somatypes and personality

Ive read about the somatypes being related to personality before but we were talking about them in psych class.  This is pretty similar to what we learned about. 
 
http://www.kheper.net/topics/typology/somatotypes.html
 

Endomorphic Body Type:

• soft body
• underdeveloped muscles
• round shaped
• over-developed digestive system

Associated personality traits:

• love of food
• tolerant
• evenness of emotions
• love of comfort
• sociable
• good humored
• relaxed
• need for affection

Mesomorphic Body Type:

• hard, muscular body
• overly mature appearance
• rectangular shaped
• thick skin
• upright posture

Associated personality traits:

• adventurous
• desire for power and dominance
• courageous
• indifference to what others think or want
• assertive, bold
• zest for physical activity
• competitive
• love of risk and chance

Ectomorphic Body Type:

• thin
• flat chest
• delicate build
• young appearance
• tall
• lightly muscled
• stoop-shouldered
• large brain

Associated personality traits:

• self-conscious
• preference for privacy
• introverted
• inhibited
• socially anxious
• artistic
• mentally intense
• emotionally restrained

I have many characteristics of the meso and the ecto.  Almost none from the endo besides love of food.  It seems to match up pretty well with me.  What about you guys??
 
 

working on explosive phase
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Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle.

That is very interesting to read.
I dont even know what type i fall under (1st time i ever heard of these bodytypes was here) but my personality traits are very ectomorphic with just a couple from the other 2 types.

Just starting out but watch this space!

yeah I got mix. Mostly meso/ecto less endo, interesting though.

6'3"  @213

Squat 1x20x275

press:200, Deadlift:475, Bench:300, P.clean:235, Squat:385

"The only failure that is final is to stop trying to improve"

I have the ecto body type aswell as most of the ecto personality traits, but I also have most of the meso personality traits without any of the body traits.

V,
    You're the Clipart Photoshop GOD!

 

ecto here almost down to a T

I'm almost 100% meso except I hate people and I have foodgasms.

endo-meso

Coffee should be black as hell, strong as death and as sweet love - MR

My personality and body composition certainly lean heavily toward ecto.  

Okay, finally getting around to this thread, which I think is fascinating, RS!
 
I think it's amazing how similar I am to most of you!  My body is definately mostly ecto, but as I develop I question whether there's not a significant amount of meso in me as well.
 
The ecto personality traits are practically a perfect fit for me!:  self-conscious, preference for privacy, introverted, inhibited, socially anxious, artistic (writing, decorating [no comments!]), mental intensity, emotional restraint (I have intense emotions, but find myself restraining them to avoid embarrassment).
 
But most of the meso personality traits are the ones I strive to develop and show a little of themselves as I develop confidence by becoming more attractive.
 
Questions I have:
 
* Are the personality and physical traits causally connected somehow?  Are we genetically wired so that our bodies match our personalities?
 
* Or has society defined certain physical traits as desirable and to be applauded and rewarded, and people with those traits find themselves being accepted by others without risk, whereas those who don't possess those physical traits find a greater incidence of failure in their pursuit to be accepted by others?
 
* Is the feedback of approval by others what boosts confidence or is there some body chemistry associated with different physical composition that predisposes one (chemically/hormonally) to confidence of acceptance?
 
* Is the reason ecto's are so heavily represented (both the ecto body type and the ecto personality) on DBB evidence that:
 
   - most people who are into bodybuilding are trying to improve upon the physical weaknesses, and consequent personality weaknesses ecto's possess,
 
   - or that the reason there are so many ecto's on an online forum is that we are more at ease (and less threatened) by socializing with people with the protection and anonymity of an electronic interface than we would be discussing our weaknesses face to face?
 
* How has your personality (self confidence in particular) changed as your body has changed?
 
   Thanks again, RollingStone, for a very provocative topic!  :)

why do you consider the ecto's personality traits, a weakness??? Maybe you feel that those that you possess are a weakness, personally but as a whole, and in general, I don't feel that they are as a blanket statement weak.

I fit the messo- endo , body type. I have personality traits from all, even when they superfically would be considered a contradition.....

• love of comfort
• sociable
• good humored

• love of food
• tolerant

 

• adventurous
• desire for power and dominance
• courageous
• indifference to what others think or want
• assertive, bold

• competitive

• zest for physical activity

• self-conscious

• introverted

• socially anxious
• artistic
• mentally intense

Hardway,
   Agreed, the ecto personality traits have their positive sides, and can even be assets at times.  But they can be quite debilitating as well, particularly in a world that seams to operate in such a way that the exact opposite traits are rewarded.  Maybe I just see things from my perspective and think the grass is greener on the other side.  Perhaps attractive, strong people have their own crosses to bear.

JMBS


Hardway,
   Agreed, the ecto personality traits have their positive sides, and can even be assets at times.  But they can be quite debilitating as well, particularly in a world that seams to operate in such a way that the exact opposite traits are rewarded.  Maybe I just see things from my perspective and think the grass is greener on the other side.  Perhaps attractive, strong people have their own crosses to bear.

Besides that we are on a body building forum, and I am going to be slammed for this one... There is nothing that inherently classifies ecto's as "unattractive"... (the most attractive man I have ever met is classic ecto body type)... All the introverted portions of the personality type, allow the artistic, and mentally intense sides of the personality, to grow and prosper... if your busy pushing everyone around, or competing  how are you going to write a book, or paint, or come up with a a cure for cancer...

I know where you are coming form, I am just being a pain... I would love to elaborate, and I might latter, but so busy...

I think EVERYONE would do will with a healthy dose of self consciousness... I don't believe the negative stereotype that goes with that word...

try dealing with social anxiety and then tell me it's not negative.

thehardway


Besides that we are on a body building forum, and I am going to be slammed for this one... There is nothing that inherently classifies ecto's as "unattractive"... (the most attractive man I have ever met is classic ecto body type)... All the introverted portions of the personality type, allow the artistic, and mentally intense sides of the personality, to grow and prosper... if your busy pushing everyone around, or competing  how are you going to write a book, or paint, or come up with a a cure for cancer...

I know where you are coming form, I am just being a pain... I would love to elaborate, and I might latter, but so busy...

I think EVERYONE would do will with a healthy dose of self consciousness... I don't believe the negative stereotype that goes with that word...

Agree with you.  We need all sorts of different people, ecto's included, to contribute to society.  And perhaps people who are very physically attractive have a difficult time breaking away from a life of "superficial" pleasure and long for something more meaningful, like relationships grounded in intellect, emotion, responsibility, and higher purpose.  There's enough conjecture in that last sentence to last a lifetime.  Reality probably isn't like that for "the other side," but I hope you catch my drift.  We all probably would like a little of whatever it is we don't have.  For many people who think they don't measure up to their peers aesthetically, trying to get big, strong, and youthful can be a very enticing ambition.
 
And the thing of it is:  I think I'm a fairly attractive guy, especially now.  But many of the personality traits are so ingrained (perhaps innate) that even if I had Brad Pitt's body, I'd still be shy, nervous, anxious, awkward, etc.  One of the sad discoveries is that even when you make yourself perfect on the outside, there are still a lot of blemishes on the inside.  I know you can make lemonade out of those lemons, but please:  Sometimes I want to be the ice cream sundae.

JMBS:

I feel like you're equating ecto with "very physically attractive," and I must insist that this is not the case.  Maybe in someplace like Japan it can work, but skin and bones don't really fly in the western world.  

Good post.

I'm an endomorph I guess, I've always wondered that too, thanks for posting.

ACE-CPT, NASM-CPT, AFPA-Nutrition Consultant 

snatchula


JMBS:

I feel like you're equating ecto with "very physically attractive," and I must insist that this is not the case.  Maybe in someplace like Japan it can work, but skin and bones don't really fly in the western world.  

Err, what did I say that led you to believe I think ecto's are more attractive than meso's?  I'm saying the muscled look is considered more attractive than the skin and bones.  At different points in history and in different world cultures, there may be a different "ideal," but, as you say, in the Western world we usually find muscled and low fat to be attractive.  However in the high fashion world, skin and bones is concidered perfection.  Gross, imo.  Of course, pro bodybuilders are not the most attractive to me, either.
 
I'm sorry if I misled anyone.  I'm trying to suggest a typical well-muscled low fat meso would be found more desirable physically than a skin and bones ecto.

yea i missed somethin, J.  i'm a little inebriated atm.

tbh tho, i guess skin n bones works just fine for females in the west, in most cases.  (decent rack is always a plus.)  i was only speaking from the perspective of a duder.

Snatchula,
   Wow, the differences in what society finds attractive in men vs. women would be a topic on its own!

No and I have had in my past sever social anxiety, if you haven't figured it out I am one hell of a weirdo, in my youth I was a very fat weirdo... can't get better than that ;0 . I am not suggesting that is particularly an asset.

JMBS yes there is quite a bit of conjecture in my statement... I am specifically referring to definition #1, my statement stands.


Main Entry: self–con·scious
Pronunciation: \-ˈkän(t)-shəs\
Function: adjective
Date: circa 1680
1 a : conscious of one's own acts or states as belonging to or originating in oneself : aware of oneself as an individual b : intensely aware of oneself : conscious <a rising and self–conscious social class>; also : produced or done with such awareness <self–conscious art>
2 : uncomfortably conscious of oneself as an object of the observation of others : ill at ease

thehardway


No and I have had in my past sever social anxiety, if you haven't figured it out I am one hell of a weirdo, in my youth I was a very fat weirdo... can't get better than that ;0 . I am not suggesting that is particularly an asset.

JMBS yes there is quite a bit of conjecture in my statement... I am specifically referring to definition #1, my statement stands.


Main Entry: self–con·scious
Pronunciation: \-ˈkän(t)-shəs\
Function: adjective
Date: circa 1680
1 a : conscious of one's own acts or states as belonging to or originating in oneself : aware of oneself as an individual b : intensely aware of oneself : conscious <a rising and self–conscious social class>; also : produced or done with such awareness <self–conscious art>
2 : uncomfortably conscious of oneself as an object of the observation of others : ill at ease

Whoa, Hardway!
The conjecture I was referring to was in MY OWN sentence, not yours, lol!
I ran on about what I though might be the demons of the physically perfect, that the brightness of their external beauty might blind people to their inner beauty; that they might long for more meaningful relationships, etc.  By "conjecture," I meant my own presumption might not be grounded in reality but in my estimate of what that life might be like. 
I'm just confusing everyone today!  What the hell?!  I didn't get much sleep last night:  Stayed up to watch the World Series (you a Phillies fan, HW?) and got up at 4:15 to work out.  Was so tired I forgot to drink my coffee on the way to the gym:  Pathetic!

i think we would typically use a different word (i.e. self-aware) for definition 1, so when i think of the word self-conscious, i always think of defintion 2.  i agree with you that we all could use some def-1.  

Hey the ecto's are the youthful looking cats...the meso's, we get old and haggard quick!

remember there are tons of fat meso's scrawny flabby endo's  ok your ecto's have to have some serious issues to get fat...and this has nothing to with how atttractive ones face is...

I thought I would need to clarify my statement, so I read you incorrectly the first time... becasue as snactula said... most people always assume def. 2 , and that was what I was expecting.

these somatypes I feel are not to far off from Phrenology.... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phrenology

So fun to think about. and sure I am sure there are some genetic visual clues, to personality, but nurture is a powerful influence... and there are more than 3 types of people in this world, and the boundries between all are fuzzy at best... so a fun concept to thinkabout, that shouldn't really impact ones life to deeply...

These are supposed to go on scales of seven I believe.  I remember reading an article a long time about it.  The max type of each you can be is seven, but the total points of all three categories can not exceed nine.

For instance, one could be a 7-1-1 ecto-meso-endo.  Or someone could be a 5-2-2 ecto-meso-endo etc.

President of the Emancipation Detoxification. DBB's oldest forum group, punching baby seals since 2/12/08

Oh yeah NOT a Phillies Phan....

 I find base ball perilously boring! I don't really care to watch sports. But if i do I prefer a blood sport, rather than a bunch of guys in marginal shape standing around waiting for something to happen...

Seriously football, hockey, fighting, an actual war game 9I' would even take basketball, at least they are running constantly)... otherwise, I have a serious soft spot for gymnastics...

Last year I tried to be a good sport about the Phillies. We haven't had any championships in quite a while... I was trying to support the people,  the fans DESTROYED downtown, did you see? They really censored that from the news...... that was my last straw... Go YANKIES!!!!

Yet


These are supposed to go on scales of seven I believe.  I remember reading an article a long time about it.  The max type of each you can be is seven, but the total points of all three categories can not exceed nine.

For instance, one could be a 7-1-1 ecto-meso-endo.  Or someone could be a 5-2-2 ecto-meso-endo etc.

That would make me a 0-0-0 (a total "zero") which, as I recall, is the notation for a queenside castle in chess.  See, I'm an un-rehabilitatible nerd.   

i feel like i fit into a little bit of all of those

YOU GOTTA EAT BIG, TO BE BIG!!

NASM certified trainer
NFPT certified trainer

Winter Bulk goal:245-250 by dec 31
Current weight: 235

JMBS

Yet


These are supposed to go on scales of seven I believe.  I remember reading an article a long time about it.  The max type of each you can be is seven, but the total points of all three categories can not exceed nine.

For instance, one could be a 7-1-1 ecto-meso-endo.  Or someone could be a 5-2-2 ecto-meso-endo etc.

That would make me a 0-0-0 (a total "zero") which, as I recall, is the notation for a queenside castle in chess.  See, I'm an un-rehabilitatible nerd.   

You can't be a 0-0-0.  The numbers have to add up to nine.

President of the Emancipation Detoxification. DBB's oldest forum group, punching baby seals since 2/12/08

Yet

JMBS

Yet


These are supposed to go on scales of seven I believe.  I remember reading an article a long time about it.  The max type of each you can be is seven, but the total points of all three categories can not exceed nine.

For instance, one could be a 7-1-1 ecto-meso-endo.  Or someone could be a 5-2-2 ecto-meso-endo etc.

That would make me a 0-0-0 (a total "zero") which, as I recall, is the notation for a queenside castle in chess.  See, I'm an un-rehabilitatible nerd.   

You can't be a 0-0-0.  The numbers have to add up to nine.

You mean I'm not a total zero?!  

JMBS

Yet

JMBS

Yet


These are supposed to go on scales of seven I believe.  I remember reading an article a long time about it.  The max type of each you can be is seven, but the total points of all three categories can not exceed nine.

For instance, one could be a 7-1-1 ecto-meso-endo.  Or someone could be a 5-2-2 ecto-meso-endo etc.

That would make me a 0-0-0 (a total "zero") which, as I recall, is the notation for a queenside castle in chess.  See, I'm an un-rehabilitatible nerd.   

You can't be a 0-0-0.  The numbers have to add up to nine.

You mean I'm not a total zero?!  

Not as far as Somatypes are concerned :P.

President of the Emancipation Detoxification. DBB's oldest forum group, punching baby seals since 2/12/08