THE MALAWI UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

ACADEMY OF MEDICAL SCIENCES

DEPARTMENT OF SPORTS SCIENCE

PAMS-3200 ASSIGNMENT
 
Group Members:

Thokozani Gausi (ss-001-18)

Godfrey Ziyenda (ss-030-18)
Blessings Chiomba (ss-004-17)
 Objective: 

 Define the meaning of the terms ‘endomorphy,’‘mesomorphy’ and

‘ectomorphy’;

 Provide an understanding of the somatotype rating.

 Explain how to calculate an anthropometric somatotype.

 Describe how to plot and interpret somatotypes on a somatochart.

 Dominant sporting activities for different body types.

 History of somatotyping

 Somatotype classification was developed by American psychologist William

Herbert Sheldon and his friends in the 1940s.
 Their most important contribution to the field lies in the combination of the basic
ideas of two other methods.
 The first was Kretschmer’s (1921) classification, with three empirically
determined and visually rated extremes of body build, with each subject being an
amalgam of the three ‘poles.’
 History of somatotyping

 The second was the analytical, anthropometrically determined body-build

assessment of Viola (1933), in which the ratio of trunk and limb measures
and thoracic and abdominal trunk values are expressed proportionate to a
‘normotype.’
 History of somatotyping

 In Sheldon’s method an attempt is made to describe the genotypical

morphological traits of a person in terms of three components, each on a 7-point
scale. This genotypic approach, the rigidity of the closed 7-point ratings and a
lack of objectivity of the ratings, made the method unattractive to most
researchers, especially in the field of kinanthropometry.
 Sheldon categorized all possible body types according to a scale ranging from 1
to 7 for each of the three somatotypes, where the pure endomorph is 7–1–1, the
pure mesomorph 1–7–1 and the pure ectomorph scores 1–1–7.
 History of somatotyping

 From these three principal criticisms, and in addition those of Heath (1963),
emerged a new method, created by Heath and Carter(1967).

 They proposed a phenotypic approach, with open rating scales for three
components and ratings that can be estimated from objective anthropometric
measurements.

 The Heath-Carter somatotype method is the most universally applied, and will be
used in this presentation.
 THE HEATH-CARTER SOMATOTYPE METHOD

Somatotype

 A somatotype is a quantified expression or description of the

present morphological conformation of a person. It consists of a
three-numeral rating, for example, 3.5-5-1.
 The three numerals are always recorded in the same order, each
describing the value of a particular component of physique.
 The calculated three-numeral rating is then called the
anthropometric somatotype.
 THE HEATH-CARTER SOMATOTYPE METHOD

 The recommended somatotyping procedure is a combination of an anthropometric

followed by a photoscopic evaluation.

 The components in Somatotype are:

1. Endomorphy
o The first component, called endomorphy, describes the relative degree of adiposity
of the body, regardless of where or how it is distributed.
o It also describes corresponding physical aspects, such as roundness of the body,
softness of the contours, relative volume of the abdominal trunk, and distally
tapering of the limbs.
 THE HEATH-CARTER SOMATOTYPE METHOD

2. Mesomorphy

o The second component, called mesomorphy, describes the relative musculo-skeletal

development of the body.
o It also describes corresponding physical aspects, such as the apparent robustness of the
body in terms of muscle or bone, the relative volume of the thoracic trunk and the
possibly hidden muscle bulk.
o The definitions of endomorphy and mesomorphy reflect the anatomical model of body
composition.
 THE HEATH-CARTER SOMATOTYPE METHOD

3. Ectomorphy

o The third component, called ectomorphy, describes the relative slenderness of the body.
o It also describes corresponding physical aspects, such as the relative ‘stretched-
outness,’the apparent linearity of the body or fragility of the limbs, in absence of any
bulk, be it muscle, fat or other tissues.
Photoscopic evaluation.
 Measurement in Heath-Carter anthropometric somatotype.

 In fact, according to the approach proposed by Heath and Carter, the

somatotype can be calculated by measuring the following :

 Weight
 Height
 Skinfolds e.g. Triceps skinfold, subscapular skinfold, supraspinale
skinfold and medial calf skinfold
 Girths, e.g. Upper arm girth, flexed and tensed and standing calf girth
 Breadth of different parts, e.g. Biepicondylar humerus breadth and
Biepicondylar femur breadth
 CALCULATION
  OF ANTHROPOMETRIC
SOMATOTYPES

The Heath-Carter Somatotype Rating Form

 After taking measurements from above mentioned parts of the body we use
Heath- Carter somatotype Rating Form to find the three components of a subject,
that is his or her Endomophy, Mesomophy and Ectomophy .
 The Heath-Carter Somatotype Rating Form

1. Record pertinent identification data in top section of rating form. (Endomorphy

rating (steps 2-5)).

2. Record the measurements for each of the four skinfolds.

3. Sum the triceps, subscapular, and supraspinale skinfolds; record the sum in the box
opposite SUM3 SKINFOLDS. Correct for height by multiplying this sum by
(170.18/height in cm).
 The Heath-Carter Somatotype Rating Form

4. Circle the closest value in the SUM3 SKINFOLDS table to the right. The
table is read vertically from low to high in columns and horizontally from
left to right in rows. "Lower limit" and "upper limit" on the rows provide
exact boundaries for each column. These values are circled only when
SUM3 SKINFOLDS are within 1 mm of the limit. In most cases circle the
value in the row "midpoint".

5. In the row for endomorphy circle the value directly under the column for
the value circled in number (4) above.
 The Heath-Carter Somatotype Rating Form

Mesomorphy rating (steps 6-10)

6. Record height and breadths of humerus and femur in the appropriate boxes. Make the
corrections for skinfolds before recording girths of biceps and calf. (Skinfold correction:
Convert triceps skinfold to cm by dividing by 10. Subtract converted triceps skinfold
from the biceps girth. Convert calf skinfold to cm, subtract from calf girth.)
 The Heath-Carter Somatotype Rating Form

7. In the height row directly to the right of the recorded value, circle the height value
nearest to the measured height of the subject. (Note: Regard the height row as a
continuous scale.)

8. For each bone breadth and girth circle the number nearest the measured value in
the appropriate row. (Note: Circle the lower value if the measurement falls midway
between two values. This conservative procedure is used because the largest girths
and breadths are recorded.)
 The Heath-Carter Somatotype Rating Form

9. Deal only with columns, not numerical values for the two procedures below.
Find the average deviation of the circled values for breadths and girths from the
circled value in the height column as follows:

(a) Column deviations to the right of the height column are positive deviations.
Deviations to the left are negative deviations. (Circled values directly under the
height column have deviations of zero and are ignored.)
 The Heath-Carter Somatotype Rating Form

(b) Calculate the algebraic sum of the ± deviations (D). Use this formula:
mesomorphy = (D/8)+ 4.0. Round the obtained value of mesomorphy to the nearest
one-half (½) rating unit.

10. In the row for mesomorphy circle the closest value for mesomorphy obtained in
number 9 above. (If the point is exactly midway between two rating points, circle
the value closest to 4 in the row. This conservative regression toward 4 guards
against spuriously extreme ratings.)
 The Heath-Carter Somatotype Rating Form

Ectomorphy rating (steps 11-14).

11. Record weight (kg).

12. Obtain height divided by cube root of weight (HWR). Record HWR in the
appropriate box.

13. Circle the closest value in the HWR table to the right. (See note in number (4)
above.)
 The Heath-Carter Somatotype Rating Form

14. In the row for ectomorphy circle the ectomorphy value directly below
the circled HWR.

15. Move to the bottom section of the rating form. In the row for
Anthropometric Somatotype, record the circled ratings for Endomorphy,
Mesomorphy and Ectomorphy.

16. Sign your name to the right of the recorded rating.

The identification data in the upper section of the rating form are somewhat
arbitrary. Investigators may change these to suit their purposes.
 The Heath-Carter Somatotype Rating Form
Table below shows Anthropometric measurements of 10 male students.
Subject: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Mass(kg): 82.0 70.7 80.3 64.4 57.0 62.8 64.0 72.3 59.0 70.4

Height (cm): 191.7 175.3 160.0 171.5 160.0 180.6 163.0 172.3 188.3 156.8

Triceps skinfold 7.0 5.0 4.0 3.0 4.2 11.2 17.1 5.0 15.3 7.0
(mm):
Subscapular 6.0 7.0 5.0 5.7 8.8 12.1 6.3 7.2 7.4 5.5
skinfold (mm):
Supraspinale 4.0 3.0 3.0 3.6 7.1 11.5 9.0 6.0 4.6 6.1
skinfold (mm):
Medial calf skinfold 9.0 4.0 3.0 3.0 9.9 12.0 10.0 4.3 3.6 3.3
(mm):
Humerus breadth 7.3 7.0 6.5 6.6 7.4 6.5 7.3 7.2 6.0 7.0
(cm):
 The Heath-Carter Somatotype Rating Form

Table below shows Anthropometric measurements of 10 male students

Subject: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Femur 10.1 9.4 8.9 9.7 9.2 9.1 10.3 8.3 8.7 9.0
breadth (cm):
Upper arm 33.2 35.7 34.4 29.5 36.1 36.5 32.7 33.0 30.0 28.9
girth (cm):
(Flexed and
tensed)

Standing calf 36.0 34.4 36.4 34.5 40.6 38.6 36.0 33.3 37.4 40.0
girth (cm):
 Formulae for plotting somatotypes on the somatochart

 The exact location of a somatotype on the somatochart can be calculated

using the formulae:

X = ectomorphy – endomorphy

Y = 2 × mesomorphy – (endomorphy + ectomorphy)

 Somatotype categories

 Carter and Heath (1990) defined 13 somatotype categories.

 The exact definitions are as follows:

 Central type: No component differs by more than one unit from the other two.
 Balanced endomorph: Endomorphy is dominant and mesomorphy and
ectomorphy are equal (or do not differ by more than one-half unit).
 Somatotype categories

 Mesomorphic endomorph: Endomorphy is dominant and mesomorphy is greater than

ectomorphy.

 Mesomorph-endomorph: Endomorphy and mesomorphy are equal (or do not differ by

more than one-half unit), and ectomorphy is smaller.

 Endomorphic mesomorph: Mesomorphy is dominant and endomorphy is greater than

ectomorphy.

 Balanced mesomorph: Mesomorphy is dominant and endomorphy and ectomorphy are

equal (or do not differ by more than one-half unit).
 Somatotype categories

 Ectomorphic mesomorph: Mesomorphy is dominant and ectomorphy is greater

than endomorphy.

 Mesomorph-ectomorph: Mesomorphy and ectomorphy are equal (or do not

differ by more than one-half unit), and endomorphy is smaller.

 Mesomorphic ectomorph: Ectomorphy is dominant and mesomorphy is greater

than endomorphy
 Somatotype categories

 Balanced ectomorph: Ectomorphy is dominant and endomorphy and mesomorphy are

equal (or do not differ by more than one-half unit).

 Endomorphic ectomorph: Ectomorphy is dominant and endomorphy is greater than

mesomorphy.

 Endomorph-ectomorph: Endomorphy and ectomorphy are equal (or do not differ by

more than one-half unit), and mesomorphy is lower.
 Ectomorphic endomorph: Endomorphy is dominant and ectomorphy is greater than
mesomorphy.
 Somatotype categories

This classification can be simplified into seven larger groupings:

 Central type: No component differs by more than one unit from the other two.
 Endomorph: Endomorphy is dominant; mesomorphy and ectomorphy are more
than one-half unit lower.
 Endomorph-mesomorph: Endomorphy and mesomorphy are equal (or do not
differ by more than one-half unit), and ectomorphy is smaller.
 Mesomorph: Mesomorphy is dominant; endomorphy and ectomorphy are
more than one-half unit lower.
 Mesomorph-ectomorph: Mesomorphy and ectomorphy are equal (or do
not differ by more than one-half unit), and endomorphy is smaller.
 Ectomorph: Ectomorphy is dominant; endomorphy and mesomorphy are
more than one-half unit lower.
 Ectomorph-endomorph: Endomorphy and ectomorphy are equal (or do
not differ by more than one-half unit), and mesomorphy is lower.
Dominant Sports Codes for Endomorphic

 Examples include;
Powerlifting
Rugby
Wrestling
shot put.
Dominant Sports Codes for Mesomorph

 Basketball
 Football (Soccer)
 Track and field (sprints and jump)
 Boxing
Dominant Sport for Ectomorph

 Long- distance running

 Cycling
 Swimming
 Gymnastics
END OF PRESANTION