I hope you had a great CNY celebration, but it’s now time to get back to business. I’m talking about that new year’s resolution both you and I made at the beginning of this year.

Getting fit and healthy can be pretty tough, so before you start, it’s good to try to understand your body and identify what fitness/nutrition strategies work for you. Did you know there are three main body types? I’ve discovered which category I fit in, and with that, I am able to implement strategies that are tailored just for my body type.

I thought since I’m on this journey, why not share some of the discoveries I’ve made along the way… and if you’re on board the same bandwagon, then you too can identify what is effective for you.

DETERMINING YOUR BODY TYPE

1) Ectomorph – “skinny”

• Typically skinny
• Lightly muscled
• Long limbs
• Small joints
• Low body fat (without trying very hard)
• Difficulty in gaining weight
• High metabolism
• Hard time gaining muscle

2) Mesomorph – “athletic”

• Medium to large sized joints
• Broad or square shoulders
• Lose fat and gain muscles pretty quickly
• Body responds quickly to exercise
• Naturally muscular and strong
• Efficient metabolism

3) Endomorph – “fat retainers”

• Big bones
• Larger bottoms and thighs (creating a pear like physique)
• Can gain muscle easily but tend to be underdeveloped
• High levels of body fat
• Usually have a rounder body
• Small shoulders
• Slower metabolic rate
• Lose weight very slowly

If you’re still uncertain which body type category you fall in, let’s identify a few more factors to help you understand where you fit in.

Metabolism

SCENARIO: You go on a binge eating spree for a period of time.

Mesomorph: The moment you change your diet and start a workout regime, you start losing weight pretty rapidly.

Endomorph: Despite eating pretty clean, you struggle to lose those extra pounds.

Ectomorph: You barely gain any weight during the binge period. Lucky you!

 

Eating Habits

Mesomorph: Begin to appear fit and healthy almost immediately upon eating clean.

Endomorph: Despite consuming controlled calories, you still struggle and appear heavy.

Ectomorph: You can eat a lot of food and still remain slim.

Size of Joints & Bones

To determine your body type, you can try this trick. Take your wrist and put two fingers (thumb and index finger) around it.

Mesomorph: Both your fingers perfectly line up (tips of both fingers are touching).

Endomorph: When both your fingers do not touch.

Ectomorph: Your thumb and index finger overlap.

And there you have it! It’s good to take note that many of us do not fit perfectly within these body type categories. For instance, an individual can be an Endo-Mesomorph, which means, they have dominant Mesomorph qualities with slight Endomorph traits, such as the tendency to gain weight easily.

But while you may not fit in a cookie-cutter body type, you will definitely sit better in one category than the other – and that is known as your predominant body type.

Once you’ve determined which category you fall under, identifying the best and most effective fitness and weight loss strategy comes next. I will uncover that in the next article on Thursday, so stay tuned!

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