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15 Body Types & Weight
15 Body Types & Weight
15 Body Types & Weight
Education
Body Types & Weight
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Learning objectives
Learning objectives
What we will learn in this presentation:
The characteristics of the three extreme
somatotypes
How different somatotypes are suited to
different physical activities
How body shape can be altered
Definitions of overweight, overfat and obese
How body fat can be measured
How weight can affect performance.
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Somatotypes
People come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Body
type or physique can greatly affect performance in
different activities.
Body type is also known as somatotype.
A performers somatotype can be measured against the
three extreme somatotypes:
Endomorph
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Mesomorph
Ectomorph
Endomorph
Extreme endomorphs have the following characteristics:
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Mesomorph
Extreme mesomorphs have the following characteristics:
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Ectomorph
Extreme ectomorphs have the following characteristics:
Very little muscle or
body fat
Narrow hips and
shoulders
Thin legs and arms
A narrow chest and
abdomen
Thin face and high
forehead
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Which somatotype?
All performers are made up of elements of these three
extreme somatotypes.
Most people have a mixture of mesomorphic, endomorphic
and ectomorphic characteristics.
A persons somatotype can be graded using a scoring system.
They are given 3 scores between 1 and 7, according to how
well they conform to each of the extreme somatotypes.
1 is a low score, 7 is a high score. For example:
1, 7, 2
Low endomorph
High mesomorph
Low ectomorph
Mesomorph
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Which somatotype?
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Somatotype charts
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Somatotypes in sport
Certain somatotypes tend to be found in certain sports.
The ideal somatotype for a performer will depend on their
sport or event. In some cases, the position that they play in
a particular sport might
also be important.
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Somatotypes in sport
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Weight training
will increase
muscle size,
making you
more
mesomorphic.
Weight
Every individual has their own optimum weight the weight
at which they are healthy and able to perform at their best.
Your optimum weight depends on a number of factors:
Height In general, the taller you
are, the more you should weigh.
Sex Men usually have a higher optimum
weight than women of the same height.
Bone structure Some people have
bigger bones and are naturally heavily
built, without being overweight.
Muscle girth People with big, well-developed
muscles can weigh a lot without being overweight.
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Obesity
Obese people are people who are extremely overweight.
Men are obese if
more than 25% of
their body is fat.
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Obesity
Underweight
Being significantly below your optimum weight can
also be bad for you.
The body needs some fat reserves underweight
individuals have a lower resistance to infection and can
find it difficult to recover from illness. They may feel
constantly tired and bone strength may deteriorate.
Underweight women can have trouble getting pregnant.
It is recommended that:
men should not
have less than
5% body fat.
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Weight
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Weight charts
A rough way to
determine
whether
someone is
overweight or
not is to use a
height-toweight chart.
The results are
fairly arbitrary and
take no account
of muscle bulk
and frame.
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Weight charts
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Measuring fat
In terms of health, a persons weight is less important
than the amount of fat they have.
Unfortunately, it is quite difficult to measure the amount
of fat in a person without laboratory equipment. An
estimate can be obtained using skin-fold callipers.
The thickness of the skin and outer
layer of fat is measured in four places:
biceps
triceps
subscapula (bottom of
the shoulderblade)
supra-iliac (abdomen).
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weight (kg)
height2
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Exam-style questions
1. a) Describe the physical appearance of a performer
with an extremely ectomorphic body shape.
b) Give an example of an activity that this performer is
likely to be suited to and explain why this activity
favours ectomorphic individuals.
2. a) What is meant by a performers optimum weight?
b) Explain why the optimum weight of a female ballet
dancer will differ from that of a male sprinter of the
same height.
3. Describe how under eating may affect an individuals
performance.
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