Getting acquainted with body types

Have you ever experienced that you might be working so hard, eating negligibly yet not be able to shed a kilo from your body? Or just simply revert to the original weight with some cheat days. Similarly, have you seen people eating everything yet not gaining an ounce? Well, in that case, your current body type can be given some credit. Find out your body type – are you an ectomorph, endomorph, or mesomorph? What is an endomorph, ectomorph, or mesomorph body type?

Body Type – Endomorph, Mesomorph, Ectomorph

It is also referred to as Somatotype. There are three existing types, namely ectomorph, mesomorph, and endomorph body types.

Initially, it was believed that the somatotype defines our physiologies and hence the names were coined as the preferential differentiation of layers of the embryo before birth i.e. mesoderm, ectoderm, and endoderm.

Although today in the 21st century, it is known that the real credit holders are our physiologies, opportunities, lifestyle, and dietary habits that define our current body type and not the other way round.

Characteristic features of body types – endomorph, mesomorph, ectomorph

Endomorph Body Type – 

• Rounded and soft body.
• Heavy bone structure with larger hips and midsection.
• Gain weight easily and have difficulty shedding it.
• Naturally slow metabolism.
• Preference for a sedentary lifestyle.
• Fat distribution throughout the body.

Mesomorph Body Type –

• Muscular and square body.
• Bone structure is medium with shoulders comparatively wider than hips.
• They have good control over metabolism.
• Tend to both gain and lose weight easily.

Ectomorph Body Type –

• Thin people with fine bones.
• Shoulders are narrower than the hips.
• Low muscle mass of lean body mass.
• Very fast metabolism owing to the difficulty in gaining weight
• Disturbed eating habits of having disorders like anorexia nervosa.
• BMI is less than 17.

In order to live a healthy, balanced life, everyone’s goal should be to divert their body type more towards mesomorphs.

How to change your body type?

Endomorphs –

Most important for endomorphs is to reduce their excess weight above ideal body weight and increase their metabolism naturally.

Endomorphs should be on a slightly negative energy balance in order to reduce the calories in a diet that is hypo-calorie accompanied by high protein to maintain lean body mass.

Endomorphs should practice both aerobic and anaerobic workouts along with resistance exercises to shed weight. Most importantly, they should learn to have a less sedentary life apart from workout time as well. 

Endomorphs must reduce the wastage of leisure time sitting or lying on the bed. Carbohydrates should be enough for a person doing intense exercise and not having carbohydrates may cause endomorphs to experience nausea and hypoglycemia.

Ectomorphs – 

The major difficulty faced in these cases is how to make them gain weight. Hence, our treatment should focus on keeping ectomorphs on a positive energy balance that includes high energy, high protein, and fat for increasing mass.

High fat does not mean fatty foods or rich creams, or pastries. This includes Healthy fats- nuts, oils, butter, etc. The increase should be gradual and not sudden otherwise it will result in diarrhea.

Ectomorphs should indulge in exercises that include resistance and anaerobic which means weightlifting and hypertrophy which will ensure that the weight gain is a good one, that is lean body mass and will also increase the weight and bone mass. These exercises do not burn as many calories as anaerobic do.

Mesomorphs –

Mesomorph is considered the perfect body type, yet personal considerations can be different according to people. Mesomorphs should fix their fitness goals and work smoothly towards them accompanied by an increase or decrease in calorie intake to get a positive, negative, or neutral energy balance.

Their muscle weighs more as compared to body fat — and because mesomorphs instinctively build muscle, they need more calories and protein than their matches to feed their muscles. In general, mesomorphs acknowledge better to a high-protein, low-carb diet accompanying their macronutrients divided into third base. Approximately one-third portion of the plate should be made from protein, one-third from fruits and salads, and the rest one-third from complex carbohydrates accompanied by healthy fats.

Take home message

Understanding your body type (endomorph, ectomorph, or mesomorph) can help you better understand how your physique metabolizes food, in proper sequence, helping you make better foodstuff choices that join with your goals.

Nutrition learning is not one-length-fits-all, so it’s important to remember that the corpse-type diet should be addressed as a guideline to give you a beginning for a healthy diet and what adjustments may be essential for best results. Eating for your body type mated with proper exercise can help you lose weight and live a healthier life.

People generally have this notion that they cannot change their body types and their Somatotype is going to decide who they are or who they remain is now going to change. None of that is correct. It is possible to achieve your goal with hard work, persistence, and determination.