With all the attention given to the nation's obesity epidemic, you may forget that a portion of the population is dangerously underweight. Being underweight can cause health problems and social stigmatization, especially among children and teens. You must address gaining weight much like you do weight loss -- with a focused diet program that includes healthy foods. Instead of creating a calorie deficit, however, you seek to create a calorie surplus.
Calorie Needs
To increase your weight one pound per week, you must eat an additional 3,500 calories per week. This means you need to consume every day an extra 500 calories more than what you usually burn through normal daily activity and exercise. If you want to gain weight at a faster rate, you will need to increase your calorie intake even more. Work with your healthcare provider to determine your healthy weight goal and figure your daily calorie needs accordingly. Most weight-gain diets include 3,000 calories or more per day.
Food Choices
Learning to make calorie-dense food choices helps you achieve your weight gain goals. Junk foods and sweets are not the optimal weight-gain choices. While they do contain significant calories, these foods offer little nutrition and encourage fat, rather than healthy muscle gain. You are also still vulnerable to the problems of consuming too much sugar, sodium and saturated and trans fats -- such as increased risk of heart disease and high blood pressure. Choose foods you do enjoy, however, or else you may not be able to stick to your diet program.
Diet Program Strategies
A diet program for weight gain should still include healthy foods, such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables and lean meats -- just more of them. Healthy calorie-dense foods such as nuts, olive oil, full-fat dairy, dried fruit and avocados should feature prominently. You must eat regularly to consume all the calories you need -- often five to seven times per day. Skipping meals means a missed opportunity to consume calories and move toward your goal. Drinking calories in the form of milk or 100 percent juice between meals is another way to sneak in extra calories. You might also consider stimulating your appetite with light exercise, such as walking, so you desire to eat more. Keeping a food diary is another strategy that can help you ensure you hit your calorie targets.
Program Idea
An example of a healthy diet program to gain weight with six meals and over 3,500 calories might begin with a whole-wheat bagel spread with peanut butter, a bowl of granola and skim milk, and a banana at breakfast. For your second meal, make a sandwich on dense whole grain bread filled with deli turkey and 1 oz. of Swiss cheese and have with a handful of whole-wheat pretzels. For lunch, serve yourself at least 2 cups of whole-wheat pasta tossed with a tbsp. of olive oil and topped with marinara sauce, grilled chicken and fresh, steamed broccoli. Mid-afternoon, have a smoothie made with fresh fruit, almond butter and soy milk. For dinner, broil 5 to 6 oz. of salmon along with 2 cups of brown rice, and a salad topped with 1 tbsp. of olive oil dressing. Before bed, consume another snack of yogurt, nuts and dried fruit.
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