Anyone else trying to gain weight?

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bw64774
bw64774 Posts: 8 Member
in Motivation and Support
Just wondering if anyone else is trying to gain weight or just build muscle. Everyone could use a little extra motivation, plus some tips would be helpful.

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  • rlinson
    rlinson Posts: 62 Member
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    Most people on here are trying to loose, buy I have run across a few that were trying to gain. People fail to realize that those who are trying to gain weight have very similar problems to those that are trying to lose weight. Clothes don't fit right, dissatisfied with body appearance, perception of being unhealthy, etc.. Sorry I don't have any tips for you, but I hope you get some support on here!!
  • scarecrow41
    scarecrow41 Posts: 116
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    I "clean bulked" for about 6 months and now I'm trying to cut. The key is to try to gain slowly ( 1 pound per week-ish) and make sure you are getting enough protein.

    If you are going for muscle gain you need to target at least 1 gram of protein per pound (your weight). Some say 1 gram per lean mass, etc, but I did per total weight.

    Make sure you are getting complex carbs and healhty fats EACH meal along with your protein. I would recommend a whey protein (isolate) supplement to take post workouts to encourage healing and muscle growth. It also helps you hit your protein goal for the day.

    The most important step is obviously finding out your maintenance calories and then adding about 500 calories to that...and make sure you eat your excercise calories.

    Continue to do cardio as well as that will help the extra weight be muscle rather than fat.

    This is the basic explanation of a more complex process that I followed for about 6 months and I went from 6'2" 200 to 6'2" 225. I'm now working my way back down to 200ish and trying to make my loss mostly fat.

    I hope this helps and hopefully someone else will come on to give more advice/tips.
  • CasperO
    CasperO Posts: 2,913 Member
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    Good post Crow, well put.

    OP, you sound like what we call a "hard gainer". Ectomorphic body type, thin build, natural born runner/swimmer. You can gain muscle mass but it'll take a lot of work and a lot of dedication. Google "Hard Gainer" and start reading. Get ready to lift heavy. I mean really heavy,,, like "If you can do 5 reps, add weight".
  • mimi09
    mimi09 Posts: 1
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    Yep, I am. I have to admit I am not succeeding at the moment. I have a hard time getting over 900 calories. I eat mostly vegetables and chicken, because that's what I like. It does not provide me with enough calories. I also have a high metobolism. I only want to gain about 10 lbs but don't want the 10 lbs to be fat either.
  • scarecrow41
    scarecrow41 Posts: 116
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    Yep, I am. I have to admit I am not succeeding at the moment. I have a hard time getting over 900 calories. I eat mostly vegetables and chicken, because that's what I like. It does not provide me with enough calories. I also have a high metobolism. I only want to gain about 10 lbs but don't want the 10 lbs to be fat either.

    I know this is a big "no-no" from the present weight loss perspective but whole milk is your friend. If you like milk and find yourself short on calories drop the skim or two percent and go whole. There have been a lot of studies that show the benefits of the fat in whole milk and the many nutrients/benefits you miss out on by going skim.

    Another friend to the weight gainer is organic peanut butter. High in calories, good fats, and protein its an easy way to get nutrient dense clean calories.

    Fatty fish like wild salmon are also a great thing...sushi is calorie packed if you like that kind of thing. Brown rice, fruits, etc should all help you hit your calorie needs and still give you all of the nutrients and health benefits you need.

    Hope this helps.
  • bw64774
    bw64774 Posts: 8 Member
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    Yea I am definitely a hard gainer. Seems like I can eat pretty much anything but I never gain weight. Since I've been keeping track of calories on here and exercising more though I have had some success. Thanks for the tips. I have really increased my protein but it is pretty hard to reach the protein goal for the day. It is getting better though.

    Mimi- I'm still learning about everything but I think you definitely should get more then 900 calories. On here it says I need to eat around 2500 calories to gain a pound a week. I'll admit it is pretty hard sometimes to reach that goal. Chicken is also my favorite thing to eat and I like salads also. Do you like peanut butter? I've found that peanut butter helps alot because I can put it on fruit/vegetables or just make a peanut butter sandwich to add some calories. Also, a nutritionist recommended to me Boost High Protein Drinks. They add about 240 calories per bottle and 15 grams of protein, which I usually drink between meals. Hope that helps!
  • bw64774
    bw64774 Posts: 8 Member
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    One more thing i was giong to add is I have also recently started buying PureProtein bars. They only have 2 or 3 grams of sugar which is alot less then how much sugar is in Boost High Protein drinks. They also have 20 grams of protein and taste good, which is a big deal to me since I usually don't like protein bars.

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