levers, i dont think the shorter man will be able to develop more muscle, he'll just be able to shift the weight for more reps.

lets take the bench press as a nice example
the short man will no doubt have shorter arms and shorter levers, therefore he will move the weight a smaller distance upwards than the taller man with the longer arms.

Torque = force x distance

force is the weight on the bar and the distance is the distance from the shoulder to the elbow, or elbow to wrist, depending on which part of the movement you are focusing on (theree is a pretty decent explanation on wikipedia)

i am studying pharmacy at uni so i dont have a physics background, please feel free to correct any of this if its wrong

Torque by definition is a measure of the tendancy of a force to cause a rotation on the body on which it acts. It is an axial vector and holds no real physical entity.

A better way to view this problem is through static equilibrium. For an object to be in static equilbrium the sum of the external forces and the sum of the external torques must be zero.

I just drew up a quick model of the human arm. I modelled it with these dimensions:

Weight in hand = 5kg

Forearm length = 30cm with a mass of 1kg (No idea as to the mass of a forearm!)

The bicep is exerting an upwards force 0.034m from the pivot axis (i.e the upper arm) I measured my arm for an estimate here.

Through some boring maths I calculate the bicep muscle will be pulling up with a force of 563N. (This is actually quite interesting; the muscle has to exert a force 9 times greater than the weight of the object; just to hold it up!)

Now if we extend these dimensions for a taller person:

Forearm length = 40cm (mass = 4/3 kg)

Same distance for bicep pivot axis, and same mass of object. This leads to an upwards force of 769N.

So when doing a curl a taller person (Assuming a taller person will have a longer forearm) will have to exert a lot more force than the person with the shorter forearm.

These dimensions may be wildly incorrect but it's the proof of concept. A taller person will burn a lot more calories exercising than a shorter person will (Assuming they follow the same routine, along with the same mass being moved)

Using the work kinetic energy theorem, W = change in kinetic energy. This means a greater kinetic energy for the taller person and we can then link this to the 1st and 2nd laws of thermodynamics for conservation of energy through calorie intake.

This is a very idealised situation and does not take into account the individuals' metabolism or any other leverage points.

It breaks down to this.:

Taller people = greater need for calories compared to a shorter person.

Thing is, it is all relative. A 7ft man may need 6000 kcal's a day to gain muscle and a 5ft5 guy just 2500 kcal's. Their metabolisms will usually cater for this, and there is simply no excuse for taller people to make as to gaining muscle. You just need to eat more. There is nothing holding you back from being as big as you wish. It comes down to the calorie figures I listed above.

It is easier for a shorter guy to be in a calorie surplus; than it is for a taller guy. It takes a long time to consume 6000 calories and most are probably not hitting their required amounts for the day.

If you look at the strongest men in the world; they are all very tall and extremely heavy and big. Steroid use aside these are examples of what to do. They consume ridiculous amounts of calories a day to fuel their training. Big Z is 6ft4 and 170kg. Obviously this is not hypertrophy we are talking here;but if he managed his calories more and restricted his diet, he could slim down into bodybuilding territory if he wished.

A tall man will burn off more calories and will require more calories (just through size alone) to just meet maintenance than the shorter guy will.

Bit of a muddled post but I hope it answers something!

[MiniHulk]

In my experience, it is a lot easier for taller people to damage their backs and knees. I am short and get away with some sloppy movements that my friends have been punished with. I am not saying it's writ in stone though, but I am glad that I am short. Also, deadlifts are easier because I don't have to lift it so far off the ground as most people lmao.

[dowdy16]

thanks for the proof MJ, thats what i was trying to demonstrate with my limited knowledge. As you said, the maths may be a little out and its relying on ideal variables etc etc but it prove the theory.

To minihulk, i kind of know what you mean about taller people getting injured more, not sure why though???

[Big Lench]

I suppose with taller people its the extra size and weight that puts extra stress on the joints and tissues etc and also the increased forces that muscles have to apply to weights as MJ proved. And that is obviously going to have an effect over time or in heavy weight bearing scenarios when the much larger forces have a greater potential to cause injury.

But back onto the other topic. So is it actually easier for a small guy to get a six pack or bigger biceps etc than a tall guy?

[MJ.23]

Quote

I suppose with taller people its the extra size and weight that puts extra stress on the joints and tissues etc and also the increased forces that muscles have to apply to weights as MJ proved. And that is obviously going to have an effect over time or in heavy weight bearing scenarios when the much larger forces have a greater potential to cause injury.

But back onto the other topic. So is it actually easier for a small guy to get a six pack or bigger biceps etc than a tall guy?

It depends on how you classify "easy." Both a tall person and a small person can gain muscle at the same rate; if they have optimised their training and their diet (relative to their specific needs)

What makes it more difficult for a taller person is the extra calories they need to consume. It is the same for a "hard gainer." Imo there is no such thing as a hard gainer. People use this as an excuse to not gaining mass; but all they need to do is eat more. Their bodies will not find it harder to gain muscle compared to anyone elses' its just that they have a very fast metabolism. I think the name should be changed to a " I need to eat more-er."

In terms of muscle gaining and training (Imo), no, a shorter guy will not see results faster than the taller guy. At the end of the day, the only difference between a tall guy and a short guy is scale. You are still the same species and thereby conform to the same natural laws.

[MiniHulk]

Quote

It depends on how you classify "easy." Both a tall person and a small person can gain muscle at the same rate; if they have optimised their training and their diet (relative to their specific needs)

What makes it more difficult for a taller person is the extra calories they need to consume. It is the same for a "hard gainer." Imo there is no such thing as a hard gainer. People use this as an excuse to not gaining mass; but all they need to do is eat more. Their bodies will not find it harder to gain muscle compared to anyone elses' its just that they have a very fast metabolism. I think the name should be changed to a " I need to eat more-er."

In terms of muscle gaining and training (Imo), no, a shorter guy will not see results faster than the taller guy. At the end of the day, the only difference between a tall guy and a short guy is scale. You are still the same species and thereby conform to the same natural laws.

That's actually a valid point and probably answers the question... A taller person needs more calories to keep their muscles growing and to stop them breaking down - which would mean that it is harder so to speak.

[Big Lench]

And more expensive. Good quality food costs an absolute wedge of money, especially when you need a lot of it.