Weight Gain - Hixson,TN

A friend of mine has this problem (5'9" and was about 115). She is not a heavy exerciser, normal walks and bike rides and a few gym visits a week for strength training classes. She started looking into good fats and learned to love avocado and a couple other items (don't know recall what). She also started breaking up her meals to incorporate a bunch of mini meals in between instead of just a small snack. It took her a few months to change her eating because she would not be hungry for a snack but did need it. She eventually started to gain a few pounds. The last time I talked to her she was able to keep 20 pounds on and her doc is okay with it, though she said he wants her to gain another 10.

Upping your caloric intake is the only way to gain weight - it's just how to do it.

You could move to 6 smaller meals/day.

Have you considered talking to a dietician at your local hospital to have them help you develop a meal plan that is healthier? You may be surprised at how much Insurance will cover - especially since your physician is recommending it.

Also, believe it or not, adding more items such as milk, regular (not light) yogurt will add calories quickly. Check the caloric intake of 2% to 1% milk, and you may be surprised at the difference.

You could also supplement with items such as Lara Bars, Cliff Bars, etc. They don't tend to be too overly caloric, usually have a decent level of carbs and protein.

Good luck!

HI M.,

An absorbable multivitamin will help. I generally recommend it for losing weight but it actually balances weight and gets your weight to what your body frame is meant to carry. I recommended it to a lady on mamasource before and she gained weight. My husband lost 110 pounds on it. Nutrition is an amazing thing. I'll be glad to get you some information on the one we use.

Ensure is FULL of chemicals and is not good for you. You will gain the weight but not in a healthy way. Those types of foods will only mess with the way your body works. Chemicals will react and contraindicate with your natural chemistry.

Hope I helped!

M.

Hi M., it doesn't sound weird. I have been in your place a couple of times. Once it was after my second child was born. I don't know why, but I just lost a lot of weight and had trouble putting it back on ... I was nursing, so that was taking more calories too. What I did was try to eat a little more dinner, etc., but also added in snacks. I had peanut butter milkshakes w/protein powder a lot. I love them, and even though there is fat and sugar, there are good things in there as well. You could add other healthy ingredients that you like. I also added in snack bars. I got the protein powder and the healthier snack bars at an on-line health and wellness store that I shop at. You can ask me about that if you like.

Basically, try eating 5 times a day. Your three meals and two substantial snacks too.

Good luck! D.

My thoughts are is there a reason for your doctor wanting you to gain weight, other than he/she thinks you look too skinny? If you feel good, have no health problems, and any test he/she has run came back as good then I think it is arbitrary to tell you to gain weight. There are some people designed to be that skinny and there are some people designed to be what some doctors would call overweight. Check out "Health at Every Size", it is described in Wikipedia and you can find websites on it.

You should start with finding out why you weigh so little for your height, depending on your age of course.
You may look into Celiac Disease. If you have this you will need to go on a wheat/barley/rye/gluten free diet for life. If this is the case...it is quite possible that you will start gaining the weight.
If you feel bloated, gassy, have diarrhea and or bouts of constipation you may be gluten intolerant.
You may need to see a Gastro doctor to get the help you need, standard primary care physicians may be limited on their knowledge of the topic.
Of course you can always go online and "google" - "celiac disease" - "gluten intolerance symptoms" and read up and see if you have other issues.
Also get your thyroid tested by an endocrinologist. Primary docs are limited on this front as well.

When my daughter needed to gain weight, the doctor and nutritionist had two recommendations: eat more, exercise less. If you have a heavy exercise routine, you may need to back off a bit for a while. At first, she had 3 meals and 3 snacks a day. The nutritionist emphasized the importance of protein with every snack and meal. Since my daughter has trouble digesting fats, she added snacks of tuna, sardines, almond butter (small amounts), egg whites. She added avocado to sandwiches. At meals, try eating the protein and grains first, and the salad last (so it doesn't fill you up).

You have received some really good advice. I would recommend that you keep a food journal. Right down everything you typically eat in a day and then add up the calories. You also need to look at how much other activity you are getting. Are you a couch potato or do you work out a couple of hours a day. This effects how many calories you need in a day to maintain, add or lose weight. I would look at adding a good quality protein shake to your day instead of the ensures. Shaklee has some really good ones. You don't want to add fatty foods to your diet to gain weight because that will just task your liver and if you are already having an issue with say your thyroid it won't help. Add nutrient dense foods which are foods with lots of color. I would also look into a probiotic like Optiflora from Shaklee. If we don't have the right amount of good bacteria in our gut it can through everything out of balance. You may not be absorbing the nutrients you are getting in your foods efficiently. 80% of our health issues arise from our gut. Let me know if you have any additional questions.

Gaining weight can be a challenge if your metabolism is set in high gear. Have you checked your thyroid function out? What kind of things are you eating? Healthy proteins along with lots of fruits, vegetables and whole grains and nuts eaten several times throughout the day should help. If you exercise tons maybe go back to just walking for awhile. Vitamin/mineral supplements are key for proper body utilization and function also. Make sure they are food form -not just all natural -so the body can absorb and use them. I would be happy to share what I use if you want. I like your choice of not adding the fattening or junk food to add the pounds!

My suggestion is healthy meats. Not just fatty hamburger, but nice steaks, pork and poultry. Dairy is also a healthy source of both calories and vits/minerals you need. Healthy oils while cooking is also another way to add calories and keep things healthy. Olive oil, peanut oil and Safflower is great. Add just a tbsp or two while cooking veggies or meats. Very good for you and will add calories without a heavy feeling. I have the opposite problem from yours. I follow the Weight Watchers program and that promotes healthy ways to eat a balanced diet. What I have suggested is part of that program (so I know it is nutritionally sound) and will also give you extra calories without eating junk. Good luck!

Jeesh. Advice in this vein should be from pros and tailored to you. (If you don't exercise much, should you reduce it? I don't think so. Maybe you wouldn't want to do cardio but muscle strengthening? Perhaps. Muscles weight more than fat. They give good shape. Yes, muscles do burn calories but they add weight in nice places too.)

Make an appointment with a nutritionist perhaps. Maybe your doctor knows of one. I am using one now for keeping my immune system high as I'm trying to ensure a disease doesn't come back. That is one of her specialties. She was doctor recommended. If you're in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, you may ask me for her info but she might refer you to someone that specializes in what you want. One appointment might give you alll you want to know. Your bones, teeth, heart, etc are at stake.

Check some nutritional sites on line with search words such as "fast weight gain healthy."

I'm wondering if protein is good for adding weight. Steaks and such if your cholesterol is very good. Eggs with yolks. Homemade protein shakes. Good luck!