How do you gain weight? Gaining weight healthily with calories and calculations

Gaining weight means: You eat 300 to 500 kcal more every day than your body burns in total. To do this, you eat energy-dense foods and spread them over several smaller meals. Add enough protein, strength training if needed, and patience: This works out to roughly 0.25 to 0.5 kg per week. This is a calculation, not a prediction.

The 0.25 to 0.5 kg is based on the rule of thumb that a surplus of around 7,700 kcal corresponds to one kilo, and this is only a rough approximation. Therefore, assess the progress after a few weeks.

This guide applies to healthy adults. Different values apply to children, adolescents, pregnant and breastfeeding women. If you have lost weight unintentionally, have a doctor check the cause first.

Four figures for orientation:

How many calories to gain weight?

You need a calorie surplus. The basal metabolic rate is the energy your body needs at rest for breathing, heartbeat, and body temperature. The total requirement is the basal metabolic rate times activity factor, PAL. It therefore includes everyday life and exercise. To gain weight, add about 300 to 500 kcal per day. If your total requirement is 2,000 kcal, your target value is 2,300 to 2,500 kcal.

How many calories do I need? The calculation

1. Calculate basal metabolic rate. Mifflin and St Jeor formula. Women: 10 × weight in kg + 6.25 × height in cm − 5 × age in years − 161. Men: the same formula, but + 5 instead of − 161.
2. Choose PAL. The levels are below, based on the DGE.
3. Determine total requirement. Basal metabolic rate × PAL.
4. Set target value. Total requirement + 300 to 500 kcal.

Two calculation examples. Jonas is 24, 182 cm tall, weighs 60 kg, sits mostly and walks occasionally. Erika is 74, 158 cm tall, weighs 47 kg, and is slightly active.

Jonas's 3,100 kcal correspond, for example, to his usual meals plus a shake with whole milk and a handful of nuts. For older people, the ESPEN guideline (European Society for Clinical Nutrition) recommends around 30 kcal per kg of body weight, and 32 to 38 kcal per kg for underweight. That is about 1,410 to 1,790 kcal. Erika's target value of 1,600 kcal lies within this range. Both examples are below the BMI thresholds from the information box further down. If you start like this, have a doctor check it first.

The calorie requirement calculator shows you your personal value. The formula is a guideline: it is within 10% of the measured value for more healthy adults than other formulas, but it is significantly off for some people. There is less measurement data for underweight and older age.

How much do you have to eat to gain 1 kg?

The calorie surplus for 1 kg weight gain is around 7,700 kcal as a rule of thumb. This is the sum of many days, not a single feast. At 500 kcal more per day, you reach it after well two weeks, at 300 kcal after just under four weeks.

The rule of thumb has limits. Studies by Kevin Hall and colleagues show: how much energy corresponds to one kilo depends, among other things, on the body fat percentage. In addition, the body adapts its consumption to weight changes. The work refers mainly to weight loss. Use the table as orientation, not as a promise.

How much can you gain per day and per week?

Per day, at 500 kcal surplus, it is calculated to be only about 65 g. Therefore, a single day shows hardly anything on the scale. Per week, at 300 to 500 kcal, it works out to roughly 0.25 to 0.5 kg. The British health service NHS advises gradually building up the surplus.

What do I have to eat to gain weight?

You need a lot of energy in a small volume. This is achieved with energy-dense foods and small additions that do not make the portion larger. All values are rounded.

This is how you get around 430 extra kcal per day, without making a plate larger:

• 2 tbsp cream in the soup: approx. 90 kcal
• 1 tbsp peanut butter on bread: approx. 90 kcal
• 1 tbsp oil over the vegetables: approx. 90 kcal
• 1 glass of whole milk, 250 ml, as cocoa: approx. 160 kcal

More selection is offered by the Table of high-calorie foods. How you can discreetly enhance dishes is shown in the post Enhancing food.

Drink calories

Milk, cocoa, or a shake between meals bring energy. Do not drink them directly before eating, so that you are still hungry when eating. Which drinks count is shown in the Table of high-calorie drinks. Mixing yourself is possible with the Mass shake recipe or the Recipes for making yourself.

How much protein?

The DGE recommends 0.8 g of protein per kg of body weight for adults, about 1 g from age 65. At 60 kg and 0.8 g per kg, that is 48 g per day. Eggs, dairy products, and cheese deliver protein in addition to energy.

How do I gain weight healthily? Six steps

Gaining weight healthily means: gradually, with normal foods, with a view to the progress.

1. Calculate target value. Total requirement plus 300 to 500 kcal.
2. Distribute meals. Five to six smaller instead of a few large ones. Fixed meal times help with low appetite.
3. Enhance. Oil in soup or vegetables, nut butter on bread, nuts as a snack.
4. Drink calories. Milk, cocoa, or shake between meals.
5. Protein and exercise. Enough protein, strength training for muscle building.
6. Weigh and adjust. For example, once or twice a week, always at the same time of day. If nothing happens after a few weeks, increase the amount in small steps.

Why am I not gaining weight?

Possible reasons:

• Your everyday life is more active than your PAL assumes. Then your total requirement is higher and the surplus is smaller than planned.
• The formula is off for you. It is a guideline.
• Your consumption increases with it. The body adapts it to weight changes.
• You judge too early. What matters is the progress over several weeks.
• You lack an overview. Write down for a few days what you really eat.

Medical food and recipe

For some, the surplus is easier if they drink part of the energy. An overview of shakes and powders is given by the Buying guide for shakes to gain weight.

How do I get medical food on prescription?

If there is disease-related malnutrition and enhancing alone is not enough, medical food can be prescribed on a medical prescription. Whether this applies to you is decided by the doctor. When the health insurance pays is explained in the post Medical food on prescription. For older people and their relatives, there is the Guide to medical food for seniors.

CaloDrink Vanilla is not medical food for healthy people who simply want to gain weight, but for medical needs.

Frequently Asked Questions

Gaining weight is about calculation and perseverance. Start with two or three additions that suit your daily life.