Are you one of those people who says, “no matter what I do, I just can't gain weight”? You're probably surrounded by people trying every trick to lose weight and looking at you enviously — yet despite all the burgers and chocolate you might eat in a day, you still can't join their club. Maybe being thin bothers you so much that you've taken to wearing bulkier clothes.
When people think of dietitians, they usually picture obesity and people wanting to slim down — but a real number of people come to us wanting to gain weight, often feeling helpless because they've tried everything without success. The truth is that the same small changes to how we eat are just as powerful for gaining weight as for losing it.
Yes, to gain weight the energy you take in needs to exceed the energy you spend — but please don't try to boost your calories with chips, fried chicken and other unhealthy foods. Keep choosing baked, boiled and grilled cooking methods, and be patient: healthy weight gain takes time.
A few simple tips can help you add nourishing calories:
- Add an extra slice of bread spread with peanut butter to your breakfast
- Have your eggs as an omelette at breakfast, with plenty of cheese folded in
- Almond butter is a little higher in fat than peanut butter — slicing an apple and spreading a little almond butter on the pieces is both enjoyable and more energy-dense
- Stir chopped hazelnuts and honey into your yogurt
- Add starchy vegetables like potato and sweetcorn to your salads
- Drink high-energy, nourishing beverages with meals, such as full-fat milk or freshly squeezed juice
- For snacks, make a mix of small but energy-dense foods — dried fruit, hazelnuts, almonds and peanuts
- Favour the starchier vegetables and prepare them with a little butter
- Stir extra milk powder into your milk
These are just some easy, practical suggestions to help you gain weight healthily. If you have little appetite and don't much enjoy eating, small, nutrient- and energy-dense foods are your best friends. But if you love eating and simply can't gain weight, the place to start is by increasing your portion sizes.
Finally, in weight-gain programmes the most important meal is the evening one — the time of day when metabolism is slowest. A great choice here is a peanut-butter sandwich, or a full-fat milk blended with banana, honey and hazelnuts, which can make a real difference to healthy weight gain.
Merve Tığlı, Dietitian