We all have different body types. Some of us are naturally skinny; some naturally heavy. Our bone thickness and structure differ, too, as do traits like our muscle belly length and metabolic rate. When it comes to improving your physique, the better you understand your particular combination of genetic traits, the greater your chances are of building the physique you're after.
In the 1940s, psychologist W. H. Sheldon developed a system that divided humans into three basic body types. While not everyone will fall neatly into a single type, understanding these types can help you create a workout optimized for your genetic makeup. Here are descriptions of the three main body types, followed by ways to customize workouts for each one.
The Skinny Ectomorph
Some people think that all ectomorphs are tall and skinny. Many tall people do happen to be ectomorphs, but height alone isn't a determining factor. Rather, body type is based on factors that include skeletal proportions, bone density, and metabolism. For instance, ectomorphs tend to have narrow shoulders and hips, light bones, and fast metabolisms. Their wrists, knees, and ankles are typically smaller than average.
The Square Endomorph
Unlike ectomorphs, endomorphs have no problem adding mass to their bodies. Their problem is getting rid of it. If people with this body type want to get lean, they must be very diligent about eating well and getting lots of cardiovascular exercise.
The Perfect Mesomorph
If you took Coleman's huge quads and put them on a man with big hips and knees, they wouldn't look nearly as impressive. But with Coleman's narrow hips and small knee joints, those quads look superhuman. And then there's the mesomorphic metabolism: It is ideal, making this body type genetically predisposed to gain muscle, not fat.
Train For Your Body Type
Having said that, you're probably closer to one body type than another. Once you know which type that is, you can start creating the most appropriate training program for that body type.
Ectomorph Training
Your workouts should be short and to the point, rather than marathon sessions. Put a time limit of one-hour maximum on any given workout. Focus on basic, compound movements and straight sets in the 8-10 rep range. Forget about higher reps, dropsets, and supersets, and other intensity techniques that will only make it harder for you to recover before your next workout. Limit any extracurricular physical activity, and rest as much as possible.
Finally, if you're an ectomorph and want to improve your physique, avoid frequent bouts of prolonged cardio, which can tear down muscle tissue. If you feel compelled to do cardio, limit yourself to just a few minutes to warm up on leg day. Focus your attention on conserving energy so you can add, not subtract, muscle mass.
Endomorph Training
When endomorphs focus on lifting heavy, they tend to gain more fat. If you're okay with that, then train more like a powerlifter, with lower reps and plenty of rest between sets. But if you'd rather carry less body fat, keep your rest periods shorter and move quickly from exercise to exercise and from set to set. This faster pace will burn more calories, as will judicious use of supersets, dropsets, and so on. There is no need to go crazy with higher reps, but try to work in the 10-12 range for upper body, and do 12-20 reps for lower-body movements.
Endomorphs can and should also perform an even mix of compound and isolation movements. Squats and deadlifts will do far more to stimulate your metabolism and burn calories than things like leg extensions or cable cross-overs. And if you tend toward the endomorph end of the spectrum, you'll get the best results, in terms of body composition, by skipping rest days. On days that you're not weight training, go to the gym or get outside and work hard on your cardio.
Mesomorph Training
As a mesomorph or near-mesomorph, your workouts can be a bit longer, in the 60-90-minute range, and can be a mix of compound and isolation movements, with reps as low as the 4-6 range or as high as 15-20. Either way, you're golden.
In general, mesomorphs can pretty much emulate the routines of pro bodybuilders and make very nice progress, because you're essentially like them. Although it should be noted that if you are chemical-free, train with a bit less volume and frequency than a chemically-enhanced athlete, since products designed to help build muscle mass can also aid recovery. As far as cardio goes, you don't need to avoid it like ectomorphs or hit it hard and heavy like endomorphs, a moderate amount will do you just fine.
Rereference: bodybuilding.com