Choosing an Optimum Body Type Diet to Stay Healthy

One of the first steps in choosing a diet plan is figuring out your own body. Not everyone has analyzed their body shape and tried to figure out what body type they fall into. Studies have shown that different people with different body types should go for diets specific to their body type. Different people want different things out of a diet. While some people want to lose weight, others want to build muscle. Therefore, rather than just starting on a diet one beautiful day, people should give a thought regarding what their body type is and what they want out of the diet. The easiest way to do this would be to look into a mirror, without any judgment and then analyze what you see. Knowing where you and your body fit in will help you determine what diet will suit you the best. So, here’s a look at the significant classifications of body types, and which diet works the best for them. 

What is the Body Type Diet?

Choosing a diet or weight-loss program that best suits your body type is regarded as a body type diet. To do this, people must be willing to analyze their bodies and figure out in which category they fall into. Figuring out your body type will give you more insight into your metabolism, hormones, digestion, and even how much macros you need. Certain studies show that body types help in determining body volume and percentage of weight, fat, and muscle. However, while there is not a lot of data that proves that these dietary recommendations work, thousands have stated that following them helped them become more healthy and fit. So, here’s a look at various body type diets and why you should follow one of them.

Why Follow a Body Type Diet

1. Helps understand your body better
2. Makes it easier to set goals for yourself
3. Understand how to lose, gain or maintain your weight effectively
4. Prevents having to resort to extremely restrictive diets 
5. Prevents you from picking the wrong macronutrient distribution
6. Get an optimum reality check of your goals
7. Helps you stay motivated and not get frustrated

Different Body Type Diets

There are several different ways we can classify bodies. For instance, certain studies classify body types depending on the shape of the body, whereas others do so according to body fat percentage. Therefore, there are several ways you can go about classifying your body, and each classification comes with its own set of dietary and exercise recommendations. 

Somatotype Body Types

These types are determined based on factors such as activity, diet, body mass index, and also health status. As per this study, people with long and lean bodies had less body fat, usually weighed less and had fewer heart issues. Curvy people had higher diastolic BP when compared to thin body types and hourglass body types. Similarly, when looking at their diets, researchers found that curvy women ate more proteins, whereas lean people consumed the least proteins. With all this data in hand, the researches classified humans into three different body types, as given below. 

1. Ectomorph Body Type – Long and lean with shoulders which are narrower than their hips
2. Mesomorph Body Type – Hourglass figure with a lot of muscles 
3. Endomorph Body Type – Curvaceous or Stocky with heavy hips, thighs, and bellies

Here’s a breakdown of how macros should be for different body types along with a sample menu for each.

Ectomorph Body Type Diet

45% Carbs 35% Protein 20% Fats

Sample Ectomorph Menu

• Oatmeal full of fresh fruits and nuts for breakfast
• Protein Shake as Breakfast Beverage
• Salad with veggies, chicken and vinaigrette for lunch
• Apple with cheese and almonds for Evening Snack
• Grilled shrimp with broccoli on quinoa as dinner
  

Mesomorph Body Type Diet

40% Carbs 35% Protein 25% Fat

Sample Mesomorph Menu

• Toast and scrambled eggs for breakfast
• Protein bar with fruit as a snack
• Salad with veggies, chickpeas, and dressing for lunch
• Veggies with hummus as a snack
• Chicken breast with roasted veggies and sweet potato for dinner

Endomorph Body Type Diet

20% Carbs 45% Protein 35% Fat 

Sample Endomorph Menu

• Eggs and spinach for breakfast
• Protein bar as snacks
• Roasted turkey inside lettuce wraps for lunch
• Veggies as snacks
• Chicken with zucchini and quinoa for dinner
  

Ectomorphs should try out endurance sports and resistance training to build and tone lean muscles. They can also consider high-intensity interval training to improve both their anaerobic and aerobic cardio systems. Mesomorphs should go for building muscle and try out for sports such as soccer and hockey. They can also opt for HIIT, sprinting and kickboxing to mix things up. Meanwhile, endomorphs should add HIIT workouts to their exercise regime to improve their stamina and then focus on burning fat. 

Shape-Based Body Types

1. Pear – Small waists with large hips and thighs
2. Apple – Large midsection or waistline

Shape-Based Body Type Diet

Pear-shaped people should look to minimize their fat intake so that they don’t put on a lot of weight. They should focus on eating more lean proteins and higher fiber-rich food items. Pear types must try to build lean muscle and eat a lot of leafy greens, and healthy fats. Apples have a higher risk of metabolic diseases as they are less responsive to insulin. Hence, they must limit their carb intake to better their sensitivity. Focus on healthy fats such as Monounsaturated fat and omega-3 fat which will help you lower your risk for heart disease.

Using these basic guidelines will help you understand things about your body you never knew were important. Furthermore, studies show that sticking to a diet or exercise regime specific to your body type will help you achieve your weight goals faster and more efficiently. We all start dieting for different reasons. Aligning those reasons with our body types will help us attain our objectives without getting frustrated or demotivated.