I’ve spoken to quite a few people recently about calories, eating habits, lifestyle choices, training schedules, and we’ve really stripped everything apart and talked openly about this! Within this analysis we’ve covered a couple of different scenarios on how we can approach and achieve our daily calorific goals.
Some may know their body shape / type and others may not even know there are three basic human body types ! NOW - I don’t 100% agree with putting people into a “box” but I do feel we should understand the following.
The three types are: the endomorph, the mesomorph, and the ectomorph.
We are completely bound to one category or the other and our body shape can change over time, but it’s worth noting our lifestyle, genetics, history, and training style all play a part in how we look and we must keep this in mind!
However, we could agree that many of us do have certain tendencies toward one group or the other, and these groups are as follow;
ECTOMORPH
An ectomorph tends to be taller, slim build, and struggles to gain weight as either body fat or muscle and tends to have a lean build, long limbs, and small muscle bellies. Even if an ectomorph manages to put on weight, they may still look skinnier than they are, particularly in the calves and forearms and upper arms!
MESOMORPH
The mesomorph has a middle-of-the-road build that takes the best of both worlds. They tend to have wide shoulders, a narrow waist, relatively thin joints, and round muscle bellies.
In short, if you're a mesomorph, you have a natural tendency to be fit and relatively muscular. All of this doesn’t necessarily mean if you are a mesomorph you are healthier - lifestyle choices have an impact on us all. It does mean you may be able to "bounce back" from being out of shape more easily than the other two body types, gaining muscle and burning fat with comparative ease.
ENDOMORPH
The endomorph tends to gain weight a little easier and keep it on. Their build is a little wider than an ectomorph or mesomorph, with a thick ribcage, wide hips, and shorter limbs. They may have more muscle than either of the other body types, but they often struggle to gain it without significant amounts of accompanying body fat!
This definitely doesn't mean an endomorph is unhealthy - just as with the Mesomorph an endomorph can be fit, strong and every bit as healthy!

Generally the following macro split will apply to each of the following body types;
Ectomorphs - 25% protein / 55% carb / 20% fat.
Mesomorphs - 30% protein / 40% carb / 30% fat.
Endomorphs - 35% protein / 25% carb / 40% fat.
I would point out there is NO PERFECT macro law, you’re fighting a losing battle if you eat too many calories, and also if you’re harshly restricting calories. Other factors play a role including stress, sleep patterns, general lifestyle choices and how we train!
I also believe many could think they are an endomorph when in fact their body is more inclined towards a mesomorph, but years of over eating, under activity and their body has changed - it’s worth thinking carefully about this point, have you simply gained weight over the years to change your shape, and this brings me to my next point below.
As I said at the start I don’t like to place people into a “box” - there are many body types, in fact I’d say thousands, millions even billions - everyone on this planet is slightly different so it would be hard to simply place everyone into one of the three types, however it is good to understand we may have certain tendencies towards these groups.
It’s also worth noting we change and evolve over time, mesomorphs at some point may have formerly been an endomorph or an ectomorph ! So if we restrict people to a “type” and put them in a box and label them as such it limits the perception of what we can achieve. An endomorph might think they can’t lose weight, or an ectomorph might believe they can’t get stronger and gain lean tissue.
How you see your body and how others see your body are an image of what you did until today - ultimately it’s up to you to define and work on your next body should you have that goal in your mind!
I hope this gives you something to think about.
Ian
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