Dietitian-approved tips for healthy weight gain

If weight loss from illness or stress has you looking for tips for healthy weight gain, you are not alone. A surprising number of people have experienced unintentional weight loss at some point. Here are some tips for healthy weight gain to meet your goals without resorting to protein shakes meal after meal.

Get started with these tips for healthy weight gain

Adequate fuel

To fuel your body, you need calories. To gain weight, you must eat and drink more calories or fuel than you burn. Under-eating calories from carbs and fat while loading up on protein to build muscles isn't enough to work.

Tip: To determine how many daily calories you need to gain weight, sign up for MyNetDiary.

Divide your daily calories into three parts

The best way to ensure you get enough calories each day to promote muscle growth and healthy weight gain is to eat consistently. Try dividing your meals and snacks equally throughout the day, such as aiming to eat three meals and three snacks every day.

If you need 3,000 calories per day, you should eat roughly 1,000 calories before noon, another 1,000 calories by mid-afternoon, and the final 1,000 calories before evening. For example, strive for 700-calorie meals and 300-calorie snacks. Spreading your calories over the day, instead of eating a gigantic dinner and snacking until bedtime, will help keep your energy up and aid digestion. Many people find that eating something every two to three hours can meet their daily calorie goals without feeling overly full. Don't be surprised if you end up feeling like you are eating all the time. Gaining weight is not easy; it takes a lot of effort and energy!

Creative ways to boost calories

Even using the best advice, some people find adding calories to meals very challenging, especially when working on healthy weight gain. Instead of trying to consume huge portions, add calories in sneaky, invisible ways.

• Add one to two teaspoons of olive oil or butter to foods like pasta, rice, hot cereal, vegetables, or soups.
• Use extra salad dressing.
• Add croutons, grated cheese, nuts, or seeds to salads.
• Spread nut butter on whole-grain toast or bagels.
• Use whole milk and full-fat yogurt instead of low-fat or skim.
• Sauté your vegetables in olive oil rather than steaming or boiling.

Adequate protein

To build muscle, you'll want to ensure you meet your protein needs. The acceptable range of daily protein intake is 10-35% of calories. If you track using MyNetDiary, the default recommendation for protein is 20% of total calories. Premium membership allows you to customize this and other nutrient targets.

More protein doesn't automatically translate to bigger muscles. This is a common misconception promoted by the protein supplement industry. Unfortunately, muscles don't automatically expand in response to high-protein intake. They grow in response to increased use. Exercising with weights or resistance bands will push muscles to grow. Whether you are a young athlete or a 70-year-old recovering from an illness, physical activity is essential to muscle weight gain.

Avoid eating massive amounts of protein at a single meal. A giant portion of meat might cover your entire day's protein requirement yet be wasted for muscle building. The best strategy is to spread protein intake throughout the day, divided between meals and snacks.

Protein-rich foods for weight gain

• Eggs
• Skinless chicken, turkey, fish, and lean beef
• Whole-soy products such as tofu, edamame, tempeh, and soy or pea milk
• Dairy products: Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, milk
• Beans, legumes, nuts, seeds

Adequate resistance training to challenge muscles

Strength training is the best activity for building muscle and gaining weight. You can see gains in muscle strength with several short training sessions, such as two to three 20- or 30-minute sessions per week.

You can strength train from the comfort of your own home with a few pieces of equipment. Here's how to get started building a home gym.

Other resistance exercises using your own body weight also contribute to effective strength training, including pushups, situps, and planks. Here are some at-home resources to get you started: low-impact videos for strength training and strengthening your core with Pilates.

Avoid these pitfalls for healthy weight gain

• Skipping meals. Whether planned or by accident, skipping a meal makes it harder to catch up later in the day. Set a timer on your phone so you don't forget to eat.
• If you are prone to skipping snacks because food prep seems like a hassle, keep these healthy, energy-dense snacks on hand, and don't hesitate to eat multiple servings.
• Not sure what to eat for dinner? Check out these quick and healthy meal ideas.
• Most people know how to boost protein, but they miss the mark with calories. Part of the problem is hyper-focusing on protein intake while shortchanging calories from carbs and fats. When you eat a balanced diet with plenty of calories, your body can maximize your protein intake for tissue building and repair. If you need some assistance mapping out a day's worth of balanced eating, this can help.
• When tracking what you eat, don't wait until the end of the day to record your foods and drinks. Tracking as you go will tell you if you are on target to reach your daily calorie goal.

Using MyNetDiary to promote weight gain

In addition to entering your weight goal under “My Weight Goal & Plan,” you can also add a weekly expected exercise plan. By mapping out your activity in the app, you boost your daily food calorie target. This step prevents you from underestimating your total energy expenditure at the end of the day.

To find this feature, go to the “Me” tab and select “My Weight Goal & Plan.” Then, swipe across to the “Exercise Plan” tab. Now, enter the activity, duration, and frequency of your workouts.

After logging your food and exercise, check Daily Analysis at the end of the day, which tells you if you are on target to reach your goal by the date you had planned.

Healthy weight gain comes down to consistent higher-calorie meals and snacks; fueling up with healthy protein, carbs, and fats throughout the day; and strength training. It can take time for your metabolism to adjust to the higher-calorie load, so don't expect to see results immediately. If you are working hard to put on the pounds and haven't seen progress, make an appointment with your doctor to rule out any medical issues that may affect your ability to gain weight.

Related content

How to plan your calories for weight loss or gain with MyNetDiary

Ways to optimize your nutrition as an older adult from expert dietitians

How to track food intake and exercise for long-term success

Still new to MyNetDiary? Learn more today by downloading the app for FREE.

Exercise->Fueling for Exercise Exercise->Weight resistance Weight Gain->Calories & Protein