What's Your Body Shape? Reshape And Tone Up Your Body At Any Age!
Body shape is an updated version of body typing weight loss for the 2000s. It was authored by Edward Jackowski, Ph.D., a successful fitness expert whom Fit magazine calls the ‘body shape master’ in "Escape Your Shape - How To Workout Smarter, Not Harder".
This revolutionary work allows you to identify the specific shape of your body from the four distinct ones: hourglass, ruler, spoon, and cone.
If you want to re-shape your body and lose weight faster, you know that you can’t do that without working out, don’t you?
Whether you're male or female, in your twenties, or your seventies, read on and find out how to exercise right for your body shape to see permanent results in a matter of weeks. Intrigued?
1. Hourglass Body Shape If you have an hourglass body shape, your bust & hips are about the same circumference, and your waist is at least 9 inches smaller; your legs are tapered, with smaller ankles and muscular calves.
You have strong bones, a lot of muscle mass, and great flexibility throughout your entire body. Hourglass shape problem areas:
Your triceps (backs of the upper arms), inner & outer thighs, the saddlebag area (below the hips, outside of the upper thigh), and the lower abdomen.
You tend to put on weight evenly throughout your entire body (sometimes a little more on the lower half), but less at the waist. Losing fat and toning up:
More than the other types, you need to lose inches vs. pounds, which can’t be done without exercising. Inches loos doesn’t show on the scale, so forget about it and use a measuring tape instead. The right workout for your body shape will make you look toned and at least 10-15 pounds slimmer.
Hourglass Shape Workouts:
Your muscles bulk up faster, so do NOT add weights to your exercising routine until you lost your body fat. Favour impact sports that require high speed and low/medium resistance, and that involve both upper and lower body.
Isolated exercises: L-kicks, leg-outs, leg curls & lifts, vertical scissors, arms push-outs, biceps curls, triceps kickbacks, upright rows, front & behind-the-neck presses - all at high reps (30-50 repetitions for each exercise).
Whole-body workouts: long-distance swimming (crawl stroke only) jumping rope, jumping jacks, fast walking with no incline, ski machine, and stationary biking.
Avoid: jogging, roller-blading, step classes, walking on an incline, kick-boxing, spinning, and high-impact aerobics.
Hourglass Shape Diet:
Favor lean, high-quality proteins (skinless chicken/turkey breast, lean beef/veal, tuna, cod), cooked/raw high-fiber, low glycemic index (GI) vegetables: (cabbage, broccoli, zucchini, and all leafy green vegetables), and all fruits.
Eat moderately brown rice, whole wheat, eggs, skimmed dairy, and foods containing good fats (wild salmon, halibut & sardines, flax seeds, avocados, nuts, olive oil), as your body can't release the fat without them.
Avoid cooked high GI vegetables (carrots, beets, potatoes), all foods containing animal fat (other than the ones above), carbonated drinks, and foods high in sugar.
When cooking, use only healthy cooking oils to avoid toxins that bind your body fat.
2. Ruler Body Shape If you have a ruler (rectangle) body shape, your bust & hips are about the same circumference, and your waist is less than 9 inches smaller. You are naturally thin and have a pretty straight built (skinny rulers are typical fashion models).
You have a small or medium frame, usually small breasts, and not much muscle or strength.
Ruler shape problem areas:
You tend to gain weight all over the body, a bit more on the stomach & butt. Losing fat and toning up:
To burn fat, you have to exercise frequently; in order to build muscle, strength and power, you need to work out at high intensity - with a lot of upper-body and abdominal exercises to support the back and avoid lower back pain and poor posture.
Ruler Shape Workouts:
Anything that requires long and sustained aerobic movements, without weights until you reach your ideal weight. Do a stretching routine before and after any workouts, and - most of all - do not skip abdominal exercises (start with them, as you have more energy).
Isolated exercises: upper and lower abdominal crunches, full sit-ups, push-ups, spinning, and all upper- or lower-body exercises using medium/high resistance.
Whole-body workouts: long-distance running on an incline, roller-blading, long-distance swimming, water aerobics, kick-boxing, jumping rope (with a weighted rope), stationary biking, stepper, ski, and elliptical machines - all with medium/high resistance.
Avoid: exercises that may cause discomfort to the lower back region (vertical scissors, leg lifts and side leg lifts); as soon as you add abdominal strength and hamstring flexibility, you may start doing these too.
Ruler Shape Diet:
Favor high-quality proteins (chicken/turkey, beef/veal, tuna, shellfish, beans, whole wheat & rye products) and all complex carbs (all fruits and vegetables, brown rice).
Eat moderately eggs, skimmed dairy, and foods containing good fats (wild fatty fish like salmon, halibut & sardines, flax seeds, avocados, nuts, olive oil), as your body can't function well without them.
Avoid simple carbs (high starches like white rice and white wheat products, potatoes), carbonated drinks, and foods high in sugar.
When cooking, use only healthy cooking oils to avoid dangerous toxins.
3. Spoon Body Shape If you have a spoon body shape, your hips are at least 2 inches larger than your bust and your waist is less than 9 inches smaller than your bust. You tend to look heavier than your actual weight andyour lower body is generally bigger than your upper body.
The good news? You’re most likely to have the most gracious neck line and the best-looking arms of all the other body shapes. Spoon shape problem areas:
Weight gain and bulking up is mainly from the hips down, especially on the outside of the thigh. If you are not active, you may increase your size of hips and thighs, simply with the pressure of the weight on this area. Losing fat and toning up:
Losing fat from your problem areas is relatively easy with lots of low-impact aerobics and lower-body callisthenics - i.e. simple movements using only the weight of your own body.
Spoon Shape Workouts:
Favor movements that require lower-body flexibility, strength, and coordination, with absolutely NO resistance or weights.
Isolated exercises: marching in place on toes, all variations of push-ups, L-kicks, leg-outs, one-legged leg lifts, side leg lifts, standing knee to opposite chest, and vertical scissors.
Whole-body workouts: brisk walking with no incline, jumping rope, jumping jacks, stationary biking, and ski machines.
Avoid: all leg curls, presses, and extensions; squats, spinning, step classes, kick-boxing, skating, roller-blading, swimming, long-distance running, high-impact aerobics.
Spoon Shape Diet:
Favor lean, high-quality proteins (skinless chicken/turkey breast, lean beef/veal, tuna, cod), cooked/raw high-fiber, low glycemic index (GI) vegetables: (cabbage, broccoli, zucchini, and all leafy green vegetables), and low GI fruits (berries, prunes, cherries, apples).
Eat moderately eggs, skimmed dairy, and foods containing good fats (wild salmon, halibut & sardines, flax seeds, avocados, nuts, olive oil), as your body can't release the fat without them.
Avoid sweet fruits (pears, appricots, melons, grapes, pineapple), cooked high GI vegetables (carrots, beets, potatoes), all foods containing fats (other than the ones above), carbonated drinks, and foods high in sugar.
When cooking, use only healthy cooking oils to avoid toxins that bind your body fat.
4. Cone Body Shape If you have a cone (triangle) body shape, your hips are 3.6 inches smaller than your bust and your waist is less than 9 inches smaller than your bust. You have a body shape quite opposite than the spoon body shape. Your upper body is larger and stronger than your lower body, your waist is short, and you have long legs. Cone shape problem areas:
Your arms, upper back, chest, and stomach. Losing fat and toning up:
You benefit from lots of aerobic workout with abdominal and upper-body endurance exercises that protect the back and shoulder areas. Also, do not work with weights on your upper part of your body, as you will look disproportionate.
Cone Shape Workouts:
Favour quick, short movements with low resistance for your upper-body and focus more on high resistance on your lower body and abdomen to strengthen, add some mass, and improve your body’s proportion.
Isolated exercises: all lower-body exercises with medium/high resistance, squats, upper & lower abdominal crunches, hamstring & upper-body stretches.
Whole-body workouts: jumping rope, racquet sports, slow walking on inclines, stationary biking with medium/high resistance, stepper, spinning.
Avoid: all upper-body exercises with weights, bench presses, rowing.
Cone Shape Diet:
Favor high-quality proteins (chicken/turkey, beef/veal, tuna, shellfish, beans, whole wheat & rye products) and all complex carbs (all fruits and vegetables, brown rice).
Eat moderately eggs, skimmed dairy, and foods containing good fats (wild fatty fish like salmon, halibut & sardines, flax seeds, avocados, nuts, olive oil), as your body can't function well without them.
Avoid simple carbs (high starches like white rice, white wheat products, and potatoes), carbonated drinks, and foods high in sugar.
When cooking, use only healthy cooking oils to avoid dangerous toxins.
Are you a male? Then, you either have a ruler body shape (approx. 70% of males), or a cone body shape (approx. 30% of males). All recommendations from these body shapes apply to you too, of course. It just makes sense, doesn’t it? A simplified version of body shape and body type weight loss is based on only two shapes: apples and pears - depending on where you tend to store fat - around your breast and waist ('apple') or around your hips and buttocks ('pear').
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