Gaining healthy weight is a challenge -- you want to focus on gaining muscle mass and bone density, not fat. The rib cage is a particularly visible structure, where weight loss is obvious with a protruding rib cage. You can increase your trunk size with layers of lean muscle mass, but you may need to alter your diet to support healthy weight gain. You can gain weight quickly consuming empty calories, such as sodas, but this is not a healthy route to take, especially if you need to gain weight from an illness, surgery or the aging process.
Dietary Considerations
Step 1
Work to gain healthy weight if you are underweight. Check your body mass index, or BMI, to see how many pounds you need to gain and set a goal.
Step 2
Increase your daily calorie consumption by 500 per day, or 3,500 per week, to gain 1 pound of body weight per week if you are underweight.
Step 3
Choose foods like nuts, seeds and dried fruit for calorie-dense, healthy snack choices. Drink fluids in between meals, not during, so they will not fill you up.
Step 4
Multiply your body weight in pounds by 0.6 to find your daily protein gram requirement while building muscle. Eat lean proteins such as fish and skinless poultry to build muscle mass while watching fat content.
Step 5
Complete strength training exercises at least twice weekly to build lean muscle mass over the rib cage. The latissimus dorsii covers the back of your rib cage, and the core abdominal muscles, including the obliques, cover the front and sides.
Latissimus Dorsii and Core
Step 1
Kneel on your hands and feet ensuring that your palms are under your shoulders and your back is flat, not arched.
Step 2
Extend your right arm forward and your left leg backward. Do not let either your arm or leg rise above shoulder or hip level; imagine a straight line extending from your fingers to your toes of the raised extremities. Keep the arm and leg as straight as possible.
Step 3
Exhale and return to the starting position on both hands and knees. Lift the left arm and right leg simultaneously and repeat the procedure. Complete repetitions as tolerated, gradually increasing the number of repetitions you are able to perform in one sitting.
Obliques
Step 1
Lie on your back with your hands clasped behind your head. Lift your thighs up to bring your shins parallel with the floor.
Step 2
Raise your shoulders a few inches off the floor and touch your right elbow to your left knee by engaging your oblique abdominal muscles and rotating your trunk. Keep your shoulders off the floor and touch your left elbow to your right knee.
Step 3
Complete opposing elbow-knee touches as tolerated, aiming for a set of 20 on your first try. Increase the number of repetitions as tolerated. Do not pull on your neck with your clasped hands during the exercise.
Tips and Warnings
- Building lean muscle mass takes time. Be patient and increase your core strength training as tolerated to speed up results.
- Talk to your doctor before starting an exercise program especially if you have recently suffered illness, injury or surgery.
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