Body Type and Genetics: You Can't Escape Your Shape

Get used to loving your body because you can't escape your shape! You can modify it to a degree, you can alter it, you can add to it and take away from it, but you can't change your individual body type. A person's body type, that unique combination and distribution of fat, muscle, and bone, is set in stone at birth. It's who you are physically! It's all programmed within your DNA as to how you are going to develop. Are you going to be tall or short? Are you going to have wide hips or narrow hips? Are you going to have a large bone structure or slight? Are you going to store the majority of your fat in your hips, buttocks, chest or abdomen? The person that you will become later in life is already pre-packaged by the time that you are born. No matter how hard you train, no matter how much weight you lift, and no matter how many laps around the track you run, your unique body type is going to be there with you every step of the way! You can't change it no matter how much and how hard you train!

Now, I'm not advocating just tearing up your gym membership and heading straight for the sofa with a beer and a slice of pizza. No! Physical exercise is a necessity for a healthy life. Exercise is essential, and exercise is great for both the mind and the body. And many people - myself included - have made great alterations to their body composition by following a regular exercise regimen and a balanced diet. I've altered my body shape considerably over the years and am considerably leaner and more muscular than I was as a teenager, but I haven't changed my genetically predisposed body type. No matter how much weight I lose, no matter what the number on the scale says, I have a flabby stomach and love handles. I don't remember ever having a firm, toned midsection. Whether I weigh 220-pounds or 175-pounds, my midsection is my trouble spot. I store a disproportionate amount of body fat in my midsection. Whenever I lose a significant amount of weight, the rest of my body - my arms, my legs, and my chest - all thin out rather nicely. But my midsection is another matter. My abdominal area and the love handle area retain a significant amount of fat no matter what I weigh.

And I wish I could change that. But I can't! I have to accept the genetic cards that I have been dealt. Outside of expensive liposuction and/or a tummy tuck, my trouble spots will remain trouble spots for me for the rest of my life. And the reason it will remain a trouble spot for me is because my genetic code, which was passed down to me by my parents, has it written in stone that I will always store a disproportionate amount of body fat in those areas. And I hate it! I wish I could somehow access my motherboard and retool my internal programming, but that ain't likely to happen. And, as of now, I'm too broke and poor to even consider liposuction and/or a tummy tuck, so my love handles and abdominal pudge is going to be a part of me no matter what I weigh. All of the crunches and sit-ups and miles spent running on the track at the gym are not going to change that. You can't escape your shape!