Ectomorph Fitness help

KellyR18

I'm currently 6"0 and weigh just over 60KG I'm really self-conscious about my body and really need a change. I'm looking to get a bit bigger but not too big. My ideal body is probably of a GAA player. Has anyone got any suggestions? I know it's mostly about food too, does anyone have any suggestions about what foods to be taking? Thank you for the help

Brian?

It's actually quite simple. Don't buy into the hype around supplements, diets and programs that over complicate everything.Getting bigger is going to require effort but it's simple enough.

1. You need to eat more:

Work out you maintenance calories, i.e. how many calories you need to maintain your current weight. Add 500 to this and it's your goal every day. Eat good quality, whole foods that are calorie dense. Milk, cheese, steak, fish, chicken, rice, fresh vegetables and so on.

2. You need to lift heavy and do moderate cardio.

Pick a program like starting strength or Westside for skinny bastards. Lift heavy 3 days a week. Do some low intensity cardio on the days you don't lift.

The_Honeybadger

A lot of it is about food, if you're struggling to get enough calories in, rich foods like peanut butter, chia seeds etc are great.

Starting strength or stronglifts are great but do require a bit of base strength to build from. Make sure you start light and learn the correct form to avoid injury. Get a PT for a couple of sessions if you can afford it.

Mellor

mickeyk wrote: »

Starting strength or stronglifts are great but do require a bit of base strength to build from.

That's not true at all. Both of those programs are designed for beginners coming in with zero strength. They can start with an empty bar where necessary. 20kg squats require almost zero base strength.
Where beginners have trouble with certain lifts. It's almost certainly down to mobility rather than strength.

The_Honeybadger

Mellor wrote: »

That's not true at all. Both of those programs are designed for beginners coming in with zero strength. They can start with an empty bar where necessary. 20kg squats require almost zero base strength.
Where beginners have trouble with certain lifts. It's almost certainly down to mobility rather than strength.

In fairness I did go on to say start light and learn the correct form with a PT if possible. I think you're taking what I wrote a little out of context.

Anyway I actually think somebody who is very weak would genuinely be better off learning perfect form with air squats or light goblet squats before progressing to using a bar. The amount of people I see in the gym using downright dangerous form on squats and Deadlifts is crazy. I think you might also be underestimating how easy it is to lift a 20kg bar over your head 5 x 5 when you are extremely weak.

Zillah

KellyR18 wrote: »

I'm currently 6"0 and weigh just over 60KG I'm really self-conscious about my body and really need a change. I'm looking to get a bit bigger but not too big. My ideal body is probably of a GAA player. Has anyone got any suggestions? I know it's mostly about food too, does anyone have any suggestions about what foods to be taking? Thank you for the help

I think an important thing is to get rid of this idea of being an ectomorph. I used to have very, very low bmi, and would have described myself as being able to eat anything I wanted and I just couldn't gain weight. Turns out I was just not eating very much, and after forcing myself to eat more it became my new normal and I'm much heavier now.

Peanut butter is quite energy dense, as are all fats. Dairy is great for extra calories, cheese, milk. You could always do the GOMA diet (gallon of milk a day). It doesn't have to be literal, but getting lots of milk into you will help gain weight. It's got a good balance of fats and protein. Keep it up and you'll get used to the new diet.

Mellor

mickeyk wrote: »

In fairness I did go on to say start light and learn the correct form with a PT if possible. I think you're taking what I wrote a little out of context.

The part about starting light was fine, so I didn't comment on it. You said you need a base strength to do 5x5. I disagree. I don't see how that's out of context.

The amount of people I see in the gym using downright dangerous form on squats and Deadlifts is crazy.

People do dumb stuff with barbells all the time. That down to people stupidity and ego, not strength appropriate 5x5

I think you might also be underestimating how easy it is to lift a 20kg bar over your head 5 x 5 when you are extremely weak.

I'm really not tbh. Pressing overhead is one lift. If 20kg is too heavy then use 10kg, or anything you like.
There's no minimum level you need to achieve before you earn the right to do SL or SS. That's the entire point.

The_Honeybadger

Mellor wrote: »

The part about starting light was fine, so I didn't comment on it. You said you need a base strength to do 5x5. I disagree. I don't see how that's out of context.


People do dumb stuff with barbells all the time. That down to people stupidity and ego, not strength appropriate 5x5



I'm really not tbh. Pressing overhead is one lift. If 20kg is too heavy then use 10kg, or anything you like.
There's no minimum level you need to achieve before you earn the right to do SL or SS. That's the entire point.

You took one sentence in isolation and criticised it without regard to the following sentence or the broader message in my post. That is how it is out of context.

It's not about earning the right to do anything btw. Its about a sensible and progressive strategy to get stronger and avoid injury. There's no right or wrong answer. Only the one that works for the individual.

Personally I think people who are very very weak may benefit from doing easier lifts or even bodyweight work before progressing to relatively complex stuff like deadlifts and back squats, especially if they don't have a PT. I was in a somewhat similar situation to the op at one stage, and it really helped me and gave me confidence anyway.

Brian?

Zillah wrote: »

I think an important thing is to get rid of this idea of being an ectomorph. I used to have very, very low bmi, and would have described myself as being able to eat anything I wanted and I just couldn't gain weight. Turns out I was just not eating very much, and after forcing myself to eat more it became my new normal and I'm much heavier now.

Peanut butter is quite energy dense, as are all fats. Dairy is great for extra calories, cheese, milk. You could always do the GOMA diet (gallon of milk a day). It doesn't have to be literal, but getting lots of milk into you will help gain weight. It's got a good balance of fats and protein. Keep it up and you'll get used to the new diet.

This is a very good point.

I don't believe in the 3 body type at all. An ectomorph eats too little and doesn't lift. An endomorph eats too much and may or may not lift. A mesomorph eats right and trains right. It's not something you are born with.

There will be a small variance across a population in genetic ability to gain weight. Eating and training are much, much bigger factors. It's only at the top end where genetics really matter.

The_Honeybadger

I'd consider an ectomorph to be somebody with a narrow waist and shoulders, small wrists and ankles, and a generally small bone structure with thin limbs. That body type absolutely exists, and I don't think it has much to do with what you eat at all.

They can achieve similar results to anybody else, comparatively speaking, but some people are just better equipped to carry large amounts of muscle. If you have naturally broad shoulders and thick limbs (I.e endomorph) you'll have a better starting point and be able to gain more muscle overall.

Definitely agree that being an ectomorph should never be an excuse to sit on your bum and do nothing. They can make great progress and look great with training.

Brian?

mickeyk wrote: »

I'd consider an ectomorph to be somebody with a narrow waist and shoulders, small wrists and ankles, and a generally small bone structure with thin limbs. That body type absolutely exists, and I don't think it has much to do with what you eat at all.

They can achieve similar results to anybody else, comparatively speaking, but some people are just better equipped to carry large amounts of muscle. If you have naturally broad shoulders and thick limbs (I.e endomorph) you'll have a better starting point and be able to gain more muscle overall.

Definitely agree that being an ectomorph should never be an excuse to sit on your bum and do nothing. They can make great progress and look great with training.

There is zero benefit for anyone to identify as one of these body types.

The_Honeybadger

Brian? wrote: »

There is zero benefit for anyone to identify as one of these body types.

There isn't. It's overplayed and the ectomorph thing in particular can be used as an excuse for a lack of progress when it's far more likely to be down to poor training and diet.

That still doesn't mean there is no such thing as a body type. Some people are naturally thin and others are naturally muscular, most people are probably in between.

Zillah

I seriously doubt that the shape of a person's skeleton will have much of an impact on their ability to gain muscle. If there is a difference I am quite certain it is trivial compared to, say, lifting and eating. If someone says they are an ectomorph they need to put more food in their mouth, that's their problem.

Alf Veedersane

Everyone loves to have something thats out of their control to blame.

A har-gainer is usually someone who hasn't put in the effort to eat to the level they need to.

The OP has some good solid advice. Eat more and train hard to build muscle.

drdeadlift

I went from 62kg to over 90kg in 3 months,its all about the eating.
At a point i worked in a protein sales store,every day you would get at lest 5 guys with the same q..i eat lots but cant put on weight,i would ask them what they ate turns out to be as much as their slim girlfriend standing beside them..

I still sold them the gainer and bcaas and creatine..

The_Honeybadger

I think the terms ectomorph and hardgainer often get used interchangeably which is a mistake.

An ectomorph is somebody with a certain body type and bone structure.

A hardgainer is a person (most often also an ectomorph) who claims not to be able to gain muscle or get stronger. I'd guess that a genuine hardgainer is very rare, and it's mostly down to poor training or diet.

To say Mother Nature deals everybody the same hand is just pure wrong though. Some people get a head start by getting a better natural physique. I can't believe anybody disputes that, but there you go.

Zillah

drdeadlift wrote: »

I went from 62kg to over 90kg in 3 months,its all about the eating.

lol you must've been faaaaaaaat

Alf Veedersane

mickeyk wrote: »

I think the terms ectomorph and hardgainer often get used interchangeably which is a mistake.

An ectomorph is somebody with a certain body type and bone structure.

A hardgainer is a person (most often also an ectomorph) who claims not to be able to gain muscle or get stronger. I'd guess that a genuine hardgainer is very rare, and it's mostly down to poor training or diet.

To say Mother Nature deals everybody the same hand is just pure wrong though. Some people get a head start by getting a better natural physique. I can't believe anybody disputes that, but there you go.

No one is really disputing it. Just that labels are rarely helpful and mostly used improperly by people who just aren't eating enough.

Fwiw, I wasn't using hard gainer the same as ectomorph - it was just am example of how people use the label to explain not being able to put on weight as if it's out of their control.

Blacktie.

Have to agree the whole ectomorph excuse is used far too often. I'm nearly positive if I go through my post history I actually have a post asking the same question. Now I realise after years of training and looking back at what I was doing before it just wasn't enough. I wasn't eating enough or training hard enough. I just thought it was because I was an ectpmorph.

Mellor

mickeyk wrote: »

You took one sentence in isolation and criticised it without regard to the following sentence or the broader message in my post. That is how it is out of context.

Isolating a sentence doesn't necessarily change its context. In my post I mentioned starting light, so that in no way disregarded the follow up.

Feel free to clarify the context. But I can't think of any where "you need a base level of strength" would be true.
The two programs you mentioned are designed with total beginners in mind.

Good form, mobility etc, is s separate issue to strength and applies no matter how strong someone is.

Mellor

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

No one is really disputing it. Just that labels are rarely helpful and mostly used improperly by people who just aren't eating enough.

Fwiw, I wasn't using hard gainer the same as ectomorph - it was just am example of how people use the label to explain not being able to put on weight as if it's out of their control.

Agree with that completely.
We all get a different hand from nature. But labels help no one. Regardless of you natural frame, the method to get bigger is the same for all. Eat more, lift more.

Brian?

We should do a boards meet up at a Chinese buffet.

drdeadlift

Zillah wrote: »

lol you must've been faaaaaaaat

I will dig up photos of before and after