Struggling to gain weight
I thought I might ask you all here about a problem I have been having for a while. I am 18, 5 foot 10" and 128 pounds. I have a pretty athletic build and have always been on the lighter side but just slightly. When I was 16 I weighed 145 pounds and was pretty buff, but got sick for half a year and lost 15 pounds. Between then and to a year ago when I went vegan I gained only about 5 pounds. Since a year ago when I went vegan I have been very healthy for the most part and been eating very well but I cannot gain any weight whatever I do. Since june I have been pretty much a couch potato as I broke my ankle and am still just starting to recover and even not doing anything and eating alot I am not gaining any weight. Anyways I would like to know if any of you have suggestions as to how to gain weight, so far I have tried eating multigrain oatmeal in the mornings loaded with sugar, nuts, and berries. I eat lots of nuts (mostly cashews, almonds and peanuts), hummus (one of my main foods), rice, whole grains, beans, and lots of veggies. I also have a shake called Vega most days which is loaded in all kinds of vitamins and nutrients. My folks are giving me a really hard time because I am so skinny. I should also add I have had blood tests and I am nutritionally sound according to the doc.
Thanks in advance.
My husband is skinny too - always has been....everyone has always told him that as he gets older, he'll gain weight....he's only gained about 15lbs since I met him 8 years ago....yet I can gain 15lbs in 2 months :-[
He eats constantly and isn't athletic - he's just a skinny boy - I couldn't fatten him up if I tried (I'm pretty sure he goes through a gallon of peanut butter every 2 weeks).....so don't worry too much about it....if you're eating a healthy, well balanced diet, you should be fine physically....don't let people give ya shit for being skinny....a lot of us wish we had you're problem.....
(side note: foods that make me gain weight quickly - pasta, bread and tofu)
Yeah, people can definitely just be skinny and cannot gain weight whatever they do, but it just makes me wonder (and my folks upset) that at 16 I weighed almost 20 pounds more. I just had 5 slices of toast with hummus and avacado and a big bowl of gnocchi for lunch... I could eat that 4 times a day and I probably wouldnt gain weight. It just seems like I should at least be 10 pounds heavier. Maybe its muscle I need to gain.
Hey, I have had similar issues (5'2" vary between 102-112...just dipped down to 98 for the first time in 4 years :( ).....For me, sugar and (healthy) carbs have done next to nothing in the gaining weight area. What I've needed is FAT and for muscle protein....I recommend coconut black beans from here over quinoa and topped with avocado. Also, toasted whole grain bread slathered with avocado in lieu of 'butter' is a great snack. Try eating a high amount of your caloric intake for dinner/desert, because your metabolism slows down after '8 pm'. There was a period of time where I was eating cheesecake every night for a month and didn't gain a single pound....so trust me, I know where you're coming from!
Hm, maybe as you recover you'll gain some mass as muscle.
I know for *losing* weight, there's a method that is (silly-ly) called "volumetrics," or rather, figuring out the caloric density of foods and eating less calorically dense foods. Maybe the reverse would work - figuring out calories per ounce and go with whatever foods are higher (clif bars are pretty high, but not very cost effective). The idea behind it is that you feel full based on volume/weight of the food you eat, and not caloric content, so you can pack more calories in before feeling full.
It's pretty interesting figuring it out, because there are some foods you would assume have a high or low ratio but really aren't that extreme, or vice versa. I.e., some cereal (though light & fluffy) is pretty dense per ounce, whereas beans aren't.
I'm in the same boat as you too! I can eat endlessly and not gain weight. I have always been thin, so when I dropped about 10 pounds in a month when I first went vegan I was bummed. My weight leveled off after that initial month and has been the same for the last year. I haven't found a solution to this either. I eat everything I'm supposed to (and then some)!
I do long-distance running (I am addicted to it and don't want to stop!) so this could be a factor, but I started running a year before I went vegan and my weight was steady then...
I guess at a certain point we gotta accept it and enjoy the perks!
Fauna... that sounds interesting, makes a lot of sense. I think I probably eat alot of foods that are on the light end of the spectrum like beans. I shall investigate further.
Imzeigler... It is frustrating isn't it. I have tried so hard and just cannot put on a pound. I guess it is a blessing in disguise but sure get a lot of flak for it sometimes. By the way I am very jelous of your running. I know how addicting it can be, before I broke my ankle I was addicted. Most likely will not be able to run again because of my ankle. Best of luck to you though! Are you planning on ever doing a marathon or half marathon or anything as such?
Yeah, people can definitely just be skinny and cannot gain weight whatever they do, but it just makes me wonder (and my folks upset) that at 16 I weighed almost 20 pounds more. I just had 5 slices of toast with hummus and avacado and a big bowl of gnocchi for lunch... I could eat that 4 times a day and I probably wouldnt gain weight. It just seems like I should at least be 10 pounds heavier. Maybe its muscle I need to gain.
I definitely don't have this problem:) (my weight has been healthy/stable) But I think you may be right about the muscle and working out more would help? When I started eating more healthy and getting more protein while working out, I actually gained a little in muscle weight as I got more toned. I'm not an expert by any means, but just some thoughts here:) Happy gaining to you!
I'm sure it can be a little scary to lose weight and not know why... I've been heavy since I hit puberty, but I have a friend whose weight dipped down to an unhealthy range earlier this year and it worried her quite a bit. Other people commented on how unhealthy she looked. She's doing better now, but I was concerned about her for a time. I think our bodies are all different, and while I will NOT say you're "lucky" to have this problem, I will say I can empathize with weight issues. We're all supposed to conform to a pretty rigid standard according to BMI charts, but as long as you're doing what you can to be healthy, I wouldn't sweat it.
That being said, I read an article in Time magazine recently that basically said exercise can do the opposite of what many of us hope it will do (namely lose weight) since it causes us to burn calories and can make us eat more as our brain goes into "starvation mode," trying to replenish the calories lost. Maybe for you the solution might be (as counter-intuitive as it sounds) to do some cardio when you're able, then eat a big, healthy meal afterwards, maybe rich in olive oil. It's high in fat, but at least it's a healthier fat!
Hi Edd677, I have a couple marathons under my belt and am training for my third. I've pretty much been training constantly since 8/08 and have races scheduled already through the end of 2010. I am really sorry to hear about your ankle--I think running is very addictive, must be the endorphins! Hopefully you will be able to find another way to channel that energy. Can you swim or bike with the injury?
Faux--I think you are on the right track about exercising promoting a healthy appetite. After I run I tend to feel like a bottomless pit!
I've almost been more on the skinny side too so I know how you feel. You say you eat a lot of nuts, do you soak and sprout them? If you don't yet I would try that for better absorption. I would agree with hanashi that the focus should be more on fatty acids and proteins rather than carbs. If you eat dairy you could shift to more dairy.