I need some advice about gaining weight?

Hi! :) I am new on this site. I joined because I was going to try to count my calories to make sure I am getting enough to gain weight. I found this community and thought maybe I could find some advice to help my goal, and perhaps get some more information.

I am about 95 lbs, 5'7.5", 17 years old, and female. I was running over the summer, resulting in accidental weight loss; thus, I have not suffered from an eating disorder. However, I am still now underweight, and have been for 6months since I stopped running. In the fall, I would do some bike rides, but now I rarely have any activity. I have only gotten my period once, and have not had it for a long time.

I got blood tests from the doctor's, and nothing is wrong with me. The doctor says I must just have a high metabolism. My dad doesn't even think I need to gain weight if I am eating when I am hungry and everything. I don't skip meals - I even eat breakfast every morning.

Am I dangerously underweight? I am trying to eat more to gain weight, but only want to eat healthy foods. I don't know how much to eat per meal though - it's hard for me to get into the mindset of WANTING to gain weight! I don't even know how many calories to aim for. I feel like I have no idea what to do. When I have a couple days of lots of eating or something, my mind feels like it has gained enough weight. I don't FEEL too skinny, so how will I know when I am NOT too skinny?

Also, when trying to gain weight, how often should I weigh myself to check my progress and see if I am successful? Should I do some weight training to gain muscle? It is not necessary for me to see a nutritionist is it? I don't want to have my mom waste the money if I can be successful on my own.

 I was also wondering about things I could eat that are healthy. I see lots of people posting about all these weird food items I have never heard of and do not have access to lol.

Any tips are very appreciated. Thank you.  

P.S. Sorry for all the questions! I am such a newbie.  Also, I am not active anymore, except I am planning to start going to the gym to do some weight work [not cardio].

No worries about too may questions, there is no such thing for someone who actually wants to learn. on that note...

To gain you need to be eating at least 2500 calories a day, it sounds like alot but it is totally doable if dont in small incrimints throughout the day. Also, just try and stick tot he basic foods to stay healthy. When i say basic i mean not procssed. Things like oatmeal, yogurt, cheese, chicken, steak, tuna, fresh fruit and veggies. Also, keep some fun foods in there (i make sure to go out for pancakes at least once per week.) You need to take in at least this, if you are still running then you are gonna need more.

On the note of knowing when your at a healthy weight, talk to your dr about it and ask him/her. If that doesnt work for you, pick something physical thats hard for you to do that you would like to and set that as your goal. The more weight you gain the stronger your gonna get. Hope that helps.!

Hi just wanted to say that I'm around the same height as you and used to weigh around 107.  I do a LOT of sport training etc and felt the same as you - like I didn't feel I needed to gain weight.  However after about 3 weeks of REALLY trying hard to put some weight (only about 3lbs so far) on I feel so much better (even though I didn't feel bad before), am stronger than I ever have been and just feel much happier overall!  So maybe just give it a go - 95lbs at your height is very underweight and honestly you have nothing to lose by gaining !!

Original Post by askewing:

Am I dangerously underweight? ....... I don't even know how many calories to aim for. 

Also, when trying to gain weight, how often should I weigh myself to check my progress and see if I am successful? Should I do some weight training to gain muscle? It is not necessary for me to see a nutritionist is it? I don't want to have my mom waste the money if I can be successful on my own.

 I was also wondering about things I could eat that are healthy. I see lots of people posting about all these weird food items I have never heard of and do not have access to lol.

 

 Check your stats on this website aimed at the under 21s http://www.kidsnutrition.org/bodycomp/bmiz2.h tml  and that should give you some answers.  It says 'a 67-inch tall, 95lb, 17 year-old girl has a BMI of 14.9 which is the 0th percentile for her age. This suggests this girl is underweight.  A healthy weight-range for this girl would be from about 117lbs to 161lbs'  So yes, you are very underweight.

If you're at all active for up to an hour a day you need 1980 calories to maintain your weight and therefore 2500-3000 cals to start gaining ... that's 2500-3000 day in, day out until you're up past 117lbs and your periods are back and regular.  Some light resistance work may help you convert the extra energy to muscle bulk but avoid vigorous exercise.  You should expect to gain 1 or 2lbs a week initially...  2 - 4lbs a month longer-term.  If you don't gain weight on 3000, increase to 3500... or 4000 until you get to a place where you are gaining steadily. 

As for healthy food choices.  There are no unhealthy foods when you're this much underweight.  To get to your target you're going to need plenty of energy-dense foods.... oils, oily fish, nuts, cheese, red meat, avocados, chocolate, full-fat dairy products....  together with plenty of carbohydrates... pasta, rice, bread, cakes, potatoes etc.  Keep vegetables and salads to smaller amounts because otherwise you'll be too full before you hit the target. 

Work with your parents on a meal plan that achieves 2500-3000 cals a day in a series of meals and snacks.  And if you struggle, then a nutritionist is going to be a good investment.  Good luck

If you want to gain weight without putting on to much fat your best bet is to look at your maintenance calories and increase by about 250 give it 2 weeks and weigh yourself again, if you've gained some weight stick at this new calories intake for a month and then move it up as your weight increases. if you dont gain up it my another 250, weight 2 weeks and check again, and so on. To make sure its lean muscle your putting on and not fat you need to twin this with a resistance training plan 3-4 times a week depending on your goals.    

I find a 40,40,20 split is the best way of increasing lean muscle, that means if your calorie intake was 2500 per day (not saying it is) you would take 40% of calories in protien, 40 in carbs and 20 in fat.  Some prefer a 50,30,20 (50 protien) as it keeps there bf low.

If your 95lbs your maintenance calorie intake would be between 1425 and 1800 this is based on a really rough 15-19 calories per 1lbs of body weight. I wouldnt go eating 3000 calories a day as your likelly to sky rocket your bf.  Since you seem to be quite active id agree that 2500 would be a standard calorie intake for you but id up that to 2750 a day and see how your body takes it and progress from there.

You need to eat every 2-3 hours a great way of taking in calories you need would be protien and meal replacement shakes, you can get them for women off many sites.  You'd want a brand which gives you a healthy mix of carbs and protien and little fat, i use reflex one stop but im not sure if its suitable for a women but check it out, it also contains creatine so helps with muscle recovery.

Nuts, chicken, tuna, rice, jacket potatoes are all great sources of healthy protien and carbs. Avoid bread,

Your weight training routine would need to consist of mianly compound exercises, avoid doing to many insolation exercises, if you dont know what compound is, look it up on google or im more than happy to tell you if you want to know.

While I think guru2006 gives very good advice for those wishing to gain normally, I disagree with the advice for you.  You are VERY underweight, and yes, dangerously so.  As gi-jane said, your BMI is very low. At this point, you need to worry more about getting body fat rather than keeping it off. Not having your period regularly (amenorrhea) indicates you do not have enough body fat.  The only foods you should be avoiding at this point are trans fats, as they are the only fats with no nutritional value whatsoever. Even saturated fats are good for you (not in excess, of course) and are actually important for those underweight.  Carbs are not to be avoided because your glycogen levels are low...your body has tapped into your adispose tissue for energy, leaving you with a dangerously low body fat level. 

2500 cals is definitely the lowest you should be eating, given your height, low BMI, age, and activity level. If anything, you need more. Disregard people telling you that you don't want to gain body fat...right now, you DO. It sounds like your body fat is way too low, and that is very dangerous.  However, light strength training will help you maintain muscle tone as you start to gain without the harmful fat-burn that cardio provides.

Scales are always tricky...I don't trust mine at all. I wait until I am weighed by the doctor to get a more accurate reading. Another healthier-weight indicator would be when you start getting your period more regularly. Good luck!

I just want to second what vschuster has said. While guru's advice would be good for someone who was already at the tail-end of a healthy weight range (like if you were 117 and wanted to get your weight up to 125), when your are so drastically underweight, you do not get the luxury of giving yourself a month to see if you gain. Every day that passes where you are not eating enough, you are doing that much more damage to your body and you are running that much more of a risk.

At your height and weight, you are clinically anorexic, and most professionals would want to see you in an inpatient facility. So yes, it is very serious. If you are intent on doing this yourself, you need to see a doctor every week (this can change to every 2-3 weeks as you get healthier) to get your heart rate, blood pressure, and weight checked. As someone recovering from an eating disorder (or otherwise exceedingly malnourished state) you need to be getting at least 2500 calories every day, and you will probably need more since you are so active. Try to work yourself up that as quickly as possible, maybe over the course of a week or two. Don't weigh yourself during this time. As you increase your intake of food, your body will have fluctuations as it adjusts to processing and digesting proper amounts of food again. Quite honestly, I would seriously suggest you try to limit your activity levels a bit in addition to getting your calories up to 2500. It might be easier than having to eat an additional 600 calories to make up for what you burn off. Also, when you are malnourished and underweight, your body is much, much more susceptible to injuries like stress fractures and muscle tears. And those are unpleasant and best avoided until you have a doctor's okay (said doctor could also help you determine the weight you should be at BTW)

Right now, you really should not be exercising, not until your BMI is at least 15 or 16. The risk of damage is huge right now (believe me, I have had the fractures to prove it - exercising with a BMI around 13-14 is NOT good. your bones are weaker, your muscles more fragile, its just not a good idea right now. In the future though, yes it could be good and healthy)

Also, as a recovering anorexic, a 40-40-20 split is NOT reccomended. Guru may know about a healthy diet for a NORMAL individual looking to gain weight, but someone who has been starved and is emaciated has an entirely different set of nutritional needs. As a female in recovery, it is the general rule of thumb to aim for 25-30% fats so you can start getting a period again. You NEED fat in your diet, not only for the fact that it will help rebuild much your lost organ tissues and muscle, cushion your bones and help your period return, it is also MUCH easier to get all the calories you are going to need in a more compact and easier-to-eat manner.

Hi Guys

sorry i read the post again from  askewing, was on the phone and skipped some of it before, and after reading both posts from  rebelchick1017 and vschuster id def agree with whats been said, what i have given you is targeted at someone with normalish weight, after putting your weight in stone which comes out at like below 7 (sorry for not realising this before not good with lbs) you'd need to eat alot more than suggested, i would also say that you should avoid any strenuous cardio (no more than 20 mins 3 times a week) and weight training to increase lean muscle, again though id keep this to 3-4 30 min sessions a week to start with and with light resistance. I still say you need to eat every 2 - 3 hours but most certainly id increase the fats as suggested by rebelchick. 

Whilst you havent given us a body fat reading from your weight im guessing its incredibly low, mines 12 which is low for a guy but based on your weight you should be increasing yours to anywhere between 16-22% for someone of your age who is active training with low bf and low calorie intake can cause serious problems for your health and normally catobolisation of your muscles and organs. 

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone! I did not realize my weight was so serious. My doctor did not seem very concerned at all, just said she was jealous because she looks at food and gains weight lol.

You guys mention that "for my activity level" I should be intaking more calories, but I don't exercise AT ALL on most days nowadays. I ran over the summer and did some 15 minute bike rides in the falls, but that's it. The only thing I ever do now is maybe play some DDR for 15 minutes. So do I still need so many calories?

Thank you guys so much for the support and inspiration!!

Everyone needs a certain amount of calories a day to keep there body functioning healthy, to keep you alive and well, your body will burn a certain amount of calories just to live, its called a basal metabolic rate.  the estimated for women is around 2000 and guys around 2500 however there is some margin for error in this as everyone metabolism is slightly different, im cursed with a slow metabolism so i gain fat rather than muscle, however you sound like you could have a very high metabolism, which is fine, you just need to eat more,

since your weight is quite low for your age and height id aim for 2500 even if your not training at the moment just to gain some weight before you do train, problem with having to low a weight and to little body fat is when you start exerting yourself your body is going to want those calories that you dont have, side effects of that can be black outs, fatigue, catobolism of your muscles etc etc,

Id gain alittle weight, im no expert but id say 8 stone to 8.5 stone would probably be healthier for you but the other guys might be better to answer that. 

Gain some weight, and then start your workouts, when you start working out increase from 2500 to 3000 odd, id base this on 3-4 resistance workouts which will give you lean muscle and 3-4 20 minute cardio sessions a week, dont do more than this, cardio in long sessions burns muscle, and since you have a high metabolism by the sound of it, you dont really need to burn fat as you dont have alot to burn so just do it for a healthy heart.

Something no one has asked you yet, which is important is how much you eat now, do you have any idea on your current calorie intake?? 

Thanks for the suggestions! I am not sure of my caloric intake at the moment... I can tell you in general what I normally eat though [on a typical school day].

For breakfast, I have kashi go lean crunch cereal. For lunch I usually have a turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread, pretzels or rice quakes or something, and fruit. For a snack I have fruit and crackers, cheese, or a granola bar or banana or something. And for dinner I have a couple helpings of whatever my mom or stepdad makes. That varies, and I have no idea how many calories are in it usually lol. And then I might have an after dinner snack depending on how late we eat.

You need to read this: The Aim is to Gain: Advice on Weight Gain, Whatever Your Reason if you've not already.

Your BMI is underweight at 14.9. The physical dangers that come with undereating and being underweight are numerous. You put yourself at risk of osteoporosis, of loss of fertility if you lose your period, hair loss, electrolyte problems, a weakening of the immune system, low blood pressure, blood disorders such as anemia, heart problems, and even death.

You need to be eating at least 2500 calories to gain some weight again. What you're listing is healthy but you're simply not eating enough. As you're doing the DDR, yes, that's activity, so possibly more than 2500 - and you may find you need more than 2500 anyway. There's breakdowns of 2500 calories in a day and it may mean planning. Bigger meals, bigger lunches, bigger snacks and more high calorie low density foods like nuts, seeds, nut butter, seed pastes like tahini, pasta, dense fruits like bananas and avocados and dried fruits, healthy cooking oils and whole fat dairy. But it's all explained in that link!

At 5'7 you need to be looking to gain to about 127lbs.

Thanks for the tip! I will definitely read the link. I am surprised my doctor was not more concerned with my weight if it's so unhealthy to be so low.

It's hard for me to convince myself to eat more without feeling weird about it because I never had a real eating problem (like I never restricted my calories on purpose). Plus I don't feel too thin [I don't feel fat. Just normal]. I just tried to eat healthier choices and exercised. Luckily, I am not as active now as I was over the summer.

I guess I am also afraid of gaining too quickly. I bet if I didn't weigh myself for two weeks while concentrating on gaining I will be thinking I gained like 20 lbs lol!

I will do my best to increase my eating though. I really do just want to be healthy. I appreciate the help!!

I agree with lalabanana you need to be eating more, and from what you said your eating you definetly need to eat more.  If you find it hard to eat to many meals try the shakes aswell, i eat 6-8  times day and it can be annoying at first but it comes down to planning, once you get used to it its not so bad, eat every 2 - 3 hours. Breakfask is the most important meal of the day and add some proteins to your first meal, given you an idea below, its based loselly on my diet but should give you an idea

breakfast 7.30 scrambled eggs, and bowl of cereal with a bannana
9.30am Snack - Slices of chicken, ham or turkey with wholemeal bread
11.30 am - 25 grams of peanuts , apple orange,
12.30pm -  lunch chicken salad with rice
2.30pm snack protien shake
4.30pm snack protien shake
7.30pm tuna with salad, 1 cup of yoghurt with dried fruit, 4 sqaures dark choc

As your younger and seem to have a high metabolism id through in some cheese somehwere in there,

Don't turn to shakes if you can help it. You do not need them. I make most of my intake on food and then a chunk on liquids like milk (soya in my case but if you can drink whole do) and 100% juices. And, honestly, you don't need that much protein either.

Also, you mentioned how often to weigh - do not weigh for the first two weeks of increasing. This is because you will see weight fluctuations not true to your gains - water and food weight, all normal when increasing but NOT accurate.

Do you have your period? Either way you should look more for a 55-60% carb, 10-15% protein, 25-30% fats ratio and absolutely 30% fats if you do not have your period. But that much protein is NOT necessary and could possibly stress out your kidneys. 

The period question is a little weird for me. Okay so, I mentioned how I lost my weight over the summer. Before I lost the weight, I had only had my period once in my life, and it was a while before that. So even before I lost the weight when I did some running, I was not getting a regular period. [This is explained by the fact that I am a late bloomer]. My doctor said I should be getting it soon though or something? I don't know.

Also, when I am trying to make sure I get enough calories, I never know how many are in my dinner. My parents usually make something. Throughout the rest of the day, what I eat I can usually know how much calories are in it, but usually have no idea how much is in the dinner. So I don't know how many calories I would get daily.

P.S. I am afraid if I don't weigh myself, I won't know if I am gaining weight or not.

Go by the fit of your clothes and how you look in the mirror. You do not NEED to weigh yourself and if you do you should reevaluate if you think you have problems with food, weight and image or not. Weighing in the first two weeks whilst increasing will only show you very inaccurate gains because you will be fluctuating with water and food weight.

A story for you: when I was making initial increases I "gained" 10lbs in two weeks. This is not physically possible at the intake I was making. It takes 3500 calories to put on a pound, and I was taking in 3000 a day. A week after that 10lb weigh in I had lost all but three pounds meaning I'd only managed a pound a week over those three weeks, which was not fast enough for me. I was meant to be gaining at 2lbs a week.

If you have had your period once and not since, then you have had your period and are now missing it. This is called Amenorrhoea. As you are missing it, you need to concentrate on keeping a good fat intake up as well as gaining weight.

If you do not know how many calories are in your dinner then have large portions of what they make or seconds. What sort of foods do they typically make?

Thank you for the tips. I did not know that is what happens when you are gaining weight. I will stay off the scale while I am increasing my calories. One reason I have been weighing myself is to make sure I don't lose weight, and my mom wants me to give her an update. If it will be inaccurate, however, I'd prefer not to. :-)

Yes, I think at this point, I am just too thin for my period. Hopefully once I gain weight it will come back... or really have a regular schedule for the first time.

Usually we have some kind of meat, like chicken or pork, hamburger helper, something of that sort, with some corn or broccoli or green beans, and perhaps a salad and some rolls. When I take something, I don't know how much is on my plate - whether it's a cup, half cup, whatever - I have no idea!

Indeed, it'll probably be inaccurate for the first two weeks. Explain this to your mum if needs be, including the food and water weight. But give her a weigh in after two weeks of a steady intake of 2500 bare minimum.

In fact, if you can get her on board with helping you make at least 2500 that'd be terrific as the fact your parents are in charge of your dinner meal means they will affect your intake there.

A good rule of thumb for a general portion for someone NOT gaining weight is to have a quarter of your plate in proteins, a quarter in carbs and half in vegetables. However, as you need to gain weight, go more for half in carbohydrates, a quarter in vegetables (and aim to dress your vegetables with olive oil or butter), and a quarter in protein. Whilst chicken and beef and such are good ones, do you eat much fish in your house? See if you can get some salmon and other oily fishes on the table once or twice a week too. It's tasty, higher calorie than chicken and beef, and full of healthy fats!

Visual portion guide helpers:
http://www.mypyramid.gov has visual examples of portions, and
Nestle: Keeping an Eye on Portion Sizes
For starters. :]

And yes. Your BMI is where mine is right now as well and I can quite assure you you're too thin for your period. But don't dismay, it does return! :]

Wow, great information, thanks. :) My mom will definitely help, as she is the primary person concerned about my weight - she told me to go on this site to count calories to make sure I get enough. She is considering letting me go to the YMCA to do some workout (just machines not cardio) to help me gain muscle mass!

We nearly never have fish, so I will suggest that!

If I increase my intake to 2500 a day and keep it up, how long would it take me to get to a healthy weight? Or is that not really an answerable question?

Not answerable. It depends on the person. You may end up needing more. However, a healthy and sustainable rate of gain is 0.5 to 2lbs a week, but at your low BMI you want to try for 2lbs a week. Again, though the needed cals for this varies - but don't go lower than 2500. Less than that and your body doesn't rebuild properly nor does your metabolism heal properly.