A Woman’s Guide to Gaining Weight

You don’t hear about too many women who want to gain weight. Our society places a great deal of emphasis on having a small and lean body type. But things are changing. Women are becoming interested in gaining weight and it is socially more acceptable to be a woman with curves. If you are a woman who is interested in gaining weight, you will need to know the proper, healthy ways to do it.

Here are three things that you need to know to gain weight in a healthy manner.

Take in more calories

In order to gain weight, you will need to increase the amount of healthy calories that you eat. Many women think they can just do strength training exercises to bulk up, but without the proper nutrition your muscles have nothing to grow with.

Women are bombarded with ads and commercials on a daily basis that encourage them to eat less or even miss meals. This does not help a skinny woman who is looking to add few extra pounds. So forget about these ads. Increase your daily calorie intake by 500-1000 extra calories each day.

Women that are naturally thin have a super quick metabolism, which burns fat and energy fast. By adding additional calories and changing your eating habit to several small meals each day, you will keep your metabolism going at a steady rate and provide your body greater energy.

Embrace weight training

It is customary for women to skip the free weights and weight machines, and go straight to the cardio section of the gym. Since muscle is denser in weight than fat, you will need to pick up the courage to wander over to the free weight section of the gym and start lifting weights. It may be overwhelming at first, but it is a necessary evil. Lifting weights is essential for gaining weight. By training with weights, you will enhance your curves and build muscle.

Minimize your stress

Studies show that stress can decrease a person’s weight. The reason is that when a person is under stress, the body produces a hormone called Cortisol. When Cortisol is released in the body, it feeds off the stored sugar and nutrients. When this happens, the muscles have less energy to grow. The result is weight loss. Conversely, stress can cause the body to retain fat predominately in the midsection. As a result, a typically skinny woman will have a protruding stomach.

Focus on relieving your stress by getting sufficient sleep each night. You can also try taking a hot bath at night, getting a massage or taking a relaxing yoga class at the gym.