The Joys of Being an Ectomorph; My Body Type

As I've stated in earlier posts, I am an ectomorph.  I was not made known of this until I started taking fitness more seriously and got into fitness modeling.  At that point, it was important to learn my body. I couldn't figure out why I could not gain weight or keep muscle, no matter how much I ate, how much I lifted, and how much I prayed for the weight gain (exaggerating).  I dismissed it and said it must be genetic, so I better eat all I can now because when I get older it is not going to be the same.  This was easy to do, but being that I was now competing and showing off my body against other females who could pack on more muscle in a day than I could in a month made me more alert and wanting to know more about my body and what I needed to do to gain size.

The basics: an ectomorph body type is lean/skinny, less muscle mass, small bones and joints, high metabolism, and essentially, everyone hates you because you are this way.  Maybe not so much the latter, but not much of a stretch.  Because your body is already lean you have sort of an edge in the competition, but not by much.  You still have to gain and maintain muscle mass.  This is probably the hardest part. 


Because our bodies naturally burn a lot of calories and our metabolism is high, ectomorphs are advised to keep cardio training at a minimum.  Cardio is still essential, but it can include certain types of cardio workouts such as circuit training or HIIT style (kettle bell swings, push ups, sprints, etc.).  These should be kept to at least 30 minutes. Workouts such as dead lift, lateral pulls, jump squats with the bar, dumbbell curls, calf raisers, bench press, squats (the list goes on and on) are vital in muscle growth, in addition to eating the right nutrients and supplement intake (amino acid, protein shake, creatin).  Some are against ectomorphs taking supplements because our bodies do not need it.  However, if you are in a sport like body building or just want to gain it is essential in getting them into your system because of how it works consistently with your workouts and dieting.  At least for me it does.

One other challenge I continued running into was eating.  I did not know what to eat, how to eat, when to eat, etc.  All I knew was that I had to eat properly because my brain has been trained that when your body feasts on improper eating habits (fried fatty foods, high sodium, high glucose, fructose, sucrose, dextrose...sugar) it will suffer and the end results, at least the ones I've seen in my family, are not good.  My mother suffers from high blood pressure which has resulted in her having multiple strokes.  I saw this and immediately wanted to change my eating habits and maintain an active, healthy lifestyle.  Everything comes with a price.  Literally.  The price of organic vs. non organic is about $5, and that is not an exaggeration from the stores I shop at.  Or taking organic out of the equation, a box of cookies at $2.50 vs. a bag of kale chips at $5.60.  Seriously, if you don't grow your own foods you're liable to go broke if you live on a budget and trying to eat healthy.  This is a sacrifice I was willing to make for competing.  The key to remember for ectomorphs is we can essentially eat what we want, in moderation of course, but smart and healthy.  Breaking up large meals into smaller portion sized meals throughout the day is beneficial.

 

At the end of the day, ectomorphs are rare and unique in true form.  While our bodies, for the most part, appear lean and lanky, there are tricks of the trade to learn in order to even out our body, and by that I mean shaping it into a form that suits us.  My form consists of tightness and definition, one that I am proud to say took hard work to develop, so naturally I cannot go back to the way I was just to start over again.

Kale vs. Spinach; My Preference and Benefits for Fitness Modeling

My trainer and I have gone back and forth on kale and spinach.  Both are clearly healthy choices in the leafy greens department, you can't go wrong with either.  Some nutritional facts point to kale (all hail kale!), where it is high in vitamin A, C, & K, low calorie, anti-inflammatory, lowers cholesterol, good source for bones, eyes, skin and reduces risk of heart disease and cancer.  Then you have spinach that lowers blood pressure, fights cardiovascular disease and stroke, aids in digestion, contains folate/folic acid (this is especially important for women who are pregnant), high in iron, fights psoriasis, acne and wrinkles.  And who can forget this being the go-to veggie for good ole Popeye, so naturally it's a good source of fiber and strength as well.  So why the back and forth?  Because one says eat more kale and the other insists on eating spinach.

Being a fitness competitor I have to make sure I have a balance of nutrients in my diet during competition prep, otherwise my body will not hold muscle, I'll be weaker and my workouts will be tougher to manage.  Ideally, it would seem as though I would include both kale and spinach in my diet because of all the health benefits tied to each, right?  Not quite.  While both aid in muscle growth I can't help but feel as if I'm a spinach kind of girl.  Not to say there's anything wrong with kale.  In fact, if cooked properly, kale tastes a little better than spinach.  A little.  The texture is a little tough, but so is steak and kale actually has more iron than beef.  So what's my beef with kale?  There isn't one.  I just love the way spinach cooks and the things I can prepare with it.  I love making spinach casserole dishes, and pairing spinach with fish and mixed vegetables.  It is an elegant presentation.  Or drizzling some olive oil, sprinkling some pepper and salad seasoning and splashing some vinegar on it makes a wonderful meal.  Now don't get me wrong, there are many ways to prepare kale and making it presentation worthy, not to mention kale chips are amazing, but I can't let seem to let go of the idea that spinach is my go-to leafy green.

Some people may think it is a little outlandish to think that one is better than the other, especially if you are in a sport like body building where both greens would work better for your body if equal amounts are consumed.  I do not dismiss those claims.  However, I believe as long as you consume one or the other rather than none your body is happy regardless.  It's not uncommon for people to prefer one food over another.  It just so happens I prefer spinach over kale.  Both good sources of nutrients, both excellent agents in minimizing fat storage and building muscle, both good sources on the road to clean eating.  But I like spinach.  It's not a crime.  But my goal next year is to incorporate more kale into my diet so I will have a good balance.  But I'll still prefer spinach.  Period.