CraftLass

Hi! I'm new (literally joined to post this message) here and am always looking for weight gain advice, although right now I'm just under my perfect weight at 94 lbs. My doctor likes me to be about 95-97 as I have a very small frame and am only 5' tall, anything over 100 makes me a little pudgy (which I hit exactly once). Oh, and I'm 32 now, past the age where everyone seemed to think I'd balloon, which was completely inaccurate! LOL

I have the same problem as the OP, I can eat anything from the healthiest food to the junkiest and not gain weight. In fact, in times where I was living on the road and therefore subsisting mostly on junk for the convenience factor, I lost weight like crazy. It's so upside-down and utterly frustrating!

The only thing that really helps me is exercise. If I don't exercise strenuously I hover around 90-92 lbs and sometimes less. If I'm completely sedentary (I've had a few injuries and illnesses that rendered me bed-ridden) I get scary skinny, like 70-75 lbs, no matter how much I eat.

So, how did I get so close to my goal? I'm exercising 5 or 6 days a week. I start with yoga, then every other day I do an intense cardio routine and the days in-between I do a short cardio warm-up (about 10-15 min) and then work on strength training. I try to mix up exactly how I get those types of exercise in, utilizing the Wii balance board (with WiiFit, Jillian Michaels' Fitness Ultimatum, and Wii Sports), exercise DVDs, Pilates, dancing, and just going out to play sports whenever I have the chance. This way I keep myself from getting bored or into a rut, which makes me stop exercising. It takes a lot of discipline to keep it up, especially as a busy entrepeneur, but I find that I work far more efficiently when I've gotten my exercise, so it actually saves me time to spend an hour being active. Strength training is the only way to control your shape at all, we can't control where fat ends up and you don't want to end up skinny with random flabby parts, which can happen quite easily if you only focus on calories added to your diet. On that note, it's really important to work out the whole body, overly targeted training can create muscular imbalance which is the easiest way to injure yourself.

Two key elements that make the exercise most effective are eating a good meal with lots of protein right after my post-workout shower and taking a day or two off to heal each week. This allows the body to repair itself and build muscle. In fact, I take one day completely off per week - no business, no exercise, minimal housework - and do something fun with my boyfriend and/or friends. It has lowered my stress level immensely, which I know has contributed to my recent weight gain. Just the normal levels of stress we carry from living in this modern world is enough to send us underweights spiralling, you know?

I also don't own a car now, as I live in a city, and walk, bike, or rollerblade almost everywhere instead of taking a bus or train. It's amazing how much light exercise you can get if you just cut down on driving! As someone who used to drive to the mailbox it's an adjustment, but a wonderful one. Even when I rent a car I try to park across the lot from stores and such, to add some activity without taking up a lot more time.

As for food, I eat small meals but graze a lot. I prefer healthy snacks, my absolute favorite is an apple, some nuts or trail mix, and a hunk of cheddar or similar cheese. Lots of protein, natural carbs, and absolutely delicious! Still, I do enjoy to the fullest my ability to eat as much cake, pie, or other sweets as I wish, although I try to make my own instead of buying them, so I really know what's inside. Baking is a wonderful stress-relief activity, too!

I'm sorry this was so long, but I really relate to this problem and I know it's very hard to find information and support on healthy weight gain when most people are struggling with the opposite issue. I'm no expert, just a big reader, a former serious athlete, and a person who has tried pretty much everything to gain. As with weight loss, there are no quick fixes or easy answers.

One more thing - my parents thought I was anorexic (which I've never been - I LOVE food far too much) and dragged me to doctors and nutritionists all the time as a teen. I got the same advice from all of them - listen to your body. If you really pay attention, you'll notice your cravings are usually for exactly what it needs. Eat whenever you get hungry at all and try to satisfy your cravings at every opportunity. When I really follow that advice I always seem to end up healthier!