
Ask HN: How do you gain weight? - 0x54MUR41
Context: a skinny guy, 24 years old.<p>Currently, I am working at a startup. I am used to walk to the office. I don&#x27;t do regular exercises, except walking and doing chores. I usually eat three times each day. No snack.
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saucisse
Eat More. Eat more calories than your body burns. How much depends on your
metabolism and activity levels. But if you’re not gaining weight, you’re not
eating enough. Eat caloric dense foods like pasta and nuts. Eat more frequent
meals. Drink milk and make shakes.

Lift Heavy. Stop wasting time with curls and flies. Do free weight, compounds
like Squats and Deadlifts instead. These exercises work more muscles with
heavier weight. They trigger more strength and muscle gains, and will make you
go from skinny to muscular.

Be Consistent. The total calories you eat on a weekly and monthly basis must
be higher than the calories your body burns. If you eat a lot today but then
little the rest of the week, you won’t gain weight. You have to consistently
eat more than you burn to increase your weight.

Read more [https://stronglifts.com/gain-weight/](https://stronglifts.com/gain-
weight/)

~~~
geophile
I am a tall, skinny 60-year old, who recently started crossfit, which
emphasizes squats, deadlifts, and other barbell exercises. (Previously I did
HIIT for several years.)

Crossfit just isn't working for me. At all. I can't squat deep enough, and my
shoulders aren't flexible enough to keep the weights as far back as they
should be. So I'm stuck doing remedial stuff to get to the point that I can
actually lift anything. I've been trying this for four months now, and I'm
really stuck on square one. Any thoughts on this?

~~~
EpicEng
The squat is a complex movent and takes years to master. Anyone telling you
different is selling you a load of bull. I have been weightlifting for years
with an emphasis on the big four (big 3 + overhead press) and functional,
strong man style movements.

I am at the high end of intermediate/low end of advanced range with regards to
how much I lift @ 180lbs. I'm still making imrpovements to my texhjique all of
the time.

One issue with _some_ CrossFit outfits is that they throw you into these
movements from day 1 with non trivial weight. Your CANS gets no time to
develop the coordination needed and you can get discouraged or, worst case,
hurt yourself.

Everyone can squat. Being a tall guy you will do it differently than e.g. a
5'5" powerlifter. You just need time and practice.

~~~
geophile
The trainers at my gym are exceptionally watchful and careful. Due to the two
problems I mentioned, I'm using extremely light weights. So while I may be
slowly getting more flexible, I'm not getting any kind of a workout.

~~~
EpicEng
That's good though; you should be using extremely light weights until you get
the movement down. Most people want to rush in, but fitness is a lifelong
thing, not something you achieve in three months.

If you look at any decent, beginner's weightlifting program with an emphasis
on the big movements (i.e. not bodybuilding programs) they'll all start the
same way; perform the movements often, start with little to know additional
weight on the bar, and add weight progressively (linear progression.)

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gumby
In addition to the other advice:

\- avoid appetite suppressors (e.g. caffeine) and modulators (e.g. artificial
sweeteners). "avoid" != "eliminate": sure, have a coffee or two in the AM, but
don't drink it all day.

\- exercise will make you hungrier (it is an appetite suppressor for those
whose body asks them to eat out of boredom, which is very common).

\- choose a healthy diet. You won't have the 24-y-o metabolism forever, so
don't make habits you'll later regret (e.g. two croissants in the morning).
This also means you'll be building weight through your body and not just
adding fat.

At 24 none of these "rules" need be strict, so have a milkshake, etc; you have
a great opportunity to experiment with what works and is enjoyable to you.

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biocomputation
Just wait until you turn 40. It's very difficult for some people to gain
weight, even if you eat enough, and even if you lift hard.

How tall are you? How much do you weigh? How much do you want to gain?
Who/what do you want to look like?

While you certainly can add muscle, you should be cautioned against trying any
program to significantly change your basic build. If you're naturally thin,
then you can be muscular, but you'll still be generally thin, and you probably
can't ever be a tank. Being a tank is really more about your genetics ( bone
structure, shape of your chest, overall length of your muscles ) than working
out.

Not saying it's your goal to be a tank, just trying to provide some realistic
counsel.

~~~
0x54MUR41
I am 5' 6''. I want to gain 20 kg at minimum because I am too skinny. I have
no reference or people to be a model.

~~~
biocomputation
You should be able to do this easily. Go consult a trainer and try working out
3x a week for 3 months. Learn how to eat enough and lift heavy stuff safely.

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siegel
Lots of great advice to you has already been given. But one thing to add - the
walking may be good for your heart, but it's burning calories. You need an
energy surplus (more calories coming in than going out). If you are walking a
substantial distance to work, more calories are going out. Again, I'm not here
to discourage cardio activity completely, but that's not the exercise you need
to focus on.

Saucisse is right - you need to eat more and more frequently. And to ensure
that doesn't all become fat, you need to lift heavy - focus on compound
exercises like squats, deadlifts, bench press. Stronglifts is a great place to
start. Good luck!

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27182818284
Drink beer you'll put on weight in no time. There is a reason it was called
"liquid bread" in the early part of the twentieth century. Why you would want
this, over, say, muscle mass I"m not sure.

~~~
amorphid
Eating peanut butter works great, too!

~~~
JeffreyKaine
I had the same problem as OP. I fixed it by eating most of a small can of
peanut butter a day, and working out (lifting, not a lot of cardio) 4-5 times
a week.

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pascalxus
Be Me for a month. My metabolism is so lazy, i can gain weight, even eating
less than 2000 cals per day. I can gain weight just looking at food, consuming
less than 2000 cals per day, with moderate exercise.

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beagle3
SemiOnTopic: Some people in the comments equate "fast metabolism" and being
skinny. How is that supposed to work?

Metabolism is the conversion of energy from incoming food into stored energy
(fat) or used energy (heat, chemical processes). The speed of metabolism does
not appear in any equilibrium (of which body weight is a statistic). If you've
eaten food and it is not stored, the energy has to be expressed some other way
- in what way do "fast metabolism" people express it?

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JakiesKonto
If you're like me (skinny caused by fast metabolism) then you need to eat more
often as a first thing. Like have a proper breakfast ( i know u coffie/cig
junkies ; ) and then be sure to eat something (doesnt need to be a lot) every
2-3 hours. For me this works a BIT (i.e. slooww growth, but growth), in order
to really gain weight I need to train 3x a week and eat gainer (carbohydrates)
and then I grow.

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AnimalMuppet
Why do you want to gain weight?

What kind of weight do you want to gain? I presume you want muscle rather than
fat...

I'm a skinny guy, always have been. I gained a bit of weight when I got
married, due to eating better. I gained more when we had our first child, due
to lifting the kid, the carseat, and the diaper bag over and over. That's
weightlifting, even though I wasn't in the gym.

~~~
0x54MUR41
I want to gain weight because I am too skinny. I want to fix my body shape.
Sure, I would rather gain muscle than fat.

~~~
AnimalMuppet
I've hit 55. I need to lose a whopping 7 pounds to get back to the weight I'd
like to be. Don't knock skinny - in a decade or two, it will be your friend.

(I'm not saying don't try to gain some weight. I _am_ saying be grateful for
your basic body type.)

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Neliquat
Eat more, or more caloricly dense, foods. I find I feel best using mostly
fats, rather than carbs, on a high calorie diet. Seems to help joints and
workout recovery too. Most hormones are synthisized from fats, so it may be
related.

Also, paradoxically, working out will regulate your appitite and might help
you eat a bit more, and store it in a way your body prefers.

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eip
Kings oatmeal: Make oatmeal. Add flax oil, coconut oil, hemp oil, butter,
whole milk, and honey.

Eat an avocado every day.

Eat 3000+ calories per day.

Hit the gym.

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cholantesh
GOMAD + Starting Strength. Unless you're vegan and/or lactose intolerant, you
are the ideal candidate for this nutritional plan. Don't stay on it for more
than a few months.

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0x54MUR41
Thank you for all of you who have given advices. I will make an experiment and
want to see the result. I hope I get the good result.

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davidddavidson
There are mass/weight gainer supplements that you could try (maybe start with
2-3 servings/week) but I wouldn't use it without some sort of anaerobic
training program to build muscle.

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hatsunearu
Check your blood sugar and diabetes markers at a hospital. Unknown weight loss
is a rather common symptom of Type 1 diabetes.

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Sevii
Eat more, use a calorie counting app. Excercise regularly with weight lifting
as the focus.

Eating is 90% of it.

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EpicEng
You already know the answer; eat good food, eat more of it, add resistance
training to build muscle. You need to eat at a caloric surplus, at least ~250
calories / day. It's a simple concept, but doing it takes hard work and
dedication.

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anpk
Eat chipotle burritos (source: NFL draftee Adam Shaheen)

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skdotdan
Can I ask how much do you weight and how tall are you?

~~~
0x54MUR41
20 kg at minimum. I am 5' 6''.

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cagataygurturk
Get a girlfriend.

~~~
0x54MUR41
Why?

~~~
cagataygurturk
Everybody who I know and got a girlfriend, including me, got 10 more kilos in
a year. Maybe your lifestyle changes, that's why

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redxblood
Exercise, you don´t need fat, you need muscle.

~~~
jetti
You still need to gain weight in order to build muscle. Muscle development
requires a caloric surplus.

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fosco
[https://www.xkcd.com/1744/](https://www.xkcd.com/1744/)

