How to gain weight? Anyone who is underweight has this question in his mind. Gaining weight could be difficult if you are underweight. Having a healthy and well-toned body is probably your dream. It can be a great challenge for someone who is underweight to add on a few pounds and that too in a healthy manner. By the end of this article, you will know 7 of the most effective and healthiest ways to gain weight fast and naturally.
If you take in more calories than your body burns, you will gain weight. Energy is stored as fat. Your body stores excess calories throughout your body as fat within fat cells. For those having a high metabolic rate, this stored energy is utilized quickly, and fat is burned at a high rate. Therefore, if your body has a high metabolic rate, you are unlikely to gain weight.
How do I Gain Weight then?
To answer this question, first of all, you need to ask yourself - Why do I need to Gain weight?
And if your answer is, "I am too skinny/weak," you need to have a clear concept of what being underweight is and what is the exact reason for your skinny body.
Being Underweight - Things You Should Know
You are underweight if your weight is too low as compared to the healthy ones of your age group and height.
A person could be underweight due to genetics, whereas in most cases, the cause is improper metabolism of nutrients, lack of food, any mental or physical illness, or by intake of medicine that affects your appetite.
The ratio of a person's weight to their height is used to evaluate the health of a person. This ratio is known as BMI or the Body Mass Index of the person. If your BMI is less than 18.5, it falls within the underweight range. People having low BMI may have poor physical stamina and weak immune system.
Low BMI leads to a weakening of the immune system.
Click here to know more about this condition.
Main Causes of Being Underweight -
Some of the main reasons for weight loss are:
- Genetics: Being underweight could be hereditary. If you have someone in your family facing the same problem as of yours, it could be related to genetics.
- Medication: Many medicines affect your appetite. If you have recently started a new medication, then you should probably check with your pharmacist.
- Improper eating: If you are not eating properly or maybe dieting without proper knowledge, then it could be a reason for your weight loss. Eat a lot of healthy food, and it will show visible results in gaining weight.
- Diabetes: Having diabetes can lead to severe weight loss.
- Excessive exercise: Overdoing your exercise sessions and your diet can't keep up with the increased demands of your body.
- Stressful mind: If you are stressed due to some reason, you may stop eating due to a lack of appetite.
- Enzyme deficiencies: Deficiency in digestive enzymes may lead to improper digestion of food, thus leading to weight loss.
If you seriously want to gain weight, it becomes very important to do it the right way. You should always keep in mind that weight gain is related directly to the number of calories you take in. Try to consume as many calories as you can, so that it exceeds the number of calories your body expends.
Let's get straight to the point...
The seven effective tips to gain weight fast and naturally -
1. Eating Healthy to Gain weight
There is a misconception that eating a lot will make you gain weight fast if you are underweight. This may work in very few cases, but in most cases, people get fed up eating more than their limit for a long time without getting the desired results. If you are not able to gain weight even after eating too much, the problem is in your metabolic system and not in the quantity of food you eat.
You should keep track of your calorie intake and how much your body burns. The simple fact is to eat more calories than your body burns. Now by knowing this fact, you can't just simply jump out and eat whatever you see. You should eat nutrient-rich food that will help you in adding calories rather than eating unhealthy food, unnecessarily filling up space in your stomach, leaving you full. In such a case, you will only satisfy your hunger and fill up your stomach with junk, leaving no space for healthy, nutrient-rich food that could have satisfied your body's calorie requirement in the right way. As simple as that!
Here is a list of nutrient-rich foods that will help you to gain weight healthily-
- Milk - Milk is an excellent source of fats, carbohydrates, and proteins. Squeeze in a cup of Whole Milk in your diet anywhere in the day. Try different types of milkshakes such as - Strawberry Chia seed Protein shake, Blueberry Maple Protein Milkshake, or a simple Banana Milkshake. Include them in your breakfast to get faster results in gaining weight. You can also go for smoothies and shakes mixing protein powder or peanut butter in it.
- Potatoes - Potatoes are rich in starch. Starches help other foods to boost muscle growth and weight gain. You can just boil a couple of potatoes in water and peel them off and enjoy by adding a pinch of salt to it.
- Legumes - Legumes include lentils, peas, chickpeas, beans, soybeans, and peanuts. Legumes are particularly rich in healthy fibers, including soluble fibers and resistant starch.
- Nuts - Almonds, Peanuts, Pistachios, Walnuts, Cashews, Hazelnuts are common examples of nuts. Nuts are considered a good source of fat, fiber, and protein.
- Dried fruit - Dried fruits are highly nutritious. They have almost all of the water removed from it by drying. So if you are taking one small piece of dried fruit, you are having about the same amount of nutrients as the fresh fruit but without water. This helps in providing you with sufficient nutrients without making you full, thus leaving space for other meals.
- Rice - Rice is a good source of carbohydrates which help in increasing your body mass and thus resulting in weight gain.
- Avocado - Avocado has a very high nutritional value. They are rich in healthy fat and calories.
- Red meat - Consumption of Red meat results in building muscles and gaining weight. It is the meat of mammals, which is red when raw.
- Fish - Fish is low in fat but high in quality protein. Fish have great nutritional value and are a great source of omega-3.
- Whole-grain Bread - The whole-grain bread is a great source of complex carbohydrates that promote weight gain.
- High-fat Dairy - Full fat yogurt, whole milk, cream, cheese are some of the high-fat dairy products.
- Eggs - Eggs are having great nutritional value are a good source of protein, healthy fat, and other vital nutrients. Eat 2 to 3 boiled eggs daily after working out to gain weight and add muscle mass to your body.
2. Strength Training for Weight Gain
Strength training is very important to gain weight. It involves those exercises which are designed to improve your strength. Sports like running or biking burn a lot of calories without stimulating muscle growth. Thus they are not part of strength training and will ruin your process of gaining weight.
Strength training can provide significant functional benefits such as an increase in the health of bones, muscles, and results in increased bone density, metabolism, thus improving the overall health of a being, resulting in weight gain. Working out regularly in the GYM will not only increase your physical health but will also give you an attractive look.
Consume foods rich in protein and carbs right after working out to help your muscles repair and replenishing the energy your body has lost during it.
Some of the best exercises for muscle growth are -
- Push-ups
- Pull-ups
- Bench press
- Deadlift
- Squats
Various sports that include strength training are -
- Bodybuilding
- Weightlifting
- Strongman
- Powerlifting
- Tennis
- Hockey
3. Try Small Frequent Meals
Instead of taking your meals three times a day, consider breaking it into smaller parts. You can take your daily calorie requirement in 6 regular meals. By doing so, you will not let yourself feel hungry throughout the day and keep yourself full. It is important to eat right on time to keep your body loaded with the required nutrients. Having six meals instead of 3 in a day will do just the work for you and help you gain weight effectively.
You can always use some healthy snacks in between meals.
Some of the healthy snacks are -
- Nuts
- Dried Fruits
- Dark Chocolate
- Avocado
- Smoothies
- Yogurt
Six nutritious meals a day works much better than three heavy ones.
4. Track Your Calories Intake
You should have a regular check on your calorie intake by tracking it. Note down everything you eat or drink. You could use a food tracking app to calculate the number of calories in each meal you take in and keep track of it. This will help you to have a check on your eating habits.
Many food tracking apps will show you the right amount of calories your body needs daily according to your BMI. Satisfying your body's calorie requirement is your top priority right now, and a simple app on your mobile phone can help you do that job for you.
Tracking each meal will remind you to eat your food if you often forget whether you have taken or skipped any meal of the day. Remember, you do not want to skip any; every meal is important if you seriously want to Gain weight.
5. Keep the Junk Away
It is highly recommended to keep the Junk Food out of your diet. Because it's all about gaining weight healthily and safely. Skinny body lends you the freedom to eat, but this freedom does not include eating anything junk you come across throughout the day. The junk will fill up your stomach, and there would be no space left for nutritious food that could have done much better for your body.
Now you would be thinking that eating junk daily will help you gain weight quickly. But let me tell you, the weight you gain by eating fast food will be the unhealthy one. You will notice your body gaining pounds along with acne in your face, cavities in your teeth, high blood pressure, and much more. Moreover, fast food is addictive. Whenever you stop eating junk, you will have strong cravings for it. Once you enjoy it, there's no turning back. So feed yourself with something nutritious rather than with something JUNK!
More junk in, less space left for Nutritious food.
6. Get a Good Quality Sleep
As sleeping properly is very important for muscle growth, there is a big need for it to gain weight. The amount of sleep you get will affect your ability to exercise and thus affect your metabolism. You need to allow your body to function properly by giving it proper rest. After working out on your muscles, give them some rest so that they can heal properly and grow in size.
Sleeping improperly will also stress your mind. A depressed person will unintentionally lose his interest in food, which will result in a rapid loss of pounds from his body.
Thus having a quality sleep will result in making yourself healthy and active both mentally and physically.
Your body needs 7 to 8 hours of sleep to function at its best.
- Your Body Needs Time
This is probably the most important factor when it comes to adding a few pounds to your body. You need to give your body some time to respond and act to the new routine that you have adapted. You should not expect drastic changes overnight. Whatever be the reason for your skinny body, it will take time to gain weight. Keep tracking your progress regularly, and it will keep you motivated.
Give it some time; it will give you some.
Gaining Weight - in a Nutshell
It could be difficult to gain weight if you are underweight.
Eat healthy food in 6 different meals throughout the day. Never skip a meal, or let yourself feel hungry during the day; squeeze in some healthy snacks to regulate your calorie intake.
Strength training is the key. Stay away from Running or Cycling; it will worsen your condition.
Nothing big can be achieved overnight, but if you truly want to gain weight then you should follow the seven tips given in this article strictly for at least a month to see visible results, and that will keep you motivated for the rest of the period.
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