Can't get enough healthy calories

ocrammarco

Hi everyone,

So i just started using the application to help me gain weight along with a much more active exercise regiment, from 0 to roughly 4 to 5 days a week.

So far i love seeing how much I'm under or over on calories a day but i am having trouble reaching my goal as well as keeping from overdoing salt, fat or sugars. So in order to not eat unhealthy i end up lower than i would want to gain weight with my exercise.

I guess what I'm looking for is a good snack mid day with a good amount of calories to make up for my loss from exercise. Any direction you all could point would be awesome.

Thanks,
Marco

greekyogurtandpuppies

Do you like nuts or nut butter and fruit? How about cheese and whole grain crackers? Avocado on whole wheat toast?

ndj1979

ditch the whole healthy vs non healthy food idea.

what matters is that you are hitting your calorie/micro/macro targets for the day. So yes, a good portion of your foods should come from nutrient dense sources like fish, chicken, vegetables, rice, etc; however, there is nothing wrong with balancing that out with ice cream, pizza, cookies, etc.

paris458

nuts, peanut butter, oatmeal, sweet potatoes. those have higher calories.

keithcw_the_first

I tried the "healthy" thing. If you're trying to actively put on weight it becomes very difficult to get all of your calories from healthy or clean or whole foods.

If you're 300 calories short at the end of the evening, you can try choking down another 6 ounces of chicken... or if you already hit your macros, just eat some ice cream. Or some nuts. Or ice cream with nuts on it.

It's just hard to do without throwing in some extra crappy food.

Edit: On top of that, picking the "healthy" option usually means picking the option that provides greater satiety, which makes it even harder to hit your calories.

Sarauk2sf

Do you have a medical reason for restricting salt, sugar or fats? If not, then don't try. Get a balanced diet - fruits, veggies, protein, fats from a variety of sources, and then add less nutrient dense/more calorie dense foods.

chivalryder

First, remove the sugar and sodium from your diary. These aren't as important as you think.

Next, walk to your fridge, pull out a tub of ice cream, grab a spoon, and enjoy.

jgnatca

Try whey isolate with milk and a banana, all whipped up, after your workout.

ocrammarco

Thanks everyone! This is makes me think a lot differently about my food choices. Hopefully it will be easier fill that gap at the end of the day.

deltayork

I loveee Kind bars! They're usually 180-200 calories (and clean). Several flavors to choose from, but Cherry Dark Chocolate and Dark Chocolate Peanut butter are my favorites.

I've also started using the 21 day fix program which is helping me make sure I eat the right mix of foods. I eat too many startchy carbs and not enough fruits and veggies. This helps me balance all of those.

cwolfman13

my guess is that you have a rather narrow perspective on what is "healthy"

PatrickH59

Despite being a marathon runner and maintaining a healthy diet, I somehow ended up with a 95% blockage in my main coronary artery. No heart attack, but I got a stent a month ago. So, I've been motivated to tune up my diet, and I've been trying to significantly reduce foods with added sugar, reduce fat intake to below 20%, reduce saturated fat to below 17 gm, and reduce cholesterol to below 200 mg. And, like you, I've been having trouble hitting my total calorie goals.

The more I read, the more I am thinking that, if you are not overweight, not diabetic, and you are getting all your nutrients, limiting added sugar doesn't accomplish anything, but I do see how it might help reduce calories because, coupled with limiting fat, it makes it physically harder to ingest a large amount of calories. That being said, I am still playing the eat healthy game.

I have found that skim milk is a good source of extra calories and protein. Almonds are considered "good fat" and are also a good source of calories (I roast from unsalted). I also eat fat free yogurt with fruit and a little OJ in smoothies. I also snack on dried figs.

Incredimatt

I am in the same boat as you! I've just been moaning about the same problem. I also want to avoid the junk food! Too much sugar can just make things worse! Just make sure your balance of foods is right, have you got any weight gain powders? I will let you know if I come across any good snacks!

jgnatca

Hiker's mix is also calorific and full of good stuff.

isulo_kura

What's an unhealthy calorie?

ocrammarco

cwolfman13 wrote: »

my guess is that you have a rather narrow perspective on what is "healthy"

You're right. I'll see how this next week goes and hopefully make progress.

s2mikey

Its not as easy as you'd think. eating lots of mostly good fats helps a lot since fat is so calorie dense. I have a hard time with this too though. As others have touched on, you need to just "eat" and partially forget the "clean" thing for a while. Clean eating is over-rated anyways - just avoid nasty processed crap and refined sugars and you'll be fine. Eat carbs, enjoy some forbidden foods once in a while. Gotta eat to add weight!!!