What’s Your Female Body Shape from these Four Body Shapes?
The four body shapes, Hourglass, Ruler, Spoon and Cone are an updated version of Sheldon's three body types, which may seem limiting for you.
This update was introduced in 2001 by Edward Jackowski Ph.D., a successful fitness expert (whom Fit magazine calls the "body shape master") in his popular book "Escape Your Shape - How To Workout Smarter, Not Harder".
If you want to re-shape your body and lose weight faster, you know that you can’t do that with diet alone. You can't do that without working out.
But will just any workout do? How many hours have you spent in the gym before giving up frustrated and discouraged because you didn't get the result you wanted?
Whether you're male or female, in your twenties or your seventies, read on to recognize your body shape and then find out how to exercise right for your body shape and see permanent results in a matter of weeks, rather than months - or even years.
Before we get down to the right diet and workout for each of the four body shapes, you should know that your body shape has nothing to do with how skinny, fat, tall or short you are. Nor does it have anything to do with your age or fitness level.
Four Body Shapes - #1. Hourglass
If you have an Hourglass body shape, your bust and hips are about the same circumference, and your waist is narrow, 6-9 inches smaller than your bust & hips. 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. The loss of inches doesn’t show on the scale, so forget about it and use a measuring tape instead. The right workout for your Hourglass body will make you look toned and at least 10-15 pounds slimmer.
If you have a Ruler (Rectangle) body shape, your bust, hips and waist are about the same circumference. Ruler body shape is similar to Hourglass, but less curvy. 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 mass or muscle 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.
If you have a Spoon body shape, your hips are at least 2 inches larger than your bust; your waist is just a little smaller than your bust, less than 3 inches smaller. You tend to look heavier than your actual weight and your 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 calisthenics - simple movements using only the weight of your own body, or body weight workouts.
If you have a Cone (Triangle) body shape, your chest and waist are relatively close in size, but your hips are significantly smaller, at least 3 inches smaller. 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.
And, if you are like most women, you probably look in the mirror and see only the problem areas: thighs and buttocks. This might make you think you're a Spoon, when in reality, you may be an Hourglass.
Are you a man?
Then, you're either a Ruler (approx. 70% of males), or a Cone (approx. 30% of males), so all recommendations from these body shapes apply to you too.
If you are still not sure of your body shape, it is because you are overweight. If any one area of your body is larger, you are either overweight or bulkier - due to the type of workouts you have been performing.
If you seem to be between these four body shapes, follow the Hourglass workout until you lose enough weight for your true body shape to be revealed.
A simplified version of the four body shapes is based on only two shapes: Apples and Pears >>
