Best way to put on weight?

[SangerRainsford]

And expensively. We can go on and on about the best foods, but I think the OP is best served by understanding calorie-balance and how it relates to muscle/fat loss/gain, no? W/O that understanding, he's lost - after he understands, then specific reco's are useful ;P

 

[addictivepersona]

^ Good point. But a little nutrition advice never hurt anybody.

 

[SangerRainsford]

Oh no question - we should all strive to maximize our health!

I'm from a background of gaining weight for powerlifting/bodybuilding, so I've been speaking in strict terms of weight gain, not health

 

[KamMoye]

Why I want to do it is because I have a BMI of 18 and even though I'd like not to worry about what society deems attractive I do have to live in society.

I do take your point on having to keep up the change in dietary habits for the rest of my life, but then again obese people have to change their dietary habits permanently.

I probably do under eat but one of the positives of that is, according to studies on mice, I will live significantly longer

If you're dead set on doing it, then, forgive me for trying to convince you otherwise.

Here's a list of what are, in my opinion, quality foods to consume much of:

Cottage cheese
Yogurt
Legumes: lentils, beans (black-eyed, Navy, lima, etc.), quinoa, split-pea (great soup!), nuts like macadamias, Brazils, Hazelnuts, almonds, walnuts, pine nuts, etc.
Grains: Rice, pasta, bread, etc. (are there any other grains? =P)
Potatoes
Fruits/Veggies: Papaya, raisins, celery, pineapple, apples, avocado, cabbage, kale, radishes, onions, spinach, bananas, berries, kiwi, melons, plums, pears, nectarines... Why do I mention these things? Because one, they're healthy. Two, I like to think of my metabolism as a furnace. When you're not hungry enough for a full meal, you can stoke it with fruits/veggies.

And obviously you can combine things, like, say, peanut butter on celery, or seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, etc.) and granola and fruit in your yogurt.

Weight gain is SOOO simple, people tend to over-complicate it.

Weight gain (and loss) comes down to nothing more than calorie balance

Not every calorie is not created or metabolised equally.

Eat as often and as much as possible.

I feel this is terrible advice, advice that will win the battle but lose the war.

What I did: Shrink your stomach! Eat only when you're hungry, and eat slowly and with mindfulness, and as soon as you're not hungry, stop. Then eat a little more, etc. This also has the nice side-effect of making your abdominals more noticeable.

After a week or so of this (I was also working out), my metabolism got much faster and I was able to eat more often, yet still healthful.

 

[SangerRainsford]

What good reasons would you have to convince someone otherwise? Just curious..

Your list has, generally speaking, quality foods - but they're not really "weight gaining" foods in practice. Yes, you can get fat being a vegan, and be rail-thin eating nothing but mcdonald's, but those foods you listed aren't really part of a proper "healthy weight gain" protocol. (some are, most aren't tho)

Unsure what your calories 'created/metabolized equally' comment is supposed to mean. Yes, you'll absorb almost all the calories you get from sugar-water, or olive oil, and only like 60%+ from some proteins, but failing to see how that's really relevant here.

You think "eat as often and as much as possible" is terrible advice for someone asking "Best way to put on weight?" ?!? You're def gonna have to elaborate there, I'm not seeing any way that makes sense. It's a simple fact - eat more, gain weight. How on earth was my advice faulty, let alone "terrible"?!
(and how would that make one "win the battle/lose the war"?)

How would 'shrinking' one's stomach do anything for the OP? And can you elaborate on this stomach-shrinking phenomenon? Never really heard a proper explanation on that one...

Your "eat when hungry, but slowly, and stop when not hungry" advice will NOT result in weight gain.
Also, it does NOT have ANY effect, whatsoever, on making one's abdominals more noticable.

I'm not sure how that last sentence of your post helps the OP either..


Please don't take anything in this post personally, I'm only trying to help clarify things here, so if you explain yourself further I'm sure we'll reach an understanding

 

[KamMoye]

I think the OP has been granted sufficient advice. It's up to him what he decides from here -- not that it ever wasn't in the first place.

 

[fiendwithoutaface]

go on birth control and youll start gettin fat right away, tru story happened to a girlfriedn o mine

 

[Legerity]

If you are naturally at a low weight despite eating a "normal" amount of food, then you'll need to force yourself to eat more than you feel comfortable. You may eventually adapt to a higher food intake and notice an increase in appetite. This isn't necessarily healthy to do.

I've had to do this but my situation is different and I'm often below my healthy weight due to loss of appetite and digestive issues. When my appetite really gets bad I need to go through a period of eating whether I'm hungry or not, and eventually it starts to return. I do feel much better overall after ensuring that I'm getting enough food in.

 

[Jblazingphoenix100]

Here's a list of what are, in my opinion, quality foods to consume much of:

Cottage cheese
Yogurt
Legumes: lentils, beans (black-eyed, Navy, lima, etc.), quinoa, split-pea (great soup!), nuts like macadamias, Brazils, Hazelnuts, almonds, walnuts, pine nuts, etc.
Grains: Rice, pasta, bread, etc. (are there any other grains? =P)
Potatoes
Fruits/Veggies: Papaya, raisins, celery, pineapple, apples, avocado, cabbage, kale, radishes, onions, spinach, bananas, berries, kiwi, melons, plums, pears, nectarines... Why do I mention these things? Because one, they're healthy. Two, I like to think of my metabolism as a furnace. When you're not hungry enough for a full meal, you can stoke it with fruits/veggies.

And obviously you can combine things, like, say, peanut butter on celery, or seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, etc.) and granola and fruit in your yogurt.



Not every calorie is not created or metabolised equally.

Great list - I will add to this (i'm in EXACTLY the same place, but started my journey last year so am ahead of the game enough to give you advice), as I also have a super quick metabolism.

*Don't snack!! The only things you should have in between meals is fruit and veg, really - if you graze all day with a quick metabolism, you're not slowing it down AT ALL - by having square meals during the day at regular times - you are naturally slowing it down, more than if you were eating all day. (if you want to slow it down even more, have one day per week where you skip a meal - mini fast).

* eat 3/4 meals a day (4 if you're working out - this is what I do) - eat thsese only when you're really hungry and stop eating when you start to feel nicely full.

* Look into food combining for changes to your diet - I have done this and am putting on muscle and weight steadily - with your quick metabolism, you can't be dealing with your food not being metabolized properly - people with slower metabolisms generally have more forgiving and sturdy guts, people like us need to maximise efficiency, otherwise we're wasting money, and wating away

* When you exercise - just go for strength training - bulking out is for hardcore narcissists, and eat a lot of calories beforehand, allowing it to digest, and strong tea/fruit juice RIGHT BEFORE your workout is a good extra boost.

* After exercising/working hard, leave it 30 mins minimum before you put in your post-workout meal (fruit is a good boost if you're feeling a bit hypoglycaemic, then wait 30 mins after eating said fruit) - this is because all your energy has been put into pumping blood around the parts of your body you are exercising, and so your digestive system needs to fire up again -0 this should take about 30-40 mins.

* Eat lots of fatty foods, like avocados, and plenty of oils (hemp seed/avocado/nut oils etc), but try not to mix them with proteins.

(possibly even go as far as i did, looking into ayurveda - amazing food theory there to be learnt, and you will feel a lot healthier if you know what foods are good your your particular metabolism or "dosha", even if you don't wanna eat Indian food!)

Hope it goes well, keep us posted yeah??

 

[aanallein]

I'd have to suggest sort of the opposite of the above. Slowing your metabolism down may not be what you want.. Just straight up eat more. Snack all day long. Eat til you're full, then eat a little more. Then eat an hour later. But make sure you're eatting snacks your body can use properly (I'll talk about that below).

Most big and muscular people have slowed their metabolism a bit in the process. If you keep a speedy metabolism but put on muscle, you'll have the best of both worlds. The last thing you want is to get some stubborn belly fat and then have to go to drastic measures to get rid of it (like cal restricting which destroys muscle). If you can get a solid muscle build up going while maintaining a trim waste line.. that's way more ideal than bulking/cutting in frustrating phases.

Slowing your metabolism means: allowing your body to get hungry, doing little cardio, not eating immediately after working out
Speeding up your metabolism means: not allowing your body to go hungry, doing cardio regularly, taking advantage of post workout window of opportunity


As for what to eat.. it's all about understanding macros and understanding timing. You should aim to eat 700-900 calorie meals 4x per day w/ 300-400 calories snacks midway between. Each meal and snack should contain 30-50grams of protein around which you can work with. Do not eat "fruit" only as a snack because they are protein-less and net you nothing when trying to put on weight (they'll just put on fat which is the opposite of what you should be aiming for). 1 hour before working out consume 50grams of complex carbs (ie, oatmeal). Right before working out eat 30g of simple carbs (ie, fruit). Post workout eat your normal meal but throw in a protein shake to take advantage of the post workout window of opportunity (90 minute window when your body will rapidly absorb most food consumed into glycogen stores rather than body fat).

If you need more help, let me know. Diet and exercise are my #1 hobby and at times even more important than everything else. =)


Oh and most important of all.. don't let yourself get dehydrated. If you're thirsty, you've already done screwed up because your body is having to tell you that you're thirsty. Your piss should be clear all day long. But that's a given for anybody (90% of people don't drink enough water).

 

[TRENZYME]

I have a hell of a time trying to put on weight.

I have a super fast metabolism and not that much interest in food ie I don't really want to sit down to massive meals and feel really full.

I eat 3 normal size meals a day and a few snacks but I was wondering if any one knows of any calorie rich supplements/foods/drinks that are easy to slam down to put on weight?

maybe look into a mass shake , i use a tastey choc flavour one thats 600cals each shake,chuck in some vit c zinc and some ammino acids and youll gain wieght but you will need some propper food in there to,
top mass foods are nuts, peanut butter, mayo, fatty meats, porrage, cheese,
i sometimes add a couple of tubs of double cream to my diet, theres about 1000 cals per pot and it take 2 mins to down and cost pennies
im about 6 ft and 220lbs@ 10is % body fat

 

[Jblazingphoenix100]

I'm sorry Aanalein - but that advice isn't very good.

He's not going to be able to sustain that - trust me, I did the same thing, and the weight just falls off unless you keep going to the gym all the time or whatever...and who the fuck wants to do that?!?!

Why does he not wanna slow his metabolism down a bit??

Also - yes, he does wanna put on some fat - I'm guessing, like me, he has next to none - fat reserves are what you need, otherwise then you just eat up muscle when you can't go to the gym blah blah blah.

I like your thinking about how much carbs before, and fruit before - and the window of opportunity - you certainly know your shit, but that's the point I'm trying to make - this dude probably just wants to be a bit stronger, heavier, and a lil bit more bulked out...he doesn't wanna have to shell out ridiculous amounts of money for food (30-50gm protein each meal!?), and then have to sustain this by exercising all the time?

Your calorie intake advice - on a harm reduction site - in the long term, you'll probably go bald early and have a heart attack later in life... 8)

Putting that much food in your body is bad for you - you realize how many years of your life you will knock off by working out and eating like that?

 

[SangerRainsford]

"normal" is relative tho, it's subjective - if you're losing weight or staying neutral, and want to move upwards, you need to move the calories upwards, end of story. If you exercise simultaneously, *and* make sure enough of those calories are protein/fat, you'll gain muscle (remember, exercise will increase calorie needs too). If you don't exercise, the body will store the extra as fat - the body will store extra calories tho, that's how we're built (and we like to store fat wayyyyy more, actually muscle's a liability in a way, it takes far more calories to maintain a pound of muscle than fat on one's body, the body likes to have nice/easy reserves on hand cuz of evolution and all that ;P )

We can make this super detailed, w/ daily recommendations of foods, vitamins/minerals, supplements, macro breakdowns, meal periods, etc etc etc. Most who want to gain muscle and/or lose fat* do this, and it's an exercise in futility. There's just a handful of key metrics that WILL give these results, and they're covered (vaguely) in their entirety in the 1st paragraph of this post.

I think people overstress this topic soooo much because of how obsessed we are w/ our bodies, and the reality of this being a "simple, but not easy" proposition just doesn't sit well w/ everyone so they look for more instead of just adjusting their nutes..
/has op come back or are we talking amongst ourselves? ;P

 

[SangerRainsford]

Wow I let the page sit a lil while and there were quite a few replies.

This has turned into more of a weight gain thread than a reply to the OP it seems, but whatevs these are fun.

Whoever said 'wait 30min after working out' to take a postworkout meal/shake is wrong. You want nutes as fast as possible at that point above any other. Anywhere from a 1:1 to 4:1 carbrotein shake (fast carbs/proteins, like malto or dextro for carbs, and some kinda whey for protein - don't waste $ on anything but whey concentrate unless you really can't handle the lactose). This spikes your blood sugar, gets your insulin going, and gives a nice supply of quality carb/protein - perfect for someone whose muscles need aminos for anabolism, and whose muscles need their glucose replenished. The body's already primed for it, the insulin spike just helps it even more (fuck, if you wanna get hardcore, learn about using some insulin injections here - NOT safe for purposes being discussed here tho, go to steroid subby for that ;P ).

And aanallien is spot-on re calories, water, pretty much every word he wrote (check some of his writings in steroid subby or others from HL, he's very adept here!). Only things I'd disagree w/ are the specifics, such as how many times a day to eat, or calories per meal. These can be modified pretty heavily, ALL that matters is that the body has a constant supply that meets(exceeds for our purposes, "meeting" would be tedious, if even possible to do accurately) meets our needs for weightgain, specifically, a constant supply of amino's(protein)/fatty-acids(fats)/glucose(carbs)/water/vits/mins. Done, that's all. Variety is good, healthy foods are good, but if we're talking about just gaining muscle, or gaining fat (or even losing fat), it's covered fully here.
/oh and remember, no gaining muscle while losing fat, you're just treading water w/ those "extreme" attempts lol. Fat loss = caloric deficit, gains = caloric surplus.

 

[DoUbLeYoU]

seefood-eat everything you see

 

[craigyt2k]

plenty of fruit and veg, sprouted grains and lift weights daily, swim cycle whatever, dont eat before bed though

 

[SangerRainsford]

Oh and re the "just go for strength training, bulking out is for hardcore..."
WRONG

Strength training is for strength. "Bulking out"* is for gaining mass and strength. The OP and this thread's current tone are gaining weight, not strength, speed, flexibility, etc.
*By "bulking out" I'm presuming you're referring to people doing compound lifts, ie the big3 (squat/deadlift/bench). Those are EXACTLY what one should do for both strength *and* bulk. Compound moves are so efficient they destroy isolation moves. Isolation moves are the "narcissist" favorites you attributed to "bulking out". "Bulking" typically denotes the phase we're talking of in this thread, to "bulk" by eating excess calories while training heavily (typically compound lifts done 3-5d/week). People alternate bulks and cuts, allowing them to shed the fat gained during a bulk. Fat gain during a bulk is almost a requirement, as I'd mentioned it's virtually impossible to walk the line of calories/nutes where there's *just* enough for anabolism(muscle growth), but not enough for excess to become fat. Fat gain is accepted, and you just gotta try to minimize it, once you're gaining properly (1-3lbs/mo, for a very rough estimate - varies very widely), if you're picking up bf%'s that're too quick, or putting on pounds you know aren't mostly muscle, dial the calories back a bit (starting w/ carbs, then fats - unless your diet was absurdly fatty, that is).

But yeah, if you want to understand more about strength v 'bulk', look at the different phases and their purposes in programs such as crossfit, westside, etc. There is enormous overlap between them, for sure, but if you're training for sports, you train for strength and maybe bulk (depending which sport). If you train for size, you 'bulk' train. But again, the difference in these approaches is dictated far more by diet than training. Pure "strength" training w/ a bulk diet = a bulk. Pure "bulk" training w/ a tight diet/no weight gain is strength training by any definition.

Smoke weed, eat lots.

heh, never worked for me, not by a long shot, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't know multiple people, from multiple states, who smoke heavily during cycles b4 hitting the dining halls ;P


Most just don't understand that, for skinny guys/high metabolism folk, gaining weight is extremely hard and entails nothing less than feeling full/past full at virtually *every* second. For me to gain, my best 'trick' is eating solids til I'm gonna explode, then pound a weightgainer. Repeat as often as possible, and keep the routine running til insanity occurs ;P

 

[TearItDown]

g if I said I didn't know multiple people, from multiple states, who smoke heavily during cycles b4 hitting the dining halls ;P


Most just don't understand that, for skinny guys/high metabolism folk, gaining weight is extremely hard and entails nothing less than feeling full/past full at virtually *every* second. For me to gain, my best 'trick' is eating solids til I'm gonna explode, then pound a weightgainer. Repeat as often as possible, and keep the routine running til insanity occurs ;P

Oh, I understand that. I used to fence competitively and was training for the olympics, I also happen to fit into the body archetype that you mentioned. I haven't gained weight in like 5 years.

 

[atara]

I have a hell of a time trying to put on weight.

I have a super fast metabolism and not that much interest in food ie I don't really want to sit down to massive meals and feel really full.

I eat 3 normal size meals a day and a few snacks but I was wondering if any one knows of any calorie rich supplements/foods/drinks that are easy to slam down to put on weight?

http://startingstrength.wikia.com/wiki/Starting_Strength_Wiki

Starting Strength is really your best bet if you're looking to gain weight quickly. The exercises are optimized for this as well. GoMaD is actually pretty fun, though I got odd stares when I carried a gallon jug of milk into work every morning. If you're not a fan of milk, get used to it: almost nothing more effectively and safely causes weight gain than milkfat.

The thing about Starting Strength is that it is a temporary thing; you're not going to be drinking a gallon of milk a day for the rest of your life, just a few months, and after that you pretty much eat and exercise normally. I started doing Crossfit after finishing SS, and a lot of people do the same.

 

[Jblazingphoenix100]

For me to gain, my best 'trick' is eating solids til I'm gonna explode, then pound a weightgainer. Repeat as often as possible, and keep the routine running til insanity occurs ;P

OK, bulking out does have it's uses from the sound of things, but from what I've seen - if you wanna do sports, or have a job working as a labourer/carpenter/lumberjack/whatever - strength training is the way to go - majorly bulking out is just trying to be someone you're not - as you build up strength, you will naturally put on a bit of bulk, due to the muscles and fats.