The Otter mode, or a 'swimmer's physique, is a male body type with an appealing combination of low body fat percentage and good toned muscle without being bulky. Otter mode body type is compared to a swimmer's physique because the look involves having broad shoulders, chiseled six-pack abs, and a classic V shape torso.
Brad Pitt in Fight Club or Shahrukh Khan in Om Shanti Om are classic examples of the ultimate Otter mode body type.
In this article, we discuss what it really means to be in 'ottermode' and the best possible ways to achieve it.
Workouts for Otter Mode
To achieve a full-fledged Ottermode physique, you need to stay lean around 10-12 % body fat with having a good amount of muscle mass. Your BMI doesn't matter as everyone's body type is different, and you cannot pin down everyone to one single BMI number. So, better not focus on your BMI and instead work on building some muscles and getting that body fat percentage down to a range of 10-12%.
Resistance Training
The Ottermode physique is built on the idea of having good muscle definition. For that, you need to hit some weights and especially focus on compound movements to focus on your overall development. By this, we don't mean that you need to constantly up your one-rep max in every training. Instead, you can just train in a range of 10-12 reps for each exercise and hit 4-5 exercises for each muscle group daily.
Cardio and HIIT
One of the main aspects of achieving an Ottermode physique is to get really lean and ripped. No matter how well-built your muscles are, you simply won't be able to achieve this look without keeping your body fat incredibly low at around 10-12 %. One of the best ways to achieve this is by incorporating cardio sessions into your fitness routine. It burns an incredible number of calories (majorly from fat) and enhances your metabolism. You can also incorporate HIIT if you find long cardio sessions boring and get over with your HIIT sessions in 5-10 minutes. It will provide the same fat-burning effect as cardio (LISS) and help you burn a ton of fat. Three to four sessions of around 30-40 minutes each per week, of LISS or 5-10 minutes of HIIT is sufficient to get all the benefits you're looking for from an aesthetic standpoint.
Diet and Nutrition
We are sure that you have heard this a lot, but the fact remains - to make any change in your physique, you need to keep your diet and nutrition on point. There's no other way around it. No matter how hard you weight train or hit multiple cardio sessions in a week if your diet is not personalized to your goals, you are simply not getting where you want to be.
Calorie Consumption
This is the first thing you need to take care of and set your daily calorie consumption limit. If you are overweight and at a high body fat percentage, you need to cut back on daily calories and gradually keep it decreasing it to a point where you can sustain it and remain in a deficit to reach a low body fat percentage. If you are skinny, you should primarily focus on increasing your daily calories to build muscles to have a well-toned physique.
Protein Requirements
If you want to have a good physique, protein is the number one macronutrient to focus on. Protein helps in building of the body and gain muscle mass. It also helps in fat loss by reducing your appetite and makes you eat fewer calories. Also, your body burns few additional calories for metabolizing protein that helps to create a further caloric deficit, resulting in fat loss. Therefore, having a good protein-rich diet can help you achieve your Otter mode physique quickly.
The Bottom Line
Getting to low body fat is not a joke, and you need to take care of your nutrition and training to get there. Make sure to keep track of your progress. The goal is to look proportional, not build one part of your body or get huge. Think sleek, strong, and athletic.
References
Boutcher, S. H. (2011). High-Intensity Intermittent Exercise and Fat Loss. Journal of Obesity, 2011, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1155/2011/868305
Zhang, H., Tong, T. K., Qiu, W., Zhang, X., Zhou, S., Liu, Y., & He, Y. (2017). Comparable Effects of High-Intensity Interval Training and Prolonged Continuous Exercise Training on Abdominal Visceral Fat Reduction in Obese Young Women. Journal of Diabetes Research, 2017, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/5071740
Krzysztofik, Wilk, Wojdała, & Gołaś. (2019). Maximizing Muscle Hypertrophy: A Systematic Review of Advanced Resistance Training Techniques and Methods. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(24), 4897. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16244897
Krebs, N. F., Gao, D., Gralla, J., Collins, J. S., & Johnson, S. L. (2010). Efficacy and Safety of a High Protein, Low Carbohydrate Diet for Weight Loss in Severely Obese Adolescents. The Journal of Pediatrics, 157(2), 252–258. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2010.02.010
