Your body and its features are greatly determined by your genetics. This is why certain people can have a real hard time loosing weight and others have a real hard time gaining weight. To understand why your body acts in certain ways you needed to learn more about your body type. Doing so will help you determine the best manner to achieve your goals of a healthier body.
Most people can be placed into three categories of body types. Each body type has its own unique characteristics and genes have a lot to do with that.
THE ECTOMORPH: "Ecto" refers to the slim/thin body type. People with this body type are usually the ones that have the hardest time putting on weight. They can eat anything they want and as much as they want without gaining a single pound. People with this body type are naturally skinny and have been skinny throughout their entire lives.
Ectomorphs are the most fragile of all three body types. They have long, slender limbs with small, thin bones and joints along with the very little fat and muscle mass.
Ectomorphs are also known as "hard-gainers" as they have the hardest time of all three body types to gain weight. This is due to the incredibly high metabolic rate of their bodies. This is why they can eat whatever they want without gaining a single pound. This is good if you are not trying to gain weight, but for most ectomorphs that is not their goal.
Ectomorphs have the hardest time of all to put on muscle and this can become very frustrating. I know this because I am an ectomorph. All throughout my childhood I had been very skinny. In face when I started college I was about 5'11'' and 127 pounds. So when I decided to start working out and put on muscle, it was an extremely difficult and frustrating task. I had to eat a constantly (and still do) and a lot in order to put on weight. Eventually, however with patience and hard work I have been able to put on quite a bit of muscle.
As an ectomorph, you just have to remember to stay eat constantly, maintain a good workout routines, and most importantly remain patient to achieve your goal of your ideal body type.
Key Features: Skinny, lean, fragile, fast metabolism, hard-gainers.
Famous Ectomorphs: Kiera Knightly, Johhny Depp, Paris Hilton, Bruce Lee.
THE ENDOMORPH: "Endo" refers to the large/heavy body type. People of this body type have the easiest time gaining weight and hardest time losing weight. Their bodies are naturally inclined to store more fat which makes losing fat incredibly difficult for them.
Most endomorphs have a majority of their weight focused at the centers of their body giving their bodies a round look. Also due to their weight, they gain the appearance of being stocky and can be described as having pear-shaped-bodies.
Endomorphs can literally eat a minute fraction of what Ectomorphs eat and still gain weight. This can become extremely frustrating when trying to loose weight. Endomorphs have a hard time losing weight due to their extremely slow metabolism rate and are essentially the complete opposites of ectomorphs.
If you are an endomorph, you will have to be patient just like ectomorphs to achieve your goals of weight loss. A steady, healthy diet of small meals along with regular exercise should help you achieve your ideal body type. But like with all goals, discipline and routine are the keys to success.
Key Features: Large, big-boned, slow metabolism, easy gainers.
Famous Endomorphs: Jack Black, Queen Latifah, Cedric the Entertainer, Kirstie Alley.
THE MESOMORPH: "Meso" refers to the strong/muscular body type. People with this body type can consider themselves to be lucky. Basically they are a combination of all the good traits of ectomorphs and endomorphs without any of the bad traits. Unlike ectomorphs, they can easily gain muscle mass and unlike endomorphs they have no trouble loosing weight. They essentially have the ideal muscular and athletic body type that ectomorphs and endomorphs envy.
Mesomorphs have well built bodies with well-defined muscles and strong bones. They are broad in their pectoral regions and narrow in the abdominal regions.
Mesomorphs do not need any special routines to gain or loose weight. As long as they maintain a healthy lifestyle with a combination of weight training and cardio, they can achieve the body they want.
Key Features: Hard-bodied, well-defined, muscular, strong features.
Famous Mesomorphs: Lebron James, Halle Berry, Anna Kournikova, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Most people do not strictly have one of these three body types, but rather a combination of two or all three. Your body type is determined by your genes and your goal when trying to determine your body type is to use that information to figure out the best workout routines. You can not change your genes, but you can change your body. All it takes is hard work, determination and discipline and then anything is possible. So go out there and make it happen!!!
My name is Ronek Bhatt. I am 22 years old and a fitness enthusiast. I started working out 5 years ago and since then have dedicated numerous hours learning and researching about fitness, bodybuilding, diets, and other sources of healthy living.
by: Ronek Bhatt
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