home exercise routine for ectomorphs

There are three main body types to consider when evaluating strength or fitness goals. The ectomorph, the endomorph and the mesomorph. This article will deal primarily with the ectomorph frame, which we will be familiar with as one who tends to be long and thin, possesses a high metabolism, a large appetite, and finds it difficult to gain weight. In the world of bodybuilding, many people refer to this build as the “hard gainer”, however, in truth, it would be better to refer to the ectomorph as a “different gainer”.

So, are you an ectomorph and want a good workout at home? Well, a good workout will depend entirely on your goals. The first thing with any routine is to set your goals, after all, without a planned destination, how will you plan the route?

Ectomorphs want to get fat and some simple truths that can help you. The first truth concerns calorie counting. I mean, you should! The simple fact is that if you take in more calories than you regularly expend, your body will have more energy potential for growth. The first part of your routine then is the diet. This comes before supplements like whey protein too!

Your diet should consist of five or more meals a day, in smaller portions and never leaving more than 2-3 hours between meals. I am an ectomorph and had to get used to spending a lot more money on food. It’s unavoidable if you’re training hard anyway and certainly unavoidable if you want to train and gain mass.

The key to a good ectomorph diet is a balance of good fats, complex carbohydrates, and protein. Simple carbohydrates are good right after a workout. Do a lot of research on your own about the different foods that are good for an ectomorphic diet.

Now that we’ve covered the basics, what type of training will work for an ectomorph? For mass, the answer is the same as for everyone else. One must use large amounts of weight with low repetitions to increase muscle size. If you want to get stronger and more athletic (instead of just bigger), just lower the weight and increase the reps. This is a good idea if you are not doing any other form of exercise.

“Action cannot always bring happiness; but there is no happiness without action. {Benjamin Disraeli}”

There are two basic types of lift, the isolation lift and the compound lift. The first targets a small set of muscles, like the biceps in a bicep curl. The second works many muscle groups and a good example would be the weighted squat or even all the Olympic lifts. The compound lift is always recommended for ectomorphs looking to build muscle, they will work their entire body and especially target large muscle groups like the gluteus maximus muscles which will cause a slightly increased hormonal response from your body.