Women come in an array of shapes and sizes, some are curvy and only need to look at a piece of cake to put weight on, and others eat loads but are unable to add sexy muscle mass. Are you aware that the exercises you perform may either help or conflict with your body type. Some women head to the gym with hope that they will slim down to a perfect ten, fit into their skinny jeans, and succeed. Others perform the wrong exercises and end up bulkier because they are performing the wrong kind of exercise. This is where personal trainers come into force. They know their business and can guide you to build the body of your dreams.
The best thing to do to work out if an exercise is effective or not is to perform it for thirty days. If your favourite gym class is the 9.00 am spin and after thirty days, you do not see any change to your body type, it may be more than likely that the exercise is not the right one for your body type. Of course, spinning is a fantastic exercise to build leg strength and improve the cardiovascular system but if your aim was to shrink that belly, tone the buttocks, and slim the thighs and it hasn’t worked, try a new exercise to see it those changes can be made.
There are pretty much four body types:
| Body Type | Description | Best Exercises |
| Ruler | Straight up and down with hardly any curves. Usually have a high metabolism but very little muscle mass. | Cycling on high resistance to build muscle or hill running. Weight training with high resistance and weighted squats to build the muscles of the legs and buttocks. Also swimming, kickboxing, and walking uphill. |
| Apple | Weight is carried mostly in the stomach, back, chest, and arms. Lower half of the body is slender. | Cycling is a useful exercise, as is skipping, moderate walking on an incline, low impact step classes, and heavy weights to tone the lower half of the body and build muscle. Sit-ups will also tone the abdominal muscles and strengthen the core. |
| Hourglass | Both the upper and lower body is proportionally even. There may be a slight change in your hip and waist measurement but you look curvy and balanced in the mirror. | High impact exercises are best, so skipping is effective, power walking, jumping jacks, jogging and swimming (crawl stroke). Avoid squats, spinning, and heavy weighted lower body workouts. |
| Pear | Weight is carried in the thighs, buttock, and hip areas. Top half is slender. | Biking on low resistance, power walking, jogging, star jumps, and press-ups. Avoid lunges, squats, high-speed running, jogging, or walking on any incline, swimming, skating or kickboxing. |
Most people believe that if their parents are a certain body shape they will become the same. If you exercise regularly and eat a nutritious diet full of protein, carbohydrates, fibre, avoid sugar and salt and drink plenty of water; your body will feel full of energy and crave healthy foods. Genetics may come into play with body shape but at the end of the day, the current shape of your body is part genetics, part lifestyle.
I have always been an hourglass shape. I have athletic legs and will never have supermodel long luscious legs. That would be nice but I have accepted my body shape. Whereas some of my friends have slimmer legs and a little more weight on the top half, I have an enviously small waist but struggle to keep my thighs and buttock in shape. Luckily, I love skipping and am very good at it. Every body shape is different. The right exercises can make a substantial difference. Try to change your exercise every six weeks so that the body does not become accustomed to it. The body does likes a challenge.