Bulking with a small stomach? (keep getting sick)

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Nealius
Nealius Posts: 10 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi all, I'm not sure if this is the right section to post in, I haven't seen many topics about bulking here.

I have been trying to gain 1 pound per week using MyFitnessPal (I've slacked a bit on tracking things because I just can't find what I eat listed). It says I need 2410 calories per day, which is probably breakfast for some people out there. The problem is that my stomach is physically smaller than what an average person's should be and I just can't fit that much food in there, even if I try to space meals out 2-3 hours. I usually only get to 1800-2000 calories, and anything beyond that makes me sick to my stomach.

I heard things like peanut butter and oatmeal are good for bulking, but those tear me up too, especially oatmeal. A couple of nights ago I had a cup of oatmeal for a midnight snack (I was actually starving at the time). I ended up camping out in the bathroom until 4am because the oatmeal bloated me so much I felt like I was going to puke. I have a "mass gainer" shake but I have been afraid to try it because of my nausea and all the chemicals listed in the ingredients.

Is there any way to ease into bulking? I'm seriously thinking about giving up if I can't find away to meet my calorie needs without throwing up. I'm sick of the constant nausea.

Replies

  • gmallan
    gmallan Posts: 2,099 Member
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    Are you sure you aren't intolerant to something in the food.

    The best way to add calories without bulk is the healthy fats. Oils (olive, coconut etc.), avocado, nuts, seeds, dark chocolate
  • Nealius
    Nealius Posts: 10 Member
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    I'm not really sure. With the oats I was starting to wonder if I had some kind of gluten intolerance but I honestly don't know if oats even have gluten, and other foods that do have gluten, like breads, don't bother me much though they are a bit filling.

    I figured the oatmeal case was just the oats mixing with my stomach acid/water/whatever else and swelling to the point that my stomach was about to burst.
  • astronomicals
    astronomicals Posts: 1,537 Member
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    self advocate....... and eat foods that are higher in calories... things covered in bacon.... lots of cheese.... and what makes u think u have a small stomach?
  • Nealius
    Nealius Posts: 10 Member
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    and what makes u think u have a small stomach?

    Had my gall-bladder taken out in 2011. Surgeon remarked that my stomach was "smaller than normal." Or maybe it was a different doctor who told me...I've been in and out of the hospital most of my life for IBD issues and can't remember who told me what or when.
  • ncmedic201
    ncmedic201 Posts: 540 Member
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    Sounds more like a food intolerance than the size of your stomach. Have you talked to your doctor about it?
  • Nealius
    Nealius Posts: 10 Member
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    I haven't specifically mentioned a food intolerance because I don't really see a pattern. The last time I had nausea after eating it lasted for a week and he just told me it was probably a mild stomach bug. It just happened to be the second week I started bulking for the first time though and happened after everything I ate.
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    hit your protein target
    try and get as many carbs as possible.
    include fats in every meal.

    When full, add fats. (like the ones listed above)

    Carbs are best for bulking (once P target is sorted) but fats are still calories and you need a surplus somehow.
  • astrovivi
    astrovivi Posts: 183 Member
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    I never really saw a pattern but had similar issues to you.

    Finally got tested and found I had fructose malabsorption (including fructans and sugar polyols).

    Got my diet in order and it cleared right up and I eventually doubled my daily intake of food.

    Some food intolerances can make it hard to self diagnose.

    Get yourself checked out, especially given your medical history.
  • astrovivi
    astrovivi Posts: 183 Member
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    hit your protein target
    try and get as many carbs as possible.
    include fats in every meal.

    When full, add fats. (like the ones listed above)

    Carbs are best for bulking (once P target is sorted) but fats are still calories and you need a surplus somehow.

    good advice but will work only after sorting out what is causing all the digestive issues.
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
    Options
    hit your protein target
    try and get as many carbs as possible.
    include fats in every meal.

    When full, add fats. (like the ones listed above)

    Carbs are best for bulking (once P target is sorted) but fats are still calories and you need a surplus somehow.

    good advice but will work only after sorting out what is causing all the digestive issues.

    Yep. The bit about being intolerant to everything seems a bit off.

    Experiment with seeing what makes you feel good/bad. See a doctor and get blood tests.
  • Nealius
    Nealius Posts: 10 Member
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    Ok thanks guys, I'll check with my doctor, but I don't think I have fructose malabsorption. From looking at list of "problematic foods" the majority of them don't bother me unless I eat too much of it. But I feel sick when I eat too much of anything hence why I go back to my stomach being small per the doctor's comments.

    I also have a general question about bulking. If I understand correctly, the idea is to gain mass so you can turn that mass into muscle, right? But what if all that mass goes straight to my stomach and nowhere else? If the mass doesn't go to my arms and legs then how are my arms and legs going to increase in size?
  • Nealius
    Nealius Posts: 10 Member
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    Apologies for necro'ing my own thread, but here's and update. It also looks like this belongs in the gaining section of the forums, which wasn't in existence when I first posted this:

    I was still trying to bulk, I think from March '13 to August '13. I gained about 9lbs (8.5lbs of which went straight to my belly). I still struggled with food intake--for example, two cups of oatmeal bloated me so badly I felt like I was going to die. And then at the end of August/beginning of September the acid-spitting dragon in my stomach decided it had had enough of my food intake and I got hit with GERD so bad I could barely eat 1000 calories a day. I took medication up until January of this year and went off the meds, everything seemingly normal. So now I am trying to restart my bulk.


    I was tested for every food allergy in existence and they all came back negative. So I dunno why my body just doesn't want to cooperate....
  • lemon629
    lemon629 Posts: 501 Member
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    Gaining one pound a week sounds like a lot to me, and clearly your body doesn't like it. How about aiming for a half a pound a week? Or even a quarter pound?

    Also, as others have pointed out, adding oils is a very easy way to increase your calories without adding more bulk. Maybe a few teaspoons of extra olive oil a day, by itself or on a salad or in a smoothie?

    By the way, unless you've had gastric sleeve or band, I doubt you have an unusually small stomach. You are probably more sensitive than most, and there's nothing wrong with that.
  • Nealius
    Nealius Posts: 10 Member
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    I may have to bump it down to a half pound a week, and I recently discovered olive oil. That plus hummus and pita is a nice high-calorie snack that isn't terribly filling for me.
  • momma2azoo
    momma2azoo Posts: 50 Member
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    What are you eating? Your stomach being 'too small' doesn't make sense. Stomachs stretch. They are not a static size. A great example is gastric bypass patients. Not only does their new stomach 'pouch' stretch over time, but if they don't watch their diets they can regain weight eating the wrong foods even with a new smaller stomach and shortened digestive tract. If they can gain, you should be able to too unless your stomach is deformed.

    I wonder if your gut flora is off. Have you tried taking something with live probiotics? Have you tried digestive enzymes? Have you tried a very mild diet of foods that you find easy to digest and then added more calorie dense foods one at a time to tolerance?
  • Nealius
    Nealius Posts: 10 Member
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    I'm eating.....food. What I eat isn't something I really keep track of, although I have been adding more vegetables recently. I frequently find myself feeling bloated after eating--no matter what it is. Typically a single scrambled egg is enough to fill me for breakfast. And just this afternoon I was eating a Korean beef/radish soup and less than half-way through it I felt full and my stomach was sloshing around for an hour.

    My gut flora most definitely is off (ulcerative colitis) and I have been taking probiotics for decades with a little positive effects, but not enough to really help.

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