The extra energy and fuel that a high calorie diet provides may be necessary for a number of reasons. You may simply need to gain weight, or you may be facing an extra physical challenge such as an illness or surgery, a serious burn or cancer. During times like these, your body has extra demands on it and may need additional caloric support. Whatever the reason, it's important to know how to incorporate a healthy high calorie diet into your lifestyle.
Healthy Calorie Sources
When planning to increase your daily caloric intake, be sure you take other nutrition factors into consideration. Occasionally, it may be appropriate to set aside common dietary concerns, such as avoiding foods with high cholesterol content and focus only on calories. However, especially if you expect to be on a high calorie diet for a longer period, it's crucial to make healthy food choices to ensure that you're providing your body with nutrients as well as increased calories.
Choosing wholesome high calorie foods is easiest done by avoiding highly processed, packaged foods. Read the nutritional facts label, and when possible, choose foods without large amounts of trans fats or calories that come from fats.
Calorie Dense Foods
Planning meals and snacks can be useful when on a high calorie diet. It's easier to evaluate your meals and make good eating choices when you're not under pressure. Plan to include foods that are calorie dense and avoid less efficient low caloric foods that will fill you up without adding to your calorie count.
Good foods include peanut butter, eggs, beans, whole-milk dairy products, fruit (especially dried fruit,) cookies, ice cream, custards, cakes and other desserts, honey, salad dressings and dips. Choose starchy vegetables such as carrots, potatoes, peas, beets and corn in place of filling, low calorie vegetable options like cucumbers, broccoli and cauliflower.
Boost Caloric Value
The key to a high calorie diet is finding ways to boost the caloric value of each food you eat. Find ways to mix and add calorie rich foods to other dishes. Add powdered milk, cheese and eggs to casseroles and foods like mashed potatoes. Eggs can be hard boiled, chopped and added to salad dressings and dips. Add beans to soups and casseroles. When possible, increase the portions of sugar, butter and eggs in recipes calling for them. Mix wheat germ, honey, and powdered milk into your peanut butter. Sprinkle extra sugar, wheat germ and nuts such as almonds over cereals. Be sure to eat your bread with butter, plus jam or honey.
Snacks
Make your snacks count! Eat apples or bananas with peanut butter. Dried fruit is very calorie dense and can be transported for midday snacks. Make a smoothie with your favorite fruits, milk, powdered milk and honey. Mix granola with yogurt. Have high calorie snacks available for when the urge to snack comes.
Beverages
Avoid low calorie beverages such as coffee and tea, and focus on drinks such as juices and nectar, milk and hot chocolate. As with snacks, it's useful to have these always available. Sip them throughout the day, even when you're not feeling hungry or thirsty.
Member Comments