How To Gain Weight | Ways To Gain Weight

Hey everyone

Today I am going to talk about my journey of “blessed with the healthy normal body – sickly thin – gradually gaining normal weight”. Let me give a brief intro about my body type and height. I stand at 5’7” and during my 12^th std, I used to weigh around 51 kgs. Chubby cheeks, 28 waistline, normal eating habits, zero exercises. Then started college, and with it came along erratic lecture timings, skipping breakfast became a routine and I started eating unhealthy junk food and started losing weight. I remember eating just one masala dosa till 4 o clock. My friends started saying how I am looking leaner and my cheekbones are so well defined now. My waist size reduced to 26, I was looking leaner and umm better. but then that din stop at that I started losing weight and hair at an alarming rate. Very soon those cheeks became hollow and oh so cute dimples started looking too deep to be cute :(.My weight during my final year was 40 kgs and my waist size 23. Shudder!!

Root causes of losing weight:

Skipping breakfast. It was my biggest mistake.
Staying hungry for hours at a stretch.
Suppressing hunger by drinking water.
Zero exercises.
Not CARING that I am looking like an almost bald ghost. :O

My body was giving me signals for a long, but I didn’t pay much attention. My lush mane started deserting my scalp; my normal glowing skin became dry and stretchy. My calf muscles used to ache a lot and there were frequent cramps. My periods became irregular; imagine chums in every 15 days. My immunity system went haywire. Every few days I used to get the flu. Then I thought of taking charge of the situation, started with light stretching exercises and ‘Alloo Ke Paranthe’ for breakfast. I even started eating a banana as my mid-day snack. I continued this “I am on a serious weight gain mission diet” for around 2 months with zero results.

Left Pic – Before, Right Pic – After

How To Gain Weight | Ways To Gain Weight

I had to seek medical help. A blood test showed expected results, a very low haemoglobin count. The actual surprise was my thyroid test results. My TSH was high, around 8. Generally increased TSH count means weight gain, delayed periods, in short, all the opposite symptoms. Dr said I cannot eat thyroid medicines. So I started with biotin and iron supplements. My diet changed a lot. I consciously started eating healthy and now after 1 year, I weigh 49 kgs and those dimples are oh so cute again!! Yes, I am vain..:D

My dietician asked me to eat at regular intervals. She made a very scary looking diet chart, which I was sure I won’t follow. So I tweaked a little and now I have my own healthy diet plan.

My daily routine:

7:00 am wake up –

Getting up a little early helps a lot. Freshen up! Drink a glass of water. And then I go to the terrace for some fresh air and light stretching. At times I do yoga (basic Pranayam and Bhramari) or I just do some jogging/ brisk walking for 15 mins. When I am not in a mood to do any such thing then I just put on some music and do some energetic dancing.

Breakfast

one small plate Poha along with cheese sandwich or idli and a bowl of fruit or Alloo Parantha with yoghurt followed by a cup of tea.

11 am- fruit time

(Apple, banana or pear) and my protein shake. Amway protein powder is one thing that has seriously helped me a lot. I have tried many protein powders and biscuits, but this one wins hands down. I hate its taste with milk. So I mix it with juice and gulp it down. It keeps me full but at the same time doesn’t kill my desire for lunch.

2 pm: Lunch-

(Chapati, curry, salad and some sweet) Yes eating something sweet helps put on weight. I love Motichur laddu. yum!

6 pm:

That is when I come home from work. I binge on Maggi or besan chilla or something hot and spicy with my evening cup of tea.

9 pm: Dinner-

Dinner comprises of one big bowl of dal and 2 chapatis along with whatever sabzi mummy has made.

I know my diet should end with milk. But I don’t really like the taste of milk, so skip it most of the times. I keep changing it here and there. Let’s say I am bored of fruits then I start with dry fruits. At times I have sinful cheesy sandwiches for my evening snack and skip dinner. I am a human and I LOVE cheese. But I always make sure I am eating at regular intervals and I am always energetic. J

So that’s all about it! All we need is a little bit of motivation; I made a rule for myself. One kilo gain equals one lipstick. That certainly helped a LOT.