How Did Kumail Nanjiani Get So Big?

More jacked than Jackman — is Kumail on steroids?

Kumail Nanjoani is the perfect example of somebody completely transforming their body over a short time.

It’s probably steroids. But hey, Kumail still put in the work.

Wait, where’s my evidence about the steroid? Well, it’s circumstantial. Until a Hollywood star comes out and says, I am also using “this drug” to enhance my physique — it’s all speculation.

What is the likelihood of Kumail being on Steroids?

Very high. I estimate it to be a 99.9% chance.

The complete transformation of his body in such a small timeframe and at an age well past the peak age for producing testosterone is a tell-tale sign.

This article explores Kumail’s body changes since 2019 and talks about his possible steroid use.

I should mention that Kumail isn’t playing Wolverine or the Hulk in any movies. Yet.

Who is Kumail?

As somebody with essentially zero interest in movies, especially anything with superheroes in it, I didn’t know who he was until photos of his transformation appeared in internet content.

The 43-year-old Pakistani-American is a comedian, actor, screenwriter, and podcaster. According to Wikipedia, Kumail is primarily known for his role as Dinesh in the comedy series Silicon Valley.

He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for co-writing The Big Sick in 2017.

In 2018, he was named one of the 100 most influential people globally by Time magazine.

I guess he’s a big deal.

The first transformation

Kumail’s transformation is pretty impressive.

Going from a skinny and almost nerdy-looking guy, Kumail bulked up to film his role in the Marvel film Eternals in 2019, a movie about an immortal alien race.

His new physique gained much attention, especially after the Men’s Health article.

He was called out by many on social media for using steroids due to how quickly he built so much muscle.

Some pulled the race card, saying people were only calling him out because of his race. Which is ridiculous; it was a miraculous transformation regardless.

Kumail’s latest physique: Looking juicy

Kumail was busy during quarantine!

Photos appeared in the media of Kumail exiting the gym, looking like he wouldn’t be out of place on a bodybuilding stage.

Kumail has notability put on more size and is still lean, veins popping out of his arm.

Cast in an upcoming Star Wars miniseries focused on Obi-Wan Kenobi, Kumail takes his physique to the next level.

Why Kumail is probably on Steroids or other PEDs

Just look at him!

I’ve written articles about Chris Hemsworth and The Rock and talked about their possible use of PEDs/steroids, and there is always somebody in the comments who claim they’re “natural” and it’s gifted genetics and training hard.

Even if these actors are well past their peak for naturally building muscle or a very short time frame, fans still want to believe.

In Kumail’s case, both of these are relevant. He’s now in his 40s and well past peak testosterone of the mid-20s, correlated to our muscle-building potential.

In the first full year of serious lifting, a natural can gain 2–5 kg of muscle.

In an article in Muscle and Fitness, Celebrity trainer Grant Roberts says when Kumail came to him, “He was about 150 pounds and doughy….”

According to the article, Nanjiani weighed around 175 pounds and lowered his body fat percentage from 20% to 10% after ten months. An increase of 25 pounds.

Because Kumail lost body fat, we have to assume that he replaced weight with muscle mass. 10% of 175 is 17 pounds. Added to the 25, it is 42 pounds of muscle! In ten months! 19 kg!!

Even if he was using numerous steroids, this number seems ridiculous! Why are these articles so bullshit?

I talked about this in my Chris Hemsworth article — if we lose fat but gain weight, the weight comes from muscle.

Even if we forget the numbers and use the eye test used in sports to measure a player’s ability by watching the difference they make to the game instead of statistics, Kumail does look far different between the recent shots and the initial transformation. The change is not indicative of a year or two of natural progression.

In the space of 2–3 years, he went from a skinny fat guy with a “dad bod” to one of the most impressively muscular physiques in Hollywood.

Between the photoshoot of the original photo transformation and his recent shots, there seem to be notable changes in his face and jawline, which could be indicative of Human growth hormone (HGH).

The androgynous nature of drugs like HGH can change how someone looks, such as jawline can become more developed and accentuated.

Kumail’s face still looked very similar in that shoot, but now it’s starting to resemble the incredible hulk.

Some of the difference is probably due to conditioning. Kumail would have prepared for weeks in advance of the shoot to become so lean and dehydrated that all his veins are popping out for the shoot.

Now he looks fuller, and some of that will be due to holding more water.

The Rob McElhenney Interview

Star of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia Rob McEhlenny, transformed his body to ripped after reportedly gaining 60 pounds of fat.

Watch the video below to see an interview where Rob seems to imply steroid use. Or at least, Hormone replacement therapy (HRT).

At 1:55, Rob mentions going to a physician three times a week to get testosterone levels checked. Because it is important…

It’s only important if you’re getting prescribed HRT or want to be prescribed HRT for low testosterone.

At 3:15, Rob talks about Kumail after reading a tweet, calling them both out for using steroids.

Rob says:

“I’m not going to get into the science. Some men just have elevated levels of testosterone. If you look at Kumail, and if you look at me…

You’d be like, well sure, those two guys must have elevated levels of testosterone naturally. because we are just alpha dog monsters.

And I talk about it with Kumail all the time, we’re just very masculine men…”

Obviously, both guys don’t have great genetics for building muscle.

Rob’s statement is very tongue-in-cheek and sarcastic. It very much does seem like Rob is implying their HRT use without actually admitting it.

Nanjiani’s article in Men’s Health — the typical rubbish

I also want to touch on Kumail's article in Men’s Health. I used to read Men’s Health and take the content seriously. It seemed reputable.

Now I know better. But, a lot of people won’t.

Men’s Health often does articles about Hollywood stars and their transformation workouts and diet. They spread rubbish.

They use ridiculous language like “swole” and other things 19-year-old gym bros say.

There are always some wacky exercises or gimmicks to make the article more interesting. As far as they’re concerned, if you can make money with some product endorsement, great!

Kumail first appeared in Men’s Health in March 2020, when he introduced his new buff physique to the world.

April of this year saw a follow-up article called Kumail Nanjiani Is Still Absolutely Swole. It provides some ridiculous advice. I guess at least they’re consistent?

The article talks about how Kumail came close to vomiting and adopted a new mindset to “chase the pain”…

I’m telling you now; that you should never have to throw up in the gym.

Men’s Health says ridiculous things like this to get more people interested in reading the article.

Furthermore, the article talks about Kumail using electric muscle stimulation techniques (EMS) to “try to eke more gains out of his workouts”.

The article gives the perception that electric stimulation is a legitimate technique for building muscle. However, there is no evidence-based science behind EMS significantly stimulating muscle growth or enhancing recovery.

There is some evidence to suggest EMS can aid sick and injured people who cannot overload their muscles with traditional weight lifting. But that’s not the application here. It’s ultimately a gimmick.

This links to yet another Men’s Health article showing how to train like Kumail. The problem with articles like this is that there’s no transparency about the “supplements” (steroids) used, which play a massive role in the physique transformation.

Instead of gaining 1–3 kg of muscle in a year, people on certain PEDs can pack on 10 kg or more.

People new to fitness who don’t know better think you work out like Kumail and a year later completely transform your physique as he has.

They don’t know it’s the steroids. That’s a whole kettle of fish.

In Conclusion

There is a very high likelihood Kumail is using steroids or at least HRT or other PEDs.

That’s fine. It’s Kumail’s life choice, and it’s not uncommon for Hollywood stars to do this for roles. It’s their job.

However, if he starts a supplement line and starts selling that and not talking about the steroids he also uses, that becomes a problem.

Such as Chris Hemsworth‘s app where people pay for nutrition and training advice. Not also mentioning the significant part steroids play in obtaining that physique is unethical in this context.

This article has shown how Kumail has gained a lot of muscle in a short couple of years. Regardless of what he is or is not using, you have to admire his hard work and newfound passion for fitness at 40-something years old.

Thank you for reading.

If you enjoyed the content, you might be interested in this similar read about Chris Hemsworth.

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