Weight loss is a common goal with many people. But there are a growing number of people that have the opposite intent and they actually want to gain weight. This can be seen in athletes who play contact sports, people who have lost weight due to an illness or those who are hard gainers and have a hard time "bulking up." If you fall into any of these categories, you can increase your weight by following some steps that involve food and fitness.
Step 1
Find out your daily calorie intake. For a full week, track every calorie you consume in the form of food and beverages. Add all of your calories together and divide by seven to get your daily average.
Step 2
Add calories to your diet. If you want to increase your weight, you need to increase your calories. Take your daily average and add 500 more calories to it. For example: if you daily intake was 2,200 calories, then your new total is 2,700 calories.
Step 3
Eat clean. If you are not concerned with gaining healthy weight, then eat any form of calories you wish. But if you are, eliminate foods that are high in saturated fat and simple sugars like deep fried foods, fast food, processed meats and commercial baked goods. Eat nutrient dense foods like fruits, vegetables, lean meats, low-fat dairy products, fish, seeds, nuts, whole grains and beans.
Step 4
Eat more often. Eating your increased amount of calories can be difficult in two to three meals. To make it easier on yourself, eat six meals a day spaced two to three hours apart. If you follow the example from step two and your new caloric total is 2,700 calories, then eat six meals at 450 calories each. Keep your meals a balance of protein and carbohydrates. An example would be a bowl of oatmeal made with whole milk and a tbsp. of peanut butter.
Step 5
Do heavy weight training. Muscle is dense tissue that can add pounds to your body when you build it. Perform weight training three days a week on alternating days. Do exercises that involve a high amount of muscle recruitment like compound exercises. Examples of these are bench presses, shoulder presses, deadlifts, close-grip bench presses and lunges. Use heavy weights, do six to eight sets and perform three to six reps of each exercise.
Step 6
Have a post-workout shake. When you are done working out, your muscle fibers are broken down and your glycogen stores are depleted. Glycogen is the stored form of carbohydrates which are used for energy when you are lifting weights. To kickstart your recovery process and promote muscle gain, have a shake made with whey protein and fast absorbing carbs like grape juice. Whey protein is a good choice at this point because it gets absorbed easily in the stomach.
Step 7
Keep your cardio to a minimum. If you want to do cardio, keep it to a low intensity and do it no more than two times a week for 30 minutes or less. Performing high amounts of cardio will negate your efforts to gain weight and actually promote weight loss.
Step 8
Check your weight. After four weeks, step on the scale and check your weight. If you are gaining weight, then keep your calories where they are. If you have not gained any weight, add another 500 calories to your daily total. Keep following the same pattern every four weeks until you start gaining. Keep going until you gain your desired weight goal.
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