Desperate attempts to gain mass at any cost can turn into sad consequences. You may achieve some temporary results, but along the way, plant health so much that it would be better to remain just thin. Let's talk about how to gain weight without compromising health and in a reasonable time.

What does "too thin" really mean?

From the point of view of science, being unnecessarily thin means being underweight. This corresponds to a body mass index (BMI) below 18.5.

BMI is equal to a person's weight in kilograms divided by the square of their height in meters. For example, my height is 1.84 meters, and my weight is 107 kilograms. BMI is 31, which means that I have obesity of the first degree.

As you understand, the indicator of BMI is lower than more weight person. The formula is extremely primitive and does not take into account the qualitative composition of these same kilograms. If you are not friends with sports and weigh a centner with a penny, then everything is sad. If, with the same mass, you press one and a half of your weight from the chest, this is a completely different story.

In the case of low weight, BMI is more indicative. It doesn't matter if it's fat or muscle. You don't have either.

According to American studies, only 1% of men are underweight. Among women there are 2.4%. However, gender in this case does not matter, because health problems due to underweight can occur in everyone.

The impact of underweight on health

The problems of fat people are obvious, everyone knows about them. Thin people, except in cases of frank soreness during appearance seem healthy, but scientific studies show a different picture.

Different study methods provide different data. Another study did not show an increase in the risk of premature death due to underweight in women, but clearly found it in men. In any case, men do not need excessive thinness.

"Risk of premature death" is a rather abstract term. For more specifics, it is worth mentioning that underweight provokes a deterioration in the functioning of the immune system, fractures, increases the risk of infections entering the body, contributes to the development of osteoporosis, age-related muscle atrophy, dementia, and also causes problems with fertility (studies,,,,,).

What can cause underweight

Not only genes and heredity. Sometimes this is a very specific disease that a person does not suspect.

• Eating disorders. This includes anorexia nervosa- the intentional desire of a person to reduce their weight as much as possible.
• Problems with the thyroid gland. Hyperthyroidism - an overactive thyroid gland - can lead to unhealthy weight loss.
• Celiac disease, also known as celiac disease, is an acute form of gluten intolerance.
• Diabetes of the first type.
• Infections.

The problems listed above will not go away on their own, and self-medication will hurt even more. Therefore, the first and main advice for a person suffering from a lack of body weight is a visit to the doctor, especially if the signs of weight loss appeared from a certain point in time and did not bother before.

The right way to eat

Perhaps there are more? This is the surest way, but thoughtlessly pouring yourself with sweet drinks, absorbing kilograms of cakes with chebureks, is a guaranteed undermining of health. Outwardly healthy people, without deviations in weight, receive terrible diagnoses, which are usually companions of severe forms of obesity. All because of bad food.

The thesis “there is more” needs to be specified. "Eat more healthy food." That's better. However, even eating exceptionally healthy food, you need to think about the end result. You don't want to just be fat. Yes, and the very concept of "healthy fat" somehow does not fit well in the head. Mass gain in one way or another implies an increase in both fat and muscle tissue, and therefore food alone does not solve the problem. You still have to make friends with the sport, but more on that later.

Calorie surplus

The fundamental law of mass gain is a calorie surplus. Get more calories than you burn. If you ignore this basis, then all other efforts will be in vain.

Finding the point where you reach a calorie surplus is very easy. At first, you will not need anything but food, scales and patience. Every day you need to eat more than yesterday. Don't speed up too much. After some time, you will notice that the body weight graph slowly but surely went up. So you've achieved a calorie surplus.

Now you need to turn to the calorie calculator and find out the numerical value of the daily calorie intake at which your body began to gain weight. Just add up the calorie content of everything eaten per day. Based on this data, you can freely change your diet, focusing on the total calorie content.

If the mass growth has not stopped, then it makes no sense to continue to greatly increase the calorie content. A surplus of 300-500 kcal is enough for a slow, confident weight gain. With an excess of 700-1,000 kcal, you will recover much faster.

At this stage, it is much more important to convince yourself that in the future this approach to nutrition will become the norm for you. In fact, you will have to change the way you think about food for the rest of your life. Psychologically, this is difficult, but without turning a new approach to eating into a habit, all that has been achieved will inevitably be lost.

Protein

Protein is the most important nutrient. Building material for your body and muscles in particular. No matter how you experiment with the menu, it is important to respect the protein rate. Unfortunately, protein is not only the most necessary, but also very satisfying. Increasing the amount of protein in your diet will make it harder for you to meet your calorie intake, but there is an alternative way to achieve desired result does not exist.

When gaining mass, your daily protein intake will be like that of athletes - from 1.5 to 2.2 grams per kilogram of body weight.

Protein-rich foods are always the most expensive, but delicious. Meat, fish, eggs, milk, legumes, nuts. Here are your best friends. There is one hack that makes it easier to achieve the daily protein requirement to the desired value. This is quality sports nutrition. It is also expensive, but whey or multi-component protein between meals and casein before bed will give a very good bonus. In any case, you will come to the sports pit when you start playing sports, but you can get to know this interesting world a little earlier.

Carbohydrates, fats, number of meals

Don't limit yourself to anything. A nice feature of mass gain is complete freedom in choosing food, as long as it is healthy. Do not listen to crazy people talking about the dangers of animal fat. We are omnivores, we need all fats - both animal and vegetable. And complex carbohydrates. Lots of complex carbohydrates.

Try to bring the diet up to 4 grams of complex carbohydrates per kilogram of body weight per day.

Difficult but real. In addition, deliciously cooked porridge is very cool. You should make friends with cereals, pasta, potatoes and bread. And here, too, there is a sports pit hack - gainers. Much has been written about them on specialized sites.

With meals, everything is very simple. The more often, the better. At least three full meals a day with high-calorie snacks in between.

High-calorie foods and supplements

With insufficient appetite, you will start looking for the most high-calorie food. There is a risk of going down to fast food. In fact, there are alternatives. Much more high-calorie and very useful.

A high-calorie food is called a food with a maximum ratio of energy value and mass / volume. Such food takes up little space in the stomach, it is easier to eat.

• Nuts (almonds, walnuts, peanuts).
• Dried fruits.
• Fatty dairy products.
• Vegetable oil (olive and avocado oil).
• Cereals.
• Fat meat.
• Potato.
• Dark chocolate.
• Avocado.
• Peanut butter.

Unfortunately, the desire to maximize the calorie content of the diet will force you to limit yourself to vegetables, but in any case, do not give them up completely.

When choosing fruits, try to pay attention to those that need to be chewed less.

A little more about food

• Eating more is easier if you eat more often.
• Do not drink before meals, leave room for food.
• Want to drink? Try milk instead of water.
• The larger the plate, the smaller the amount of food on it seems.
• Coffee tastes better with cream.

Power sports

Excess calories allow you to gain weight. The only question is where you want to see these kilograms. In the sides or in the muscles? If you like the latter, then welcome to the world of sports for the skinny .

Sport, no matter how you feel about it, is an equally important factor in proper mass gain. Suffice it to say that sport greatly increases appetite, and you really want to learn how to eat more.

First we go to the doctor and make sure that there are no serious obstacles to playing sports. No one is forcing you to break records right away. Power sports are measured progress. You will do fewer sets and reps, but with more weight.

Naturally, we must not forget about cardio, but in your case, the emphasis will be on strength training. The emphasis on cardio is all about burning calories, and you don't need to waste energy.

If funds permit, it is best to first contact professional trainer. He will explain and show the basics, and over time you yourself will begin to understand everything.

If you are reading this article, then you have a desire gain muscle mass. Maybe you just want To gain weight, but, as a rule, the weight that you want is precisely in the muscles. In any case, you are ready to determine the number of calories you need to reach your goal. Super!

Before we move on to the theoretical part, let's recap a little of what you already know:

• To gain weight or muscle mass, you need to run a calorie surplus.
• A calorie surplus refers to the number of calories that are above your maintenance level. (Muscles don't come out of the blue. It takes extra calories to build muscle tissue.)
• You may have already determined your maintenance level (as mentioned earlier, the easiest way to calculate your "maintenance level" is to multiply your weight by 30 and 40 depending on your daily activity).

Now that you know your maintenance calorie level, you need to determine how many calories you need to consume daily to increase muscle mass.

I mean the number of calories to be consumed on top.

Let's figure it out...

Creating an optimal calorie surplus

Although your initial goal is muscle growth, you need to keep two goals in mind when creating an optimal calorie surplus:

1. muscle gain
2. Fat reduction

In this regard, there are 2 main factors that determine the optimal calorie surplus:

1. A calorie surplus must be substantial to increase muscle mass;
2. Calorie surplus should be small to reduce body fat.

As you can see, there are some limits on the amount of muscle mass that can be created. human body. This means that there are certain limits on the number of calories your body can take in.

If you consume more calories than your body needs, they will be stored in body fat, not muscle.

For this reason, you need to avoid large calorie surpluses.

At the same time, if the calorie surplus is insufficient, then the muscles will not form at all, or will grow incredibly slowly.

This means that a calorie surplus needs to be defined very clearly. Below are my recommendations that are suitable for most people…

How many calories do you need to consume daily to gain muscle mass?

• Optimal calorie surplus for MEN: 250 calories per day.
• Optimal calorie surplus for WOMEN: 125 calories per day.

Let's take a closer look…

• Men: 250 extra calories per day
  For example, if you are a 2000 calorie maintenance male, you should consume 2250 calories daily to gain muscle mass. Regardless of your maintenance level, you need to add 250 calories daily.
• Women: 125 extra calories per day
  For example, if you are a 2000 calorie maintenance girl, then you need to consume 2125 calories daily to build muscle mass. At any maintenance calorie level, you need to add 125 calories.

Determine your maintenance calorie level and calculate what kind of calorie surplus you need to create. Have you already done this? Great. This is exactly the number of calories you need to consume daily!

Make sure you write down this number.

The extra calories you consume above this value only add extra weight, fewer calories do not give you positive results.

Therefore, this number represents a calorie surplus that will help you most quickly and effectively achieve muscle growth and minimize the chances of gaining excess weight.

Of course, the main reason for creating a calorie surplus is even weight gain.

You ask, is there a norm for increasing muscle mass?

Here she is…

Rate of weight gain

You must understand that if you have correctly identified a calorie surplus and consume daily required amount food, then you will gain weight evenly.

Norm is the optimal value. If you transcend it, then you form body fat. If you do not get the required value, then you do not gain muscle mass.

What is the norm for gaining muscle mass?

Norm of gaining muscle mass for men and women

Men should set a goal of gaining 250 grams per week (or 1 kilogram per month). Women who want to gain muscle mass should gain 125 grams per week (or 500 grams per month).

It's clear? Great. Now let's see how it works.

How do you know if you're eating the right amount of calories?

Let's go back a little. Now you know the optimal calorie surplus. You also know your maintenance level and the number of calories you need to consume to gain muscle mass.

You know what is a uniform set of muscle mass.

All that's left to do is make sure your calculations are correct and everything works.

All you need to do is start eating the required number of calories daily, weigh yourself once a week (in the morning on an empty stomach) and monitor the results.

Depending on your results, which vary from week to week, you need to take the following steps:

• Are you gaining weight evenly? If so, then congratulations. Keep eating the same amount of calories and make sure your workout is smart and efficient (how to write an effective workout program). The best results are waiting for you!
• Are you losing weight or maintaining the same weight? If this is the case, then the calorie surplus is too low (or does not exist at all), so it needs to be increased. Simply add 250 calories to your maintenance level (if this moment you consume 2500 calories, take 2750 calories) and then monitor the results over the next two weeks. Come back to this step later and take appropriate action.
• Are you gaining weight too fast? If so, then your calorie surplus is too high and needs to be reduced. Just remove 250 calories from your diet (if you are currently consuming 2500 calories, take 2250 calories) and then watch for changes. Depending on your results, follow the correct instructions.

In general, weigh yourself once a week in the morning on an empty stomach and keep notes.

If you gain weight evenly, then everything is perfect. If not, then add or subtract 250 calories from the amount you currently consume. Everything is simple.

What if I hit a plateau and stop gaining weight?

Depending on the amount of muscle mass desired, it is possible that some people may reach an extreme point where they can no longer develop further.

If this happens (and continues for several weeks), guess what needs to be done? Yes that's right. Increase your calorie intake again by 250 (for men) and 125 (for girls) and watch your weight gain.

And at the same time, the most important part of your nutrition program is done!

What's next?

Now you know how many calories you need to consume per day to gain muscle mass. It's time to figure out where to get those calories from.

First of all, it is protein, which is the second important component of any nutrition program for muscle growth. Let's see why this is so, and what you need to consume ...

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Over 60 scientific studies were reviewed for this article. Even with a large calorie deficit, an increase in muscle mass is possible, but it all depends on many factors.

So, to begin with, a summary in the form of a table. If you exercise regularly, research suggests that you can gain both muscle mass and strength. Moreover, the higher your fitness and lower the percentage of fat, the more difficult it is to lose fat and gain muscle on a calorie deficit.

* The data in the table is based on scientific studies, but it is important to understand that studies are averaged and not 100% of cases are confirmed in practice. The end result depends on many factors, but the most important ones are age, gender, training level, calorie deficit, body fat percentage, sleep volume, quality of recovery, how much cardio you do and genetics.

Can you gain muscle on a calorie deficit?

1. We can lose muscle mass in a calorie deficit without strength training. (Villareal et al., 2016). However at strength training calorie deficit does not lose muscle mass(Stiegler and Cunliffe 2006 ; Miller et al., 2013 ; Churchward-Venne et al., 2013 ; Trexler et al., 2014 ; Helms et al., 2014a ; Helms et al., 2014b ; Murphy et al., 2014 ; Hulmi et al., 2016).
2. Needed to maintain muscle mass small calorie deficit - about 500 kcal / day(Garthe et al., 2011; ; Trexler et al., 2014 ; Helms et al., 2014a ; Murphy et al., 2014 ; Khodaee et al., 2015 ; Manore et al., 2015 ; Hulmi et al., 2016 ). However, if the calorie deficit is very large, this leads to more muscle atrophy (Chaston et al., 2007).
3. Back to the question of drastic calorie reduction: there is a long list of negative effects due to rapid loss weights – hormonal, psychological and physiological 2016 ; Aloui et al., 2016 ; Hulmi et al., 2016).
4. To maintain muscle mass, you need to eat a high protein diet.. Some studies advise 1.5-1.8 g of protein per 1 kg of body weight per day, in some more than 2 g per 1 kg (Stiegler and Cunliffe 2006 ; Wycherley et al., 2012 ; Churchward-Venne et al., 2013 ; Pasiakos et al. ., 2013 ; Phillips, 2014 ; Trexler et al., 2014 ; Helms et al., 2014 ; Helms et al., 2014a ; Murphy et al., 2014 ; Manore et al., 2015 ; Kim et al., 2016 ; Hulmi et al., 2016).

Again, the contribution of genetics should also be mentioned. Scientific research prove that the results of different people on the same load vary greatly.

For example, how different was the increase in muscle mass (in%) among athletes over 12 weeks of training.

On the graph on the left - athletes who ate controlled with a calorie surplus, on the right - ate in their usual mode (as they like). Study: Garthe et al., 2012

Scientists explain such a different result precisely by a genetic predisposition. A large number of studies have shown that the reaction of different people to the same training is different and that there are those who gain muscle mass well and those who do not, regardless of other conditions.

Calorie deficit with low body fat

If you are on a calorie deficit and at the same time with a low percentage of fat (for men, for example, this is less than 7-10%, see more here), then you will most likely lose muscle mass. For women, the critical percentage of fat is much higher.

There is a study in which women, in the course of preparing for bodybuilding competitions, still lost not only fat, but also muscle on a calorie deficit. This is due not only to high fitness, but also to the achievement of a very low percentage of fat for women - athletes have reached 12% or less.

For comparison, girls with anorexia have an average body fat percentage of 9-13% (Mayo-Smith, 1989; Mayer et al., 2005).

Some experts draw a parallel: 12% body fat in women is roughly equivalent to 4% body fat in men.

Separately, it should be said that an extremely low percentage of fat is extremely unhealthy, but this is a separate issue.

This graph shows how fat mass (blue bars) and muscle mass (beige) changed in 27 female athletes in preparation for a bodybuilding competition.

As can be seen from the graph, all the girls, being on a calorie deficit, significantly reduced fat reserves, but only 7 out of 27 managed to increase muscle mass.

How to most effectively gain muscle and burn fat in a surplus

Calorie surplus is considered a faithful companion of all who want to gain muscle mass. Moreover, the greater the surplus, the better the muscles grow. However, with too much excess calories, along with muscles, fat also grows well.

Look at the huge difference in fat gain between those who ate 3600 kcal/day (white bars) and 3000 kcal/day (black bars), while the difference in muscle gain is relatively small:

In general, research suggests that the more calories and the more protein you consume, the better the muscles grow.

These graphs show muscle growth (vertical scale) versus calorie intake (first graph) and protein intake:

), "Macronutrient surplus & “massing” for lean gains".
translation and adaptation: Znatok Ne | 2017

The size of the target surplus will depend on individual skill levels, NEAT levels, and the nature of the training program itself.

Beginners who have elevated levels of NEAT, and also those who have a fairly intense or voluminous training program tend to get less fat in a more aggressive calorie surplus (approximately 400-800 kcal/day).

Experienced athletes close to low body fat values, or close to maximum muscle volume (the so-called "genetic limit"), as a rule, receive less fat gain, with a smaller surplus (200-400 kcal / day), but with adjusting for individual daily NEAT (i.e. if NEAT levels are quite high, it is possible that such people will need a slightly larger surplus).

It is always worth assessing the situation relying on the individual factors of the athlete. We may meet people who do not fit into the aforementioned framework. Some beginners may need a smaller surplus, while some experienced athletes may need a more aggressive surplus to “move forward”.

But if you follow a simple guiding principle: "Body weight gain per month, should not be more than 1-1.5% of total body weight", then this will minimize the receipt of excess body fat. More experienced athletes may need to focus on even lower rates of monthly body weight gain (perhaps almost 2 times less) in order to minimize the increase in fat mass against the background of a more accurate increase in MM. But again, for more accurate values, it is still important to be guided by the individual response of the body to these interventions.

The very same surplus, after you set your rate of protein and dietary fat, should be predominantly carbohydrate. This will have more potential for maintaining an anabolic environment as well as improving the quality of training.

Those athletes who prefer to train with a surplus due to a significant proportion of dietary fat, it is more correct to focus mainly on polyunsaturated fatty acids, because. PUFAs, in light of recent studies, show superior potential over saturated fats in terms of raising liver triglycerides and gaining visceral fat(i.e., PUFAs are less likely to stimulate such accumulations compared to mono-saturated fats).

Those athletes who prefer to form their calorie surplus primarily by increasing the proportion of protein in the daily diet (above the recommended values) should understand that this is unlikely to provide any adequate increase in muscle mass, moreover, it may be an obstacle to eating the required surplus calorie intake, due to the effect of "increased satiety of protein products", as well as due to the higher TEF (thermic effect of food) of protein. Well, such a diet, of course, will simply be more expensive for you in terms of money.

Just as many diets fail for a number of reasons, mass eating often fails due to mistakes made by beginners. Perhaps the most common is a lack of calories in the diet.

Nutrition for mass: lack of calories

Barring improper training (which can also be a problem in this case), not eating enough is the number one reason you can't gain mass. And this applies even to those who claim that they eat "tons", but at the same time do not add a single gram of weight. However, there is an opinion that "hardgainers" most often tend to undereat, but overtrain, which is actually true.

If you observe the regime of these "gluttons", it turns out that they do not eat so much! Research shows that overweight people tend to underestimate the amount of food they get. That is, they think they are getting much less than they actually are. But in my experience, hardgainers tend to overestimate their daily/weekly calories by eating less than they think. Nutrition by weight is thus not much different from a regular diet.

These athletes can eat a huge amount of food in one meal, but always make up for it with a sharp reduction in calories for the rest of the day/next day. Thus, they do not exceed the recommended number of calories consumed for mass gain. The jocks create the illusion of overeating.

Causes of undernutrition

poor appetite

Some people may simply not have enough appetite to get as many calories as they might need to gain muscle mass. Yes, and in principle for weight gain. When they try to increase their daily caloric intake even a little, their appetite only worsens, which forces them to cut calories again. This means that the body has an increased metabolic rate and burns more calories than the average person under the same conditions. This phenomenon can be called "heat generation without physical activity» ( non-exercise activity thermogenesis).

But the simple fact is that if these "big eaters" were to actually consume as much food as they think they would, they would certainly be covered in some amount of fat. And when "nutrition for mass" is not in surplus, there can be no talk of muscles. Even if a jock is sure that he overeats, but still does not gain weight, I know for sure: he is still not eating enough.

Fear of gaining fat

And, since I'm talking about fat, I must mention another very common mistake of mass nutrition - the fear of gaining even a gram. excess fat. However, some fat gain is inevitable. And this must be accepted as a fact. Athletes, pursued by this fear, deliberately keep their caloric intake at the lowest possible level, and then they are very surprised that muscles are not synthesized from the air. It is no longer worth talking about those individuals who understand nutrition for mass as a set of lean muscles and burning fat at the same time.

Pure physiological fact: to increase muscle mass, training stimulation is not enough, you also need “building blocks” for building new tissue. This requires not only a sufficient amount of protein, but also a sufficient amount of calories and energy. Of course, it would be ideal if this energy were released directly from our fat cells, but this rarely happens (exceptional cases for those who have just started training / returned to training after a long break).

At the same time, there are diets (such as mine Ultimate Diet 2.0 and other "intermittent fasting" regimens that allow people to increase and maintain muscle while remaining "dry". However, ways to minimize the appearance of fat during mass gain is a topic for a separate article. During high-calorie periods (in Ultimate Diet 2.0 this is the weekend), you provide your body with energy for further muscle gain.

And now, despite the fact that this is a slightly different topic, I ask trainees not to go to extremes and not eat "as much as possible." Gaining a disproportionate amount of fat due to overeating is just as stupid a mass-gaining mistake as undereating.

If you are not a sumo wrestler or a lineman, the fat will eventually leave you. And the more you gain it when gaining mass, the longer you will have to diet to get rid of it. And not only is it hard psychologically, but there is also a risk of losing hard-earned muscle mass (especially if you dry yourself incorrectly).

Gain muscle, not fat

The trick is to consume enough calories to ensure muscle growth, but not become covered with a dense layer of fat. And it can be quite difficult if you do not know some of the nuances, which I will now explain.

Fitness magazines claim that building 220g of muscle per week is the limit for a straight woman, about 110g for a woman. Exceptions are very rare.

And, although 220g per week did not sound very impressive, in a year you will gain 10.5 kg of lean muscle mass. Most athletes don't grow as fast in their first year of training.

However, gaining muscle is also accompanied by gaining fat, the amount of which is determined by what your calorie surplus is. This will most likely be around 220g per week, so total weight gain will be around 440g per week and 1760g per month. Half will be muscle, half fat.

You can include diet cycles to immediately drive off the gained fat. Many people use the system Rapid Fat Loss Handbook for getting rid of fat between short periods of meat gathering.

I should add that you should not create an excessive calorie surplus. My guess is that you won't burn off that excess by sweating for hours on the treadmill. Therefore, I advise you to add no more than 500 kcal in excess of the recommended rate to maintain the fastest possible muscle growth. It is best to make the most high-calorie days around training (the day before training, the day of training and the day after). This will help you keep your fat gain in check.

Of course, your regimen should be adjusted based on observations of changes in your body. If you are not growing at all, you need to increase the daily calorie content, if you are gaining fat too quickly, reduce it.