How Can Girls Gain Weight?

Girls are becoming more involved in sports and athletic activities that may mean they must gain weight to qualify for certain weight classes. Even when the aforementioned is not the case, girls may simply want to be able to fill out their clothes better through small amounts of weight gain. As many females are generally more familiar with weight loss tactics rather than adding pounds, gaining some knowledge on weight gain for girls specifically may be necessary.

Types

• There are only two major ways to gain weight and those are through fat and muscle. You may say that you don't care what type of weight you put on as long as you have some, but choosing which one is right for you may have some added benefits. There are benefits to gaining fat weight and muscle weight in order to tilt the needle on the scales.

Time Frame

• Weight gain should be approached with an enduring mentality. Slow and steady increase of calories over the course of 7 to 10 days will help your body adjust to the extra nutrients. You should increase your caloric intake to between 500 to 1000 more calories daily than your current average daily diet to begin to add weight. You should gain weight slowly, not surpassing more than 4 pounds a week to maintain good health and to allow your skin time to stretch while minimizing stretch marks.

Practices

• Eating five to six meals a day, including snacks between the three main meals will help you speed your metabolism. This will help to keep you healthy and give you more chances to sneak in the much needed calories into your diet. Having extras such as sauces, glazes, dressing, syrup and gravy can help to add calories seamlessly. You can also consider having milk, shakes, smoothies or juice with your meals instead of water.

Considerations

• Going to the gym and lifting some weights will help to add some lean muscle to your body. The benefits of adding leaning muscle weight to your body are that lean muscle helps to burn more fat and is heavier than fat for gaining purposes. On the other hand, you should also consider your body type when deciding what type of muscle gain you want. If you know that you will bulk up like the Incredible Hulk when lifting weights, then you should consider gaining healthy fat weight. Healthy fat weight can be gained by consuming healthy fats such as those that come from milk, fish and nuts.

Warning

• Ensure that if you intend on gaining muscle weight that you consume enough lean proteins to support their healthy recovery, growth and function. You will also need to ensure that you are getting between seven to nine hours of sleep nightly as a growing girl. Drinking 64 oz. of non-caffeinated fluids is still necessary in order for proper hydration. You should always consult a doctor before any new diet and exercise routine.