Afitpilot®
Mesomorph

Balanced Mesomorph

Code:BM2-6-2

Mesomorphy dominant; endomorphy and ectomorphy roughly equal and both lower. The classical athlete.

Balanced Mesomorph, male presentation
Male presentation
Balanced Mesomorph, female presentation
Female presentation
Heath-Carter triangle showing the position of Balanced Mesomorph
Position on the Heath-Carter triangle

Description

The balanced mesomorph is what most people picture when they hear the word athlete: square shoulders, thick limbs, low bodyfat, no extreme linearity. Endomorphy and ectomorphy sit roughly equal and both below mesomorphy.

This is the type that recurs across the broadest range of high-performance sports — football, gymnastics, rowing, decathlon, mixed martial arts. It tolerates training volume well, recovers quickly, and gives the appearance of being designed for athletic work.

The Manu tribe — studied in early physical anthropology as one of the most uniformly mesomorphic populations ever recorded — fall into this type, as do most male bodybuilders at competition lean (where endomorphy drops but mesomorphy stays very high).

The 'balanced' in the name refers to the relationship between the other two components, not to overall body balance. A balanced mesomorph is not in the middle of the triangle — they sit close to the mesomorph corner with a small base.

You share this type with

Populations, sports, and occupations recorded in the anthropometric literature with a somatotype close to this one.

  • Manu, MaleTribeManuMale2–7–2
  • Manu, FemaleTribeManuFemale2–5–2
  • Football, MaleSportFootballMale2–5–2
  • Bodybuilder, MaleSportBodybuilderMale1–9–1
  • Bodybuilder, FemaleSportBodybuilderFemale2–5–2
  • Rower, FemaleSportRowerFemale3–5–3
  • Crossfit, FemaleSportCrossfitFemale2–5–2
  • Gymnastics, MaleAthleteGymnasticsMale1.9–6.7–1.6
  • Karate, MaleAthleteKarateMale2.4–4.7–2.6
  • Surf, MaleAthleteSurfMale2.3–5–2.4
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.4–4.8–2.3
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.4–5–2.1
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.5–4.9–2.2
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.9–4.6–2.6
  • Judo, MaleAthleteJudoMale2.1–5.2–1.6
  • Sprint paddling, MaleAthleteSprint paddlingMale2.6–4.6–3.1
  • Water polo, MaleAthleteWater poloMale2.5–5–2.4
  • Greco-roman wrestling, MaleAthleteGreco-roman wrestlingMale1.7–6.3–1.3
  • Volleyball, FemaleAthleteVolleyballFemale2.6–3.7–2.6
  • Latin dance, MaleAthleteLatin danceMale2.4–4.3–2.6
  • Boxing, MaleAthleteBoxingMale2.3–3.7–2.2
  • Boxing, MaleAthleteBoxingMale2.1–3.5–2.6
  • Jiu-Jitsu, MaleAthleteJiu-JitsuMale2.2–5.9–2.1
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.5–4.7–2.6
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.7–4.2–3
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale3.1–4.1–2.9
  • Judo, MaleAthleteJudoMale1.5–4.1–1.8
  • Judo, MaleAthleteJudoMale1.4–4.2–1.7
  • Judo, MaleAthleteJudoMale1.8–5.1–1.3
  • Judo, MaleAthleteJudoMale1.9–5.6–1.6
  • Sprint, MaleAthleteSprintMale2.1–5–2.6
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.3–5.7–1.9
  • Judo, MaleAthleteJudoMale2.2–4.9–2.5
  • Judo, MaleAthleteJudoMale2.3–5.5–1.9
  • Judo, FemaleAthleteJudoFemale2.7–3.4–2.3
  • Taekwondo, MaleAthleteTaekwondoMale1.8–5.9–2
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.6–4.8–2.2
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.2–5.2–2.1
  • Traditional rowing, MaleAthleteTraditional rowingMale2.1–5.1–2.6
  • Traditional rowing, MaleAthleteTraditional rowingMale2.8–5.2–2.3
  • Basketball, MaleAthleteBasketballMale2.8–4.7–2.9
  • Breakdancing, MaleAthleteBreakdancingMale2.3–4.6–2.7
  • Breakdancing, FemaleAthleteBreakdancingFemale2.3–5.2–2.4
  • Sport climbing, MaleAthleteSport climbingMale2.3–5–2.5
  • Soccer, FemaleAthleteSoccerFemale3–3.9–2.6
  • Triathlon, FemaleAthleteTriathlonFemale3.1–4.3–2.6
  • Athletics (track & field), FemaleAthleteAthletics (track & field)Female2.5–4.1–2.6
  • Basketball, MaleAthleteBasketballMale2.6–5.1–2.3
  • Basketball, MaleAthleteBasketballMale2.1–4.9–2.3
  • Beach volleyball, MaleAthleteBeach volleyballMale2.8–4–3.1
  • Boxing, MaleAthleteBoxingMale2–4.5–2.3
  • Greco-roman wrestling, MaleAthleteGreco-roman wrestlingMale1.9–5.7–1.9
  • Gymnastics, MaleAthleteGymnasticsMale2.1–6.1–2
  • Athletics (running), MaleAthleteAthletics (running)Male2.3–4.5–2.5
  • Handball, MaleAthleteHandballMale2.7–5–2.3
  • Karate, MaleAthleteKarateMale2.8–4.5–2.8
  • Kickboxing, MaleAthleteKickboxingMale2.6–4.4–2.7
  • Athletics (jumps), MaleAthleteAthletics (jumps)Male2.5–5.3–2.1
  • Rugby, MaleAthleteRugbyMale3–4.3–2.7
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.6–5.2–2.2
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.5–5.3–2.1
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.4–5.3–2.3
  • Sprint, MaleAthleteSprintMale2–6.3–1.5
  • Taekwondo, MaleAthleteTaekwondoMale2.4–4.6–2.8
  • Taekwondo, MaleAthleteTaekwondoMale2.5–4.9–2.1
  • Athletics (running), MaleAthleteAthletics (running)Male2–4.8–2.1
  • Athletics (running), MaleAthleteAthletics (running)Male1.8–5.6–2.2
  • Volleyball, MaleAthleteVolleyballMale2.1–6.2–1.9
  • Volleyball, MaleAthleteVolleyballMale1.9–5.5–1.6
  • Weightlifting, MaleAthleteWeightliftingMale2.1–5.4–1.7
  • American football, FemaleAthleteAmerican footballFemale2.6–4–2.7
  • Athletics (running), FemaleAthleteAthletics (running)Female3.1–4.9–2.8
  • Athletics (running), FemaleAthleteAthletics (running)Female2.6–4.8–2.5
  • Orienteering, MaleAthleteOrienteeringMale2.9–4.5–2.4
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.5–5.2–2.2
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.7–4.9–3
  • Volleyball, MaleAthleteVolleyballMale2.9–3.8–2.4
  • Triathlon, MaleAthleteTriathlonMale2.6–4.5–2.3
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.2–4.6–2.5
  • Athletics (running), FemaleAthleteAthletics (running)Female2.6–3.8–2.4
  • Tennis, MaleAthleteTennisMale3.2–4.9–2.8
  • Soccer, MaleAthleteSoccerMale2.7–5.1–2.4

Calculate yours

Enter the nine Heath-Carter measurements and see your own three numbers, your matched type, and where you land on the triangle.

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Other types in Mesomorph