“Skinny guy systems” abound on the internet; promising huge muscles and the fulfilment of all your wildest streams if you perfectly execute steps A through to Z. And while these systems and approaches to strength training mostly have noble intentions, they fail to account for one important fact: everyone is different.
You need to learn how to adapt to your own requirements and understand what works for you.
Bruce Lee’s famous thoughts on fluidity come to mind:
Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way round or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves.
Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water my friend.
Be flexible with your approach to strength and fitness and be wary of any step-by-step system that promises consistent results. Yes, certain principles hold true in essentially all circumstances (like the need to lift heavy things and eat more food) but with mindful adaption you’ll find it easier to overcome struggles that arise. Look at training routines as sources of inspiration, but ask yourself the following questions before implementing any habit:
- Are there less effective, but more enjoyable exercises that I could do?
- Was this routine developed specifically with an ectomorph in mind?
- Do I need to go to a gym? How could I adapt the routine to allow for training at home?
It’s tempting to latch on to a supposedly proven system to alleviate feelings of uncertainty, but as long as you have a clear understanding of the principles of building strength as an ectomorph have faith that making a couple of changes to suit your situation will pay off in the long run. (It’s probably a good idea to ask for a professional’s opinion before committing to anything too radical though.)
