30 Seconds Summary
What are the biggest and smallest muscles in the body?

  • Research on muscle volume was primarily based on cadaver studies and untrained individuals to avoid bias from training.
  • Muscle size comparisons are similar across genders; differences in lower body appearance are mostly due to fat distribution rather than muscle size.
  • The largest muscle group in both genders is the quads, significantly more voluminous than the gluteus maximus.
  • The next largest muscles are the gluteus maximus and calves, with calves potentially appearing larger due to constant use in daily activities.
  • Including the glute medius and minimus, the combined gluteal muscles are larger than the calves, ranking overall second behind the quads.
  • Upper body muscles are considerably smaller than lower body muscles, with the delts being the largest and the biceps being the smallest among them.
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