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body types
introduction
Just think of a few people you know and you will notive completely different body appearences: tall and short bodies, corpulent or slender ones. And many that can´t be categorized at first glance. In general there are three body types, so called somatypes:
ectomorph |
mesomorph |
endomorph |
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Of course, only few people meet exactly one of these three categories. There´s a scale from one to seven, defining the level of dominance of each type with the result of 88 subcategories, for example ecto-mesomorph if you have attributes of both types, but you are more meso- than ectomorphical.
bodytypes and sports
In sports genetic factors play quit an important role if you want to become a top athlete or bodybuilder. But also if you want to have a huge transformation like loosing or gaining a lot of weight, it is very interesting to have a realistic look at your body type.
ectomorph
characteristics
- slender and tall body
- pelvis appears to be wider than shoulders
- chest and shoulders appear quit narrow
- long arms, legs, feet, hands, toes and fingers
- lean bone structure with a relatively short torso
- muscles are long and thin
- often bad posture
- little fat storages
- fat is stored mainly around hips and legs
- fast metabolism
- low blood pressure
- high resting heart rate
- cold hands and feet
goal
Ectomorphs usually want to gain weight or at least become stronger and more resistant.
methods
They basically need short intense low rep workouts combined with a high calorie nutrition. A regular cardio training should be considered, too.
mesomorph
characteristics
- solid bone structure
- strong muscles
- normal leg-torso proportions
- large chest and shoulders
- shoulder are wider than pelvis
- good musclular and cardiovascular performance
- cold-resistant
- normally good posture
- fat is stored mainly in the centre of the body
goal
Depending on initial situation either loosing fat and / or gaining muscles.
methods
Since mesomorphs are good overall athletes, almost every adequate workout has the desired effect.
Since they often tend to be inflexible, a good stretching program should finish every training.
endomorph
characteristics
- solid bone structure
- shorter extremities
- soft muscles
- higher body fat percentage
- large hips, but in proportion to shoulders
- round face
- low resting heart rate
- low blood pressure
- good performance in strength and cardio training
goal
Endomorphs mostly want to loose weight and become more agile.
methods
In principle endomorphs should have a good composition of high rep and low rep workouts combined with cardio training. A more effective weight management requires a well scheduled nutrition.
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