Too Skinny but Scared to Gain Weight? Do This

So you have a problem. You are too skinny but scared to gain weight. This is an issue that I used to have, and I was able to overcome it.

In this article, we are going to go over what it is going to take for you to put on some weight. You will realize that it is not nearly as bad as you think. It’s not like 50 pounds is going to magically appear on your body.

To put this into perspective, it took me 3 years to gain 70 pounds. And then from there, I was able to lose 25 of those pounds in 6 months.

Our society as a whole is obsessed with weight loss. You see it in our media, and you see it in our culture. So from a young age, we are taught that putting on weight is bad. This makes sense, considering that 73.6% of the U.S. population is overweight.

So for people like us that struggle to put on weight, we are also struggling with the concept mentally because of our society.

This of course is all just part of the game, and you will soon realize that with the same principles you learn to gain weight, you can lose weight.

Calculate everything

It doesn’t matter if you think you know how much you are eating. It’s time to step up and realize the only way that you are going to get what you want is through calculating everything.

If you are too skinny but scared to gain weight, your best defense is going to be to know exactly what you are eating.

Tons of people have asked me the secret to losing weight. The second I tell them that counting your calories is the key to success, they get a glazed look over their eyes. They don’t want to do it.

Unfortunately our media and culture has ingrained in us that everything should be easy, and counting calories is for suckers.

I can tell you right now, that if I never started counting my calories, I never would have gained an ounce.

The first step here is to understand what your maintenance calorie number is. Your maintenance calorie number is the amount of calories that your body burns per day without losing weight or gaining weight.

Knowing this number is the most important part of counting calories. Why? Because from here, you can start eating at a caloric surplus. A caloric surplus is when you eat over your maintenance calorie number every single day in order to put on weight.

It might seem scary at first, but start with a number like 500 calories per day over maintenance. At this rate, you shouldn’t gain more than a pound per week. Think about that. A pound per week.

If you are too scared to gain weight, a pound per week is very manageable. In fact, if it becomes too much, just lower your caloric surplus. Or if you want to drop back down, go into a caloric deficit.

Monitor incremental changes

You already know you need to count your calories, so you might as well take it to the next level and monitor everything else.

This comes in the form of taking weight measurements, using a body measuring tape to measure your waist, arms, and thighs, and taking pictures.

When you are weighing yourself, always do it at the same time. For example, I weigh myself every Sunday morning after urinating and before drinking or eating anything. This ensures the most accurate weight measurement for your body.

Taking body measurements with a measuring tape is going to help you see where you are gaining the extra weight. It’s important to take down these measurements at least once a month.

They might seem small and insignificant now, but when you take a look at them in a year, you will be happy that you took down those measurements.

Lastly, take pictures. This is something that I wish I would have done at the beginning of my journey. I was so embarrassed with how skinny I was, that I just decided to skip taking pictures. Now I have to rely on grainy old pictures of me that are hard to come by.

By combining all of these together, you will be able to find the extra motivation to keep going.

When I finally decided to take pictures, I was already well on my way to where I am today. And you will find that you will go through peaks and valleys of motivation. But all of these little wins are going to propel you to keep going.

Workout regularly

You know that you are too skinny but scared to gain weight. But if you do decide it is time to gain weight, where are those extra calories going to go?

Eating at a caloric surplus is going to ensure that you gain weight. But if you don’t workout regularly, the extra calories are just going straight to fat stores. You might as well take advantage of the extra calories and build some muscle!

There is a major difference between the workouts you want to do when you are gaining weight vs the workouts you do when you want to lose weight.

When you are gaining weight to build muscle, you want to stick to weight training instead of cardio or HIIT workouts. Cardio will help you burn extra calories, which you don’t need right now.

And you also don’t want to workout everyday. You want to make sure that you are working out at least 3-5 days per week. I personally workout 4 days a week, which is plenty if you have the time.

Be sure to check out our app for FREE workout plans. All Workouts: Personal Trainer (iOS | Google Play).

If you don’t like apps, you can always check out our beginner bodybuilding routine for mass.

My main tip for working out is that you are consistent and don’t think it doesn’t matter. Everything you do in life matters. And making the decision to gain weight when you are too skinny is a great move.

It improved my confidence, outlook on life, and much more.

Main Point: Too skinny but scared to gain weight?

As you can see, if you are too skinny but scared to gain weight, there are plenty of options for you. You just need to commit and make the decision for yourself to be the best version of you.

The first step on your journey is learning what your maintenance calories are, and going from there. From here you can count your calories and eat at a caloric surplus.

Don’t be too afraid of counting your calories. Yes, there is a learning curve, but once you get over that hump, you will realize that it isn’t very difficult to incorporate into your life.

We also have to be aware that monitoring your weight, measurements, and taking photos is a great way to keep yourself motivated. You can look back at these measurements, and see the massive progress that you have made.

It is also important to note that this takes time to see the progress. Some days, you might weigh yourself and you could be down in weight. Others, you might be higher than you thought you would be.

The key is just that you stick to your goals and make adjustments along the way. You want to see incremental change, not a giant spike.

Lastly, we need to be aware that if we are eating at a caloric surplus, we are either going to be storing fat or building muscle. So you might as well take advantage of that surplus and build some muscle.

This is something that you will never regret doing. Whether you are a man or a woman, putting on muscle is going to give you confidence and satisfaction with the results.

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