Genetics have a huge impact on your ability to shed pounds. And let’s just admit it, endomorphs have it rough. Marked by a high-fat content, more round physiques, and slower metabolisms, even the slightest divergence from your average healthy diet packs on the pounds. But following the right endomorph diet can help overcome most of these weight loss related problems.
The Endomorph Female Body Type
For an endomorph female, weight loss struggles are not foreign to you. No pair of jeans fits right, and you often feel like the “fat person” all the time. It seems like just thinking about your favorite burger will make you gain weight.
This is because the endomorph body type naturally has a higher percentage of body fat with less muscle mass. Endomorphs are more round and typically carry a little more fat, but not always obese. Because of genetic makeup, a typical endomorph female is more sensitive to calorie consumption as compared to other body types.
Other characteristics typically seen in an endomorph female body include:
- A slow metabolism
- Gain weight easy and lose it slowly
- Thicker arms and legs
- Hips wider than shoulders
- Small to medium bones, shorter limbs in relation to trunk
- Curvy body
- Carry body fat mainly in lower areas of the body (lower abdomen, thighs, and hips)
If you are an endomorph female struggling to lose body fat, start paying more attention to your diet and your weight loss struggles will disappear.
Follow these endomorph diet tips to start losing weight now.
Endomorph Diet Tip#1: Follow a Carb Diet
As an endomorph, you are likely more sensitive to insulin and carbohydrates. So the first thing to do is to limit your carb intake.
Carbohydrate-rich foods break down to form sugar as soon as they enter your bloodstream. This sugar is more likely to be stored in the form of body fat than being broken down for energy. This is why endomorph females do better on low carb diets.
As a carb-sensitive endomorph trying to lose weight, step away from rice, white, bread, pasta, and cereals. Consider cookies and cakes your worst enemies.
The only carbs you should eat are the complex carbs. These predominantly include vegetables and minimal amounts of starchy complex carbs such as sweet potatoes, oatmeal, and brown rice to name a few.
You could also benefit from various low-carb diet plans to keep a check on your carbohydrate intake. One such diet plan is the Paleo diet which helps control your carb intake and mainly focuses on eating lean protein, vegetables, and some fruit.
The keto diet is also a great weight loss strategy for the endomorph female. The keto diet is essentially a low carb high fat diet that focuses on taking in higher amounts of healthy fats.
Endomorph Diet Tip#2: Exercise at Least 4 Times per Week (HITT and weight training)
Losing weight through diet can be challenging for endomorph females. Their rounder bodies need exercise in addition to the regular endomorph diet plan to stimulate weight loss and build lean muscle.
A comprehensive fitness plan for an endomorph female includes strength training sessions. Try weight training focusing on compound lifting exercises like squats and deadlifts four times a week to accelerate weight loss. Here is a great video on compound lifts for the endomorph women.
HIIT is a faster way to lose fat in less time but requires more intense workouts. Perform 20-minute long HIIT session three times a week. HIIT stands for High Intensity Interval Training. It is a training technique in which you give all-out effort for a short period followed by a recovery period. This type of training keeps your heart rate elevated and burns a great deal of fat in a short amount of time.
Endomorph Diet Tip#3: Eliminate Sugary Drinks
As discussed before, carbs are not your friends, primarily because of your relationship with insulin. Insulin is a hormone the helps your body absorb glucose coming from the carbs and extract energy from it.
Endomorphs are not able to use insulin for lowering their blood sugar. This means that anything with sugar in it is going to cause a lot of trouble.
Do your body a favor by avoiding sugary drinks as they may make your insulin level and blood sugar go crazy. Cut back on sodas, fizzy drinks, and even fruit juices with added sugars.
Endomorph Diet Tip#4: Eat Lean Protein
Your body requires as much as 30% extra effort to digest proteins as compared to carbs or fats. This means that for every 100 calories of protein you eat, your body will only gain access to 70.
Protein is also a great way to build lean muscle which is metabolically more active. So as an endomorph, a healthy protein intake is going to help you lose weight while preserving muscle.
Try eating 1-2 palm-sized portions of lean protein with every meal. Each palm-sized portion should contain about 20 to 30 grams of protein on average.
For example, there are 22 grams of protein in a broiled tilapia filet, 35 grams in one cup of roast chicken, and 24 grams in 4 ounces of lean flank steak.
Endomorph Diet Tip#5: Eat Low Glycemic Carbs
The glycemic index (GI) is a scale to classify carbohydrates according to how quickly they increase the blood sugar level.
Carbs that break down slowly, for example oats, release glucose in the blood at a slower rate. Such carbs have a low glycemic index and they do not cause spikes in the glucose or insulin levels.
Therefore, it is important to include low glycemic carbs in an endomorph diet. Aim for beans, soy products, milk, grainy bread, lentils, and porridge.
Here is a great list of foods with associated GI ratings. See more examples of low GI foods here. Remember to avoid high GI carbs.
http://www.the-gi-diet.org/lowgifoods/
Endomorph Diet Tip#6: Drink 64 Ounces of Water Each Day
Studies have proven that drinking water can boost your metabolism and improve your fat burning rate. [1] [2] Drinking water just before a meal can also increase satiety and make you eat less.
Because endomorph females retain more water, drinking water also helps them flush out the excess water from their bodies. This will help reduce water weight as well.
Try consuming 64 ounces or 1 to 2 liters of water every day. Keep in mind that the water requirement may slightly vary depending upon your workout plan and environmental conditions.
Endomorph Diet Tip#7: Eliminate Refined Carbs and Sugars
Carbohydrates are generally beneficial to endomorphs. The refined carbs are even worse since they have been stripped of all the important vitamins, fiber, and minerals.
This means that refined carbs are nothing more than “empty calories” that will only raise your blood sugar and insulin levels. Refined carbs have also been associated with an increased belly fat and overeating. [3] [4]
Whatever it takes, always say no to refined carbs. This includes avoiding white rice, white bread, pasta, sodas, added sugar, sugary breakfast cereals, and snack foods (cookies, cakes, candy, pie, crackers, etc.).
Endomorph Diet Tip#8: Keep Healthy Travel Snacks
The carbohydrate needs and tolerance in endomorphs are low since they cannot burn calories at a normal rate. Snacking on foods which are lower in carbohydrates and higher in fat and proteins is the best way to sustain energy in such cases.
Nuts and seeds such as cashews, hazelnuts, and almonds are some healthy travel snacks to keep with you all the time. However, keep in mind that nuts and seeds have a great deal of fat. Try to eat small portions because too many can lead to weight gain.
You can also make homemade protein balls for a perfect on-the-go snack. Just blend some nuts with vanilla paste and coconut oil and munch on them to curb unwanted hunger pangs.
Endomorph Diet Tip#9: Eat Fiber
If you are an endomorph struggling to lose weight, it is important to eat foods that fill you up without increasing your caloric intake. And foods with high fiber content does this very effectively.
Studies show that soluble fiber can exert powerful effects on your health and metabolism. [5] It slows down the emptying of the stomach and increases fullness which ultimately reduces your appetite. [6]
Include wheat bran cereal, barley, quinoa, and whole grain bread in your endomorph diet to get more fiber and promote weight loss.
Endomorph Diet Tip#10: Supplement Diet w/ Whey Protein
As an endomorph, it is extremely important for you to add lean protein in every meal you take. If this is a problem for you, try supplementing your body with whey protein.
Whey protein is an amazing supplement for weight loss. Studies have proven that it can accelerate fat loss in the human body while preserving lean muscle. [7]
Whey protein is available everywhere and can be integrated into your daily eating regimen very easily. You can add it to your breakfast cereals or make a protein shake. Using whey protein will not only help you achieve your protein goals but also curb sugar cravings. Additionally, this supplement will speed up the muscle recovery after intense workouts.
The recommended dose for whey protein is 1 to 2 scoops or about 25 to 50 grams per day. Here is a great whey protein option. It tastes great and is pretty affordable.
As an endomorph female, you can conquer your genetic struggles and lose weight. Follow these 10 tips and stay tuned for more from Libifit on how to conquer all of the weight loss issues you may face as an endomorph woman.
Till next time…
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