T Nation

Suggestions to Increase Calories

#1

hello.

I have been following the same basic meal plan for a little less then a year and have managed to get myself from 150 lbs up to 175. I have, however, been stuck at 175 for the last little while. Any advice on how i can easily add calories to this:

10:00 wake up - 1 cup oatmeal, protein shake, 500mL milk, Cup of Black coffee.
11:30 WORK STARTS :frowning:
12:30 SNACK - about 1.5 Cups Raw broccoli or raw cauliflower, cup of black coffee.
15:00 Lunch - 9 to 12 ounces of either chicken breast, or pork loin, 1 cup brown rice,
1 cup of green beans
15:15 45 min power nap in my car
17:00 Cup of Black coffee
18:00 SNACK - Can of tuna with a tomoatoe, 1/4 red onion, olive oil all mixed up
20:00 WORK ENDS
21:30 Dinner - 9 to 12 ounces of either chicken breast, or pork loin, 1 cup brown rice or pasta
22:30 Gym
23:45 Protein shake, in 500ml milk with 1/4 cup almonds and a banana.

it pretty much works out to 3000 calories. Any suggestions as to where and what to insert to boost my calories so i can start gaining weight again?

Thank you in advance!

(some additional info...im 5'9, 31 years old and stuck in an office all day at work)

#2

Looks like your right at a 1/1 ratio of protien/bodyweight. Maybe add somemore protein in your snacks? And it also looks like you could use more fats in there too. Get some fatty fish in a few of those meals.

Or just up the overall serving size. That diet seems pretty conservative to me.

#3

Thinking more on it, id up it to a 4-5000 cal diet at least if i were gaining. Chuck a dozen eggs down a day/ eat a whole salmon. Live.

Eat big get big.

#4

Read the sticky at the top of the beginners thread if you haven’t already “Bulking Tips for Newbies.” That pretty much covers all of the tricks and stratagies to gain weight and just pick and choose the ideas that suit your lifestyle.

#5

Not trying to be a dick, but just eat more of what you’re already eating?

#6

[quote]chimera182 wrote:
Not trying to be a dick, but just eat more of what you’re already eating?[/quote]

yes i understand that eating more is the solution…i suppose i should clarify. I was looking at more specific approaches. It is very easy for someone to say eat X amount of chicken breasts a day…but it wasn’t until someone suggested i cook all my meat (and food) on one day, and store it that i was able to easily accomplish the goal of eating the required amount of meat. As I’m sure you know the more efficient food preparation becomes the easier it is to implement it.

i was also looking to possibly see which meals in particular needed boosting as opposed to say boosting everything by 10% (maybe some need to be boosted 50% some only 5%?)

i suppose the ultimate goal would be to increase caloric intake while either decreasing food preparation time or at the very least leaving it at its current levels.

ill more then likely figure out a solution but i do always like outside input.

#7

Ok hear are a couple of suggestions…
No more black coffee. Put some whole milk or cream in there. This will add up during the week.
Your snack at 12:30 - put some protein in there.
Instead of rice try a meal with say half a cup of rice and half a cup or refried beans (only worth it if it ISNT fat free)
Lastly, try putting some peanut butter in your shakes or just drink more shakes in general.
Give this a read: http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance_bodybuilding_supplements/shake_it_up

#8

How long is ‘a little while’ that you’ve been stuck at 175? Have your lifts gone up during this time? Sleep/supp stack still the same? If you’ve been stuck at the same weight for a month or two, your lifts haven’t gone up, you’re still getting 8 hours of decent sleep and you’re already taking a bunch of creatine and fish oil, then it’s your diet. Just getting all the other particulars out of the way first.

Add a second cup of oatmeal and another half-liter of milk to breakfast. Add an extra scoop of protein powder to breakfast as well. ~ 500kcal, with about 40g of protein.

#9

You could add your fat to just about ANYWHERE in your diet, you’re not eating much.

Also, both snacks are pretty weak, vegetables only, nearly zero-cal. You could eat just about anything else in there.

#10

As others have said keep your base diet but add to it, throw a hand full of almonds in there 3-4 times a day, add a glass of milk to each meal, scoop of peanut butter. There are options, take what you have a eat more of it, instead of one cup oats make it two…you see where we’re going with this.

#11

[quote]tigertron wrote:
chimera182 wrote:
Not trying to be a dick, but just eat more of what you’re already eating?

yes i understand that eating more is the solution…i suppose i should clarify. I was looking at more specific approaches. It is very easy for someone to say eat X amount of chicken breasts a day…but it wasn’t until someone suggested i cook all my meat (and food) on one day, and store it that i was able to easily accomplish the goal of eating the required amount of meat. As I’m sure you know the more efficient food preparation becomes the easier it is to implement it.

i was also looking to possibly see which meals in particular needed boosting as opposed to say boosting everything by 10% (maybe some need to be boosted 50% some only 5%?)

i suppose the ultimate goal would be to increase caloric intake while either decreasing food preparation time or at the very least leaving it at its current levels.

ill more then likely figure out a solution but i do always like outside input.
[/quote]

Alrighty. You could try adding in protein and carbs around your workout in the form of a shake.

#12
  • Get a bigger cup to drink milk out of - fill it up.
  • Keep almonds in a ziplock bag, eat a handful for snack during the day. Keep a bag in your car, desk, home.
  • Hardboil a bunch of eggs, keep them in the fridge. Eat one or two at night.
  • Add an extra tablespoon of olive oil to your salad / tuna. (I usually have meat and a salad for lunch and dinner. If it’s a higher calorie day, I’ll add more olive oil. I also eat the salad first, then dip the pieces of meat in to sop up the residual oil/vinegar dressing.)
  • Natural Peanut butter - I just like to lick it off a tablespoon. I keep a jar at work and at home. :slight_smile:
  • chocolate protein powder in your coffee for a protein mocha.
#13

[quote]tigertron wrote:

10:00 wake up - 1 cup oatmeal, protein shake, 500mL milk, Cup of Black coffee.
11:30 WORK STARTS :frowning:
12:30 SNACK - about 1.5 Cups Raw broccoli or raw cauliflower, cup of black coffee.
15:00 Lunch - 9 to 12 ounces of either chicken breast, or pork loin, 1 cup brown rice,
1 cup of green beans
15:15 45 min power nap in my car
17:00 Cup of Black coffee
18:00 SNACK - Can of tuna with a tomoatoe, 1/4 red onion, olive oil all mixed up
20:00 WORK ENDS
21:30 Dinner - 9 to 12 ounces of either chicken breast, or pork loin, 1 cup brown rice or pasta
22:30 Gym
23:45 Protein shake, in 500ml milk with 1/4 cup almonds and a banana.
[/quote]

  1. wake up earlier and shove an omelette in your mouth, including all of your favorite cheeses
  2. i guess raw broccoli is ok… dip that bitch in some ranch sauce and have a side of trail mix with that.
  3. throw in another protein shake somewhere
  4. 2 whole bananas with protein shake

thats an extra 800 calories, at the least

#14

[quote]chimera182 wrote:
tigertron wrote:
chimera182 wrote:
Not trying to be a dick, but just eat more of what you’re already eating?

yes i understand that eating more is the solution…i suppose i should clarify. I was looking at more specific approaches. It is very easy for someone to say eat X amount of chicken breasts a day…but it wasn’t until someone suggested i cook all my meat (and food) on one day, and store it that i was able to easily accomplish the goal of eating the required amount of meat. As I’m sure you know the more efficient food preparation becomes the easier it is to implement it.

i was also looking to possibly see which meals in particular needed boosting as opposed to say boosting everything by 10% (maybe some need to be boosted 50% some only 5%?)

i suppose the ultimate goal would be to increase caloric intake while either decreasing food preparation time or at the very least leaving it at its current levels.

ill more then likely figure out a solution but i do always like outside input.

Alrighty. You could try adding in protein and carbs around your workout in the form of a shake.
[/quote]

x2

simple, fast & good… do it definitely!

#15

Add a gallon of milk per day. Not joking.

#16

hey thanx for all the suggestions!
I incorperated the 2 tablespoons of peanut butter to my mmorning shake today. I also brought an extra protein shake that i took with my veggie snack as some of you suggested. I’ve also decided to eat some cottage cheese before bedtime. Another 2 tablespoons of peanut butter with my after workout shake and i figure that should be about a 500 cal increase. Hopefully that will be enough of an increase to stimulate some weight gain again.