Energy balance and weight gain
Fast metabolism is usually a combination of several factors. It can result from lifestyle (intensively doing sports, physical labour) and genetic conditions. Whatever the reason, fast metabolism is associated with a high daily energy expenditure. In simple terms, people with fast metabolism burn more calories per day than those with slower one.
Regardless of your metabolic rate, you should consume as many calories per day as your daily energy expenditure to maintain your current body weight. Consuming fewer calories than required results in weight loss. Similarly, consuming more calories than we burn in a day will result in weight gain.
Weight gain is dependent on the dietary strategies used and on physical activity. If we consume far more calories than our needs, while getting little physical activity, we will gain body fat. Adipose tissue in our body acts as an energy store, so any calories not consumed for the body’s needs will be stored in adipose tissue for later.
If our goal is to expand muscle tissue, a stimulus in the form of physical activity will be necessary. When doing sports, muscle fibres are torn, then in the post-workout period they are rebuilt more than enough – so that the muscles are prepared for the next workout of similar intensity. Additional energy substrates are required for the aforementioned superstructure – which is why muscles are only able to grow under conditions of positive energy balance.
How to gain weight step by step
For healthy weight gain, you need to prepare a proper strategy. Start planning by reviewing your energy needs.
To begin, you should calculate your BMR, or Basal Metabolic Rate. This is the amount of calories required to maintain basic bodily functions, such as breathing and heartbeat. There are several different formulas for calculating BMR, but most of them take into account the following factors:
- gender,
- age,
- height,
- body weight.
An example formula for calculating BMR can be found below:
BMR (women) = 655.1 + (9.563 x body weight [kg]) + (1.85 x height [cm]) - (4.676 x [age])
BMR (men) = 66.5 + (13.75 x body weight [kg]) + (5.003 x height [cm]) - (6.775 x [age])
In the second step, the BMR result should be multiplied by the PAL (Physical Activity Level). The PAL indicator depends on your lifestyle, your job or the number of workouts per week. The average number of steps taken per day can be useful in estimating PAL.
| Physical activity level (PAL) | Physical activity | Life activity |
| 1.2 | No physical activity | No work activity, sick, bedridden (e.g. coma) |
| 1.4 | Light activity (approx. 140 minutes of activity per week) | Office worker whose activity involves only household chores, less than 5,000 steps per day, no exercise |
| 1.6 | Medium activity (approx. 280 minutes of activity per week) | Office worker exercising 2-3 times a week for at least one hour and walking more than 8,000 steps per day or manual worker |
| 1.8 | High activity (approx. 420 minutes of activity per week) | Office worker exercising 3-4 times a week for at least one hour and walking more than 8,000 steps per day or manual worker |
| 2.0 and above | Very high activity (approx. 560 minutes of activity per week) | Professional athlete exercising at least 6 hours per week or a person with intense manual work |
After selecting the appropriate PAL value, it’s time for step three, which is to calculate the total daily energy requirements. To do this, multiply the BMR value by the PAL value.
TMR = BMR × PAL
The final mathematical step will be to increase the TMR value by 5-10 percent, so as to achieve a positive energy balance effect. This will be the final number of calories you should consume daily to gain weight regularly. Depending on the conditions, the physical activity level or the amount of underweight (if any), the amount of calories added can be increased.
Does this mean that in order to gain weight in a healthy way, one should meticulously count the calories consumed? Not necessarily, although deliberately counting the calories consumed at least for a few days can give us the full picture. It often happens that we think we are consuming very large amounts of calories, while in practice it turns out that the amount of energy supplied is too small.
Eating to gain weight in practice
“To make a bad eater eat dinner”, they don’t need an additional appetite-enhancing supplement at all. Meal composition strategies alone can modify foods to take in more calories without filling the stomach too much.
- For the period of weight gain, it is worth making friends with fat. Fat is the most calorific macronutrient in the diet and, consequently, adding a small amount of it can significantly increase the calorie content of a meal without feeling overloaded in the stomach. Choose healthy sources of fats such as nuts and seeds, olive oil or avocados. Don’t avoid fatty fish, peanut butter and dark chocolate.
- For a weight-gain diet, it’s a good idea to limit high-fibre foods. Of course, fibre is an essential component of the diet, but with the increased supply of food, it is very easy to have too much of it. Too much fibre can cause feelings of overeating and digestive problems (bloating, gases, constipation). Unlike in weight loss, in this case it is advisable to give up brown bread, rice or pasta in favour of mixed bread, white rice and pasta made from durum flour.
- If you feel overeaten after meals, consider supplementing your diet with liquid meals. In case of lack of appetite, it is easier to drink and digest a thick shake than to eat a solid meal. These types of shakes can be a real calorie bomb — you can make them with a base of milk, yoghurt or buttermilk, and as additions use large amounts of fresh and dried fruits, nuts or peanut butter, dark chocolate and even supplements in the form of protein powder.
- It is also worth applying the 80/20 rule. In the course of a diet with positive calorie balance, we simply can afford more processed foods. Let the majority of the diet (approx. 80%) be based on healthy, nutrient-rich foods, and let the rest be for your pleasure – a favourite candy or other snack will certainly help you meet the positive energy balance.
How to train when wanting to increase body weight?
Any physical activity is an additional energy expenditure, so remember to include current and planned training units in the calculation of energy requirements. Frankly speaking, the type of training (if you want to increase your overall body weight) will be of secondary importance, as long as the training units occur at all.
Physical activity is the cornerstone of health, and gaining weight is no different. Increased calorie intake sustained over a long period of time predisposes the body to inflammation or insulin resistance. Physical activity (of any kind) counteracts these processes, which is why it is so important to stay active even aiming at weight gain.
The case is different if our goal is to build mass, but only muscle mass. Then the most optimal training method will be strength training aimed at muscular hypertrophy. Such training can be done in various configurations:
- Full Body Workout (FBW), split in half (upper body/lower body or push/pull), or with individual muscle parts (split).
- For beginners, a good idea will be to train the whole body and gradually move to more and more specific division.
- For strength training aimed at increasing muscle mass, it is also worthwhile to include cardio sessions to minimize fat gain during muscle expansion.