How to Gain Weight if You're a Girl

With obesity on the rise, losing weight seems to be a common goal for a large part of the population. For those on the other end of the spectrum who wish to do the opposite, the method to reach your weight gain goal is simple. As long as you do not have a health condition that prevents you from maintaining a healthy weight, gaining weight for a girl is fairly straightforward: You must consume more calories than your body is able to utilize each day.

Things You'll Need

• Calculator

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Instructions

• 1

  Calculate your resting metabolic rate (RMR). You must know approximately how many calories your body burns each day at rest to design a weight-gain program that will suite you. Their are many RMR calculators online that will help girls to determine this number. Your RMR is typically based on your gender, age, height and weight.

• 2

  Factor in your activity level. This is a crucial step when a girl determines her caloric needs because being active requires the body to exert energy and thus burn more calories. For example: if you are sedentary you may multiply your RMR number by 1.2, whereas if you are extremely active you may multiply your RMR number by 1.9.

• 3

  Create a menu plan that consists of at least 500 calories more per day. For example: If you calculate that your resting metabolic rate is 1303, and after you factor in your moderate activity level you find that you actually utilize 2,020 calories, then you will need to consume 2,520 calories per day. In general, one pound of body weight is equivalent to 3500 calories, so eating an extra 500 calories per day will cause you to gain approximately one pound a week.

• 4

  Re-adjust your plan as needed. If you find that you would like to gain more or less weight per week, then simply adjust your caloric intake to meet your goals. Be mindful that as you gain weight, your caloric needs will change. In addition, if you obtain more muscle, and or your activity level changes, your caloric needs will also need to be adjusted as a direct result.