PLOT TWIST: How to GAIN Weight

PLOT TWIST: How to GAIN Weight

Hey guys!

You may be confused about the title of this blog because who wants to gain weight right!? Well, there are people who may be naturally skinny and want to add on some muscle mass, or there’s people who have been through unhealthy relationships with food and lost too much weight and are now looking to add back on a few pounds. Also, some people may be overcoming an illness and need to get back to an ideal weight. No matter what the reasoning is, here are some helpful tips for you to gain weight in a HEALTHY way.

But first, before I go any further …

When I say gain weight in a HEALTHY way, it DOESN’T mean you should go eat fast food like crazy and have a YOLO meal all day every day. There are ways to gain weight while optimizing health. You need nutrients to give your body what it needs to GROW. 

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1. Keep A Food Diary

I want you to record WHAT you eat, WHEN you eat and HOW you feel. Recording what you’re eating will help you identify where you can improve your eating habits and potentially add more to your meals and snacks. You can keep a food diary in an organized fashion with the Blogilates Fit Journal or in an app like MyFitnessPal. You may not realize how LITTLE food you’re eating and it can be a “wake-up call” to simply eat better or more. Also, recording when you eat, can help you add snacks into your day if needed. You may also notice patterns forming from when you eat and how you feel. If you notice that you get very tired and sluggish mid-afternoon, and you didn’t eat very much for lunch, then this would be a good opportunity to add a well-balanced lunch and mid-afternoon snack into your day. You don’t have to keep a food diary forever, but do this for a week or 2 to notice patterns in your eating habits. Then you can make changes.

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2. Eat Nutrient Dense Foods

You may not realize it, but your diet may consist of food that simply has calories, but not much nutritional value to it. Instead, nutrient-dense foods have a lot of nutrients for their calorie content. This includes vitamins, minerals, complex carbs, lean proteins and healthy fats. Examples of nutrient-dense foods are whole-grains, lean proteins, dairy products, nuts and seeds. In comparison, less nutrient-dense foods are like rice cake, crackers, cookies, soda and juice. Those foods may taste good and give you some energy, but they aren’t really adding anything to support a healthy weight gain. Think about food quality instead of low-calorie snacks.

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3. Eat Enough Protein

Eating an adequate amount of protein will help support your muscle mass and growth – and that is one thing that you do NOT want to deteriorate! Also, if you’re active then you REALLY need to ensure you meet your protein requirements. You don’t want to burn protein calories because you want the protein to support your cells, muscles and growth. Most people aren’t aware of how much protein they need. A general recommendation is between 0.8g-1g of protein per pound of body weight. So if you weigh 130lbs you should have about 104 to 130g of protein each day. Stick with the healthiest protein choices such as lean meats, non-fat yogurts, cottage cheese, and fish. Beans, tofu, tempeh and legumes are also high in protein if you don’t eat meat! 

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4. Drink smoothies and shakes!

Meal replacement shakes are a great way to add in nutrient dense calories without overstuffing your belly. Make sure that the shake mix you choose has healthy carbs, fats, fiber and protein in it with not too much added sugar. You want to make sure that you are FULL before you next meal. So, look for shakes that have at least 325-400 calories with 15-25 g of protein, 5 g of fiber and 10-13 g of healthy fat.

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5. Add Extras

If you don’t want to increase your portions of certain foods, instead you can add healthy toppings to your snacks and meals. Try adding nut butters to smoothies, nuts/seeds to yogurt, oatmeal, or cereal. Perhaps more cheese, avocados, and protein to salads. All these small additions will help you increase your calorie intake while adding some taste and nutrition to your food as well!

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6. Exercise for your Goals

Gaining weight doesn’t mean you have to stop all exercise. Instead, exercise for YOUR personal goals. This means cutting back on cardio and doing more strength training to build up your muscle mass. Exercise can also help stimulate your appetite, which will also help you increase your intake. Remember that when you add strength training to your routine and you’re building muscle, your body naturally needs more fuel to support itself – therefore eating enough is essential. So, more resistance training, less cardio and you’ll see that healthy lean muscle start to form!

7. Be Patient and Set Reasonable Goals

Gaining weight is much the same as losing weight in the sense that it shouldn’t be rushed and it won’t happen over night. Did you know that one pound of fat is eating an EXTRA 3,500 calories a day ON TOP of what you already need to eat. Therefore, gaining is still a process. But if you’re someone who’s been restricting food severely you may gain weight quicker – and that’s okay! Remember that gaining weight isn’t always a BAD thing. You’ll know if you’re reaching a healthier weight if you start feeling better, have increased energy and don’t feel as tired and irritable throughout your day. Focus on you and trust the process. 

Weight Gain Journeys

Here are some POPsters who have gone through some healthy weight gaining journeys!

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Isabelle (@thefitbelle) was less than 90lbs and now she’s around 118lb! After a year of changing her lifestyle, she was able to make better eating and exercise habits. She found happiness and is full of much more energy than she was before! We are so happy with her results and think she looks BEAUTIFUL!

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Cynthia (@cynthiatmore) proves that the scale DOESN’T matter. She weighs less in the first pic because she was obsessed with seeing a low number on the scale, yet she didn’t have any muscle mass. Once she started focusing on a balanced lifestyle, eating more and exercising for her goals, her body thanked her for it. She’s looking healthy and STRONG!

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35 thoughts on “PLOT TWIST: How to GAIN Weight”

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  1. K Store says:

    Very good information shared, thanks for this.

  2. I liked your article, you have mentioned great ways to bulk up onto lean muscle mass. I have written a similar blog on weight gain. Click the link to read through the full blog and make sure to follow to tips to get quick results

  3. Nice Article, I liked that you covered the article about gaining lean muscle mass. Much knowledgeable it was. We have also covered the topic of gaining weight on my website. Hope you love it.

  4. Lamisa A says:

    First of all, I would really like to thank you for writing this. I was always skinny and it was really hard for me to gain weight. Then I started to follow your tips and incorporated many of the things you explained here and they really helped.

  5. Lioyd Carrey says:

    Thanks for sharing the info. how many should we rest in a week? when your goal is gaining weight? Keep sharing…

  6. andrea says:

    The article is very interesting! it will help me to complement what I have been doing http://bit.ly/2lV2eVW

  7. Kayleigh says:

    Can you come up with a weight gain meal plan? That would be the best

  8. Imon says:

    Very nicely explained. Weight gaining journey is tough but once you achieve your goal its very satisfying.

  9. Manu Arora says:

    Well Done! Really you are nicely maintain your weight.

  10. sujeet says:

    Well Done ! you have given a very useful information. Thank you and keep going…

  11. Mark says:

    These tips are awesome, I was looking for something like that. Thanks!

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  14. mayuri says:

    read I want you to record WHAT you eat, WHEN you eat and HOW
    you feel. Recording what you’re eating will help you identify where you
    can improve your eating habits and potentially add more to your meals
    and snacks.

    https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.knowledgeworld.HealthTipsInEnglish

  15. mayuri says:

    nice blog

  16. Harry Uppal says:

    You have done a great job. These tips helped me a lot in gaining weight. I also used some supplements from Body Building Nutritions to gain weight in few days.

  17. Madina says:

    Thanks for this Cassey 🙂 I lost a bit of weight recently and haven’t been able to get back to my ‘normal’ weight so this article is perfect! We can always count on you with helpful advice on some many different issues!

  18. Rebecca says:

    Thank you so much for this, Cassey! I’ve been sick with an iatrogenic illness for almost a year. At first I gained weight because it threw my blood sugar way out of whack, but for the past three months I’ve been losing weight because my stomach has gotten sluggish and I just physically couldn’t eat enough to maintain my weight. I’m starting to recover now (and am still at a healthy weight since I was overweight before – that just wasn’t how I wanted to lose it) but don’t want to keep losing too much and am trying to start gentle exercise again. This is an awesome nod to those of us who don’t want to lose weight but just want to get stronger and healthier. Thank you!

  19. JenMExx says:

    Thanks Cassey.Its difficult to find advice on how to gain weight. I’ve always been underweight. I’ve begun drinking a weight gain shake once daily, and most recently since the new workout calendar, post workout. My problem is though, I have a hard time keeping on the weight. I walk at least 2-3 miles a day and if I get sick(which is very often) I usually lose about 5lbs in a weekend. What should I do? I do eat healthy, no fried, fatty, processed foods, lots of fruits/veggies, water, whole grains, and meats.

  20. Anonymous says:

    I am super underweight and my mom wants to put me into in patient treatment which would mean I would have to postpone college and move far away without my family for a while. I am not even 18 yet and I am not ready for that. Thank you for this article!

  21. Tyrese says:

    I was 87 pounds at the age of 14 1/2 years old now , I’m 123 at the age of 15 years old!! Thanks! My exercise routine is much better!

  22. Amelia Horne says:

    You don’t know how much this has helped me!!! Now 2 stone heavier in 6/7 months and still feeling healthy and strong, thank you so much! This came to me at just the right point of my journey!

  23. Katy Goodship says:

    This is exactly what I need, thank you! I love reading fitness blogs, but I don’t want to lose weight, so it’s really hard to find a post that actually helps you gain weight!
    Katy | http://www.katygoodship.blogspot.com

  24. kayleigh says:

    Hey Cassey. I love this post. I have been skinny my whole life and try to gain but I can never keep it on. It would be awesome if you could mske a meal plan for people to follow that are looking to gain.

    1. Shannon says:

      Yes Cassey please make a meal plan!

  25. Isobel Bruning says:

    Really lovely post!
    Defiantly looking to gain some muscle! 🙂
    Izzy | https://plantbasedizzy.wordpress.com/

  26. Cassie says:

    This is such an amazing article. I’m looking to lean out and put on a little more muscle mass and shed off the excess body fat, so I do need to incorporate more strength training into my exercise regimen! It’s helped so much so far!

  27. Maya says:

    Thank you so much for this post. I remember posting on one of your youtube videos it would be awesome if you could help us gain weight too. I really hope you will come up with a special monthly calender for us to help us organize exercise routines for gaining weight.

  28. Kailey says:

    Thank you so much for posting this! I’ve been having a lot of trouble finding guides to gaining weight! I’m currently 99 pounds, and it’s so hard finding exercises and workouts you can do at home / don’t require equipment that involve strength training!

  29. Andreia says:

    Cassey thanks for this article. I’m doing PIIT28 1.0, after a bulking phase, for toning my body. Afterwards it will be really helpeful if you had a weighlifting guide that you could sell (for the gym and for doing at home) for either building muscle and gaining mass and strenght (fewer reps and more weigth) or toning (higher reps, lower wieght) Thanks in advance xoxo

  30. Deborah says:

    Thanks Cassey! Was looking for ways to gain weight for quite awhile.
    Im on your PIIT28 programme, should I cut back on it since it has cardio in it?

    1. Amanda 😜 says:

      Cardio is good for you anyway, and it won’t make you lose muscle mass unless you’re not eating enough. So if you want to focus on strength training and not cardio, that’s fine, but don’t avoid cardio- getting in better cardio shape will help strengthen your heart- which is a muscle!- and make you fitter overall- running and stuff will also strengthen your leg muscles!
      (Hope this helped!)

  31. Zhane Briggs says:

    Amazing post! I’m 5’8 and have went from 115 lbs to 132 lbs in 5 years mostly due to birth control but recently it’s all been muscle due to PIIT.

  32. Leah Lawhern says:

    This was such a good post. A 6 year old girl I know told me how she weighed herself, ate some “healthy” Cheetos, then she weighed herself again and hadn’t gained any weight. I told her that the number on the scale doesn’t matter. It’s about what’s on the inside and how you feel. She is so tiny and it just breaks my heart to see her like that.

  33. Becca Williams says:

    Love this Cassey! Thank you for all you do <3