How to Gain Weight

The question: “I want to gain weight, but how can I do it in a healthy way?”

The expert: Lisa Young, Ph.D., R.D., author of The Portion Teller Plan

The answer: Intentionally gaining weight is tricky because if you simply eat more food, you’ll end up feeling overly full and sluggish—which is no good. Luckily, there are three smart ways to go about gaining weight, says Young. First, eat more high-fat foods. But make sure to focus on healthy monounsaturated fats, not the saturated kind. “Don’t just load up on butter and full-fat cream cheese because that’ll leave you feeling gross," says Young. “Plus, those fats are bad for your overall health. Rather, snack on more nuts throughout the day, eat avocados with nearly everything, and put more olive oil on your salads and your breads.”

Another option: Drink more juice. But we’re not talking about drinking juice and nothing else—we’re talking about having the sweet drink with your meals, as opposed to eating the whole fruit or just opting for water or tea. “Usually, we tell dieters to skip the O.J. and have an orange instead because it’s fewer calories,” says Young. “But if you’re trying to gain weight, you’ll get the extra calories from the juice without feeling too full.”

And finally, continue to exercise—but focus more on weights and building lean body mass than you normally do. “Easing up on the cardio for a bit and directing more of your efforts on strength training may help you pack on healthy pounds because you’ll be building muscle,” says Young.

MORE: Healthy Eating 101

 

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