Pescatarian Weight Gain Tips

cateuk

Hi, due to increasing migraines I tried veganaury earlier this year and it dramatically reduced the frequency. I have reintroduced fish and eggs but still avoiding meat and dairy products (unless cooked in e.g. Biscuits, bread etc.)

I have always struggled to gain weight and am finding it increasingly hard to keep up the protein needed. I'm 5ft 6 and 8 stone, ideally I'd like to be 9.5 stone. According to the app I need to eat 2,020 calories. I never hit the protein target so I'm not exercising at present.

I usually have oatmeal with soya milk for breakfast. A rice based lunch or hummus wraps. Then a fish/vegetable based dinner like stir fry, curry etc. I eat large portions, so I thought. I snack a lot on grapes, peanuts, raisins and crisps. I only drink herbal tea, water and fruit juice. Caffeine gives me migraines as does cheese and chocolate.

Any tips on sneaking things like nut butter into food (don't like the taste), high protein foods please? I'm limited due to the migraines but looking for hacks on what I do eat to maximise protein and carbs.

The only thing I can't stand is protein shakes which I know would really help - any tips on using protein powder other than drinking it? I just started adding it to my porridge.

Thanks everyone!

TavistockToad

peanut butter or other nut butters, if you don't like it - cashew/almond etc

TavistockToad

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10326769/are-you-a-hard-gainer-please-read/p1

livingleanlivingclean

You could change your breakfast, or make your oatmeal more protein based by adding a protein powder (plant based if you don't want dairy). Eggs for breakfast is easy, there are so many ways to prepare them too. (I blend egg whites, protein powder and oats to make pancakes - yum!)

Swap out your rice for a higher protein alternative - quinoa, or beans/legumes. Add a plant based protein - tofu, seitan, tempeh etc.

Snack on something with more protein - you could make protein/energy balls with protein powder, or eat eggs. Non-dairy yoghurt with protein powder, nut butter and fruit is pretty tasty.

Vegies with nut butter is pretty delicious (like satay)...

tcunbeliever

cheesecake...any standard recipe with the soy cream cheese subbed out for the regular should be pretty good..the traditional recipes have lots of eggs...or you can look for a vegan specific recipe, this is one I have tried and loved (even the non-vegan folks loved it):
https://vegkitchen.com/uncategorized/caramel-macchiato-cheese-cake/

nuts, if you don't like nut butters, how about eating just nuts or adding them to food (almond slivers and rice go together nicely)

h1udd

Eat more fish ..... seriously, its an awesome source of protein .. Salmon, skin crisped up, high in fats and protein ... tuna .. nuff said ... what about roe it has a massive 29g of protein in 100g ..

mom23mangos

Since you are Pescatarian, add more seafood to every meal. Scrambled eggs with crawfish, shrimp stir-fry over rice for lunch, fish with veggies and quinoa for dinner, etc.

cateuk

Thanks for all the tips so far, lots to try already.
I’ll give some other nut butters a go.

megbeveridge93

livingleanlivingclean wrote: »

You could change your breakfast, or make your oatmeal more protein based by adding a protein powder (plant based if you don't want dairy). Eggs for breakfast is easy, there are so many ways to prepare them too. (I blend egg whites, protein powder and oats to make pancakes - yum!)

Swap out your rice for a higher protein alternative - quinoa, or beans/legumes. Add a plant based protein - tofu, seitan, tempeh etc.

Snack on something with more protein - you could make protein/energy balls with protein powder, or eat eggs. Non-dairy yoghurt with protein powder, nut butter and fruit is pretty tasty.

Vegies with nut butter is pretty delicious (like satay)...

Besides protein and energy balls, there are a lot of recipes out there now for "fat balls" which lots of Keto people use!

Cbean08

You should be logging how much you're actually eating. If you don't know how many calories you are currently consuming, then how can you know how much more to add? If you want to stick with your current eating arrangements, you could look into these variations -

breakfast- oatmeal with soy milk, 1 banana, 1 scoop of protein powder, 2 tbsp peanuts, 2 tbsp raisins
snack- a protein bar, glass of fruit juice
lunch- cook your rice in 1 tbsp butter, add hummus and avocado to your wrap, include a protein - eggs, tuna, tofu, tempeh, seitan, drink a cup of soya milk with lunch
snack- baked beans on toast
dinner- cook with oil, include a serving of carbohydrates, drink a cup of juice
snack- crisps and tea with soy milk

fivelongmiles

I add lentils to anything they go with. Even a small amount mixed in with rice helps, and it all adds up.