How to Put on Weight & Eat Healthy

Although we live in a diet-crazed world, many people are actually looking for ways to gain weight. Slim people that weigh less than what is recommended for their body type are at a higher risk of developing health conditions related to nutritional deficiency, such as loss of bone density. Others may be recovering from a physical illness. Regardless of the reason, there are a number of steps a person can take to put on weight and eat healthy at the same time. The main focuses are to consume a larger quantity of daily calories from healthy foods and to combine a balanced diet with moderate exercise.

Instructions

• 1

  Keep a food diary for a week. Write down everything you eat and drink, and at what time for an entire week. Make sure to be detailed. This will give you a good idea of your calorie consumption and what types of food you are eating. It also will help you see where you can add calories. To gain approximately 2.2 pounds a month, you'll need to eat an extra 300 calories a day. Check your food labels' calorie per serving and serving size amounts for easy reference.

• 2

  Eat three healthy meals each day. Meals need to include protein, whole grains and vegetables. Use calorie-dense foods in at least one meal. Healthy calorie dense foods include buttery avocado, potatoes, corn, mixed nuts and granola. Try spinach and cheese omelet in the morning with toast, an avocado and turkey wrap for lunch with a serving of fruit and nuts, and a bowl of turkey chili with a side salad for dinner.

• 3

  Add in three healthy snacks throughout the day. Nuts are a great choice, especially almonds. A serving of yogurt or cottage cheese is also a good snack option. Baby carrots or celery sticks are a great source of dietary fiber, which is part of a balanced and healthy diet. Stay away from processed snacks such as chips. These can be high in sodium and many times contain preservatives.

• 4

  Eat more at each meal. Increasing your serving size is one of the easiest ways of adding calories to your diet. You don't have to go as far as eating two plates at every meal-simply adding more food to your plate will do the trick. Reduce your consumption of non caloric beverages such as diet colas which fill you up and offer no nutritional or caloric benefits. Opt for natural fruit juices or organic milk instead.

• 5

  Engage in moderate exercise and weight training. Regular exercise such as walking combined with a moderate amount of weight lifting will help you gain muscle and keep unwanted fat at bay. Aim for at least 30 minutes of activity daily. If you already are very active, you'll need to increase your calorie intake in order to ensure healthy weight gain.