The Endomorph Dilemma: Making the Right Choices for Your Body Type

What a task it is to lose weight and burn stubborn body fat as an endomorph. For those who don’t know, an endomorph is basically the body type that is predisposed to store body fat. As an endomorph, it’s easy to gain weight and muscle, to be fair. The challenge is to eliminate excess body fat.

Personally, I love to lift weights. The challenge of lifting weights as an endomorph is that you definitely build muscle, but it’s covered by a layer of fat, which never fully reveals the muscles. The typical appearance of an endomorph is ‘bulky’. But really, we want to be cut. We are the opposite of ectomorphs who have a hard time gaining muscle as they have an overactive metabolism. Any muscle you put on will likely be used by your body for fuel, in addition to your fat storage.

Endomorphs, on the other hand, have an extremely slow metabolism. And apparently, our insulin sensitivity is quite high. Now, between the extremes of endomorph and ectomorph, is the mesomorph, with its perfect metabolism. Your body’s functions are optimized: the right balance between anabolism and catabolism. You could easily identify the mesomorph in the gym.

He’s the guy, or she’s the girl, who doesn’t really need to exercise. They don’t bust their asses on the treadmill or stairclimber, nor get hot and sweaty like endomorphs, nor pump half iron to build mature muscle like the ectomorph. The mesomorph can work well on any diet. They can easily bulk up on a high-calorie diet or shred on a low-calorie diet.

In hindsight, it is apparent that bodybuilding and fitness magazines only focus on the mesomorph, as endomorphs and ectomorphs try recommended diets and various supplements only to get bloated, leaky gut, acne, or some other side effect. Hmm, looks like someone isn’t telling us the whole truth. I suspect that to maintain sales of these popular magazines (I won’t mention any names), consumers need to be in a perpetual state of confusion. One month, a high carb diet is good (omitting crucial body type information), another month, low carb, high protein, with the obvious omission of body type.

I finally broke with this subscription based brainwashing. I decided to go experiment. I’ve tried various diets, various exercise regimens, various supplements, and am in the process of creating a list of what works for my endomorph body type.

You see, the media is so powerful. They have mastered the art of mass brainwashing. No wonder we are so easily swayed. We have an important role to play ourselves, as I am not going to blame the media or society. But another big contributor is the instant gratification mindset that is being bombarded in our brains and psyches.

We’ve become so used to the aggressive flavors of fast food that we don’t know how to appreciate natural flavors like raw salad and fresh fruits and vegetables.

What could that have to do with body type? Well, quite. Highly refined grains, processed foods, artificial sweeteners (including cornstarch), and deep fried foods are enemies of all body types, especially endomorphs, as an endomorph’s metabolism is quite slow.

Stay tuned as I will be making some food recommendations based on personal experience, for the endomorph body type. I will also make the connection between blood type and body type, and the benefits (or lack thereof) of grains in the diet, especially wheat, and exercise routines/regimens that I find really ideal for the type. endomorph body.