Life With a Rare Condition: Living With Achondroplasia Dwarfism

Medically Reviewed by Brunilda Nazario, MD on December 30, 2025
5 min read

By Allison Warrell, as told to Sarah Amandolare

I was born with achondroplasia, but I never see myself being different. My entire family is all average height. As I tell my sister, I was the lucky one that got the genetic mutation. 

When I’m in public, I just kind of go with it. My mom raised me to let me be me, letting me figure out if I could do certain things or not because of my size. She didn’t restrict me from things. I am a big advocate of that, because the world we live in? It’s not built for someone my size. But it’s how we adapt to it that matters. 

In 2011, I was 35 years old. I was feeling really good. I didn’t have any of the neurological or bone issues typical with achondroplasia dwarfism. But I had a lot of extra weight on my frame. So, I joined the gym. 

My whole goal was to just lose weight. I went into the gym not really knowing anything. Over time, I started working with a personal trainer and learned how to adapt and modify gym equipment for someone my size (because gym equipment isn't made for someone 3 feet, 11 inches tall). I started seeing my body change. 

 

 

I like to challenge myself. So, in 2014, I made the commitment: I wanted to compete in women’s bodybuilding and see where it took me. I knew that I needed to change my diet. I gave up drinking alcohol and just started living the lifestyle. 

It took me one year to get into stage bodybuilding shape. I did my first show in April of 2015 and basically fell in love with everything during the process. I was still feeling super healthy, still not having any symptoms, and just kept going. Between April 2015 and September 2022, I did 10 shows. 

 

I’m very, very regimented when I’m in prep for bodybuilding events. And it does take a little bit longer for me to prep versus a normal, average-size person. I feel like I have to work twice as hard for some things. But I love everything about it. 

When I’m on the stairs or the elliptical, my stride isn’t what an average-sized person’s is. Two of my strides are one of everybody else’s. So, from a cardio standpoint, I have to do a little bit more. Where some people can do 20 minutes, it takes me longer to get my heart rate up to that fat-burning level. 

I don’t fit properly in a leg-extension machine, either. For my modification, I use a cable machine. I sit in a kid’s chair to get full range of motion on a leg extension. I had a friend make me custom cable attachments for my grip. I also had a custom barbell made that holds regular plates, but the grip is smaller for my hands. 

It’s really about understanding the purpose of the exercise, but also the mechanics of our bodies because we do move a little bit differently. When I speak to other little people or talk at conventions about the mechanics of everything, people’s eyes light up. They’re like, “I never thought of it that way.”

 

As people were watching me lose weight, they started asking me, “How are you using gym equipment?”

It was late 2014 when I decided to create a group on Facebook called H.E.L.P. — Health & Exercise for Little People — to basically show all of the modifications I do for all kinds of exercises. I got a new coach in 2018, and he took my modifications and training to the next level. In the meantime, I also started training other little people. 

I had a two-part series on TLC where I worked with two little people with obesity for nine months. I worked with them to lose weight, get them motivated, and live a healthier lifestyle. In the end, the contestants both were able to do what they wanted. They set these goals, and to see them achieve those? It was like the best thing ever because I knew that I had an impact on them. 

I’ve been very fortunate. That’s why I’m always doing workshops at our national conventions and our regionals. I do a lot of public speaking. I work for Kroger Foods once a year at their wellness festival. They want me to show others — regardless of your size, shape, or whatever you may be — that anybody can do this type of workout. I teach workouts to the public, and that I’ve done for seven years now. 

Right now, I’m not competing, but I am training and living the lifestyle. That’s just something that I’ve adopted over the years. I haven’t said, “I’m done,” but I’ve just needed to take the last couple of years off, just to kind of enjoy life a little bit. I want to try and make other people happy. I don’t like to be down and I don’t like to be sad. I wake up, I’m happy, I do my thing, and I want my positive energy to feed off onto others. 

My mantra is, “We all have challenges in life, and mine is just something physical.” It’s how I adapt and overcome it that matters. I always go back to my “why”: Why did I start this? Why do I do this? And it’s because I’m trying to avoid complications like stenosis, having to get my back fused, having to do any type of surgery. The only types of surgery I’ve ever had as an achondroplastic dwarf are tubes and adenoids, which is super rare, especially at almost 50 years old. 

I’ve been able to maintain my weight, but also built a lot of muscle over the last 14 years. I feel the muscle has helped strengthen my bones and my nerves to not have any of the symptoms or issues that are typical with achondroplasia dwarfism. 

Come January, I’ll be turning 50. I’m still symptom free.