Do you know what body type you are?  If you are not reaching your fitness goals it may be that your training is not matching your body type.

There are 3 type of body types Ectomorph, Mesomorph, and Endomorph.  The idea that human body types are genetically pre-set into one of three camps is nothing new.  What is the difference between these body types?  In short, ectomorphs stay lean no matter how many hours they spend in the gym.  These are considered the ‘hard gainers’.  The counterpart to this is the mesomorphs pack on muscle with ease.  The endomorphs are usually big, have a high body fat percentage, and are somewhat pear shaped.

Most people are a combination of two of these body types and learning these body types will give you a better understanding of what that means in terms of your training and diet plans.  This will help you train smarter in order to maximize your progress.

Ectomorphs are great at burning carbohydrates and have a fast metabolism which means you burn fat easily.  Unfortunately this also hinders your ability to build muscle.  Most ectomorphs have under developed fast-twitch muscle fibers which makes it hard to bulk up.  Ectomorphs need to keep cardio activity to a minimum and train at a high intensity using compound movements to maximize growth hormone release.

Endomorphs tend to store more fuel usually in lower body fat. Managing body fat is usually difficult for the endomorphs.  Using shoulder development and losing body fat from the lower body fat should be the focus.  Low to medium intensity cardio work will help strip away fat as will a diet consisting of around 1750 calories per day.

The best type of cardio work for an endomorph is high intensity interval training.  This can be done on an elliptical trainer or using plyometrics such as box jumps or sled pushes.  But understand that spot fat loss does not work regardless of your body type.  A combination of muscle building exercise and aerobic exercise will help strip away the fat and build muscle.

Mesomorphs find it easy to build muscle and store less fat.  Mesomorphs can consume a diet of 2500 calories per day without much worry for gaining fat.  Mesomorphs don’t usually train as hard as they should due to already having an athletic physique.

Mesomorphs respond well to timed workouts including plyometrics, sprints, and vertical and box jumps.  They also respond well to low reps and power movements. Mesomorphs should include interval sprints to pump up their burning of fat.

If you are not seeing results from your current training program it might be that your body type is working against you.  Learning your body type and how it responds to exercise may be the golden ticket for you to reach your fitness goals.