Looking to GAIN weight...is this a good idea..?

[Josh]

I currently weigh around 130 lbs, I'm looking to move up to around 145 lbs. After doing a little bit of research I should be eating around 2900 calories a day and work out regularly. Is this about as clean and simple as it gets/will it work?

(I'm eating a few pretty healthy meals per day and drinking a cytogainer protein shake/ensure plus)

 

[apac]

Originally posted by: Josh
I currently weigh around 130 lbs, I'm looking to move up to around 145 lbs. After doing a little bit of research I should be eating around 2900 calories a day and work out regularly. Is this about as clean and simple as it gets/will it work?

(I'm eating a few pretty healthy meals per day and drinking a cytogainer protein shake/ensure plus)

Depends on height, but I don't think you can go wrong as long as it's healthy weight (muscle). Make sure you're eating lots of protein and lifting a couple days a week and you'll see your weight and strength begin to increase.

 

[KoolDrew]

Make sure to get at least of 1g of protein per pound of lean body mass. I'd probably just shoot for ~130g if you don't know your LBM. 0.5g of LBm should be fat and then the rest can be carbs. If you're not gaining weight on 2900 calories after a week or two, add more.

Also, what do you plan on doing as far as a workout routine?

 

[GenHoth]

Per lbs or per Kilo?

 

[PlasmaBomb]

Per pound, hense the 130 g of protein for 130 lb person. Although that is overkill (since you will have skeletal mass, some fat etc. making up that weight).

 

[Special K]

2900 seems awful low for weight gain. You will probably need to increase that. On a related note, I would recommend tracking exactly what you eat each day on fitday. Also track your weight each morning. If at the end of the week, your average weight has not gone up a lb. from the previous week, then add 200-300 calories to your daily total, and eat that much for the next week. Keep doing this until you are consistently gaining about 1 lb. /week.

 

[Josh]

Originally posted by: KoolDrew
Make sure to get at least of 1g of protein per pound of lean body mass. I'd probably just shoot for ~130g if you don't know your LBM. 0.5g of LBm should be fat and then the rest can be carbs. If you're not gaining weight on 2900 calories after a week or two, add more.

Also, what do you plan on doing as far as a workout routine?

First thanks to everyone for the advice.

Second, I did some calculator on about.com that told me I would need to eat around 2800 calories per day to gain about a lb a week. I'm 5'9"..

As far as working out, I'm doing around 20 minutes a day of just strength exercises...no running/etc

 

[KoolDrew]

Originally posted by: PlasmaBomb
Per pound, hense the 130 g of protein for 130 lb person. Although that is overkill (since you will have skeletal mass, some fat etc. making up that weight).

His goal is weight gain though, so it really doesn't matter too much. Shooting for 130g will ensure he's getting enough and the extra definitely won't hurt since his goal is to gain weight anyway. Pretty much anything between 1-1.5g of protein per pound is good.

As far as working out, I'm doing around 20 minutes a day of just strength exercises...no running/etc

What does your routine look like? Also, unless I read it wrong, you're working out everyday?

 

[purbeast0]

working out for 20 minutes a day probably isn't going to do much for you.

also when trying to gain muscle, resting is very important so your muscles can grow.

 

[TallBill]

Well, it's not going to work unless you give it your full effort. Putting together a training plan and diet plan is a start, and tracking your progress on both is a must. Now, I don't eat nuts and berries but I've put on 40 pounds in a little over a year.

 

[Josh]

Originally posted by: TallBill
Well, it's not going to work unless you give it your full effort. Putting together a training plan and diet plan is a start, and tracking your progress on both is a must. Now, I don't eat nuts and berries but I've put on 40 pounds in a little over a year.

Do explain your routine...unless you already have..

 

[KoolDrew]

I gained about 45 pounds in a little under a year just concentrating on deadlifting, squatting, benching, OH pressing, and rowing. Very little isolation work at all and my arms grew 2 inches. There were times during that year that I slacked off though and my diet was poor and/or my routine was. When I really stuck to a solid routine (I'd say Bill Starr's 5x5 helped me most) and ate a lot, the weight packed on quickly though.

This was back in November 2006, way before I started lifting (didn't start until February)
http://img151.imageshack.us/im...051/1475928910lhk3.jpg

A pic from June:
http://img365.imageshack.us/img365/4791/sd532969yi6.jpg

And pics not too long ago, before I began cutting:
http://img81.imageshack.us/img81/6693/up1lo7.jpg
http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/5753/up2es3.jpg
http://img91.imageshack.us/img...a2f14eaecd9b603lw7.jpg
http://img91.imageshack.us/img...5ca17391d05e917jg4.jpg

Maybe that'll be motivation for you.

 

[spamsk8r]

Originally posted by: KoolDrew
I gained about 45 pounds in a little under a year just concentrating on deadlifting, squatting, benching, OH pressing, and rowing. Very little isolation work at all and my arms grew 2 inches. There were times during that year that I slacked off though and my diet was poor and/or my routine was. When I really stuck to a solid routine (I'd say Bill Starr's 5x5 helped me most) and ate a lot, the weight packed on quickly though.

This was back in November 2006, way before I started lifting (didn't start until February)
http://img151.imageshack.us/im...051/1475928910lhk3.jpg

A pic from June:
http://img365.imageshack.us/img365/4791/sd532969yi6.jpg

And pics not too long ago, before I began cutting:
http://img81.imageshack.us/img81/6693/up1lo7.jpg
http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/5753/up2es3.jpg
http://img91.imageshack.us/img...a2f14eaecd9b603lw7.jpg
http://img91.imageshack.us/img...5ca17391d05e917jg4.jpg

Maybe that'll be motivation for you.

Nice progress! You definitely did it the right way, too. A solid routine is key.

 

[dwcal]

What's everyone's opinions on whey protein or creatine? I take them both on the days that I lift, like once or twice a week (I know, I'm a slacker). It's enough to maintain my shape.