Determine your Body Type

There are many individual factors that determine the creation of a proper training and nutrition strategy. These factors can be combined and in different combinations, they create the body types. It is extremely important to determine your body type so you can easily fulfill your goals. There are specifics about the way to eat, the way to train and all of them are part of your body type. No matter if you wish to be a bodybuilder or a fitness athlete or simply live a Healthy LifeStyle, it is imperative to know your Body Type.

In the 40s of the last century, Dr. William Sheldon, a professor from Harvard, classified three basic body types, called somatotypes – ectomorph, mesomorph, and endomorph. Broadly speaking, endomorphs have thicker bones, slow metabolism and it’s easy for them to increase fats; mesomorphs are naturally muscular and athletic; and ectomorphs are slim, with thin bones and fast metabolism.

3 main body types: Ectomorph, Mesomorph, and Endomorph

These body types, however, can hardly be met in their pure form. Usually, every person has a different combination of two or even of three somatotypes, one of which is predominant. For a more accurate assessment of the body type Sheldon introduces a 7-point system to determine the extent to which manifests each of the types to different people. This system uses 3 numbers, each from 1 to 7, as the first number evaluates endomorph’s component, the second – mesomorphs, and the third – ectomorph’s.

For example, extreme endomorph will be evaluated with 7-1-1 ie assessment rate 7 for endomorph, 1 for mesomorph and 1  for an ectomorph.

Pure body types are rare, more often we have a combination of different body types. For example, a person who gains muscles relatively easy, but along with them he tends to accumulate a lot of fat, can be defined as an endomorphic mesomorph. Such people will perform successfully in power sports such as weightlifting and wrestling. They have a lot of muscle, but it’s difficult for them to deal with subcutaneous fat. According to  Sheldon’s scoring system, this body type can be expressed for example as 5-6-1.

Another example is the ectomorphic mesomorph. He gains muscles moderately, barely increasing fat and has relatively slim and long bones. Almost all basketball players have such a body type that can be assessed as 1-4-5.

To find out which is your dominant body type we will specifically look at each one along with their main characteristics. This way you can determine the right food and exercise strategy for your purposes and somatotype.

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