# Weight Gain Nutrition



## drblauston (Aug 27, 2011)

hey everyone, as strange as this might sound one of my new years resolutions is to gain about 20 pounds of weight.. Currently 6'2" and 157lbs - used to swim a lot and I also blame a fast metabolism.. anyways, what are some good wholesome foods you all eat and that also could help with weight gain?

I enjoy and consume a lot of whole milk, nuts, avocado and peanut butter.. I know these are an excellent foundation but they get a little boring after a while..

Any diet input or suggestions would be appreciated! Cheers


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## johnlh (Aug 16, 2008)

You are probably better off visiting bodybuilding message boards for this type of advice. Lean mass requires an appropriate lifting program and nutrition plan. Why on earth would you want to gain weight? A BMI of 20.16 isn't too scrawny.


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## Bill in Houston (Nov 26, 2011)

i second the recommendation to check out a bodybuilding board. basically you are going to have to eat an absolutely disgusting amount of food. and do less aerobic exercise, if any. i've been trying to gain 20 lbs for 30 years. finally reached my goal weight last year.


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## jrastories (Aug 2, 2008)

I am 5'11" and I usually race at about 145lbs, this winter I have started working on a drilling rig so I wanted to gain weight and muscle. So I have increased the number of times I eat a day and started to go to the gym on days off. Same things apply to post workout nutrition, lots of protien and carbs to reload and repair muscle. Since October I have gained about 12 or 13 lbs 

Sent from my HTC Incredible S using Tapatalk


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## drblauston (Aug 27, 2011)

I know, I guess I'm pretty fortunate to be in the shape I am in I just wouldn't mind a little more mass.. sounds like everyones individual results may vary but I suppose I'll start by constantly eating and eating and eating - being sure to still watch what I eat and getting in a good post workout recovery. 

thanks for the replies everyone! If anyone can point me to any good forum or other resources I'd appreciate that as well.. happy riding


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## eddie80 (Apr 28, 2006)

I was also a hard gainer w/ a fast metabolism for much of my life. I'm 30 now but have been weightlifting since high school. 
You may try adding a protein shake or weight gainer shake to your diet for extra calories and up your carb intake.
While many on this forum may disagree with the effectiveness of creatine i beleive it is an excellent supplement if you intend to do significant strength training. It will help you build lean muscle,power, and is extremely low cost. As others have stated check out the articles on bodybuilding as well.:thumbsup:


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## Uncle Jemima (Apr 20, 2009)

Muscle Mass is the only type of weight you will want to add, strictly bulking up your total-mass is harmful and not helpful to being active. I've been weight-training with cycling for twenty years now, and my physical this year had me 11.7% Body Fat, 7% Visceral, an _overweight_ BMI of 25.7, but with 42.7% Skeletal Muscle. I weigh 191 lbs & stand @ 6ft. BMI is the most misleading standard for Fitness though, and can give a false hope of being satisfied with your habits.

I don't have a secondary Protein intake (powder-mixes, bars, drinks). I do a circuit in the AM, and one in the PM, then every other Weekend I may hit a Gym for more range and diversity. I eat a balanced diet and don't give in to impulse eating. Working-out in the House is for economical-purposes, financial-based but also to hit your muscle-groups from all available angles. Having your stabilizer-muscles increase along with your main muscles makes you look bigger but also allows you a more passive attack, with a more powerful result. For example, if you do cable tricep extenders strictly from top to bottom, you will be working 60% of the group; if you curl your hands inward at ingress, rotate them outward toward bottom of egress, your stabilizers will be getting involved in the process.
Leg press is the same, but with a variance of fixed-foot placements during each circuit.

Understanding Role of Stabilizer Muscles

This is the only way to 'bulk-up' safely. It's not as if you are a Defensive lineman (or are you?) for the local sports team... you have to counter your own mass to be in peak shape for riding! Pace your self and in a few Years of dedicated training, you will feel like a fat-burning machine. That's the other secret, your body has to actually learn how it is keeping itself together, and if it is doing it organically through it's own digestive-process, you will have the greatest results. Sensible portions, and maintaining your water-intake. Choose fats over sugars in identical food choices, avoid unhealthy fats though, and cook with natural oil.


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## ultraspontane (May 26, 2011)

I've had good success with bananas, avocados, dates, and nuts. Also eat a spinach salad every day. Spinach has very beneficial Anabolic effects, according to several studies.


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## David C (May 25, 2011)

I'm 5'6" and 110. But sometimes it go down to 105 when I find myself not eating too much. But for me, even eating a lot (even more then my dad who's bigger/taller), it don't make much difference... I've been hovering from 100 to 105 last year till I started to do martial arts (nin-jutsu) which got me into more intense physical training then simply "ride" my bike. Then in a matter of weeks (I was doing 2.5 hours each Sunday), I gained 5 pounds of muscles and I stopped last may because I was going back riding. So now I'm at 110 since a few months. I guess I'll go back kickin' ass and boost up my body weight. Eating more don't even give me a noticeable weight gain over a week. Your body weight can change a lot each day. From 3 to 5 pounds depending on your energy use, food quantity and if you drop a big deuce just before going on the scale. I'm gonna go lift some weights instead of eating. Gonna be more effective.


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## drblauston (Aug 27, 2011)

As goofy as some of his YouTube videos are I found Scooby1961 to be a great resource for personal fitness and other information - he looks pretty good for 50. Anyays for those who are interested I've been researching and hanging around at his forum at 
Scooby's Workshop | Home Fitness & Bodybuilding Workouts

Appreciate the continued input guys - giving me a lot to research and try out. Obviously any changes aren't going to be long term so hopefully I can get into a good habit of tracking workouts, meals, weight, heartrate, etc.. I'm in industrial engineering so data analysis is kinda my thing. Hopefully in a few months I can post back having reached the halfway point of my goal :thumbsup:

That being said does anyone have a long term experience with the Livestrong website? Or do some heartrate monitors come with software? This very well might be a topic for another thread but I'm curious as to how modern technology has changed how to track things.. I used to just write it all on graph paper back when I swam more competitively  wasn't very organized though.. Anyways, I'll search the forum for input on that - was just curious before I start spending the time creating an Excel spreadsheet..

again I appreciate the continued discussion! take it easy


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## Bill in Houston (Nov 26, 2011)

garmin 405 plots HR, speed, elevation, etc on a chart. really cool. there may be bike-specific stuff that i am not aware of that does the same.


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## michael1 (Nov 17, 2011)

You mentioned peanut butter, but there is a better and healthier option for nuts and oil. Eat lots of walnuts, which have 2-3 times as many calories per weight as most foods, lots of fat, and they are very healthy. If you can, drink some olive oil. A cup of olive oil has about 2000 calories and it is super healthy.


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## Crockpot2001 (Nov 2, 2004)

One thing that's not been mentioned is keeping a food diary or knowing approximately how many kcals you actually take in. I've worked with a few folks that swore they had fast metabolism (or slow ones) only to find they did not have a good picture of just how much they were eating. Even just a few hundred kcals per day below or above your needs adds up. I'll also add that a history of good fitness and a high metabolism does not last long for many folks. Metabolism is different for most folks largely determined by muscle mass and activity. Your diary will help you develop a better understanding of your needs and your intake. 

Most importantly is knowing how much you need. The Mifflin-St. Jeor formula is a fairly good but technical method of calculating your basal needs along with your activity factor. However, one can also simply multiply their weight in kg (lbs/2.2) by 20kcal for weight loss, 25kcal for maintainance, and 30kcal to lose weight. You can also choose your desired weight and then multiply by 25kcal. This second you will need to experiment with to best apply it to your desired change. 

Food timing and how that falls in your day might also impact your intake. Note WHEN you eat or drink to identify potential roadblocks to sufficient intake. Water and other low energy bulk before eating may expedite satiety. Are you taking any meds that might act as appetite suppressants / anorexics? Do you eat enough after you ride? Snacking too much and losing interest in the bigger meal? Is your breakfast began with a high fat food? I ask because this may impact hormones that signal satiety. Grains and fruit are slower at creating that signal. 

All that said, do you really need to bulk up? Is the extra mass going to make you fitter, faster, or feel better? You've obviously though about, hence you asked but I just felt like I needed to throw that out there. Cycling is a sport unkind to 20# extra.


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## hitechredneck (May 9, 2009)

Here you go bro. This is the 1st part of 4. I to was on the goal of gaining weight 6' 1" and 158-160 depending on how much water i was hauling around. Well I read up on a bunch of stuff as a hard gainer you need to follow a pretty hardcore diet, hit the steal (look up HST type lifting) and sleep sleep sleep! I'm now now up to 184-187 and look and feel much better. Hope some of what you can find here will help. Good luck 
Bodybuilding.com - Hardgainer Muscle Building, Part 1: Nutrition!


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## pitbull30 (Jun 29, 2008)

hitechredneck said:


> Here you go bro. This is the 1st part of 4. I to was on the goal of gaining weight 6' 1" and 158-160 depending on how much water i was hauling around. Well I read up on a bunch of stuff as a hard gainer you need to follow a pretty hardcore diet, hit the steal (look up HST type lifting) and sleep sleep sleep! I'm now now up to 184-187 and look and feel much better. Hope some of what you can find here will help. Good luck
> Bodybuilding.com - Hardgainer Muscle Building, Part 1: Nutrition!


I second this site. :thumbsup:Buy your supplements from them too. GNC is overpriced.

My personal favorite is the Optimum nutrition brand protein or the Gaspari Vanilla or chocolate protein powder. They ship fast also. I get my stuff in about 3-4 days max. Im in CA and they ship from Idaho (or somewhere up there...)

you might want to try creatine also. It worked for me and a few friends.

Dont forget to visit the forums there too. Lots of info.


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## MysticKJ (Jul 4, 2011)

michael1 said:


> You mentioned peanut butter, but there is a better and healthier option for nuts and oil. Eat lots of walnuts, which have 2-3 times as many calories per weight as most foods, lots of fat, and they are very healthy. If you can, drink some olive oil. A cup of olive oil has about 2000 calories and it is super healthy.


drink olive oil? or put a generous amount on salads, sandwiches, shakes, etc...?


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## TunicaTrails (Jun 29, 2009)

Have you ever considered XC racing? You have the perfect height and build for it.


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## Omarson09 (Jul 30, 2012)

There is a school of thought that says that if you ingest too many carbohydrates that your pancreas will produce more insulin, which will cause increased weight gain from fluid...the converse of this would be the first few days of a diet, where you cut back on your carbs and lose "water weight". The electrolytes may also be a factor in this, so you might want to wait and see whether your weight declines over the next few days.

I have had this happen after marathons and very long runs.


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## theMeat (Jan 5, 2010)

A few things come to mind. 
The more you eat and the less you move the more you'll gain. If you wanna gain muscle then limit you movement to heavy lifting. If you wanna gain only lean muscle mass, that's a little more tricky, but eating smaller more often, lower fat meals, and timing of cardio, work outs, and diet is were I'd focus.
Stimulating your central nervous system enough with your exercise will make your muscles grow best. Nothing is better than squats and deadlifts, followed by bench press or dips and pull-ups. 
Look into 20 rep squat routine, and the old "Squats and Milk", or variations of it. They are good routine to cycle into your training.
Lee Hayward is a pretty good example of a hard gainer that has excelled in BB. He's got a website with plenty of good offerings, but there's also some great info for free if you poke around. His "12 Week Program" is somewhat of a standard example of a great split routine, and you can print out a tracking form from his website to follow and keep track of progress.
IMO diet is at least 60%, probably more of the equation, whatever your goals..


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## Eazy_E (Sep 30, 2011)

Read Starting Strength by Rippetoe.

GOMAD.

Win.


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## Lemiwinks (May 24, 2012)

Cottage Cheese. One of the best foods to eat before bed to pack on mass.


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## Scotty Slc (Aug 4, 2011)

20 lbs of "lean" muscle is a lot to add in a year.... When I was lifting 5 days a week on a 3800 cal diet I was able to put on 12lbs... I am 6' 180lbs.


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## chas_martel (May 14, 2006)

As posted above there are much better places to ask this question. Try t-nation.com it is a great source of info for this type of question. You will find great nutritional advice there that has an entirely different focus than a place like mtbr.com.

And yes, your gonna have to eat more. And one thing you might want to consider
is to bump up your intake of things like meat and eggs. Nuts and avocados, while
great foods, are not gonna cut it.

And as posted above, your gonna have to eat more.


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## theMeat (Jan 5, 2010)

chas_martel said:


> And as posted above, your gonna have to eat more.


Yup, but more often, not necessarily bigger meals if you want to gain only muscle mass. It's easier to gain by just eating more, the tricky part is when you want to lose or not gain any fat, while gaining muscle. That's why many people do a few months bulk up, then a few months cut down to keep it simple. Both can be done together, just takes more planning, and you probably won't see progress as fast for the same end results, but of coarse YMMV because of genes, condition, and training.


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## TonyB. (Jul 27, 2009)

I've been in the same boat all of my life and have learned to deal with it. I'm 6' 125-130lbs. Eat what I consider to be a "normal" diet and excercise regularly and am pretty fit. Doctors are constantly worried about my low BMI and send me to specialists and therapists before they finally realize that this is just the way I am. I have been on multiple high kCal diets, high protein, high carb, have had personal trainers, etc. Nothing works. Take it from someone who's been in your shoes- just be healthy.


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## sup3rman27 (Jun 22, 2009)

drblauston said:


> hey everyone, as strange as this might sound one of my new years resolutions is to gain about 20 pounds of weight.. Currently 6'2" and 157lbs - used to swim a lot and I also blame a fast metabolism.. anyways, what are some good wholesome foods you all eat and that also could help with weight gain?
> 
> I enjoy and consume a lot of whole milk, nuts, avocado and peanut butter.. I know these are an excellent foundation but they get a little boring after a while..
> 
> Any diet input or suggestions would be appreciated! Cheers


Any progress since beginning of this thread? Anyways, like many people that responded, I was once in your shoes. For the longest time I was stuck at 150 lbs while standing 5'11" tall and nothing appeared to tip the scale the way i wanted to. I'm now 185. People are right when they tell you you're at a healthy weight, but everyone has their own reasons for wanting to gain weight. I'll tell you now, the 35 lbs I gained boosted my confidence and overall I'm a happier person. I'll tell you now, the 35 lbs I gained boosted my confidence and overall I'm a happier person. There's 2 things you need to gain weight, along with any other goals you might have.

1. Dedication - you can say you want to gain weight but you have to take the steps to make it happen. Gaining weight was my new years resolution for the longest time but I never truly did anything about it. This year was the first year it was not on my new year's resolution since I was 17. I'm 24 now. Going to GNC and telling them you want to gain weight and them selling you some powder is NOT the solution. I've done this countless time.
2. Consistency - Stick with your routine, stick with your routine, and STICK TO YOUR ROUTINE! Progress will follow.

Start lifting weights:
Join a gym and start lifting. Light at first and gradually add 5 lbs a week or every other. Do not do random stuff like some people do. I see a lot of people in the gym wandering around from machine to machine not really knowing what they're doing. I highly recommend this routine (The World of Working Out: Maximum Mass Workout) and for deadlifts I recommend 3 sets of 5 reps instead of the straight 20. Keep high intensity activities to a minimum.

Diet:
In order to grow positively in size, you gotta tear some muscle fibers(by lifting heavy) and EAT! Eat whatever the hell you want as long as your calorie intake is 2500+ and take 1g of protein per lb that you weight. For example, if you're 160 lbs you should take 160g of protein a day. Protein intake can be with foods and or/powder. Multivitamins and fish oils should be taken daily.

Stick with that and I promise you'll see results. I have gained fat while doing this, but they weren't noticeable. People will notice your increase in muscle mass before your fat. Once desired body weight is achieved, go back to a regular healthy diet and continue lifting the same weights, and go back to high intensity activities (sprinting, cycling, basketball, soccer, etc.) to bring that body fat percentage down.

With dedication and consistency, I gained a average of 10 lbs a month.

Hope this helps anyone with looking to gain weight.


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## Crishmartin (Oct 17, 2012)

The basis of any weight gain diet should contain nutritious, high calorie food items like:


*Carbohydrates*: whole meal bread, potatoes, brown rice, pasta, couscous, fresh and tinned fruit and dried fruit. 
*Fat*: fish, flax, sunflower, safflower and cod liver oil and some raw nuts.


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## ryantrek (Jul 30, 2013)

From someone who had a brief visit into the world of body building.... 

You are going to have to eat a stupid number of calories (for me, I kept my caloric intake at a varied rate from day to day. Usually I was in the 4000 to 5000 range) Of those calories, you then have to learn more about the macros that make those calories. Protein, carbs, fat.... those are the most important ones to think about. Protein numbers should be around 1 to 1.5 grams per pound of weight daily. Fat is very important. I'm not talking 2 big macs fat, I'm talking your fish oils, borax oils, non saturated fats. Pure right off the animal kind of fats. eat lots of chicken, salmon, and leaner beef. I hope you don't like beer... because you'll have to drop that. I learned everything I needed to know from reading bodybuilding.com daily, and getting a lot of info. Don't listen to the people who only tell you that you're going to have to eat a ton. If they can't tell you what that "ton" is going to consist of, you're listening to the wrong guy. You are more than welcome to eat 6 large works pizza pies a day, you'll gain weight, I promise!! It's not the weight you want though. Through a clean bulk last winter, I went from 268 lbs with a body fat percentage that would make shamu the whale proud, to 254 lbs, and closer to 20% body fat. I loved it, and it was fun, but I will warn you, you will want to be very careful.... let me make more emphasis on that YOU WILL WANT TO BE VERY CAREFUL. I tore a ligament in my wrist, and my elbow, blew out a knee, hurt my back a number of times.... Once your nutrition is correct, and you're making big strides towards your end goal, the weights you are playing with begin to go up.... and up... and then one day, you're sitting on a small L bench, doing Arnold presses with 95 lb dumbells in each hand, you go to set them down on your knees between sets, and actually hear the tendon pop in your wrist when you make the twist. Then the next thing you know, you're laid up, and can't do it anymore. 

I enjoy mountain biking MUCH more than power lifting anyway.


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## theMeat (Jan 5, 2010)

Randolph456 said:


> Use pure protein foods to gain your muscular weight.
> Consume more milk, cheese, peanut butter, meat, nuts, beans, banana, sweet potato, roots beats and rice etc. to gain the weight and muscles.


For flat out bulking you could/should go 60% carbs, 20% protein, 20% fat. For gaining lean mass you could go as hard core as around 35 c, 50p, 15 fat. Magic ratios abound and can be very personal. It can be a real learning curve pita converting food to ratio, and to make it more confusing some say c,f,p instead of c,p,f. Plus this doesn't address what type of proteins, fats, and especially carbs. if you want to simply loose or gain weight diet alone is your biggest tool, but to gain fitness or muscle it's only part of the picture, albeit still the biggest, exercise must take place.


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## provin1327 (Mar 31, 2013)

Optimum Nutrition Serious Mass. Will put on weight and at your height it wont be pure fat


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## CharlesJoss (Apr 4, 2015)

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