Dieting & Training by Body Type - The Basics

by Sean Sullivan

Knowing how a body will respond to certain dieting and training methods can be very helpful to competitive bodybuilders. One factor that can be a big help in guiding individuals toward what may work best for them is considering their body type.  The three basic body types are:

Endomorph: Usually puts on muscle easily and retains it for long periods of time, but typically stores larger amounts of body fat. In restricted caloric conditions, they can retain muscle better. The problem for endomorphs is having trouble taking off the last little bit of fat. Endomorphs almost always have sensitivity to carbohydrates, although this does diminish with the addition of more muscle and proper dieting.

Mesomorph: Normally maintains a muscular build with little body fat. Generally gains muscle easily, retains muscle well, and has a fast metabolism. Can eat almost anything and still lose fat and gain muscle. It is not uncommon to see a mesomorph diet only four to six weeks in preparation for a competition. It is estimated that pure mesomorphs make up only about 1-2% of the population.

Ectomorph: Has smaller muscularity and little body fat. Has trouble filling out and often looks ripped, but with little sweep to the muscle. Has a bony structure and exhibits little muscularity. Ectomorphs are not ideally suited for bodybuilding, but there are a number of highly successful ectomorphs in competition. Ectomorphs may build some muscle density, but they will still appear long and lanky. On the positive side, ectomorphs can take in a large amount of carbohydrates and still have low insulin sensitivity, unless they create sensitivity themselves through a prolonged poor diet.

What Type Am I??

In order to “accurately” determine your body type, you needs to consider determining factors such as bone structure, skeletal muscle disposition of fast/slow twitch fibers, tendon lengths in relation to muscle insertion points, endocrine and thyroid function, and normal levels of thyroid stimulating hormone, testosterone and estrogen. However,  you can usually gather a pretty accurate assessment that isn’t so technical by reviewing your personal and family histories. What was your body like as a child? What body type do your parents most resemble? Most people are combinations of the various body types with one type being more dominant. Different body types respond better to different diets and different training and cardio programs. It is also possible for a person to change body types over time.  For example, an ectomorph who consistently neglects proper nutrition and training habits can develop endomorphic qualities.

Endomorph

Diet

Diet is the most important factor for endomorphs. Endomorphs are usually sensitive to carbohydrates. They hold a lot of water and hold on to muscle glycogen stores well. A few days of zero carbs will usually not hurt an endomorph. They may not even use all the glycogen stores from muscles during that time. While I do not recommend ever going to zero carbs, the point is that an endomorph can tolerate a much lower carb intake. An endomorph can go as long as seven days before depleting glycogen stores, and can refill them in just one day. Endomorphs respond well to high amounts of dietary fat. A cycled diet is ideal, where a low carbohydrate/high protein diet is adhered to for several days and then followed by a moderate carbohydrate/low fat day. An endomorph is better off not attempting to carb load due to their sensitivity to carbs.

Training

Endomorphs are better suited to short-term high intensity cardio of 15-25 minutes total duration, 5-6 times per week. Endo’s also respond better to multiple short sessions of hard cardio spread throughout the day. For example, 30 minutes of cardio for an endomorph would be more effective in burning fat by splitting the time into two 15 minute sessions or three 10 minute sessions, rather than one lasting 30 minutes. They are also better off cutting rest intervals in training and doing weight training in an aerobic manner. Cutting rest intervals to 20-30 seconds will burn a significant amount of body fat. It is difficult to overtrain an endomorph, so don’t worry about the short rest periods.

Endo/Mesomorph

Diet

Endo/Mesomorphs carry characteristics of endomorph and mesomorph body types. They are water-holders and need to monitor their carb intake closely.

Training

Endo/Mesomorphs make good bodybuilders but have a tendency to gain fat easily. They need to follow a program geared toward building a harder and leaner physique. They respond well to heavy, high-rep work. There is also a need to include basic movements without neglecting detail and finishing exercises. For example, a leg workout could be comprised of heavy high rep squats followed by leg extensions and lunges. Endo/Mesomorphs can overtrain somewhat and can get away with doing more heavy sets than their ecto/mesomorph counterparts. It is possible to overtrain an endo/mesomorph, but not as quickly as an ecto/mesomorph type. Endo/mesomorphs also respond well to variety. For example, try hitting muscles from a large number of angles in each workout, then totally changing  workouts in three to four week increments. Cardiovascular activity is another aspect of preparation. Endo/mesomorphs can look soft if too many long duration cardio sessions are performed.

Ectomorph

Diet

Ectomorphs cannot train or eat like the majority of people. If they do, they will appear stringy and flat. An ectomorph needs lots of carbohydrates to load up on glycogen. Starchy carbs are best, but lots of greens should also be eaten. Ectomorphs should also eat more frequently. Eight meals a day is not a stretch for an ectomorph. Each meal should contain lots of protein with a moderate amount of fats. Food does not stay with an ectomorph for long; nutrients cycle through rapidly, making frequent feedings a must. An ectomorph might not need to deplete carbs very long. The ectomorph should reverse the carb up cycle, using only two days of depletion and up to six days of slow carb loading. Ectomorphs naturally stay harder and they have a tendency to not hold water. For this reason, they need to eat calories, burning fat through exercise instead of through caloric restriction.

Training

Ectomorphs respond to training with heavy, low rep sets with a minimal number of total sets per workout. Keep the intensity of each set high, and utilize a long rest (2-4 minutes) between sets for recovery. Keep to the basics and avoid high reps and supersets. Ectomorphs need to resist the urge to increase volume because it increases metabolism and depletes glycogen. They need to get lots of sleep and try to recover completely between training sessions to maintain lean tissue gains, rather than entering a state of overtraining.

Cardiovascular work is a key to body fat loss. Unlike an endomorph, who needs to diet harder and do less aerobic exercise, ectomorphs are better off getting lean through cardio, rather than sacrificing calories. Doing longer, slower cardio is best for this type. The goal is to burn fat stores, not rev up the metabolism. Typically, an ectomorph’s metabolism is already fast.

Mesomorph

You may have noticed that I have not yet talked about diet and training for mesomorphs. That is because I intend to avoid them in this article. Why? Mesomorphs typically need little help. Almost any diet or training program will work for them, so  mesomorph’s probably aren’t reading this.

Once again, this article is not designed as the end all of weight loss and training, but as a way to shed some light on the genetic hand you were dealt. Take what is here and apply it to your physique. Keep what works, drop what does not and build your own diet, training and cardio program that works best for YOU!