Exercises For Ectomorphs
Before I get into the meat of this article, let me first review the three different body types.
* Ectomorph - Skinny, small wrists. Think of Kramer from Seinfeld.
* Mesomorph - Not skinny, not heavy, perfect. Think of Arnold Schwarzenegger.
* Endomorph - heavy, thick wrists. Think of George from Seinfeld.
I'm an Ectomorph. For years I followed the advice of muscle magazines and made little progress. Somebody has to say it, so let it be me. Muscle magazines are written primarily for Endomorphs and Mesomorphs. They prescribe tons of isolation work which will lean out the typical Endomorph and make the Mesomorph look even better. Ectomorphs don't need to isolate muscles that are not existant and they rarely need to lean out. The Ectomorph needs functional exercises which recruit multiple muscle groups.
Below are the top ten exercises I used to gain 20 pounds of muscle on my Ectomorph frame.
1. The Pushup: I hated doing pushups when I was in the military, but now I enjoy doing them MY way. Instead of doing 40-70 to failure, I do multiple sets of 10-15 supersetting them with Chinups. Pushups are frowned on by Endomorphs as not being challenging. However, Ectomorphs typically have long arms and small wrists. Ectomorphs will benefit more from the pushup than the other body types.
2. The Chinup: Pull-ups, chin-ups, close-grip, wide-grip, slow, fast and even with added weight or 1-armed. Getting broad shoulders should be a goal of every Ectomorph. This exercise will help you achieve that goal.
3. The Deadlift: A properly done deadlift will recruit 80% of the muscles in the body. A poorly executed deadlift will leave you injured. Read Pavel Tsatsouline's Power to the People if you wish to make this exercise a staple.
4. Military Press: A standing military press will not only work your chest and arms. It will also hit your abs, because of the need to balance the weight as it moves.
5. Farmers Walk: Often the limiting factor in the Ectomorphs bench press and dead lift is a weak grip. You can fix that with the Farmers Walk. Grab some fat dumbbells and start walking. Not only will this functional exercise help your grip, it'll strengthen your forearms and shoulders.
6. Bent Over Row: This exercise is a great way to add thickness to your back. I use a barbell about 90% of the time, dumbbells the other 10%.
7. Incline Bench Press: I almost never do the traditional flat bench press. Many years ago I met a guy in the St. Petersburg Gold's Gym. He taught me that by focusing on the upper chest, you can sculpt more of a V-shape physique. In short his theory is to build the shelf, not the muscles underneath the breasts. Think Superman, not Hulk Hogan.
8. Boxing: Aerobics are not as important to Ectomorphs as other body types, so I feel it's important to combine our high heart-rate time with strength training. Hitting a heavy bag combines strength with anaerobic intensity and the result is leanness. Look at the physique of most boxers. They are lean with broad shoulders. Another added benefit of heavy bag training is the bag doesn't hit back. :)
9. Clubbells: Clubbells even at a low weight are a highly effective way to strengthen your abs, shoulders and grip. The gains you make to your core strength will carry over to mass-building exercises.
10. The Squat: Books have been written about how great the squat is as a mass-builder. Who am I to disagree? Skinny legs need to squat.
Common Theme
The common theme presented with these exercises is that they are compound movements that recruit multiple muscle groups. Just listing all the mass-building exercises may be fine for Mesomorphs, but often us Ectomorphs have weaker grips, forearms and shoulders. Tackling our body type deficiencies first will help us perform mass-builders more effectively and with less risk of injury.
About the Author
Michael Allen Smith is the co-founder of DeepFitness.com, a search engine and directory of health and fitness related breaking news stories, websites, and articles from top experts.