Post Punk Kitchen Forum

So last year i went to the gym 3 days a week doing weight training and gained only a very little bit of weight. After hurting my arm in in an unrelated incident and having a couple months off i've just started going back. It's really important to me to gain weight, and i'm thinking maybe it's because of a lack of calories.

I don't enjoy eating a lot, but it seems like i'm going to have to. Apparently you need about 4000 calories to gain weight, right?
Can anyone suggest a calorie counter good for vegans? Pref on iPhone.

You don't need to eat 4000 calories to gain weight! It sounds like you should really see a doctor, dietitian or nutritionist or at least someone at your gym that knows about these things. You can use nutritiondata.com to find out how many calories you need to eat to maintain your weight. If you want to gain weight, you can add 500 calories a day to gain 1 pound per week and you really shouldn't try to gain too much more than that.

I use Myfitnesspal, here's the app: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/iphone

I believe 3,500 calories (approximately) over or under your resting metobolic rate is 1 lb of weight (gained or lost)... as stated above this is usually accomplished by adding or reducing your caloric intake by 500 calories a day for a rate of change of about 1 lb per week.

http://www.alfitness.com.au/article/id/ ... our-height
According to this chart here i am 10kgs underweight. I'm approx 178cms tall and weight about 56kgs. So i want to put on as much as i can, really!

I've been to the doctor before and all she did was suggest meals for me.
I think i just have a crazyfast metabolism, but 'll speak to my doctor when i see him next.

Add as much peanut butter or other nut butter as you want to your general diet. Nuts, avocado, whole grain carbs - brown rice and whole wheat pasta are great too.

Id track your meals throughout a regular week and see how many calories you consume. Then figure out how many calories you burn. You may not be eating as many calories as you suspect. What are you trying to put weight on for?

The most calorically dense foods are fats. You could start to incorporate coconut milk (the non light versions in the can), virgin oils (coconut/olive/avocado) as well as the suggestions above. Read through body builder forums since they look for calorically dense foods as well. I think they eat tons of peanut butter (if your going to use make sure it doesn’t contain processed oils) and oats, but you could easily swap peanut butter for almond butter to cut down on PBs inflammatory effects.

Just as you shouldn't try to lose weight drastically without supervision from a medical professional, you shouldn't try to gain it drastically without that support. It would also give you a more accurate picture of what is a healthy weight for you. I have really dense bones and a heavier bone structure, and so I weigh much more than people expect. BMI can be a useful tool, but it doesn't give a complete picture.