What is Your Body Type?
It doesn't take that long to join a gym, you should have good technique nailed in a few sessions and you may even start to see some changes within a month. But it takes much longer to learn what works for you. What are the little idiosyncrasies that your body throws upon you? How long do you take to recover after a session? Why are other people lifting more than you? How are others losing more weight? Looking and feeling fitter?
We’ve prepared a body type nutrition and training guide to help you find your body type and train with it.
A Combination of Body Types
It's important to remember that these body types aren’t finite and most people will have a combination of two of the body types. For example, a person is classed as an ectomorph if ectomorph traits dominates over mesomorph in their body build.
1. Ectomorph
It is too simplistic to say that an ectomorph is a 'typical skinny guy', as an ectomorph with high body fat is still an ectomorph - just an overweight one. However, they typically have a light build with small joints and long limbs. A thin face with high forehead and receding chin coupled with narrow shoulders and chest are classic signifiers.
Features:
- Thin, with a 'delicate' frame and bone structure
- Find it hard to gain weight
- Naturally flat chested
- Faster than average metabolism at rest
- Lean Muscle Mass
If you're an ectomorph:
You may find it hard to make gains when trying to put on size. Your fast metabolism burns up calories very quickly, so having enough excess calories in your diet to create new muscle is going to be tough - tough, but still achievable. You should keep your workouts short, intense and focused on the large muscle groups in the legs, back and chest. Ectomorphs may find it best to eat before bed to prevent muscle catabolism as they sleep. Generally, ectomorphs have an advantage when wanting to look leaner as they can lose fat more easily.
2. Mesomorph
A mesomorph is a natural bodybuilder. They couple a large bone structure with big muscles in a naturally athletic physique. Because of their physical characteristics, mesomorphs are naturally strong and they also find it quite easy to manipulate their weight.
Features:
- Athletic build
- Generally a 'hard' body, with well-defined muscles
- Rectangular shaped body with broad shoulders
- Adds muscle easily
- Can gain body fat fairly easily than ectomorphs
If you're a mesomorph:
You'll respond well to weight training and if you have these characteristics you will see gains very quickly, especially if it is your first time following a tougher routine. The downside to being a mesomorph is they gain fat quicker than ectomorphs, so a combination of weight training and cardio sessions can be productive.
3. Endomorph
This is the final body type classification and it describes people who are solid, but generally soft. Endomorphs tend to be short with thick arms and legs, while they have strong muscles - particularly quads and hamstrings.
Features:
- Round body shape, with stocky build
- Gains both muscle and fat very easily
- Slow metabolism at rest and finds it hard to lose fat
- Muscles not naturally defined
If you're an endomorph:
You will find that it is easy to build muscle, but hard to make lean gains. To keep fat levels to a minimum, you should ensure you get a high proportion of your calories from protein and supplement weight session with cardio. Endomorphs often find that they are naturally efficient at compound leg exercises like the squat.
4. Don't forget
Body type nutrition and training plans are a great way to guide your training and help you stick to a schedule. Maximuscle have beginners and intermediate training plans created by our experts that are tailored to your goal. Print these off or take them to the gym on your smart phone to follow and push you to your limits.
Stay well hydrated during your training sessions, preferably using water during shorter intensive sessions and an isotonic drink for sessions lasting over an hour (to replace lost electrolytes primarily salt, that have been sweated out).
