The most important thing you can do to gain weight is to eat more calories than your body needs.
A caloric surplus (calories in > calories out) is needed. Without it, you won't gain. Period.
If you want to gain weight slowly and steadily, then aim for 300-500 calories more than you burn each day according to the calculator.
If you want to gain weight fast, then aim for something like 700-1000 calories above your maintenance level.
Keep in mind that calorie calculators only provide estimates. Your needs may vary by several hundred calories per day, give or take.
You don't need to count calories for the rest of your life, but it helps to do it for the first few days/weeks to get a feel for how many calories you are eating.
The single most important nutrient for gaining healthy weight is
protein.
Muscle is made of protein, and without it most of those extra calories may end up as body fat.
Studies show that during periods of overfeeding, a
high protein diet causes many of the extra calories to be turned into muscle (
12).
However, keep in mind that protein is a double-edged sword. It is also highly filling, so that it can reduce your hunger and appetite significantly. This can make it harder to get in enough calories (
13,
14).
If you're trying to gain weight, aim for 0.7-1 grams of protein per pound of body weight (1.5 - 2.2 grams of protein per kilogram). You can even go above that if your calorie intake is very high.
High-protein foods include meats, fish, eggs, many dairy products, legumes, nuts and others. Protein supplements like
whey protein can also be useful if you struggle to get enough protein in your diet.
Many people try restricting either
carbs or fat when they are trying to
lose weight.
This is a bad idea if your goal is to gain weight, because it will make it harder to get in enough calories.
Eat plenty of
high-carb and
high-fat foods if weight gain is a priority for you. It is best to eat plenty of protein, fat and carbs at each meal.
It is also a bad idea to do
intermittent fasting. This is useful for weight loss and health improvement, but can make it much harder to eat enough calories to gain weight.
Make sure to eat at least 3 meals per day, and try to add in energy-dense snacks whenever possible.
Again, it is very important to eat mostly whole, single ingredient foods.
The problem is that these foods tend to be more filling than
processed junk foods, making it harder to get in enough calories.
Using plenty of
spices, sauces and condiments can help with this. The tastier your food is, the easier it is to eat a lot of it.
Also, try to emphasize energy-dense foods as much as possible. These are foods that contain many calories relative to their weight.
Here are some energy-dense foods that are perfect for gaining weight:
- Nuts: Almonds, walnuts, macadamia nuts, peanuts, etc.
- Dried fruit: Raisins, dates, prunes and others.
- High-fat dairy: Whole milk, full-fat yogurt, cheese, cream.
- Fats and Oils: Extra virgin olive oil and avocado oil.
- Grains: Whole grains like oats and brown rice.
- Meat: Chicken, beef, pork, lamb, etc. Choose fattier cuts.
- Tubers: Potatoes, sweet potatoes and yams.
- Dark chocolate, avocados, peanut butter, coconut milk, granola, trail mixes.
Many of these foods are very filling, and sometimes you may need to force yourself to keep eating even if you feel full.
It may be a good idea not to eat a ton of vegetables if gaining weight is a priority for you. It simply leaves less room for energy-dense foods.
Eating whole
fruit is fine, but try to emphasize fruit that doesn't require too much chewing, such as
bananas.
In order to make sure that the excess calories go to your muscles instead of just your fat cells, it is absolutely crucial to lift weights.
Go to a gym and lift, 2-4 times per week. Lift heavy, and try to increase the weights and volume over time.
If you are completely out of shape or you are new to training, then consider hiring a qualified personal trainer to help you get started.
You may also want to consult with a doctor if you have skeletal problems or any sort of medical issue.
It is probably best to take it easy on the cardio for now. Focus mostly on the weights.
Doing some cardio is fine to improve fitness and well-being, but don't do so much that you end up burning all the additional calories you are eating.
I hope this will help you gaining weight.
