A dietitian has shared the correct diet for each of the three body types – ectomorph, endomorph and mesomorph – and what you should be eating on each.
Susie Burrell, from Sydney, said eating right for your body type can make a huge difference to your physique as different bodies have ‘different calorie and nutrient requirements’.
Understanding your body type is the first step to success in 2023.
A dietitian has shared the correct diet for each of the three body types – ectomorph, endomorph and mesomorph – and what you should be eating on each (Susie Burrell pictured)
Susie Burrell said eating right for your body type can make a difference to your physique as bodies have ‘different calorie and nutrient requirements’ (the three body types pictured)
Ectomorphs are typically slim-boned, long-limbed, lithe and have very little body fat and muscle; they can tolerate more carbohydrates (stock image)
Ectomorph
The first body type is the ectomorph.
This type is characterised as slim-boned, long-limbed, lithe and with very little body fat and muscle.
They are sometimes called ‘Vata’ in Ayurvedic medicine and can find it hard to put on either weight or muscle.
‘Long and lean best describes ectomorphs who are better able to handle carbohydrates and good fats than the other two body types,’ Susie told FEMAIL.
‘Small regular meals will best suit this body type with a higher proportion of carbs and fats than endomorphs or mesomorphs.’
A good sample day of eating for an endomorph, Susie said, might start with eggs and avocado with potato hash for breakfast and then a brown rice and mixed vegetable bowl for lunch.
Susie (pictured) said small regular meals will best suit ectomorphs and they can allow themselves carbs
The dietitian shared a sample day of perfect eating for ectomorphs, and said weight lifting is possibly the best form of exercise for this body type
The first snack of the day might be some fruit and yoghurt, while ideally you’d eat something like a mini corn on the cob for your second snack.
‘Dinner is salmon and vegetable curry with cauliflower rice which has just the right amount of carbs to keep you satiated as an ectomorph,’ Susie said.
When it comes to exercise, this body type will most benefit from lifting light weights if they want to change the shape of their body.
The second body type Susie considered was the endomorph body type, which might lend itself better to moderate carbohydrate intake (pictured)
Endomorph
The second body type Susie considered was the endomorph body type.
‘This is a more curvy body type in which excess body fat is more likely to be stored in the lower half of the body, including around the waist, hips and thighs,’ Susie said.
Endomorphs typically have a shapely physique and they often struggle with their weight, gaining weight more easily and losing weight with greater difficulty.
However, endomorph doesn’t mean overweight. It just means a slower metabolism, a soft physique and an ease with putting on muscle.
‘This body type may be more likely to be predisposed to insulin resistance, in which carbohydrate metabolism is impacted and weight gain is more likely,’ Susie said.
For this reason, she recommends a moderate or reduced carbohydrate diet in which ‘lower carb options are chosen to help keep insulin levels controlled’.
A good moderate to low carb day might involve bircher muesli for breakfast, corn thins with peanut butter and banana as a snack, stuffed potato and salad for lunch and salmon and vegetable stir fry with cauliflower rice for dinner.
A good second snack is Greek yoghurt with berries and nuts, while the ideal workout involves light cardio like jogging, swimming, walking or HIIT.
Finally, mesomorphs are defined by an athletic, strong, compact and naturally lean body, and so they need to eat higher protein (pictured)
The dietitian recommends diets with high amounts of protein and good quality carbs to ‘strike a balance between energy requirements and fuelling the muscles’ (pictured)
Mesomorph
Finally, mesomorphs are defined by an athletic, strong, compact and naturally lean body.
They have excellent posture, and mesomorphs are natural born athletes and tend to be lean and muscular without trying.
Many of the world’s top athletes fall into this group.
‘The best way to describe mesomorphs is as strong with an athletic frame and relatively more muscle mass than endomorphs,’ Susie said.
‘Mesomorphs are likely to maintain a smaller waist or hourglass figure compared to endomorphs.’
The dietitian recommends diets with high amounts of protein and good quality carbs to ‘strike a balance between energy requirements and fuelling the muscles’.
A sample day on a mesomorph’s plate might include a veggie omelette for breakfast and fish and roasted vegetables for lunch.
Good snack ideas include protein yoghurts and/or nut bars, while dinner might be a naked burrito.
