Thin people cry too, or how to gain weight quickly and safely

“I'm terribly thin.
With a height of 165 cm, I weigh only 41 kg. I have excellent health and appetite, but I can’t gain weight. Everyone thinks that only fat girls suffer. But it’s hard for skinny people too. I was constantly teased at school. “Stick”, “bony”, “skeleton” - I heard so much from my classmates. In high school, my mother transferred me to another school because I could no longer go to the old one—depression began from constant bullying.

I always thought that with age people become wiser and smarter. But now I'm sure not. Even now, 15 years after school, people I know and don’t know constantly pester me with questions: “Why are you so thin?”, “Do you even eat anything?”, “You’re so thin, do you have cancer?” This is terribly infuriating. All questions and advice are very intrusive and tactless. I’m already tired of telling everyone that I’m healthy, but I can’t gain weight. I have a lot of complexes, I am closed. There is no boyfriend, no children. I try to dress discreetly so that no one notices my thinness.

Yes, I tried to gain weight. I tried to eat only fatty and floury foods. But instead of a beautiful body, I “earned” gastritis and stretch marks on my skin. The gained kilograms quickly disappeared, as if they had never been there. I no longer know what to eat to gain weight. Tired. I want to be a normal girl with beautiful shapes, and not skinny like a teenager.”

— Anna, 32 years old

Many consider thinness to be a gift of fate, so difficulties with weight gain are much less discussed in society. A girl who complains that she can’t gain weight in her hips and waist is unlikely to be understood by her friends. But excessive thinness is not always a conscious choice of a person. In some cases, weight loss can be associated with physical and mental illness. In this article we will look at the causes of underweight. Let's find out how to quickly and safely gain weight for a skinny girl.

Why is thinness dangerous and why do people want to gain weight?

Experts use body mass index (BMI) to determine the degree of weight deficiency in patients. It is not very effective for diagnosing obesity, since it does not take into account the “qualitative composition” of extra pounds - it may not be fat, but strong muscles. But in the case of low weight, BMI is more indicative - the person does not have “extra” fat or muscle tissue.

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BMI is determined by the formula: I = mh2 (kg/m²), where m is body weight (kg), h is height (m). According to the World Health Organization, a BMI below 18.5 kg/m² may indicate dangerous underweight. The situation requires control. [1]

Excessive thinness, like obesity, is bad. Being underweight can bring a lot of health problems to a person:

1. Weak immunity

To fight all kinds of viruses and bacteria, the body needs energy. With a nutritional deficiency, this energy is clearly not enough. Research by American scientists confirms that patients with underweight get sick much more often, and even a “banal” cold lasts longer.

1. Brittle bones

People who are underweight have decreased bone density. As scientists from Italy confirm, this is a risk of fractures with a long process of bone fusion and the development of osteoporosis.

1. Poor condition of skin, hair and teeth

Most underweight people have a lack of vitamins and minerals in their bodies. And this directly affects the condition of hair, skin and nails. The skin takes on an earthy tint. Hair and nails become brittle. Also, research by Korean scientists proves that with low body weight, the risk of tooth loss and the development of caries increases significantly.

1. Constant fatigue

An active life also requires energy. Thin people have less of it, which means they get tired faster even with low physical and emotional stress.

1. Difficulty conceiving a child

Scientists suggest that thin women are more likely to have problems conceiving due to irregular menstrual cycles. The body receives significantly less nutrients, which causes hormonal imbalances.

1. Complexes

It seems that skinny people simply have nothing to gain from. But that's not true. Any flaws in appearance can cause emotional distress and stress. Thin women, like overweight women, often cannot find a partner and relax when communicating with others. Constant emotional stress is a direct road to depression and the development of self-doubt.

In fact

I would not like to upset anyone, but building muscle mass is a rather long and complex process that requires Herculean efforts. I recommend immediately getting rid of illusions and high expectations, otherwise this is fraught with injuries, disappointments, and decreased motivation to play sports.

For a successful result, a beginner needs only 4 things: patience, hard work, discipline and desire. It is almost impossible to calculate weight gain in advance, since it is influenced by several groups of factors, which will be discussed below. However, for convenience, you can rely on average values:

As can be seen from the table, the highest potential for muscle growth is for beginners with 1-2 years of training experience, and for men this figure will be significantly higher than for women. Then the dynamics of muscle mass gain for both sexes will be the same; each next year of training, a man or woman will be able to gain a maximum of up to 50% of the previous year’s weight gain.

Causes of excessive thinness

The main reason for thinness may be the factor that is easiest to correct. This is an active lifestyle in which you burn more energy than your body takes in through food. That is, the frantic pace of life creates such conditions that calories do not accumulate in muscle or fat tissue, as it should be, but are immediately spent on physical activity.

But there are much more dangerous reasons for thinness:

Eating disorders

An eating disorder is a psychogenically determined behavioral syndrome associated with eating disorders. Experts identify several deviations in this area - anorexia nervosa, atypical anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, atypical bulimia nervosa, emotional overeating, psychogenic vomiting, etc.

The main sign of any eating disorder is increased control over your own weight. As a rule, a fierce battle is waged against excess weight - strict diets, induction of vomiting, taking laxatives, hours of training in the gym. Gradually this develops into mania. The weight goes away, but this does not provide emotional comfort. Mental disorder develops numerous complexes and fears. [2]

Each of the eating disorders is a serious problem. If measures are not taken in a timely manner, they may have consequences dangerous for a person’s physical and psychological health. In some cases, people with bulimia and anorexia end up in the hospital exhausted and have severe weight loss that is life-threatening. A person with an eating disorder usually suffers from depression or other mental health problems. Treatment is long and complex. [2]

Patients with eating disorders require the help of a psychologist, since the root of the problem lies in incorrect behavioral attitudes. Try taking the 7Spsy course, which will help you get rid of anorexia, teach you proper nutrition and a healthy attitude towards your body. By changing negative attitudes to positive ones and mastering healthy behavior patterns, you can get rid of the obsessive desire to lose weight. This means that you will put aside all the risks of “undermining” your health and begin to live life to the fullest.

Diseases

In some cases, even with a well-organized diet, the body experiences an acute deficiency of vital nutrients. Something “eats” the incoming vitamins and minerals before they reach the internal organs and systems. Hence the excessive thinness and the girl’s desire to quickly gain weight. This can be a consequence of a number of diseases:

• disorders of the liver, kidneys or digestive system;
• hormonal imbalances;
• gluten intolerance;
• helminth infections;
• cancerous tumors;
• HIV. [1]

If you start losing weight rapidly without changing your lifestyle, be sure to consult a doctor. It is important to find out what is causing weight loss and begin treatment if necessary.

Hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid axis

Under normal conditions, thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH), secreted by the paraventricular nuclei of the hypothalamus, causes the secretion of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) from the anterior pituitary gland, resulting in the thyroid gland producing and releasing thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3). T4 is converted to the more biologically active T3 in peripheral target tissues. Thyroid hormones play an important role in energy expenditure (84, 85). In adults receiving T4 replacement therapy for hypothyroidism, REE was significantly negatively correlated with TSH. And this occurs with small changes in thyroxine dose, even when thyroid hormone levels are maintained within normal limits (84). Part of this increase in REE is possibly caused by uncoupling of respiration in skeletal muscle mitochondria, which occurs when circulating levels of thyroid hormones increase (86). The importance of thyroid hormones for adaptive thermogenesis has been demonstrated in thyroidectomized rats, which exhibit a decrease in temperature when exposed to cold. T4 replacement prevented this effect unless the conversion of T4 to T3 in brown adipose tissue was blocked (87). Energy restriction suppresses the hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid axis in most cases, resulting in decreased TSH secretion in response to TRH, decreased circulating TSH and T3, and increased production of inactive rT3, with variable effects on free and total T4 (72, 88 – 93). Changes in T3, rT3, and T4 return to baseline levels during weight loss maintenance in some (90, 91, 94, 95) but not all (72, 96) studies.

How to quickly, and most importantly, safely gain weight

The reasons why a person seeks to gain weight can be different. But in any case, it is important to make a plan so that the process does not harm your health.

How to gain weight for a skinny girl? The following needs to be done:

1. Consult a doctor

Self-medication is unacceptable. If you are underweight, it is important to exclude possible diseases that contribute to sudden weight loss. So see a therapist. A specialist, taking into account the collected medical history, will be able to recommend measures that will help you gain weight. If necessary, the doctor will give referrals to other specialists - a neurologist, nutritionist, gastroenterologist, oncologist, endocrinologist, gynecologist.

1. Motivate yourself

It is difficult to fight established habits in daily routine and nutrition. But to gain weight you need to do this. To make it easier to reach your goal, motivate yourself.

Buying a beautiful tracksuit, a personal blog on the Internet, subscribing to the accounts of stars and fitness trainers - the motivation can be anything. The main thing is that it “works” in your specific case.

1. Be patient

It is impossible to gain weight quickly at home without harm to your health. Proper weight gain is a long process. So take your time and be more patient. Health comes first.

1. Think over a new diet

Weight gain is a gain of fat and muscle tissue. On the way to your goal, you cannot do without revising your usual diet. Get ready to create a new menu and include foods that you may not have eaten before.

To gain healthy weight, you need to eat right for a long time. This should become your new way of life.

1. Workout

In the gym you not only lose weight, but also gain weight. Sign up for training. Since you will begin to eat more in the future, it is important that the excess calories entering the body are “converted” not only into fat, but also into muscle mass. That's why you can't do without sports.

Consult a specialist. Not all workouts will be beneficial for gaining weight.

Sports supplements for gaining muscle mass for girls

Sports supplements are by no means a prerequisite for the formation of muscle relief. But it will help girls who train a lot, have changed their diet, but are unable to gain muscle. In addition, sports supplements help maintain protein levels throughout the day.

The best choice for building beautiful muscles is a complex protein powder. It contains several types of protein. Another option is a pre-workout supplement called a nitrogen booster, which is used to enhance the effectiveness of your workout. With its help you can also gain muscle.

How to create a menu so that a woman can gain weight?

It is important to think through your diet so that it is as beneficial as possible for the body and gives you energy for productive work and training in the gym.

According to experts, for healthy weight gain it is necessary to exceed the calorie content of the usual diet. But this surplus should not exceed 500 kcal per day. Otherwise, the menu will do more harm than good. A nutritionist will help you create the right diet. [1]

What points to consider when creating a diet for weight gain?

• Increase the size of your usual food portions by a third. If you are not used to this, you can use larger plates. New dishes will “deceive” the brain.
• Eat more often. Make a menu in such a way that there are 4-5 full meals a day.

What should you eat to gain weight? Add more healthy calories to your menu:

• nuts and dried fruits;
• fatty fish;
• meat and poultry;
• fatty dairy products (milk, kefir, cheeses, cottage cheese, yogurt).

If you want to gain weight at home, don’t forget about healthy snacks that will increase the number of calories you consume per day. It is also an additional source of proteins important for the body. Snack on nuts, whole grain bread with hummus or cheese, toast with peanut butter, bran yogurt, fruit salad with sour cream or natural whipping cream.

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Hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis

CRH is released from the PVN in response to stress, and this leads to the release of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) from the anterior pituitary gland and the production of cortisol, mineralocorticoids and androgens in the adrenal glands. Excess cortisol (for example, in Cushing's syndrome) leads to an increase in body weight, in particular central fat deposition. There is a significant correlation between increased appetite and plasma cortisol following a weight loss program in obese men and women (97). A study in rats demonstrated that cortisol inhibits the inhibitory effects of leptin on food intake and appetite (98). Increases in circulatory cortisol and suppression of dexamethasone or diurnal fluctuations in cortisol production have been shown (91, 99 – 102), although not always (103) in lean and obese individuals following reduction in food intake, especially when energy restriction is significant. Changes in cortisol metabolism are reversible upon return to ad libitum food intake (99).

How to train to quickly gain weight for a girl?

Exercise should help you build muscle without expending too many calories. That's why not all sports exercises are suitable for those who need to gain weight and not lose weight.

To start, limit your cardio activity. They promote active burning of calories with minimal gain of muscle mass, which means at this stage they work against you. Running, an exercise bike, a machine that simulates rowing, jumping - all these are inappropriate loads now.

To help a woman gain weight quickly, strength training is ideal. These are loads based on working with weights - CrossFit, a number of yoga and water aerobics techniques, exercises with dumbbells and barbells. It is better to start exercising with a personal trainer, since lifting weights requires a special approach and can be harmful to your health. Under the guidance of a professional, you will quickly achieve the desired result and ensure effective prevention of sports injuries. [1]

Individual characteristics of the child

Despite the importance of meeting weight gain standards, any parent must remember that each child is individual and deviations from the average values ​​are very common. Genetic factors play an important role in the rate of physical development of a child: children with tall and “large” parents, as a rule, have higher rates of height and weight gain. And vice versa, if the father does not have a strong physique, most likely his son will have weight gain that corresponds to the lower limit of the normative corridor. In any case, it is more important to monitor the dynamics of weight gain, and not just the absolute gain over a short period of time, and also to correlate the changes with the general health and development of the baby. If a child is active, sleeps well and develops harmoniously, his neuropsychic development and mastery of motor skills correspond to his age, the minimum acceptable weight gain is his individual version of the norm, and this means that there is no reason for concern among parents and pediatricians.

What not to do when trying to gain weight quickly

The most common mistake people make when trying to gain the “missing” pounds is eating huge portions of food that are high in calories but have little nutrition. This includes fast food (french fries, burgers) covered in fatty sauce, sweet soda, confectionery products made from wheat flour, refined sweets, and deli meats. Such a diet, if you do not have a diagnosed disease that causes you to lose everything, will really help you gain a few kilograms. But there is a risk that very soon another problem will appear - obesity.

By choosing an unbalanced menu with a lot of unhealthy food, you risk your health. Poor nutrition can contribute to the development of diseases and disorders in the vital systems of the body. This is a risk of diabetes mellitus and pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract, swelling of the extremities, hypertension, and chronic fatigue.

Controlling your baby's weight at home

Understanding the importance of assessing weight gain in a newborn, some parents purchase special baby electronic scales and measure daily how much the baby gains per day. Weighing should be done in the morning, before feeding, when the baby has urinated and had a bowel movement. However, there is no need for daily weighing, because the graph of weight gain is not always linear, and the lack of daily gain can cause unreasonable anxiety among parents, which can negatively affect the mother’s lactation process.

IMPORTANT! The minimum period for which it is advisable to evaluate the dynamics of weight gain is one week. A weekly gain of 150-200 grams in a child in the first half of life is normal.

Many babies grow unevenly, so it is possible to evaluate quarterly rather than monthly weight gain.