CHAPTER
6

THE ENDOMORPH RX

CURVES ARE SEXY. FULLNESS IS SENSUOUS. MUSCLES ARE POWERFUL and impressive. Even with so many desirable physical traits, endomorphs tend to be pretty hard on themselves (in my experience). This is somewhat understandable given that we live in a culture that’s obsessed with thinness, but it’s still a shame because endos, as I like to call them, have so many excellent attributes: the potential to be super-strong athletes, with explosive power in sports and excellent balance capabilities, for starters. Performance wise, research has found that endomorphs are capable of dominating a wide range of sports, including water polo, surfing, judo, and discus throwing. From an aesthetic point of view, they have the ability to develop shapely or curvy physiques that are also well defined.

Often described as stout or round, curvaceous or voluptuous, endomorphs tend to have a medium-to-large bone structure, with more of their weight in their lower abdomen, hips, and thighs. They often have a higher percentage of body fat than other types, and they tend to gain weight easily, which is why they may find themselves on the rounder or softer side even if they’re not overweight. While endomorphs (like celebrities Jennifer Lopez, Beyoncé, Sofía Vergara, Queen Latifah, Chris Pratt, Russell Crowe, and James Corden) have no trouble gaining muscle, it’s often harder for them to lose body fat, partly because they tend to have slower metabolisms. While their bodies are all a bit different, Chris Pratt, Russell Crowe, and James Corden have sturdy physiques, with thick midsections and rounder bodies, characteristics that are typical of male endomorphs.

In fact, research has found that while women who are endomorphs tend to consume fewer calories than their peers who are ectomorphs or mesomorphs, they have a harder time maintaining an ideal body weight, which has to be frustrating. When endomorphs gain weight, prime trouble spots include the abdomen (hello, muffin top!) and butt, but the arms can become flabby and the legs can become jiggly as well. If an endomorph with the same height and weight as his or her friends who are mesomorphs eats the same meals as those friends, the endomorph will hold onto more body fat. This is totally unfair, I know, but it is what it is: simply put, endomorphs have different responses to certain foods than people with other body types do. But if you are an endomorph, don’t give up because it is possible for endomorphs to bring out the best in their physiques—with the right dietary approach and plenty of fat-burning aerobic exercise, plus strength training three times a week. Even if the goal isn’t to shed body weight, you can achieve a shift in body composition with the right adjustments to your lifestyle.

Before we delve into the details on how to do that, let’s take a closer look at what’s going on inside endomorphs. Typically, endomorphs have slower sympathetic nervous systems (which means it takes more to mobilize the body’s fight-or-flight response) and a greater propensity toward insulin resistance. Endomorphs naturally have a higher percentage of body fat and slower metabolisms, partly due to genetic factors and partly because they’re likely to be somewhat insulin-resistant. High insulin levels can bring on intense food cravings, particularly for carbs, which can then increase insulin levels even more, which can lead to more carb cravings, creating a vicious cycle. Due to their insulin resistance, endomorphs process carbs poorly—and for these folks, excessive carbs will cause blood sugar spikes and crashes, leading to problematic spikes in the stress hormone cortisol and ultimately depleting their energy levels. Meanwhile, carbs that are consumed but not burned off for immediate energy get stored as body fat and glycogen.

This combination of factors makes endomorphs particularly prone to being leptin-resistant. Remember, leptin, often called the “satiety hormone,” tells your brain that you have eaten enough food and that you have enough fat stored and it’s okay to burn fat for fuel. If this signaling mechanism isn’t working properly, you’ll want to continue eating food, even if you’ve had enough, instead of using stored body fat for fuel.

As you’ve read on previous pages, body fat requires only a fraction of the calories that muscle does to sustain itself. So, having a greater proportion of body fat, as endomorphs do, translates into burning fewer calories per day. Simply put, high body fat = slow metabolism. This reality stinks and it creates another Catch-22 situation whereby having a higher percentage of body fat and a slower metabolism makes it harder to shed that body fat.

In addition, endomorphs often have high levels of the stress hormone cortisol, as a result of prolonged high insulin levels. But the effect can go the other way, too, because chronically elevated cortisol levels lead to increased insulin levels. It’s an unfortunate round robin! Complicating matters, high cortisol levels promote the storage of body fat, especially in and around the belly. In other words, endomorphs often face a threatening triple whammy: leptin resistance, insulin resistance, and improperly regulated cortisol levels become a three-headed beast that can make weight control extra difficult. (For the record, exercise reduces cortisol levels and stabilizes insulin levels, but if you don’t exercise enough and you continually feed your elevated insulin levels with carbs, the hormonal imbalance and your weight struggles will continue.)

I know this may sound like a whole lot of bad news, but there’s plenty of hope because endomorphs do have the capacity to build more muscle, which will make all of these things better. Much. Better. With optimal eating habits and the right training format, endomorphs can give their bodies a higher muscle content, which can in turn ramp up their metabolic rate and improve their insulin sensitivity, making it easier to control their weight. The first thing that needs to change is the ratio of carbs in their diet (it needs to come down), perhaps with a reduction in calories, as well.

Take my client George, 53, a highly accomplished businessman, as an example. Naturally big-boned, he came to me with a soft belly and excess pounds that were exacerbated by years of globe-trotting travel, dining out, no exercise, and lots of stress, alcohol, and sugary snacks. The first thing we did was clean up his eating habits by drastically reducing his carb intake and focusing on smart food choices (lean protein, lots of veggies, healthy fats) at home and on the road.

We also got him into a workout program that involved 30 to 45 minutes of walking on a treadmill or stair-stepping machine at a brisk but sustainable pace five days per week; then, we eventually added three 1-hour weight-training sessions per week, sometimes with 15-minute HIIT sessions afterwards. He ended up working out five out of seven days per week—by doubling up with cardio and strength training, three times a week—so that he had two rest days each week. In eight months, he lost 36 pounds from his 6’1” frame and went from being unable to do a single push-up to doing sets of 40. Now, he can also do pull-ups and squats with 200-pound weights. Amazing! He also dropped multiple clothing sizes. It became a running joke that working with me cost him thousands of dollars in new clothes. A pretty great trade, if you ask me.

SLIMMING DOWN, SHAPING UP

For endomorphs who want to lose body fat and build lean muscle, a Paleo-style diet easily hits the right ratio of macronutrients. The Paleo diet is based on eating what the human body needed back in the Paleolithic era—I’m talking hunter-gatherer times, caveman days. The basic premise is high protein (38 percent of total calories), high fat (39 percent), and low carbs (23 percent). Lean protein would come from seafood and meat; fat would come from seeds, nuts, and meat sources. Grains, legumes, dairy products, soy, and refined sugar were simply not regular options in those days, so our Paleolithic predecessors didn’t eat them.

I like a modified Paleo approach—one that includes legumes and healthy oils, in small doses—for endomorphs, and here’s why: endomorphs struggle with carbs but digest protein and fat just fine; keeping protein intake high, especially when adding resistance training to the mix, ensures that muscle remains in top shape and is properly repaired. My suggested ratio of macronutrients for endomorphs is 40 percent protein, 40 percent fat, and 20 percent carbs. Avoid high-glycemic carbs (which increase blood sugar and insulin levels rapidly, in turn promoting fat accumulation, especially in the mid-section), sugary or refined foods, dairy products, and soy foods. (Note: if you’re a vegetarian, you can have up to a 4-ounce serving of organic tofu or tempeh per day but don’t go overboard with soy products.)

Because endomorphs tend to be insulin-resistant, it’s best to consume carbs before and after your workouts—that’s when your muscles really need them to fuel up and replenish glycogen stores. Otherwise, high-carb foods are quickly converted to blood sugar and can easily be stored as body fat. For the endomorph, it’s best to think of carbs only to be used as “instant fuel.” If you don’t need them, don’t have them. (FYI: This does not include vegetables or legumes; they get a free pass. I’m talking primarily about grains and fruit, to a lesser extent.)

Endomorphs who want to lose weight should keep their calories lower at first—usually between 1,300 and 1,500 calories initially. (To calculate your body’s needs, use the BMR and TDEE formulas in Chapter Three). You can adjust this range, based on your rate of weight loss and your energy level. As a starting point, your macronutrient range should be 100 to 150 grams (400 to 600 calories) of protein, 40 to 60 grams (360 to 540 calories) of fat, and 60 to 80 grams (240 to 320 calories) of carbs.

Once you repair your hormone function and start burning more calories through exercise, this baseline calorie intake will be adjusted upward. Endomorphs (and other body types who have a history of crash dieting, starving, or malnourishing their bodies) frequently find success with an approach called “reverse dieting”: this involves eating less and working out more initially then slowly increasing your calories and reducing your cardio workouts; this approach allows you to repair your metabolism and find the sweet spot where you can maintain a leaner physique, perform well at the gym, and stay healthy and energized. Endomorphs are much more diet-controlled than the other body types, so adjusting to this spot (physiologically and psychologically) may take a couple weeks. Be patient.

With this initial approach, here’s what a week’s worth of meals looks like:

SUNDAY

Breakfast: 3 whole eggs, scrambled with 1 cup chopped veggies (onions, mushrooms, spinach, zucchini) in 1 tablespoon coconut oil

Snack: 12 almonds, handful of carrot sticks

Lunch: 2 cups fresh chopped kale (or spinach), ½ cup sliced cherry tomatoes, ½ cup chopped cucumber, topped with 4 ounces grilled chicken breast, 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1–2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar; ½ cup cooked quinoa (if you’ll be working out in the morning or early afternoon; otherwise add this to dinner)

Snack: 1 cup celery sticks with 2 tablespoons hummus

Dinner: 4 ounces grilled or broiled salmon served on 1 cup zucchini noodles sautéed in ½ tablespoon coconut oil, 1 cup roasted cauliflower

MONDAY

Breakfast: 2 slices cooked turkey bacon (chopped), scrambled with 3 egg whites and 1 cup spinach in ½ tablespoon coconut oil

Snack: 2 celery stalks spread with 1 tablespoon almond butter

Lunch: Swiss chard wraps, made with 3 ounces cooked ground turkey, ¼ cup black beans, ½ cup salsa, ½ large yellow bell pepper (chopped), divided between 2–3 large Swiss chard leaves

Snack: Protein shake, ½ cup raspberries

Dinner: 6 large grilled shrimp, 1 cup each grilled zucchini strips and grilled onion slices, drizzled with 1 tablespoon garlicky extra-virgin olive oil; ½ cup cooked quinoa (if you’ll be working out in the morning or afternoon)

TUESDAY

Breakfast: 2 poached eggs with 1 cup spinach sautéed in 1 tablespoon coconut oil

Snack: 1 protein bar, ½ cup blueberries

Lunch: 1 cup gazpacho, topped with 1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds and a sprinkle of fresh basil; cooked 4-ounce turkey burger wrapped in lettuce leaf with sliced avocado and tomato

Snack: 1 small apple (sliced), topped with 1 tablespoon peanut butter, dash of cinnamon

Dinner: 4 ounces broiled chicken breast, 10 steamed asparagus spears, small side salad

WEDNESDAY

Breakfast: Morning parfait,* green juice*

Snack: Protein shake, ½ cup berries

Lunch: 4 ounces smoked wild salmon on 1 cup shredded fresh kale, with ¼ large carrot (grated), ½ cucumber (diced), 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, juice from ¼ lemon

Snack: 2 thin slices roasted turkey, wrapped around tomato slices

Dinner: 4 ounces broiled grass-fed flank steak, 1 cup zucchini noodles sautéed in 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil with ½ red pepper (sliced), ½ cup cooked quinoa (if afternoon workout)

THURSDAY

Breakfast: 2 omelet muffins*

Snack: 1 cup plain Greek or Icelandic yogurt, ½ cup strawberry slices

Lunch: 2 cups mixed greens with 1½ cups raw or cooked vegetables (such as broccoli, green beans, radishes), 4 ounces grilled chicken breast, 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar; ½ cup cooked brown rice (if you’ll be working out in the late morning or early afternoon)

Snack: 2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds, 1 orange

Dinner: Fish tacos made with 4 ounces grilled or broiled mahi-mahi, ½ avocado (sliced), ½ cup salsa, two large lettuce leaves; 1 cup steamed broccoli on the side

FRIDAY

Breakfast: Butternut squash pancakes,* topped with ½ cup Icelandic vanilla yogurt, 1 tablespoon slivered almonds

Snack: 1 small pear with 1 tablespoon almond butter

Lunch: 1 cup lentil soup,* 3 ounces roasted turkey with 1 cup fresh spinach

Snack: 1 cup sugar snap peas with 2 tablespoons hummus

Dinner: 4 ounces grilled or broiled salmon, 1 cup roasted butternut squash, 10 asparagus spears, ½ cup cooked quinoa mixed with 1 tablespoon chopped pecans

SATURDAY

Breakfast: 2 poached eggs, topped with 1–2 tablespoons salsa and half an avocado (chopped), drizzled with 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil, salt and pepper to taste

Snack: 1 protein bar

Lunch: 2 cups baby spinach with 4 ounces cooked grass-fed beef tenderloin (sliced thinly), ½ cup red pepper strips, ½ cup broccoli florets, 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Snack: ½ cup fresh raspberries with 1 tablespoon chia seeds and 1 tablespoon walnuts

Dinner: 4 ounces chicken breast (cut into chunks), stir-fried with ½ cup chopped mushrooms, 1 cup broccoli florets, ¼ cup shredded carrots, ½ cup shredded cabbage, ¾ cup spinach; served on ½ cup cooked brown rice (if afternoon workout)

* Recipes included in Appendix B.

While consistency is important with your eating habits, you don’t want your meals to become monotonous, nor do you want to force yourself to eat foods you don’t like. But if you do have meals you especially enjoy and you are happy to eat frequently, I highly recommend preparing a week’s worth at a time (then refrigerating or freezing them), so they’re ready to have when you want them. This way, you can eliminate the stress of cooking or eating out too often. You can also trade a serving of any of the foods in the outlined meals and replace it with a food from the table below in the same category—but be careful not to increase your carbs, in particular. Also, make sure you stick with the recommended serving size—don’t just eyeball it, because it’s easy to underestimate how much food you’re serving yourself. Remember, too, that you should consume more protein and more carbs before and after your workouts.

CARBS: sweet potatoes

PROTEINS: chicken/turkey

FATS: nuts

CARBS: Ezekiel bread

PROTEINS: eggs/egg whites

FATS: seeds (pumpkin, chia, sprouted)

CARBS: oats

PROTEINS: fish

FATS: eggs

CARBS: brown rice

PROTEINS: broccoli/lentils/black beans

FATS: coconut oil (hot or cold)

CARBS: quinoa

PROTEINS: protein powder

FATS: olive oil (cold)

THE ENDOMORPH SLIM DOWN, SHAPE UP WORKOUT

When it comes to your workouts, your best bet is to focus initially on low- to moderate-intensity aerobic exercise such as walking briskly on a small incline on the treadmill three times a week for 30 to 45 minutes, in order to torch those fat stores your body has been stubbornly holding onto. Plus, building up cardiovascular endurance will allow you to boost your performance and stamina—and hence your motivation—on the calisthenics/strength-training regimen when you get to it. One strength-builder to add to your cardio regimen from the start: body-weight-based movements, such as lunges, squats, push-ups, and planks—basic, single-plane exercises without rotations. These will be hard at first, but your body will respond very well to this extra stimulation. If you’re not new to exercise and you can already jog a mile without becoming short of breath, you can skip the “intro” phase and start with the strength training/HIIT phase (see Phase 3).

After your body becomes accustomed to the cardio regimen (say, in a week or two), you’ll want to add strength training three times a week while keeping your brisk but steady cardio workouts constant. This two-step approach will help you burn body fat first and improve your blood pressure, blood sugar, and heart rate; then, you’ll be able to maintain those health and conditioning gains while slowly building muscle, which will help you crank up your metabolic rate and burn more calories 24/7.

Weight training will then become a priority for shaping the body and continuously increasing muscle mass and metabolic function over time. That being said, daily brisk walks in the zone of 70 percent of your maximum heart rate (MHR) will readily and steadily burn calories, especially from fat, and keep your weight-loss journey primed for ongoing success.

So here’s the plan:

PHASE 1 (WEEKS 1 TO 2):

At least three times per week walk briskly on a slight incline on a treadmill for 30 to 45 minutes. Your heart rate should be in the zone of 70 percent of your MHR. In addition, perform a series of push-ups (on your knees is fine), squats, planks, and side planks (these can be done with your knees on the floor if need be). Try to work up to doing 50 push-ups and squats, plus 1-minute planks and 30-second side planks, every other day. If doing more than 5 at a time is difficult at first, do 10 sets of 5 reps with breaks in between.

PHASE 2 (WEEKS 3 TO 4):

Increase the frequency of your cardio workouts to five times per week, at the same intensity and pace as the previous weeks. Do the body-weight-based strength-building moves (as above), two to three times per week before your cardio sessions.

PHASE 3 (AFTER 5 WEEKS):

Continue your cardio workouts five times per week and add the following strength-training workouts to your regimen three times per week. (First, warm up your muscles with a 5-minute stint on a cardio machine, doing burpees, or jumping rope.) Choose a weight where doing the desired number of repetitions (reps) feels difficult but not impossible on the first set. You’ll find descriptions of all the exercises in Appendix A.

WORKOUT 1:

Do the following moves sequentially, including a 60-second break between each set.

3 sets of 1-minute Planks

3 sets of 8–12 Barbell Squats

2 sets of 20 Squat Jumps

3 sets of 10–15 Flat Bench Presses

2 sets of 15 Incline Dumbbell Presses

3 sets of 8 Deadlifts

3 sets of 15 Lat Pulldowns (wide grip)

3 sets of 10 Ab Wheel Rollouts

WORKOUT 2:

Do the following moves sequentially, including a 60-second break between each set.

3 sets of 12 seated Shoulder Presses with Dumbbells

3 sets of 15 Lateral Raises

3 sets of 15 Barbell Biceps Curls

3 sets of 8–10 Hammer Curls

2 sets of 20 Triceps Rope Pushdowns

3 sets of Push-Ups (as many as you can do at a time)

3 sets of 20 Knee Raises, followed immediately by 30 Back Extensions or Supermans

3 sets of 10 V-Ups, followed immediately by 20 Glute Kickbacks (with each leg)

WORKOUT 3:

Do the following moves sequentially, including a 60-second break between each set.

3 sets of 10 Romanian Deadlifts

2 sets of 20 Walking Lunges (add dumbbells if you need more of a challenge)

2 sets of 10 Burpees with Push-Ups

3 sets of 15 Incline Dumbbell Flies

3 sets of 8 45-degree Bent Rows (with free weights or a machine)

2 sets of 20 Lat Pulldowns (underhanded grip)

2 sets of 15 Dumbbell Biceps Curls

2 sets of 15 Triceps Kickbacks

2 sets of Triceps Dips (as many as you can do at a time)

2 sets of Planks (hold it as long as you can), immediately followed by Side Planks on both sides (hold each as long as you can)

When you’re comfortable with the frequency of the cardio and strength-training workouts, add two sessions of HIIT each week—it’s a great way to stimulate extra fat burning. But if you find that the HIIT leaves you sore and tired and unable to perform the weight training optimally, then you may want to cut back to one HIIT session per week or swap a HIIT workout for a lighter cardio session. Rest is incredibly important for muscle recovery, and you don’t want to risk over-training, especially if you’re in a calorie-cutting situation. So listen to your body and let it guide you.

BODY-WEIGHT HIIT WORKOUT:

To perform the following HIIT segment, all you need is your own body weight. Perform all the reps of each exercise without stopping, then immediately move on to the next exercise.

20 Squats

10 Push-Ups

30-second Plank, 30-second Side Plank on each side (for 1½ minutes total)

30 seconds of Mountain Climbers

20 Supermans

10 Burpees (without Push-Ups)

Take a 30-second break then repeat this sequence as many times as you can in 15 minutes.

TROUBLESHOOTING TIPS

IF YOUR WEIGHT is changing by more than two pounds per week in either direction after the first week or two, check your portions to make sure that you’re not eating more or less than you think you are. (Get out the food scale and measuring cups and spoons, if need be.) If you’re sure your portions are accurate and you’re gaining too much weight, try cutting 10 to 20 percent from your food intake across the board. If you’re losing more than two pounds per week, try adding 10 to 20 percent to your daily intake. It’s important to keep the rate of your weight change in the healthy zone.

THE CREATING AND SHAPING MUSCLE PLAN

When I began working with Kate, 43, a business consultant in the LA area, she was healthy and fit but wanted to get stronger and shed some body fat. Her most pressing goal: she wanted to be able to do pull-ups. An endomorph with substantial muscle strength but also some extra padding on her figure, Kate had been following a mostly vegetarian—almost vegan—diet and doing cardio workouts twice a week and a HIIT-style boot-camp session once a week. She came to me with great lifestyle habits, but she wanted to do more for her body.

Because she was already doing cardio workouts regularly but no strength training, that’s what we focused on from the get-go. We started her lifting weights with me twice per week, and I gave her a program for a third weight-lifting day that she could do on her own, as well as some guidance for daily low-intensity cardio. On the dietary front, we kept her on a vegetarian regimen but shifted her macronutrient ratio to 30 percent protein, 30 percent carbs, and 40 percent fat. To get there, we prioritized high-quality plant proteins such as tempeh, beans, legumes, quinoa, and nondairy yogurt and balanced them with good-quality carbs like zucchini, butternut squash noodles, and salads. She also timed the majority of her carbs around her workouts with high-fiber, low-glycemic choices to minimize the impact on her insulin levels.

She hadn’t told her HIIT boot-camp group that she was training with me—and within weeks, they wanted to know her secret because they noticed she was trimming down and performing much better in the class. (She ’fessed up.) Within several months, Kate dropped 10 pounds and several inches from her physique and crushed her goals (she can even do a pull-up now). Now, she’s setting new ones.

If you’re trying to add muscle to your body without losing weight, it’s important that you tweak your diet to support your goals. You can use the weight-loss plan, previously described, but add 200 to 300 calories per day to it, with an additional 25 grams of protein, 25 grams of carbs, and 10 grams of fat. Tread lightly on the calorie increase, though, because while endomorphs can add muscle quickly, they also can add body fat if they end up with a calorie surplus. Think of it this way: your diet can determine the size of your body, while exercise determines its shape—so you want to maintain the right synergy to achieve your goals.

What you really want to do is achieve a slow and steady “recomposition” of your body’s fat-to-muscle ratio: by eating the right macronutrients at the right calorie level and working out in a strategic way, you’ll maximize muscle sparing (maintenance) or muscle growth while keeping your fat-burning furnace turned on. Be sure to include protein and carbs in your meals or snacks before and after your workouts to help your muscles grow and recover properly.

As far as your workouts go, if you’re new to exercise, start with Phases 1 and 2 on the endomorph weight-loss plan. After that, or if you’ve been exercising regularly (the way Kate was when we started working together), continue your cardio workouts five times per week (for 30 to 45 minutes at a time) and add the following strength-training workouts to your regimen three times per week to build muscle.

First, warm up with a 5-minute stint on a cardio machine, doing burpees, or jumping rope. For the moves that follow, choose a weight where doing the desired number of repetitions (reps) feels difficult but not impossible on the first set.

LEGS/CORE:

3 sets of 20 Glute Kickbacks (on each side)

3 sets of 15 Leg Presses (on a machine)

4 sets of 6–10 Barbell Squats

3 sets of 12 Hamstring Curls (on a machine)

2 sets of 15 Glute Bridges (with a barbell)

3 sets of 15 Incline Sit-Ups

2 sets of 20 Knee Raises (from a hanging position, if possible)

CHEST/BACK:

3 sets of 12–15 Incline Dumbbell Presses

3 sets of 6–10 Flat Bench Presses

4 sets of 8–12 Dumbbell Flies

3 sets of 10 Chest Dips (use a machine if you need to)

3 sets of 10 Bent Rows

3 sets of 12–15 Deadlifts

4 sets of 15 Lat Pulldowns (use a narrow grip handle)

3 sets of 8–10 One-Arm Dumbbell Rows (each side)

SHOULDERS/ARMS/CORE:

3 sets of 20 Lateral Raises

2 sets of 15 Shoulder Presses with Dumbbells

3 sets of 8–10 Shoulder Presses (on a machine)

3 sets of 10 Seated Biceps Curls, followed immediately by 10 Shoulder Presses with Dumbbells

2 sets of 20 Hammer Curls

3 sets of 10 Preacher Curls

3 sets of 20 Overhead Triceps Extensions

3 sets of 15 Triceps Rope Pushdowns

2 sets of 6–10 Straight Bar Pushdowns

3 sets of 30-second Mountain Climbers, followed immediately by 10 V-Ups

3 sets of 30-second Bicycles, followed immediately by 20 Supermans

3 sets of 1-minute Planks with Alternating Arm/Leg Lifts for 30 seconds

THE PAYOFFS

For many endomorphs, making the dietary changes in these plans is the most daunting aspect. But I assure you: once you start consuming more protein and trimming your carb intake, you’ll grow accustomed to this approach very quickly—and you may even experience a substantial energy boost in the process. Many people do. If you’re brand-spanking new to exercise, the workouts may seem challenging (on paper, at least). That’s why I have newbies start with walking (something we all know how to do) and add to the program in a manageable fashion from there.

Stay attuned to your body every step of the way so you can tweak the program as needed. Also pay attention to physiological changes in your body, which are likely to come relatively quickly. In the short term, you’ll get a rush from the boost in circulation and the release of feel-good endorphins that’s very gratifying. Within several weeks, you’ll probably notice considerable progress and gains in your muscle strength and stamina if you do these workouts consistently. Keep at it because before you know it, you’ll start to see a difference in your physique: your body will likely become tighter and firmer, and you’ll start to notice greater muscle definition, too. Appreciate and celebrate these changes because they’re signs that you’re giving your body the fuel and the stimulation it needs to become its best self yet.