To understand why it’s hard to gain weight, we need to start by categorizing body types into three main types in order to truly grasp the principle. Today’s article will classify the three main body types of the human body, providing a foundation to help you understand your body type characteristics, align your training goals, intensity, desired physique, and more, creating a fundamental knowledge base! Therefore, before exercising, it is essential to have a basic understanding of your own body.
The Three Body Types!
In scientific terms, we roughly classify the human body into three types: Ectomorphs, Mesomorphs, and Endomorphs.
Let’s first understand the characteristics of the three main body types from a professional terminology perspective.
Characteristics and Training Recommendations for Ectomorphs
Firstly, the characteristics of Ectomorphs: overall thin and slender, difficult to gain weight, easy to lose weight, thin neck, narrow hips and shoulders, slender joints, slim figure, lower body fat reserves, and long limbs.
Translating the above professional terms into everyday language, individuals with this body type often have a lower calorie intake than their calorie expenditure. This leads to difficulties in gaining weight compared to the other two body types if they do not make reasonable adjustments in their diet and training, making it more challenging for them to increase their weight.
This is why many thin individuals find it very difficult to gain weight, no matter how much they eat! Additionally, due to their slender joints, narrow shoulders and hips, and relatively lower body fat compared to the other two body types, they often appear fragile and slender, showcasing some characteristics of Ectomorphs.
For training recommendations for Ectomorphs: Due to the difficulty Ectomorphs face in gaining weight, they may have weaker strength in various aspects compared to the other two body types, increasing the risk of overtraining.
Due to their lower energy reserves compared to other body types, Ectomorphs should consider the following recommendations:
1: Start with Low Intensity
Begin with relatively low training intensity, such as simple bodyweight exercises or basic equipment training, to enhance their physical capabilities, muscle strength, and gradually increase training intensity.
Avoid starting with excessively high training intensity, as forcing the body to adapt to such intensity from the beginning often leads to overtraining and potential injury.
2: Focus on Compound Movements
When setting training goals, prioritize exercises that target major muscle groups, involving more compound movements rather than excessive isolation exercises targeting small muscle groups.
These movements are more beneficial for overall strength development, as Ectomorphs have relatively fewer joint and body fat reserves compared to the other two body types.
What needs to be developed now is overall fitness and strength, aiding your progress in the fitness journey and significantly reducing the risk of injury.
3: Maintain Consistent Training
Consistency in training is key. It does not mean training non-stop for 24 hours a day but maintaining a consistent training routine.
For example, engaging in exercise three times a week consistently for a period and then making necessary adjustments based on physical changes.
It’s crucial to establish a good training routine, ensuring there are no gaps or interruptions in training due to lack of motivation or fatigue, as discontinuing training can lead to losing the progress made, especially for Ectomorphs.
4: Pay Attention to Rest
The intensity of training should be proportional to the rest time. If sufficient rest time cannot be ensured, consider slightly reducing the training intensity.
Why? As an Ectomorph, normal energy consumption is already high, and if adequate rest is not ensured while pushing yourself beyond the rest period with excessive training intensity, it often leads to more harm than good.
This can ultimately lead to inadequate rest, ineffective training, and potentially overtraining.
Lastly, learning scientific fitness concepts and putting them into practice are the fastest ways to progress in your fitness journey.
