What are morphotypes, and why should I care? PART II

Last time, you read Part I where I explained what morphotypes were and how to determine which one you are. Today, we will finally see why this information matters and how it impacts your workouts.

Endomorph: 

If you are an endomorph, as you have learned previously, you have a tendency to easily gain weight and carry it around your midsection. Your fat percentage is usually on the higher end. These are only a few of the characteristics of your morphotype, for a further explanation, please refer to the part I of this article.

Endomorphic workout strategies: 

Since you tend to have a higher body fat percentage, your goal will be to decrease it in order to get a more toned body and more defined muscles. In order to achieve these goals, you will have to follow these guidelines:

• Use moderate weights*
• Limit your rest between sets to 30 seconds in order to add an aerobic aspect to your workout and burn more calories (along with getting your heart rate to maintain a higher rate)
• Your sets should be of between 10 repetitions
• Your amount of sets should be 3
• Do some cardio at the end of your weight lifting sessions**

Following these guidelines will allow you to transform your body into a body emulating the physical characteristics of a mesomorph, thus reaching a better balance between lean and fat mass and looking more toned and muscularly defined.

Ectomorph: 

As an endomorph, your body has a narrow bone structure, lean and long muscles as well as a low body fat. Again, more criteria are provided in the first part of this post. Your goal as an ectomorph will be to build some muscular mass.

Ectomorphic workout strategies:

The good news for you, is that you have the advantage of having a naturally low body fat percentage. Focusing primarily on including cardio into your workouts is not what you want to do (although cardio is always a good thing to maintain your heart in good condition). In fact, doing too much cardio will go against your goals, since it will give you a leaner, firmer body (which you already benefit from).

Thus, your workouts should respect the following guidelines:

• Work with heavy weights*
• Work with low repetitions (about 5)
• Limit your sets to between 4 and 5
• Make a point of incorporating as many compound exercises as possible in order to stimulate as many muscles as possible at the same time rather than focusing on one in isolation (compound exercises are exercises focusing on many different muscles at the same time, as opposed to one in particular. Some examples are: deadlifts, squats, bench press, lunges etc…).

Following these guidelines should allow you to bring your body closer to what a mesomorph looks like, that is, naturally more muscular yet still lean and with good proportions.

Mesomorph:

As a female, you might view this morphotype as a disadvantage. You are indeed lean. Your weight easily remains stable and yet, you look and are strong.  If you do perceive this as a disadvantage and wish to become a little less “bulky”, follow these guidelines:

• Use light to moderate weights*
• Work in 3 sets of 10-20 reps
• Train your major muscle groups individually (chest, shoulders, back, biceps & triceps, legs)
• Limit your rest time in between sets to 30 seconds in order to maintain your heart rate high, build up strength and stamina
• Limit your weight training sessions to 3-4 times a week

As a male, as you probably already know by now, you have inherited of the most convenient morphotype you could hope for! In order for you to reach your goals, follow these guidelines:

• Use moderate to heavy weights to stimulate your muscle growth
• If you are bulking:
  • Use heavy weights*
  • Shorter sets (5 reps)
  • 4-5 sets at the most
  • Rest time in between sets should be at least a minute
• If you are cutting/getting lean:
  • Use moderate to light weights*
  • Longer sets (10 to 20 reps)
  • 3 sets at the most
  • Limit your rest time in between sets to 30 seconds

Mesomorphs more so than any other morphotype adapt really quickly to their workouts (they develop muscle memory faster than the two other morphotypes) and therefore need to keep some variety in their workout programs. As a rule of thumb (which applies to every morphotype), changing your workout program every 6 week at least is necessary for your muscles not to plateau. Whether you are a mesomorph or not, this doesn’t mean that you should completely change your workout routines, but that you should find little ways to make them different in order for your muscles not to develop muscle memory to the point of not showing any progress anymore. This can mean different things:

• Changing the order of your exercises within each workout routine
• Using different modalities (machines, dumbbells, barbells, kettlebells etc…)
• Using different variables (seated, in supine position (laying down), single legged vs. standing etc…)

In any case, whichever morphotype you are, each presents weaknesses AND strenghts. Assuming that we should all train the same way is a misconception. We are not talking about equality here, but rather about equity, that is, making sure that each morphotype is treated based on their needs, weaknesses and strengths in order for them to reach their goals.

*Light, Moderate & Heavy Weights:

As a general rule of thumb, a beginner is always going to get stimulus, from any effort that they make, until their muscles have developed muscle memory. However, it is always useful to have a general idea of how to determine whether a weight is light, moderate or heavy. Here are some tips on how to determine that without going into complex calculations involving percentages:

Light: 20 reps (if you are able to perform 20 reps, the 20th being close to failure, you are using light weight)

Moderate: 10 reps (if you are able to perform 10 reps, you are using moderate weight)

Heavy: 5 reps (at that stage you are performing at about 90% of your 1 rep max weight (the highest weight you can lift once only); if you can perform 5 reps only, you are using heavy weight).

I hope this information was useful to you. For some visual content, feel free to follow me on Instagram at: @nat_fit_frenchie .

 

 

 

 

What are “morphotypes” and why should you care? Part

A lot of you have heard about different “body types”. When referring to them, most of the time our conceptualization of these revolves solely around the shape of an individual’s body (eg: pear shape). However when it comes to fitness, this concept goes a little further. The more common term used to refer to this would be a “morphotype“.

Since we now know that this term encompasses more than the term “body type” does, what exactly is the term “morphotype” referring to? Well, a morphotype is a combination of different criteria including: the general shape of your body, your bone structure, your natural muscular structure,  the way these muscles develop under training conditions and your ability to gain & lose weight (as well as other criteria that might not be necessary to know for what weight lifting requires us to).

This information becomes very important if you want to reach specific goals at the gym. Every morphotype has strengths and weaknesses and therefore, each of them requires a different type of training. But before we elaborate on this, let’s learn how to determine what morphotype you are!

The Mesomorph

The mesomorph is what is usually referred to as the “ideal” morphotype when it comes to weight lifting. A mesomorphic morphotype can be recognized by the following physical criteria:

• Naturally lean (but not excessively)
• Naturally toned
• Naturally strong
• Medium size joints/ bones (which you can recognize by wrapping your thumb and index around their wrist; your fingers cannot touch each other but are not too far from each other either)
• Wider at the shoulders than the hips – i.e. chest dominates over abdominal area (this applies to men especially)
• Broad/square shoulders
• Female mesomorph: defined hourglass figure
• Male mesomorph: V or rectangular shape
• Efficient metabolism (does not gain weight overly easily nor lose weight overly easily)
• Gaining muscle is easy to this morphotype
• Losing fat is easy to this morphotype
• Responds quickly to muscular stimulus

Simply put, this morphotype is the epitome of what balance means. It represents a perfect (or as perfect as humanly possible) morphotype, making it easier to reach fitness and nutritional goals.

The endomorph: 

The endomorphic body type is usually recognized by a chunkier frame, shorter limbs and thick bones. People characterized by this morphotype could easily be defined as “bulkier”. Here is a more thorough list of how you can identify this morphotype:

 

• Smooth, round body (not much definition if workout routine is not geared towards their morphotype)
• Medium/ large joints/ bones (which you can tell when wrapping your thumb and index around their wrist; your fingers usually cannot easily touch each other)
• Short limbs
• High levels of body fat (a tendency to be easily overweight and difficulty to show muscular definition)
• Body fat tends to settle in lower regions of body, mainly lower abdomen, butt, hips, and thighs (rather than being distributed evenly throughout body)
• Often a pear-shaped physique
• Can gain muscle easily, but tends to be underdeveloped
• Difficulty to keep low body fat percentage
• Loses weight slowly (has to work hard for it)
• Slow metabolic rate

The ectomorph: 

The typical ectomorphic body type can be recognized by their very lean body type, long limbs, thin joints and elongated muscles. If they are often tall people, sometimes these other physical criteria only can accentuate a height which is not necessarily what would be considered tall. Here is a more comprehensive list of their characteristics:

• Skinny or thin
• Small joints/ boned (which you can also notice by wrapping your thumb and index around their wrist, which typically results in your ability to touch your index with your thumb)
• Long arms and legs
• Linear physique
• Small shoulders
• Lightly muscled or lean muscled
• Small chest and glutes
• Low body fat (without necessarily exercising or following low calorie diets)
• Can eat without fear of easily gaining weight
• Fast and efficient metabolism
• Difficulty gaining weight
• Difficulty in gaining muscle mass

This information is crucial to you in order to reach whatever goals you have in fitness, be it losing weight, toning up or building mass. As said before, each morphotype requires a different type of training based on its criteria AND the goals desired. For now, you should be able to identify what your morphotype is, right? If this information has allowed you to do so, share with us what morphotype you are in the comment section. 

My Fitness Journey (Wifey’s Story)

It is with great pleasure that I am now actively taking part in the writing of this blog. As you already know, my husband and I are both really passionate about weight lifting and take this very seriously (even though fitness needs to be fun, otherwise why do it, right?). But before elaborating on the idea of what fitness/weight lifting is about, let me give you a better idea of who I am and where I come from.

My name is Nathacha (pronounced “Natasha”), I am from France and have been living in the USA for about 7 years. My husband and I have also spent time in France together in the early years of our relationship. During our time in France, my idea of what beauty was, was very different from now, at least my standards were, and so were those I had about health. Him and I had plenty of time to walk around town, which we did almost daily during our breaks. However, we ate whatever pleased us, without worrying about gaining weight, looking different or even yet, not being as healthy as we could be with a better sense of nutrition. We carried a very similar lifestyle once we moved to the USA, where I started my Masters and he started his PhD. We still took daily walks, but this time, around campus and we sill ate whatever pleased us. This lasted two years, just enough time for me to finish my Masters.

I started my fitness journey at the end of 2013 which was also the end of that Master’s Degree. Why, you ask? Because the summer preceding my debuts in my current career (that is, my full-time career) made me open my eyes on my eating habits. I had spent a whole summer feeling very sick, from a sinus infection that seemed to not want to go away. Besides that, I had injured myself while on a hike with hubby where I decided to be stubborn and finish the hike as fast as possible, leading to very harmful impact on my left knee. Therefore, I had spent a summer not only treating my sinus infection for a time that seemed infinite to me, but also started a chiropractic treatment which took much of my time and money! As a result of this, I became very depressed and turned to… food. My husband, as loving as he is, made sure that I would be happy and fulfilled my every wish. When cake I wanted, cake I received! And that, on a very regular basis (several times a week). I had found shelter in food. By the end of the summer and the beginning of my new career, I decided to finally check my weight out of curiosity, more than anything else. The outcome was devastating to me… I had gained 12 pounds over the summer. Never before had I reached that weight. That was enough for me to want to make a REAL change.

 

Back the fall of 2013

Back in the summer of 2013 and uncomfortable with my body…

Back in the summer of 2013

So, in the fall of 2013, I started my fitness journey. Little did I know about what exactly it involved. I had read a few articles here and there about how to quickly shed pounds. Many were talking about “cutting carbs”, and as naive as I was at that time, it seemed logical to me. So, (completely) cutting carbs I did, and that, for months. I also decided to pair this with daily cardio training, running on the treadmill or biking for about an hour every day, setting my calorie loss at 1,000 per training session. Since my body was deprived in carbohydrates and that I was losing so many calories by training cardio on a daily basis, it didn’t take but a few months (about 3 months, if I remember well), for me to get back to my previous “ideal” weight. That being done, I was not entirely satisfied with the outcome since I was lighter but my body did not show any physical signs of strength. Very logically, I decided to turn to weight training. At that point, I knew my husband had taken a few weight lifting classes during his undergrad and knew that that knowledge would come in handy to me. So both he and I started going to our school’s gym 3 times a week. While he had a much better idea of what he was doing and was making physical progress very quickly, I quickly became frustrated, because it was not the case for me. While I had a vague idea of some of the most basic exercises one can do for each muscle group, my knowledge and grasp of the equipment that was accessible to me was very limited. Since our facility had everything you could possibly think of but for personal trainers, I decided buy myself a book. It was entitled “Fitness 101 for Women”. This book was the very first step I took to knowing my way around the gym and more than anything else, feeling more confident in it. Although, if you could imagine me and my book around that gym, you would easily see how embarrassed I felt to have to rely on it so heavily before any given exercise! This phase lasted about a year and a half. I slowly let go of the book and became more daring in the gym but still didn’t know much about proper weight lifting.

Back in 2014, hubby and I no longer had access to our gym, since he had graduated. We knew we wanted to move further from our former campus and closer to both our work places and therefore, had to find another facility to train at. One day, while I was at work, he texted me to let me know he had found a gym that had given us a good deal for a 2 year membership. I wasn’t too sure what to expect at that point, especially considering how he described the facility in comparison to our former one (which was very very large). That being said, we went to our first session together. Training remained something we did at the same time, with our respective workouts routines, but as a couple. Almost immediately after joining our gym, I decided to finally get myself a personal trainer. We could now afford it and it was available. It turns out my personal trainer was a former student of mine that I had taught during my Masters Degree (as a teaching assistant). This time, HE was going to teach me something.

We spent a year and a half together. He was a great source of knowledge but also a great source of motivation. Looking back, I never would have learned half of the things I now know if it wasn’t for him training me. Unfortunately, he was no longer able to train me after that time and I had to find another trainer. So, I ended up having two different ones for the next 6 months. At that point, I had been trained by a professional for two years. I felt like I was ready to do this on my own.

I decided to cancel my personal training plan but to continue being a recurrent member of the gym. I have been training there since 2014 every week (except for very exceptional occurrences that prevented me to do so) from 5 to 6 times a week. I am currently training 5 times a week. My workout routine is the following:

• Monday: back day
• Tuesday: biceps & triceps
• Wednesday: rest day
• Thursday: leg day #1 (emphasis on quadriceps)
• Friday: rest day
• Saturday: shoulder day
• Sunday: leg day #2 (emphasis on hamstrings)

Generally speaking my workouts last between an hour and a half (including cardio, which I do at the end of each upper body workout) and two hours when I train legs. I do spend more time working on that muscle group considering this is where I feel I need to make the most progress.

Anyway!

Back in May 2017, I decided to start studying for the NASM Certification. I had been contemplating making a career out of weight lifting for a while and decided that it needed to start somewhere. I studied from June 2017 to November. I took the test at the beginning of that month, very hesitantly, but passed it on the first attempt! It was a very complex test which included every aspect of personal training you can think of (business, the different types of facilities you can work at and their specifics, biomechanics, nutrition, workout stages and techniques etc…). After that, our gym hired me and allowed me to shadow our manager, as well as other experienced personal trainers for a few weeks. I have now started training my own clients and am getting more and more experience in sales as well as in training people.

Going back to my fitness journey on a more personal level, I am now at a point where I have no other particular goal but to improve my strength level and develop a bit of mass. I pay attention to my diet and eat very clean. I do not allow myself cheat meals and have been doing this for a while, which has now become my new normal. I have also eliminated refined sugar from my diet. All of my energy comes from very clean foods. My meals are always balanced, including fibers, a controlled amount of carbohydrates and of course, protein. While my first goal is not to bulk, developing a bit of muscle mass is definitely something I am in favor of but I will not go out of my way for and follow a strict bulking diet like my husband has done in the past. I am not currently training with the goal to compete.

For a while, I was in constant search of myself, always looking for improvement and inspiration from other female athletes. I came to a point where I made myself feel bad for not making progress as fast as some of them were or in the same areas of some of them. Comparison became my enemy. I am now focused on my own performances as well as my own nutrition. I do not want to emulate anybody nor surpass anybody. I realized that doing what I wanted while focusing on myself only, was a much healthier approach than the opposite. I have made considerable progress which I think some of these pictures can show. No matter how much time it will take me to make progress, I am remaining steady and keep my passion for this sport alive. Training others also allows me to share it with others on a different level and validate myself. Although I may not be the best looking nor the strongest of all female athletes out there, weight lifting is my life and has encompassed every aspect of it since I now am at my gym 7 days a week, either working out or training others.

For the curious ones, I am 5 ft. 5 and will not disclose my weight, since everybody has a different morphotype (something I will go over in an upcoming article), metabolism, training routine, nutrition style… all of these making the numbers on your scale a very unimportant number. I can though, tell you that the last time I checked,  my body fat percentage was 19%. This number is a far better piece of information than your weight, since this can indicate much more about your health than your weight (which does not provide you with any data about your body composition as opposed to your body fat percentage), but again, we will get to that later! 🙂

 

Progress from 2014 to 2017

In the spring of 2017

In the winter of 2017

 

What do I want you to get out of this? Well, knowing me better and seeing where I come from but also understanding that everybody has different goals and different strengths. Comparing yourself to others on a regular basis will not help you. However, making the old you your primary source of motivation IS what is going to push you to go further and faster.

For more content from me, follow me on Instagram at: Nat_Fit_Frenchie . You will find daily videos and pictures, as well as workout tips.  I hope my article allowed you to develop more trust in yourself and your ability to reach your goals! I was able to do it and I know you are too!

Nat_Fit_Frenchie