When you're underweight, your doctor may recommend you try to put on a few pounds. However, this does not give you an excuse to eat pizza and cheeseburgers all day. Junk food and fried, greasy foods are OK to eat once in a while, but to gain healthy weight, stick with high-calorie foods that are packed with vitamins and nutrients. Talk to your doctor before making any changes in your diet, particularly if you have health conditions or injuries.
Eat Frequently
Sitting down to eat a huge pile of food may feel daunting, especially if you aren't hungry. Instead of eating three large meals, eat five or six smaller ones. Instead of trying to stuff as much food into your body as possible, focus on rich, high-calorie foods that are also healthy. Fill your meals with foods like avocado, olive oil, nuts, beans, cheese, oatmeal, fish, chicken and brown rice. Although these foods will add pounds to your frame, they are low in saturated fat, so they will help you gain weight without compromising your health.
Use Toppings
Get more bang for your buck out of every meal by adding lots of toppings. Even if you're eating a salad for lunch, you can make it a high-calorie salad that is full of nutritious fats, like polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fat. Top salad with almonds, apples, avocado and cheese, and drizzle it with olive oil to drastically increase the calorie count of your meal. It's more nutritious than a cheeseburger, but you'll still gain weight.
Incorporate Nutritious Additions
Being creative with your meals will help you get out of your eating rut and gain more healthy weight. Experiment with spreads like hummus, peanut butter, yogurt and sour cream on your food. Don't eat plain vegetables -- dip them in dressing, peanut butter or hummus instead. Instead of eating a plain piece of toast or bagel, spread it with butter, peanut butter or cream cheese. Adding high-calorie spreads to your meal will help you add more calories to your diet without feeling too full.
Include Activity
Weight gain isn't all about what you eat. Increasing your muscle mass may also help you hit your weight goals. Although exercising may seem counterintuitive because it burns calories, exercising will help you gain weight by building strong muscles. If your doctor approves, do cardio exercises, like running, swimming and tennis most days of the week. Two times a week, do strength-training exercises like pushups, situps and squats to tone and strengthen your muscles. This combination of exercises will help you build more muscle mass, and ultimately gain weight.
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