BEING CALLED a Meta-Ager gives me a sense of accountability and pride to physically express my values and to present my best self. Not looking my best does not come into my vocabulary. I have maintained an inverted triangle body shape for nearly thirty years with only calisthenic exercises.
Meta-Agers and people into fitness – no matter what age – are always searching for “fitness hacks” and shortcuts on building a beautiful body, because how you look positively impacts every aspect of your life.
A study revealed the ideal male body shape and my ears pricked up. There were no surprises when it said men want to be ‘inverted triangles’ – like sports stars: Hussein Bolt and Cristiano Ronaldo. Their research looked at the figures of 2,000 men to evaluate the most popular body shapes of men in Britain.
FORZA’S FIVE BODY SHAPES
- The Rectangle – four out of ten men (42%) are this shape. The torso is pretty square and flat, and there is no tapering as you reach the hips. Think David Beckham
- The Oval – over a quarter of British men (26%) are Ovals – overweight and with the excess fat evenly distributed over the upper frame. Think Boris Johnson.
- The Triangle is the third most popular shape – where the man is a little larger around the middle. Just under one in seven men (14%) fall into this category – Think David Walliams.
- The Rhomboid Triangle – 13% of British men have this shape. They are thin and have a solid upper torso slightly wider around the ribs than the waist. Think James Bond star, Daniel Craig.
- The Inverted Triangle is the most desirable shape, and just 5% of men have this shape. The body noticeably tapers from the shoulders down to the waist so that the upper body is a perfect inverted triangle. Think Usain Bolt.
I believe in the theory that we all have a predetermined weight set point: a built-in weight regulating mechanism, largely genetically determined. Unless you abuse your body with bad habits, it keeps your weight in a physiologically established comfortable range.
From my own experience, my set point took years to overcome because there is only so much you can do to change the basic framework you are born with. But when you adopt an intrinsic motivation toward fitness, in other words, make fitness like brushing your teeth, you can do many things to improve the body shape. You will be able to transition from being a Rectangle to a Rhomboid if you believe it can happen, and you will conquer your set point.
There is no need for you to bring out the tape measure. Just look in the mirror to see which parts of your body need improving the most. A good start is getting yourself down to somewhere around 10 to 12 percent body fat – lean enough to showcase your physique without looking unhealthy visibly.
Applying the Inverted Triangle to the body’s proportions sets out a clear and identifiable goal. But be mindful that your set-point will have a say in how close you can get to achieving that objective.
The most striking part of the research was the growth in the number of Ovals and Triangles. If the current surge in obesity levels continues at the current rates, Ovals could become British men’s most popular body shape over the next 25 years.”
Last word: If you want to build the perfect physique, size is irrelevant. Proportion and symmetry are what you should aim for – to systematically develop your muscles and body shape aesthetically as a whole. With discipline and resilience, everyone can get close enough to have the body type they want.
