Gain body weight (3 ways)

Part One: Eating to Gain Weight Determine how much more you need to
eat to gain a pound or a kilogram. To gain a pound, you'll need in
excess of 3500 calories above your resting metabolic rate (RMR) — that
is, you.[1] Calculate your RMR. Your resting metabolic rate is the
amount of calories per day that your body requires to maintain your
existing weight. Here's how to figure it out with the Mifflin - St.
Jeor formula [2]: Convert your weight from pounds to kilograms. Divide
your weight in pounds by 2.2. The result is your weight in kilograms.
Convert your height from inches to centimeters. Multiply your height
in inches by 2.54. The result is your height in centimeters. Plug your
information into the formula. The basic formula is RMR = 10 *
weight(kg) + 6.25 * height(cm) - 5 * age (y) + x . For men, x = 5; for
women, x = -161. Understand that the formula calculates how many
calories you would burn if you spent the entire day resting. You
probably burn a few hundred more than your RMR during the course of a
normal day — this is just a rough estimate to get your weight-gain
diet started. Account for your activity level. Since you (hopefully)
do not sit still in bed all day, you must account for the calories you
burn through activity. Once you have your RMR, use the Harris Benedict
Formula below with your RMR as BMR to determine your total daily
calorie needs depending on your activity level. To determine your
total daily calorie needs, multiply your BMR by the appropriate
activity factor: If you are sedentary (little or no exercise) : BMR x
1.2 If you are lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week) :
BMR x 1.375 If you are moderately active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5
days/week) : BMR x 1.55 If you are very active (hard exercise/sports
6-7 days a week) : BMR x 1.725 If you are extra active (very hard
exercise/ sports and physical job or 2x training) : BMR x 1.9 For
example, a 19-year- old woman who is 5'5" and 130 pounds would plug
her information into the calculator and find out that her BMR is
1366.8 calories. Then, since she is moderately active, exercising 3-5
days per week, she would multiply 1366.8 by 1.55, to equal 2118.5
calories. That is the number of calories that her boded to add to your
diet. Now that you have an idea of how many calories your body burns
in a day, you can calculate how many more you need to gain weight. Aim
for one or two pounds per week. More than that could lead to a cycle
of crash dieting, in which you gain and lose weight quickly. At first,
try adding 500 calories a day to your diet. For instance, if you need
2300 calories a day to maintain your current weight, strive to consume
2800 calories daily. This should be an extra 3500 calories over the
course of a week, which will lead to one pound of weight gained. Eat
three meals per day, as well as two snacks. Eating on a regular
schedule can help you make sure you're getting enough calories every
day. Aim to have generously- portioned breakfast, lunch and dinner, as
well as two snacks in between. Focus on hefty foods. You don't have to
exclusively eat high-fat foods to gain weight. Actually, you'll gain
weight more steadily and safely if you adjust your diet slightly to
include denser foods and extra condiments. Consider these options:
Drinks — Try protein shakes, juices or whole milk. Avoid diet sodas.
Breads — Hearty and dense breads, such as whole wheat, oat bran,
pumpernickel and rye, are more nutritious than white bread. Cut thick
slices and spread generously with peanut butter, jam, honey, hummus,
or cream cheese. Vegetables — Look for starchy vegetables (potatoes,
peas, corns, carrots, winter squash, beets). Avoid vegetables that are
mostly water (broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, green beans,
cucumbers). Fruit — Choose dense fruit (bananas, pears, apples,
pineapple, dried fruit) over watery fruit (oranges, peaches, plums,
berries, watermelon). Soups — Go for hearty cream soups instead of
broth-based soups. If you have trouble with edema or high blood
pressure, you may want to avoid store-bought soups that are high in
sodium. Added oils — When you're cooking, add a generous amount of oil
to your food. The healthiest oils are unrefined (extra virgin) oils
such as olive, coconut, canola, palm, and (of course) butter. Less
healthy but still acceptable sources of oil are those high in omega-6
fatty acids (pro-inflammatory) such as safflower, sunflower, and
peanut oils. Unhealthy oils that contain trans fats include shortening
and soybean oil (aka vegetable oil). Spreads — Spreading delicious
calorie-rich toppings on toast, crackers, pitas, and any other
carbohydrate source is an excellent way to increase caloric intake.
Some good high-calorie spreads are guacamole, olive oil, cream cheese,
hummus, butter, nut butters, sour cream, cheese slices, and
mayonnaise. For even more calories, mix these with shredded meats like
chicken or fish. Supplements — Some nutritional supplements are
designed specifically for weight gain. Investigate brands and products
that are suggested for people suffering from illnesses that lead to
weight loss, such as Crohn's disease or hyperthyroidism. Avoid trans
fats. Trans fats can increase belly fat, as well as inducing unhealthy
insulin levels[3]. Steer clear of margarine, shortening, packaged
snack foods, and processed meats. Eat more protein. A lack of protein
in your diet can lead to the loss of lean body mass, even if you're
consuming excess calories [4]. Here are some foods to consider: [5]:
Boiled soybeans Soy or whey protein powder Peanuts or peanut butter
Steak or hamburger Chicken Tuna Part Two: Building Muscle to Gain
Weight Start weight training. Building muscle through weight training
will not only convert your extra weight into lean body mass, but it
will also stimulate your appetite. Consider these points before you
begin: The extra muscle will increase the speed of your metabolism, so
you'll need to consume more calories to maintain or gain weight.
During the first month of weight training, you may experience
tremendous gains if you are faithful to your schedule. However, also
expect this to level off after this initiatory period (known in the
bodybuilding world as a plateau). You overcome this by re-evaluating
your weight and muscle mass, while altering your diet to include more
food and heavier weights. When you start a new training routine, you
will often experience extreme muscle soreness, called DOMS (Delayed
Onset Muscle Soreness).[6] This soreness is completely normal and
should not prevent one from keeping to their weight training schedule.
It goes away in 3 to 5 days. Lift heavy weights for maximum muscle
gain. To achieve hypertrophy (or large muscles), you should be lifting
weights that are as close as possible to the maximum you can handle
[7]. The weights should be so heavy that you hit "failure" (or the
physical inability to lift again) after 12 or 13 reps. Use forced
reps. With the assistance of a spotter, you can do 2 or 3 more lifts
after the point of failure. Forced reps increase the stress placed on
muscle fibers and overload the target muscles, making them work harder
than ever. Have your training partner assist you in the last few
lifts. Up your weight as soon as you need to. If you can do 15 lifts
without hitting failure, you need more weight. It's vital that you
keep increasing the weight of your lifts so that you can stave off
plateauing. Supplement your diet with more protein. A protein-rich
diet can help you gain mass while you're weight training[8]. Try to
eat a meal that's heavy on protein shortly after you finish
exercising. Avoid "rabbit starvation"[9], which can result from
increased physical activity coupled by a diet focused almost
exclusively on lean protein. Make sure your diet still has plenty of
fat in it. Part Three: Troubleshooting Don't get your hopes set on
gaining weight in one spot by eating more. The way your body
distributes fat is largely determined by genetics, and can't be
changed by diet alone. If you usually gain weight in your stomach but
you want to gain it in your butt, your best bet is to build your
gluteal muscles instead of trying to eat more. See a doctor. If you
can't gain weight in spite of following the above steps, schedule an
appointment with your family physician. You may have a medical
condition that prevents your body from absorbing fat or building
muscle. Weigh yourself at the same time each day. Because your weight
can fluctuate throughout the day, try to set one time at which you'll
step onto the scale. Many people prefer to weigh themselves first
thing in the morning, before eating breakfast. Avoid binging. Cycles
of binging (or overeating) and fasting have been shown to have
negative effects on glucose and insulin levels, as well as potentially
damaging metabolic processes over a long term [10][11]. Instead of
pigging out at one meal because you want to consume as many calories
as possible, try to spread that intake out over the entire day.