Your game plan for a healthier waistline

Ispoke about walking as a fitness health benefit last week and my follow up would be to help you understand your body better. The aim in understanding your body is to make sure you are working towards your true body shape and desire.

There are three main classifications of body types, and yes, I am going a little geeky on you, but relax, it will all make sense in the end. You get an “ectomorph”, “endomorph” and “mesomorph”. These types also apply to women.

Ectomorphs (I type) are people who always seem to be eating food of any shape or form and never seem to put on weight; they too can be classified as the “skinny type” and most suitable for endurance sports like marathons.

The next type is the mesomorph (V type) who tend to gain muscle mass easier whilst keeping a lean mass. These tend to be the athletic type people and the sprinters, gymnastics or wrestlers, think Usain Bolt or Seabelo Senatla. Then you get the endomorph (O type) people who are more the front row type. These are the powerhouses of any team because they provide much needed “clear the path” type action. Think Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson or Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Each body type has a particular food need according to Prof John Berardi who has helped thousands with their nutritional needs. He has helped elite athletes of all sporting codes, advised Nike and Titleist and loves to work with the ordinary Joe’s to lose weight through his precision nutrition. In fact, he and his team have helped over 50 000 men and woman lose weight. Why is knowing your type so important? This allows you to eat what is right for your frame rather than eat what everyone else is eating. Often weight gain is due to an O type. Eating too many carbohydrates, their bodies in turn storing all the excess carbs as fat.

The next thing you could try is a new fad diet; a crazy new diet that promises massive results in a short period of time. The real truth is that any diet you try will make you lose weight, but it might not necessarily be healthy for you. Every fad diet leaves your body with nutrient deficiencies because these diets are not well balanced.

Prof Berardi doesn’t believe in diets because he believes everyone is different and food has to eventually be tailored towards you. He does however believe in a framework for success. By learning the rules of the game, you get to achieve a whole lot more.