This article is designed to provide valuable information for those with a mesomorph body type. The article will include information on health concerns, nutrition and exercise as it looks to provide readers with a range of advice and tips.
The mesomorph body shape is another of the three male body types which this website will cover in the form of informative articles. Many males would class the mesomorph body shape as their most sought after figure.
Its athletic makeup focuses heavily on a wide chest and shoulders and a narrow waist, presenting mesomorphs as muscular characters.
In terms of fat storage, mesomorphs are fairly efficient, primed to build muscle rather than store fat. They are known to gain fat easier than those classed as ectomorphs but not as easy as endomorphs.
Mesomorphs are naturally strong and are said to have a ‘hard’ body. However this does not reduce their need to exercise correctly and watch what they eat. A correctly controlled diet and a suitable exercise programme can see mesomorphs gain muscle mass very easily over a short period of time.
If you would like more information on the mesomorph body type then please read the rest of this article. Information covering health issues, diet and exercise regimes has all been included.
Health Concerns
The main health risk to mesomorphs is the gaining of excess fat. Although their body helps them to gain and lose weight easily it is the losing that some find difficult. As the exercise section at the end of this article highlights, it is important that mesomorphs add weight in form of muscle via weight training and lose weight in the form of fat via cardiovascular training.
Too much focus on the weight training can result in large amounts of body fat, causing mesomorphs to adopt a shape similar to endomorphs. This fat can put mesomorphs at risk of cholesterol and blood pressure problems, as well as diabetes, prostate cancer and bowel cancer.
Although mesomorphs are never going to be able to develop a slim line figure like that of an ectomorph, it is essential that for their own health they do their up most to reduce their body fat levels as well as building and toning body muscle.
Why do I Need To Know My Body shape
Your body shape is unique to you but you will fall into one of three category’s, being male also means you could be some what of a combination of two shapes however even if it’s difficult to decipher your main body type we should focus on your main shape as far as diet and exercise are concerned. Learning more about your body shape means we can set a food diet and exercise routine as listed below, the benefits are loosing weight and gaining muscle easily, controlling intake of food that is correct for your shape and improved fitness not to mention overall health.
Your body shape is sometimes over looked by people selling diet or fitness routines/programmes/products but the importance is high and could mean the difference between sticking with a routine and failing another diet plan!
Food and Nutrition
For mesomorphs it is recommended that a balanced diet is considered with five to seven meals a day being the target. The intake of protein, fat and carbohydrates should be well proportioned, however there is a larger focus on the intake of protein and carbohydrates given the muscular build of these individuals and their ability to add muscle mass with relative ease.
Protein rich foods such as red meats, oily fish and chicken are recommended not only because they provide the body with the necessary amounts of protein but fats too. Although a balanced diet is recommended it is important to fuel your body with the correct amount of protein and carbohydrates.
Ratios suggest that the body should intake one and a half grams of protein per pound of body weight and four grams of carbohydrate for every three grams of protein. So although protein is necessary to maintain a muscular physique the body should actually consume more carbohydrates.
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| Time of Day | Food Options | Helpful Links |
| 8am Breakfast | whole grain cereal + low fat milk Banana |
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| 10am Breakfast 2 | Hot oats + low fat milk Banana |
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| 12 Noon Lunch | Wholegrain rice with chicken breast and vegetables Protein shake Melon |
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| 2pm Afternoon Snack | Nuts fruit protein bar |
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| 4pm Dinner | Lean steak, 3 x portions of vegetables Whole wheat pasta pot with tomatoes yoghurt Nuts |
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| 6pm Dinner 2 | Beans on wholemeal toast Poached eggs (remove yoke) |
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| 8pm Snack | yoghurt nuts cottage cheese on rice crackers |
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This diet plan is just an example of how you should construct your diet over the course of the day, this diet is also designed to build muscle in conjunction with the exercise routine below, if you are not wanting to build/tonne muscle this diet is not for you, it should be reduced in consumption. The above diet is designed for the mesomorph body type for other body types please checkout out other articles.
You will still need to build your weekly/monthly diet plan the example above is for one day you don’t want to eat the same food every day, do a little research on healthy meals and other healthy snack foods and use the above example as a guide.
Exercise
Strength training is very important to mesomorphs, because their body copes and responds extremely well to exercise it is important that they maintain an intense weight training programme.
Ideally mesomorphs should look to add variety to their programme, mixing so called power exercises such as squats and dead lifts with toning exercises such as lateral rises and dumbbell flies. By combining training methods in this fashion mesomorphs can keep their muscular figure as well as maintain a naturally strong body.
Because their bodies respond so well to weight training mesosmorphs can train up to six times a week, alternating from power exercises and toning exercises, allowing individual muscle groups at least two days to prepare. As well as being frequent, weight training sessions for mesomorphs should also be intense with short rest periods. Although the main focus seems to be on weight training it is important mesomorphs don’t discard the value of cardiovascular exercise too, particularly during periods where weight loss is important.
Thirty minute periods of cardiovascular exercise after a weight training sessions is ideal, those wanting to lose excess fat can double the cardiovascular exercise period to 60 minutes for better results.
| Week 1 | Morning Exercise | Time Frame | Afternoon Exercise | Time Frame |
| Monday | Lower body weight training | 45 minutes | Upper body weight training | 45 minutes |
| Tuesday | Swimming | 1 hour | Push ups | 20 minutes |
| Wednesday | Rest | Rest | Rest | Rest |
| Thursday | Lower body weight training | 45 minutes | Upper body weight training | 45 minutes |
| Friday | Rest | Rest | Rest | Rest |
| Saturday | Lower body weight training | 45 minutes | Upper body weight training | 45 minutes |
| Sunday | Jogging | 30 minutes | Rowing machine | 25 minutes |
| Week 2 | Morning Exercise | Time Frame | Afternoon Exercise | Time Frame |
| Monday | Rest | Rest | Rest | Rest |
| Tuesday | Lower body weight training | 45 minutes | Upper body weight training | 45 minutes |
| Wednesday | Cycling | 1 hour | Crossfit | 1 hour |
| Thursday | Rest | Rest | Rest | Rest |
| Friday | Lower body weight training | 45 minutes | Upper body weight training | 45 minutes |
| Saturday | Rest | Rest | Rest | Rest |
| Sunday | Lower body weight training | 45 minutes | Upper body weight training | 45 minutes |
The above exercise routine is quite extreme you should only use this routine if you have a good standard or fitness.
We have designed this exercise routine to build muscle if you are not wanting to build muscle this routine is not for you, if you are new to exercising you should try a 1/4 of this programme and build up to the full routine over time.
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How You Doin!
Tell us about your own workout routines, diet plans and thoughts about this article if you are a mesomorph and want to comment please feel free.