"Body Type" affects weight loss...

Interesting article from Health Magazine. A good source in developing realistic expectations...... suggests aiming for being healthy and fit!! "Body Type" From Health Magazine Even if they were roommates in some wacky sitcom, there wouldn't be much wardrobe swapping among actress Calista Flockhart, tennis champ Serena Williams, and comedian Rosie O'Donnell. Each exemplifies a distinct body type, a difference in frame that transcends weight or shape. Like eye color or height, body type is dictated by heredity, and it's fixed at birth. In the 1930s, Harvard psychologist William H. Sheldon described three basic body types with terms still used today: Ectomorphic. A quick metabolism and a slender body with little fat are hallmarks of an ectomorph. This body type has a lean frame, often with narrow hips, long legs, and a long neck. Some rail-thin ectomorphs have trouble gaining weight. Mesomorphic. Muscular mesomorphs look like natural-born athletes, with wide shoulders, a narrow waist, and broad hips. The weight they gain tends to distribute itself evenly, and they lose fat and build muscle at a fast rate. Endomorphic. Endomorphs suffer from a slow metabolism. They put on pounds quickly, and they have to fight to keep weight off their heavy bones and sturdy frame. Without exercise, their body fat sticks around, even when they follow a healthy eating regimen. Understanding your body type before starting a weight-training or diet program will help you have realistic expectations and set attainable goals. If you're an endomorph, for example, an exercise and diet plan may change the amount of fat and muscle you have, but it can't make a big-boned woman look like a waif. And both endomorphs and ectomorphs tend to develop smaller muscles than mesomorphs. No body type is inherently better than any other; cultural and social forces, not biology, often determine what kind of body is in favor. Rather than striving for a look that contradicts your body type -- and that may be out of fashion in a few years -- aim to make the body you have as healthy and fit as possible. --Julianne Hill Published October, 2004 © 2004 Health Publishing, Inc.

I remember reading about these body types when my kids were little in the "your # year old" series of books. I do have to admit though that when I clicked on your thread I expected the body types they were referring to --to be big apple, pear etc. I have a theory that the fat carried in the lower body is more difficult to lose. Or--am I just making excuses??

Hi Lynda! I think you're right.... Getting weight off the lower body is harder. Of couse, I'm bias... I'm a definite pear! The article below is also from the same magazine... It gives me an excuse to blame genetics on my hefty lower parts! "Are You a Buddha or a Pear?" By Amy Paturel, M.S., M.P.H. Do you have big hips or a Buddha belly? It makes a difference. In fact, research shows that apple-shaped folks are at greater risk for insulin resistance, diabetes and heart disease than their pear-shaped counterparts. Why? Because when fat accumulates around the heart and vital organs, it causes physiological stress. "Having a high concentration of fat stored in the mid-section leads to a three-fold increased risk of heart attack," says Cynthia Sass, M.P.H., M.A., R.D., of the American Dietetic Association. OK, so we all know that body shape (and weight) are a combination of genetic and lifestyle factors. But now researchers have uncovered three new genes that determine how many fat cells you have and where you'll pack on that extra adipose layer. Using advanced technology -- and a group of human guinea pigs in a range of sizes and shapes -- researchers identified three fat-predicting genes: T-box 15, glypican 4, and homeo box. It's these three genes that researchers claim are responsible for whether you're an apple, a pear or simply an over-sized fruit! So, are you destined for a future of fatness if mom and pop are, shall we say, round? Most experts don't think so. "Genes are just one piece of the puzzle," says Sass. "If you are genetically predisposed to a disease, it's still your lifestyle that will ultimately protect or endanger you." The good news: These newly identified genes may give researchers clues for obesity drug development in the future. In the meantime, if your genes are working against you, eat a balanced diet including fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean protein, and get moving.

As an apple person, I can say I lose weight and inches EVERYWHERE else first and the damn belly is going last. I have no butt left, scrawny legs, and dropping boobs and a big fat belly which is going to have to be carved off by a surgeon. I'd trade with a pear shaped woman any day. Lynda

Lynda--nice name. At least your big fat belly CAN be carved off by a surgeon--I am quite sure the thighs are here to stay. Why is the grass always greener...?

As a bonafide apple person, I can attest to the unhealthy nature of the belly fat w/ all of its sidekicks: diabetes, heart disease, etc. The pear people, while they may not like the way it appears, are less prone to have the medical comorb baggage. You can be "plump in the rump" and still be healthy at the same time. We Apples tend to be ticking time bombs (heart attack at age 46). Too bad there was not a check box on the form prior to birth. "Hmmm, Let me see, I think I would like to be an pear person." Nowhere Man/PH/Jay

Hey Jay--I am not sure I have ever seen a 'pear guy'. Yes, I know it is healthier--doesn't really make squeezing these thighs into pants any easier though. My husband carries his weight in the stomach and I worry about him.

and ya know what else? I just had a tt and although she removed 10 lbs of flab..... I still have too much visceral fat .... it makes me an apple and there is no lipo'ing this kind of fat which is stuck underneath the abdominal wall surrounding my guts.... So after TT and $10,000 ... I still have my inherent round body... it's just not as big, but the hip waist differential is about the same.... still an apple longing to be more like a pear.....(don't get me wrong... I am so much better off since I lost the weight and my ps did sculpt me more of a waistline than I have ever had.....) Nature is a tough thing to change!!! Laurie - minus 186 lbs!!