Know Your Body Type: Ectomorph, Mesomorph, Endomorph

When consulting with a client regarding weight loss/weight gain, cardio, nutrition, etc., the first thing I make sure to say is "do what works for you." If there were one magical solution to any of these desired outcomes, everyone would use the same method. Unfortunately, it does not work that way. One minute we may be told to eat 3 square meals a day. The next minute we are told to eat 5-6 small meals every few hours. The truth is, everyone will respond differently to these methods.

If I have a client who is successful at losing weight by eating 3 meals a day, then I will tell them if it is working, why switch to 5-6 small frequent meals? This is just one example, and the actual bigger picture is that you need to know your body, and your body type. When trying to reach your goals, it is imperative that you learn your body and what works and does not work. Getting dialed in with ones body is a science. People have different metabolisms, genetics, hereditary factors, etc., that will provide varying degrees of success with different methods. You could look at two people who are seemingly identical in appearance, i.e. weight, height, age, etc., but if they utilized the exact same fitness and nutrition plans, they may have completely different results. This shows us that each person is unique, and has a body with inner workings that are specific to that individual.

A very effective method in helping to reach your fitness and nutrition goals is to understand what general category you fall under in terms of body type. Lets discuss the ectomorph first. The ectomorph is characterized as a lean individual with very little body fat. They usually have longer limbs with a smaller torso and smaller overall frame. The ectomorph is blessed with the metabolism of machine, as I like to say, and they can pretty much eat anything in site without fear of gaining unwanted weight and very little fat. I fall into this category. Sure, most people on the other end of the spectrum (who have a very hard time losing weight/fat) don't want to hear me complain about being an ectomorph, and for good reason. What is not understood though, is that I have to work extremely hard to put muscle on, and keep it. If I do not eat excessive calories consistently, I am in danger of burning muscle for fuel, since my body has very little stored fat and sugar that can be used for energy. So even though my goals are vastly different from an overweight individual, the overall theme of having to work equally as hard to achieve my goals remains the same!

Now lets discuss the mesomorph. Mesomorphs are usually the envied ones. This is because mesomorphs have the best of both worlds! They can put muscle on and gain weight fairly easily, but have a fast enough metabolism that they are not in much danger of putting on fat easily. If they do put on some extra fat while gaining muscle, they can usually burn it off pretty easily. Mesomorphs are the lucky ones in this regard, and I do not have much else to say about them!

Last but not least, the endomorph. The endomorph is usually characterized by a larger frame, a slow metabolism, and can usually withstand a long workout because of having plenty of energy stored in their body by way of glycogen and fat. Endomorphs usually have to do a lot of cardio, eat very strictly, and burn a lot of calories daily in order to lose unwanted weight and keep it off. Of course, it is not cut and dry with the 3 body types, and you can have an ecto-meso, or a meso-endo for example. Now that we have discussed the 3 body types, lets recap:

Ectomorph-

• fastest metabolism of the three
• little body fat
• known as the "hardgainer" in terms of muscle building
• can eat pretty much anything and not gain any weight
• characterized by a smaller frame with longer limbs

Mesomorph-

• "best of both worlds" in terms of muscle building and fat loss
• has a considerable amount of muscle, and can burn fat fairly easily

Endomorph-

• Slowest metabolism of the three
• has to work hard to burn fat and lose weight
• characterized by the largest frame of the three

After reading about the 3 body types and looking at the bullet points, you may find yourself clearly falling into one of these three categories, or you may be a mix of 2. The main thing to take away from all of this is to be in tune with your body. Learn what works for you and what doesn't. Do not worry about what someone else is doing, because even if your goals are the same,  their methods in reaching the goals may not work for you! Reaching your goals is about dedication, determination, and desire, but it is also a science that requires trial and error. If you implement a new strategy to reach your goals, i.e. more cardio, less calories, different foods, etc., don't give up on the method if it isn't working after one week! Give your "experiment" a month to yield positive results, and if at that time you are unhappy with your progress, then you can go back to the drawing board and move on to something new. Good luck on your journey, and stay tuned for my next post where I discuss fitness and nutrition techniques that have shown to be effective based on body type!