I’m honestly pretty impressed. I don’t think I’m in tune enough to have any idea if something specific was causing me problems, unless I have an acute allergic reaction. Good on you.
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Thanks man, I think it is pretty easy for me because I keep things extremely simple. I eat the same thing every single day and if I do a binge on the weekend or whatever I know I can handle it, mostly because I’ve done it 20 million times already.
It’s when I add things that I normally don’t eat that I can run into issues… GI upset from too much olive oil in pesto, the oil in prepackaged hummus also causes me serious discomfort and blue food dye are just a few that I’ve weeded out for sure that I absolutely MUST stay away from. I’ll also never buy redcon MRE protein powder again. I loved it personally, but my fiancee wanted to take me back behind the shed and put a bullet in me because it smelled like I was rotting from the inside out.
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There’s always pasta. Pure unadulterated carbs…lol
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Pasta isn’t necessarily bad, but having that as your main source of carbs could cause issues. Wheat can cause inflammation, some people are more sensitive than others, and it’s not the gluten as some believe but just wheat itself. I eat bread pretty much every day and I eat pasta now and then, but I find that pasta does make me feel a bit bloated. However, if I eat pasta two days in a row, or worse, twice in one day, then I just feel bloated as hell. I don’t know if it’s something about pasta in particular (made with different wheat?) or because I rarely eat more than two slices of bread at a time, but I have to take it easy on the pasta.
You just have to figure out what works for you and what causes issues, if you are struggling to gain weight then you want to keep digestive issues at a minimum (which isn’t a bad idea in general) while getting in as much calories as possible.
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He seems to eat quite a bit of gluten with tortillas and pizza being on the list. It was just an alternate suggestion to rice.
I had two large plates of spaghetti yesterday so may that’s why I look like a hippo today… lol
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Apparently Ted Arcidi was a big fan of spaghetti for carbs, so you’re in good company.
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Yeah that was my plan, add some stuff in, see how I feel and adjust. The bloating and being full is my main issue, with GI issues as a close second. It’s tough to power through food if it fills me up and keeps me full, especially knowing I should eat again within the next couple of hours.
I just have to figure out a decently maintainable combo of high calorie, less filling, easily prepared/consumed non irritating food. Between this thread and @TrainForPain portable food thread I think I have plenty of stuff to try out
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I haven’t noticed if pasta has given me any bloating or anything like that, but it’s for sure worth a shot for lunches and dinners. The rice thing kind of tripped me up because it was in a cereal, which was easy to eat in the morning and post workout… I just make a regular protein shake and then fill it to the top with the cereal and drink it haha.
Idk if pasta would taste as good…
I don’t know if I would want to drink it striaght up but a blender can do wonders. You can definitely throw oats or Cheerios in a shake and blend it. There is also all corn cereal such a corn chex. Wheat chex are a little intense though. Peas and beans work too.
Just don’t forget a lot beer iswith rice.
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Chex never crossed my mind but that is an outstanding idea. I may just mush up a bunch of corn Chex in a bag and dump it into my shakes. I’m not opposed to blending anything into a shake, but the more palatable the better IMO. I like looking forward to eating, not dreading it.
The beer is going to take some work on my end. I’ve been drinking less, mostly because I feel like garbage during and after, so switching up to something more tolerable (or avoiding alcohol altogether) is definitely in the plan.
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You know what, I’m not a fan of the vertical diet and I wouldn’t normally advise people to follow that but in your case it might be useful. The general idea is to avoid foods that cause digestive issues, it’s only really relevant to people who have trouble eating enough food without trouble of that sort. Of course rice is the main carb source he recommends, but just switch that for something that doesn’t give you issues. You can find free copies of the book floating around online and there is a youtube video of a seminar he did at Thor’s gym.
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Cake has helped me gain some weight this year. It’s super easy. Just do what you normally do all day, then pound some cake in the night.
As long as the frosting isn’t too sugary it’s easy to get down and it doesn’t even make me feel full.
When I’ve gained the 5 pound cushion I’m looking for, no more cake for awhile and I don’t have to adjust any other meals or change up anything else in the diet.
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You ever read about the pan of cake/brownies a day diet on Starting Strength?
" Eating Through the Sticking Points" by Matt Reynolds. A great read.
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I like the way you think!
I’ve heard it mentioned around here a few times but never looked into it, I’ll definitely check it out. I didn’t ever think I’d be one to follow a diet, but then again I never thought I’d be asking how to gain weight either. This is still so foreign to me.
That’s kind of what I’ve been trying to do, I know how much I have to eat to maintain because I’ve been stuck for so long. I have just been throwing the whole fridge on top of it the past couple weeks and it seems to have worked!
I like the idea of a dense bread with butter after dinner, though, I’m not one that particularly loves sweets. My fiancee has been baking gluten free banana bread lately. She uses almond flour in it I think? Anyway, it’s super dense and very easy to eat so I’m sure it’s very similar to the cake. I’ve been slathering butter on it and microwaving it for a few seconds… it’s outstanding.
This is literally what I’m trying to do. I will read it tonight
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I don’t necessarily recommend following it word for word, but there are some useful bits of advice that would apply to your situation. It’s not worth paying full price for, that is certain.
Just finished the article.
It was pretty inspiring to be honest and it makes me confident that I can do this. Just going to go HAM.
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Man, sorry for not posting yet. I only realized you had tagged me now. Guess I missed the notification.
I’ll take a look at the thread later and chime in with anything that comes to my mind.
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Looks like the other guys got you covered already.
But yeah, like has been discussed in other threads recently, gaining weight is a matter of finding a diet template you can stick with consistently. There is no magic trick, aside from managing to down your food day after day.
The best foods are going to be the ones you can eat a big amount of without having any problems.
For me, those are rice (which I read doesn’t work for you, oddly enough), pasta, sweet potatoes, meat, fish, olive oil, and a few others. I am personally good with eating only “clean” food, like I have been doing for a long time, but I can see someone adding a little junk or even just calorically denser foods to reach their target more easily.
One thing I can say, which was probably mentioned in the article @T3hPwnisher linked judging by the title (I’m actually going to go read it now) and I learned over the past few years, is you need to get accustomed to being uncomfortable with your food intake. I pretty much always leave the table feeling fuller than I’d like. Heck, it’s 2am here right now and I’m still very much full from the meal I had an hour ago.
Anyway, good job on the progress you’ve made already, I’ll keep following this thread for updates.
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Thanks for the input I appreciate you , and everyone, taking the time to give some advice.
I’m not sure I have the ability to stretch my stomach enough to get the calories in with clean food at this moment. I know that this new diet is semi-temporary, and I’d like to transition to something a little more healthy and permanent when the time calls for it… I’m hoping I can kickstart some weight gain and hang at a higher weight for a bit and see where my strength ends up.
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