7 Practical Foods Choices to make if you want to Gain Weight

What do you think of when you hear the word “Diet”?

Often, we think of losing weight. Yet the word diet really stems from the latin word for “way of life”. Our diet is simply the way we eat – the choices we make when it comes to food.

Our diet can be used for both losing weight and gaining weight! Today I will discuss how our food choices can help us to gain weight.

Check out my previous article to find out if you may benefit from weight gain.

So what can we eat to help us gain weight?

Eat carbohydrate foods with every meal.

Carbohydrate foods are foods such as cereals, potatoes, bread, pasta, rice and crackers. These are energy foods that help provide us with quick energy.

Take a protein food with at least two meals every day.

Protein foods include meat, poultry, fish, eggs, beans and meat alternatives. Nice ways to include these foods are as a meat filling on a sandwich, a portion of meat with our potatoes/vegetable dinner or some baked beans on toast.

Include some healthy fats in your diet every day.

These include nuts, oils and seeds, and provide a rich source of energy to help you gain weight.

Choose nutritious snacks.

The list of suitable snacks is endless, but some suggestions might be:

Full fat yoghurts
Glass of full fat milk
Scones with butter and jam
Peanut butter on hot toast
Crackers and cheese
Bowl of custard/mousse/triffle
Chocolate bar
Hummus and peppers/carrots/celery
Dried fruit/ nuts or trail mix
Icecream
Cakes, buns and biscuits
Omelettes
Creamy soup
Milky teas, milky coffees, hot chocolate
A bowl of cereal with full fat milk

Full fat yoghurts
Glass of full fat milk
Scones with butter and jam
Peanut butter on hot toast
Crackers and cheese
Bowl of custard/mousse/triffle
Chocolate bar
Hummus and peppers/carrots/celery
Dried fruit/ nuts or trail mix
Icecream
Cakes, buns and biscuits
Omelettes
Creamy soup
Milky teas, milky coffees, hot chocolate
A bowl of cereal with full fat milk

5. Get more energy from your drinks

Choose drinks with more energy in them. Good drinks to help you gain weight include full-fat milk, smoothies, milkshakes, milky coffees, hot chocolate with creamy, milky tea and juice. Less energy containing drinks include water, sugar free fizzy drinks and black tea/coffee.
1. Add more calories to your meals
Simply add more energy to your already nutritious meals and snacks by adding foods like cheese, honey, sugar, cream, butter, nuts and oils. Good ideas for adding energy to your meals might be:
- Mashed potato with butter and/or cream and/or cheese
- Cream added to soup
- Cheese on top of pasta dishes
- Adding extra healthy oil (such as rapeseed oil) to your stirfries
- Including dried fruit and sugar with your breakfast cereal
- Adding cream and honey to your porridge
- Using yoghurt in your smoothies
1. Talk to a dietitian for personalised advice that suits YOU
Speaking to a dietitian can help you make sure you receive food advice that suits your lifestyle, habits and food preferences. So if you wish to gain weight, getting personalised advice from a dietitian might be the key to realising why you have been unable to gain weight before.
Please be aware that the advice in this article may not suit everyone. If you are concerned about your weight, speak to your GP (General Practitioner) and dietitian for personalised advice.
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