Have you ever wondered why you gain weight even without trying ? Or have you ever wondered why you eat so much and yet you don’t put on any weight? If any of these thoughts have crossed your mind then you also might have considered how to regulate your diet to gain or loose weight. The first step would be to find out what your body type is.
Fitness and nutrition are always evolving. New diets are introduced, new workout routines become popular, and new research tells us what’s “in” this week and what’s “out.” Still, there’s one thing that doesn’t change: There is no one-size-fits-all approach to weight loss or weight gain. We’re all different—and you might be surprised by how much your unique body type influences the best ways for you to lose or gain weight. If you want to lose or gain weight successfully, the most important thing you can do is figure out your body type. Once you know which body type is yours, it becomes easier to find a diet and exercise plan that works for you.
Let’s take a closer look at what “body type” is:
What Is Body Type(Somatotype)?
Somatotype otherwise known as body type refers to the belief that humans are born with one of three generic bodily compositions: ectomorph, mesomorph, and endomorph
Dr. W.H. Sheldon first proposed the idea in the early 1940s.
He chose the names because he believed the dominant traits of each somatotype were fixed, resulting from pre-birth preferential development of either the endodermal, mesodermal, or ectodermal embryonic layers (of which the names were chosen). And it was theorized that these body types directly influenced a person’s personality. (Intriguing huh ? )
It was once thought that a person’s somatotype could not be changed and that some physiological and psychological features were even dictated by which one a person aligned with. [Really ?? So this would mean there’s fat people logic and slim people logic –Lol-]
According to Sheldon, endomorphs are always rounded and soft, while mesomorphs are always square and muscular, and ectomorphs are always slim and fine-boned. [At least each category has something to be proud of. Non compares to fine boned].
The 21st Century View
Body type is a spectrum. Your body type is determined by the amount of muscle and fat you have, as well as the type and distribution of your bone structure.
While the concept of a predetermined body composition may seem absurd in the twenty-first century, physiological markers and observations associated with each somatotype do exist.
However, modern understanding differs from Sheldon’s original concept in that our physiological characteristics determine our current somatotype, rather than the somatotype determining our collective physiologic.
Phew! That felt like so much science talk. If I didn’t bore you away, let’s see how you can identify your body type.
Identify your body type from the three Somatotype
1. Ectomorphs.
They also have a small bone structure with less muscle mass. The good news is that ectomorphs can eat almost anything and still stay slim because their bodies don’t store fat very well. They also tend to be very active and athletic.
They can be more at risk for developing eating disorders because they have less fat on their bodies compared to other people.
2. Endomorphs.
Endomorphs are often heavier than other types of body types, but it’s more because of their bone structure than just being overweight due to eating too much or exercising too little. They have rounder or full faces along with softer curves in their hips and thighs. Their skin tends to be oily as well as their hair thickens more easily than ectomorphs or mesomorphs. Endomorphs tend to gain weight very easily due to having more subcutaneous fat (fat beneath the skin) than the other two types.
3. Mesomorphs
A person with a mesomorphic body shape has a medium frame and muscular build. The ratio between muscle and fat is fairly equal, which means they have good muscle definition.
Ectomorph: Diet and Exercise
You should consume a lot– like a lot of calories, carbs, and protein. Ectomorphs are naturally thin, so focus on eating more calories and carbs if you identify as an ectomorph. You need to eat every two hours to keep your metabolism up. Eating five small meals a day will help you feel full and avoid bingeing later in the day.
Focus on weight training and cardio. The ectomorphic body type has fast-twitch muscle fibres that can be built up with strength training, which will also help you gain weight (if that’s what you want). Your workouts should include both heavy lifting and cardiovascular exercise such as running or cycling for 30 minutes at least three times a week.
Avoid crash diets or fad diets! You’re naturally thin; don’t try to lose weight by starving yourself because your body needs nutrients to function properly!
Endomorph: Diet and Exercise
Endomorphs tend to gain weight easily and have more body fat than other body types and should be cautious with their diet. It is important to keep track of the amount of calories consumed on a daily basis. A good way to do this is by weighing food before preparing a meal or snack. You can also use an app like MyFitnessPal to track your food intake throughout the day and make sure you’re not going over your daily calorie limit. Some may even consider eliminating carbs from their diets.
Endomorphs who want to loose weight should also consider crash dieting.
A crash diet requires you to drastically reduce your calorie intake, sometimes by eliminating entire food groups or eating only one thing.
When it comes to time for exercise, endomorphs may want to choose low-intensity cardio exercises such as walking or jogging for better results that aren’t too strenuous on the joints and muscles (and thus harder on energy levels).
Endomorph bodies will benefit from consistent anaerobic and aerobic training to improve their metabolic efficiency and increase their daily energy requirements.
Be sure you find something that works for you!
Mesomorph: Diet and Exercise
If you have a mesomorphic body type, you’re in luck. You can pretty much eat whatever you want and not gain weight. So focus on building muscle mass. Strength training is important for mesomorphs because it helps them build muscle quickly—the more muscle mass you have, the higher your metabolism will be and the more calories you’ll burn throughout the day.
If weight training isn’t for you, cardio is also a good option for burning calories and increasing your metabolism. Running or cycling are good options if they’re something that interests you; if not, try swimming laps! Just make sure to stay active so that those muscles stay strong and lean! And there’s also the extra benefits of exercising
Protein is important too—you should aim for 1 gram per pound of body weight per day (so if you weigh 150 pounds then aim for 150 grams of protein per day).
With all that has been said so far keep in mind that;
Only in rare cases do one exists solely within one somatotype, instead, we are all constantly in flux and fall uniquely on a spectrum somewhere between two or sometimes all three. So your body type is not a sentence for life.
Summarising
We are all unique individuals, and what works for one person may not work for another. By aligning your diet and exercise habits to your body type, you can ensure that you are giving yourself the best chance of success in terms of gaining/losing weight or maintaining a healthy weight.
If you’re an ectomorph:
Focus on developing strength and muscle mass.
Eat 3-4 meals per day, spaced out every 2-3 hours. Each meal should contain protein (40-50g), carbs (60-80g), and fat(20-30g) in order to fuel muscle growth.
Include some low-intensity cardio at least once per week in order to keep the heart healthy without burning too many calories or putting stress on joints that aren’t conditioned properly by prior strength training experience yet.
If you’re a mesomorph:
Focus on building strength while maintaining overall leanness with regular cardio sessions 3 times per week at moderate intensity levels, this will help keep your metabolism high even as more calories from food are consumed daily so no excess fat gain occurs over time when following high carb diets necessary for fuelling muscle growth during workouts each session!
If you’re an Endomorph,
Focus on significantly increasing calorie burn and boosting your metabolism by involving in high intensity metabolic training techniques.
I.e Exercises with little or no rest in between seeking to improve metabolic rate and calorie burn during and after workout.
reduce your carb intake if your looking to shed some pounds and eat fruits/foods that will boost your metabolism.
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This is awesome. Such a great post with good info. I think people forget that exercise and diet is different for each body.