Which protein powder is right for an ectomorph?

Sports nutrition is difficult for most people to grasp. It is all the more so for so-called "ectomorphs". This morpho-type is a major obstacle to building muscle mass.

The body's particular physiology makes it difficult for it to absorb nutrients and proteins. As a result, supplementation tends to be much less effective, leading those concerned to lose interest. However, ectomorphs will be able to find the best food supplements on the market to suit their physical condition.

If you find yourself in this situation, read on to find the best protein powder for ectomorphs. Note that such a product must provide a wide variety of amino acids and other macronutrients (carbohydrates, fatty acids).

This is why most ectomorph bodybuilders turn to gainers. Nevertheless, a home-made whey-based gainer is ultimately a better alternative. Such a product provides a good dose of calories for building muscle during exercise.

Ectomorph: what is it?

The term "ectomorph" refers to one of the morphotypes coined by American psychologist William Sheldon. An ectomorph is characterized by a slender, unathletic physique.

She'll be naturally slim and not very muscular. This athlete will struggle to put on fat and muscle. In addition to proper training, consuming dietary supplements will therefore be crucial to boosting weight gain and achieving the physique of your dreams.

This morphology is explained by a particularly rapid metabolism. An ectomorph's body burns far more calories than most. All nutrients absorbed are used to meet its energy needs. As a result, ectomorphs are unable to build up fat reserves or capture protein for mass gain.

At first glance, an ectomorph might not seem cut out for bodybuilding. However, it's important to understand that it's all a question of conditioning and adaptation. Under the right conditions, with an appropriate intake of macronutrients and calories, it's possible to gradually "slow down" the metabolism, so as to boost muscle building. The same applies if you're looking to put on fat, and thus become more corpulent.

Before taking the plunge, however, you should be aware of the physical limitations associated with your morpho type. Indeed, an ectomorph will recover more slowly. They are therefore much more likely to fall victim to overtraining. To prevent this, especially for beginners, you should space out your training sessions, favouring shorter exercises and varying the muscle groups from one day to the next. If you're just starting out, take a look at our article on the best protein powders for beginners.

How do you build muscle if you're an ectomorph?

Like everyone else, an ectomorph's weight gain will depend mainly on training and diet.

On the first point, we have already mentioned the risk of overtraining. Full-body training is rarely an option. What's more, beginners will have to make do with 3-4 bodybuilding sessions a week, just long enough for their bodies to get used to the exercises and the stresses on their joints and bones.

When it comes to diet, we maximize our calorie intake. It's a good idea to keep to the classic pattern of 3 meals a day, with the addition of snacks, to ensure a high calorie intake.

Low-calorie whey proteins or those with no added sugar should therefore be avoided. Snacks play an important role here, as they provide the surplus from which the body can draw to absorb protein and produce bigger, more powerful muscle fibres.

In these conditions, protein shakers are the best way to fill up on amino acids and build muscle much more efficiently.

Without excess, the quantity of fatty acids is also important. These provide essential nutrients and many calories for athletes. Nuts and oilseeds are an ideal addition to any diet.

As a reminder, athletes should aim for a protein intake of around 2 g/kg/d to build mass. However, supplementation alone will not achieve this goal. Athletes must train to build muscle mass.

Physical effort triggers muscular catabolism, followed by muscular anabolism (repair of damage and synthesis of larger, more powerful muscle fibres).

Which protein powder for an ectomorph?

Since ectomorphs lack the ability to assimilate proteins, you need to choose proteins that are easily assimilated. The speed of assimilation of a protein powder depends on its amino acid profile, quality and purity.

A product containing the amino acids that the body cannot synthesize (Essential Amino Acids - EAA) will be very interesting, and rapidly assimilated.

With this in mind, it would seem that animal proteins are much better suited to ectomorphs. Naturally more complete, these proteins contain all the essential amino acids and are therefore much more easily assimilated by the body. Vegetable proteins, on the other hand, are "incomplete" and need to be enriched with external amino acids.

In principle, whey protein is the best protein powder for ectomorphs. This dietary supplement has an excellent profile, with a naturally high level of essential amino acids (EAA) and BCAAs (isoleucine, leucine, valine) per 100g of total protein. This protein powder of animal origin (milk whey), obtained by mechanical filtration, is also recognized for its high bioavailability.

So why do specialists point to gainers as the best option for ectomorphs? Because in this case, we mustn't lose sight of the high calorie requirements. If these needs are not met, the body will not be sufficiently supplied with calories. It will then be impossible to build new muscle tissue, and proteins may even be used to produce the energy needed for normal functioning. 

An ideal gainer not only provides protein, but also a consistent source of carbohydrates. Logically, a gainer is the best food supplement for ectomorphs.

But not all gainers are equal in terms of quality, and not all have the same amino acid profile. For best results, in both the short and long term, we advise you to opt for a whey-based gainer that contains no additives (sweeteners, thickeners, colorants, etc.).

If this is still hard to find, you can make an excellent homemade gainer yourself, which will be perfectly suited to an ectomorph.

To dig deeper into the subject: is whey protein essential for building muscle mass?

Why opt for a home sheathing system?

A homemade gainer allows you to have a shaker that's both calorific and contains all the essential amino acids, simply, healthily and cost-effectively. All you need to do is mix whey with a carbohydrate source.

A conventional gainer usually contains 60% carbohydrates and 40% protein. By making your own gainer, you'll obtain a dietary supplement with better proportions. Ideally, the protein/carbohydrate ratio is of little importance. The most important thing is a base of 20/25g of protein, to which carbohydrates are added in varying proportions.

You'll find plenty of recipes for whey shakers onour website. However, we can already point you in the direction of the best-known and simplest method: mixing quality whey with oat powder.

Other carbohydrate sources can be considered to complement the muscular effect of the amino acids provided by whey isolate.

Our latest tips

Although whey is ultimately a good choice, not just any whey will do. You need to look at the composition of the product, and avoid supplements containing additives.

More and more studies are implicating these additives (sweeteners, lecithin...) in human metabolic pathologies. So make sure you choose a whey without sweeteners, especially if you plan to cook it!

You should therefore choose whey without additives, to preserve your health over the long term and benefit healthily from the positive effects on your body. In fact, these ingredients, most of them synthetic, even impair protein assimilation.

You can find a dietary supplement that meets these requirements by doing a little research on the internet. You'll easily find advice on how to set up the best diet for ectomorphs.

Of course, you'll also need to adjust your menus to eat the right meals and achieve your goal of lasting, healthy muscle mass gain.

Ecotomorphs start out with a slight disadvantage when it comes to building muscle, fill that disadvantage with these items:

• How to take your whey protein?
• 40 recipe ideas for cooking with whey
• When should you use your protein powder?