How many times during your lifetime have you heard someone tell you that your body shape is what it is and you can't change it? Maybe you've heard comments like, "Well, you've got your mom's side of the genes."  Or, "Too bad you couldn't look more like your father's side of the family, but it looks like you are stuck with fat genes." Well, I'm here to tell you that it is possible to change your God given body shape. I'm a living example of it, Lee Labrada's a great example of it and thousands of people I've worked with over the years can attest to it as well. So what's the secret? Well, before I tell you what you need to know, let's first come to understand the basic body shapes so you can identify with which one you are and understand the correct way to alter it.

Essentially there are three different body types that you will see around you every day. The first is called an ectomorph. This body type is as skinny as a rail and has a hard time gaining weight. In fact, gaining weight for this type of individual is just as hard as losing weight is for the really obese. They have a very fast metabolism and burn off calories rather quickly. A good example of an ectomorph is Don Knotts, you know, Barney Fife on Mayberry RFD. These guys or girls can eat whatever they want and not gain a single pound. I know it's not fair and it's not right. But it is what it is and if you take a careful look around you; chances are really good that you know someone like this.

The second body type is the Mesomorph. This is the individual that gains muscle easily. If you think back to high school, these are the guys that just made natural football players. Chances are good that without even touching a weight they were 185 pounds. The mesomorph can just look at weights and put on ten pounds of muscle. Many of today's biggest pros were this type of body. A good example of a mesomorph would be Arnold Swarzenneggar. I've been training with weights for 25 years and my biceps still don't look like his and they never will.

The last body type is the endomorph. This is the person that gains fat easily and has a very hard time losing it. Oprha Winfrey is a great example of this body type. In fact, millions of American women can relate to her because this is a very dominant body shape in America today. These people have been worrying about their weight for most of their lives and have tried every diet known to man. But, still struggle with being heavier than they want to be.

Where do you see your body type? Are you an ectomorph, mesomorph or endomorphic physique?  Now, think back when you were much younger, at the age of 20 years where do you think your body shape fell. Is it the same place as now? Well, consider this, if you look at me today you would say that I'm clearly a mesomorph.  I weigh 210 pounds at a height of six feet. My bodyfat stays around 6% and I rarely let it go above 9%.  The truth is that at 18 years of age I weighed 120 pounds and was six feet tall! I come from a family of very skinny people; we are fast oxidizers and burn calories like a locomotive burns wood. But, by training and eating a certain way over many years, I altered my God given genetics so that anyone that sees me today, unaware of my past, would look and say, "he's definitely a mesomorph."  I am still the ectomorph I was born to be which can be seen by the size of my wrist, ankles and bone structure. Let's face it, I'm small boned. But due to my many years of weight training and eating program I've followed I've become a combination of two body types. What I am today is an ecto-mesomorphic physique. I may have a hard time putting on muscle, but boy can I get ripped quickly. Did you know that Lee Labrada was even skinnier than I was? He still is, but that's beside the point. (Just don't tell him I said that.)  The fact is that if we change the way we train and eat, anyone can alter his or her body shape. I have women that were clearly endomorphic looking, very overweight that if you saw them today you would think they are an ectomorph. 

The bottom line is that anyone can move from a lean or muscular state into a fat and out of shape body. Thus the converse is also true. If you are out of shape and adopt the right lifestyle changes, over time you can change the unwanted body shape into one that is more desirable. I'm in my late 40's and went back to my 20 year high school reunion. There were several football jocks that had physiques every guy in his right mind would want back then. But after 20 years of no exercise and I assume eating poorly these same guys were obese. They looked like pure endomorphic bodies. Thus, by eating poorly and not exercising these guys now own meso-endomorphic bodies.

Now, the reason why most diet books don't work is because there's no way any one book can cover the needs of every person. Since we are all so diverse and unique, we have to understand first and foremost what our basic body shape is. For example, if you were a thin person when you were young, able to eat whatever you wanted without gaining weight, you are an ectomorph. But, if you look in the mirror and see a fat person looking back at you, you are now an ecto-endomorphic body type. Most of us are a combination of two types. The bottom line here is that there are different styles of training and eating for the different body types that exist. That's why one diet or training program doesn't work well for the masses.

Consider this, I trained consecutively for three years before anyone asked me if I worked out. After three years of weight lifting and eating like a horse, I weighed a whopping 145 pounds. And during the first 8 years of training I never did cardio. Ectomorphs have such a hard time gaining weight that we cannot expend too much energy on other activities because if we do we simply can't gain weight. And it's very hard for us to put on muscle. Conversely, endomorphs require a much higher level of cardio than any other body type. If they are not willing to do cardio 5-6 times a week for 45-60 minutes, they will never look ectomorphic. This is why any program that advocates less cardio at a higher intensity level just won't work for the endomorph but will work for the ectomorph and mesomorphic body types.

Ectomorphs have to train heavy for a short duration. Their weight training session should be very intense but should not last more than 45 minutes to train two body parts. Mesomorphs can get away with a higher volume of training and grow easily. So while a ectomorph may only need to do 10 sets per bodypart, a mesomorph can do 15 sets per body part and grow like a weed. Endomorphs have to focus on more cardio than weights and generally respond better to a higher repetition range with very little rest between sets.

Besides training differently there are also eating styles that differ as well. Since endomorphs gain weight easily, they usually don't respond well to eating six meals a day. Instead they seem to respond much better to four meals. Furthermore, endomorphs tend to be more carbohydrate sensitive than other bodytypes. They respond best to a lower carbohydrate intake. Yet, ectomorphs feel tired and can experience dizziness, lightheadedness and general weakness if they cut back too far on their carbohydrate intake. Their muscles tend to go flat and they can get real stringy. Ectomorphs have to eat six meals a day everyday or they will not grow. In fact, many ectomorphs find that whenever they miss one or two meals a day, they unintentionally lose weight.  True mesomorphs grow regardless of what they eat. One mesomorph I worked with came in to see me weighing 225 pounds, at a height of five foot eleven with a bodyfat measure of 11%. He had 22-inch arms, 21-inch calves and every other body part to match. But here's where his genetics defied logic. His daily meals consisted of oatmeal for breakfast (no protein), fast food for lunch (high fat) and a TV dinner as his final meal. It makes no sense what so ever, but that shows you what an affinity he had for growing. When I put him on six meals a day, each one properly balanced, he jumped up to 250 pounds and dropped to 9% bodyfat. He's a rare individual, but mesomorphs just have better receptor sites and superior genetics for gaining muscle mass. If you are not getting the results you think you should be getting with the amount of effort you are putting into your program, be sure to make an appointment to meet with one of our Nutritionists to assess your body type and reconfigure your workout program.