Some women are predisposed to being extremely thin or suffer from a wasting illness. Athletic women may need to gain weight in muscle to increase their competitiveness, and underweight women may become insecure about their appearance and experience irregular periods, infertility and weakness. Gaining weight must be approached in a healthy manner.
Step 1
Consume more calories per day. Strive to eat at least 500 calories more than you burn in a day. Serve yourself 20 percent more at meals and eat at least two substantial snacks every day. If you find your appetite is weak or, as a woman, you are self-conscious eating a lot, go for six or seven small meals instead.
Step 2
Choose natural foods with a high calorie density. Opt for starchy vegetables like sweet potatoes, peas and winter squash. Choose chowders and chilis over broth-based soups. Make sandwiches on whole grain breads like pumpernickel and rye instead of white varieties. Choose breakfast cereals like granola or muesli.
Step 3
Do not skip meals. Carry healthy food in your purse so you always have access to food. Try portable foods like nuts, whole grain crackers, energy bars and dried fruit.
Step 4
Avoid junk food. Although high in calories, processed food, fried food and fast food tend to be low in nutrition. You may gain weight eating a lot of it, but it will be unhealthy fat rather than lean muscle. In addition, eating too much saturated and trans fats contributes to health problems, as noted by the American Heart Association.
Step 5
Drink liquids containing nutrients and calories. Opt for milk or smoothies over diet soda or unsweetened iced tea. One-hundred percent juices, like orange juice, pomegranate juice and cranberry juice also make good choices as they offer antioxidants and vitamins.
Step 6
Enhance the calorie content of your meals with heart-healthy monounsaturated fats. Sprinkle nuts over your morning cereal, add avocado to sandwiches and omelets, toss pasta with olive oil, eat toast with peanut butter or add flaxseed oil to smoothies.
Step 7
Exercise. Go for five individual sessions of 30 minutes of moderate cardiovascular exercise and two full-body strength training sessions per week. Adequate exercise stimulates your appetite and preserves lean muscle mass.
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