BasketballGirl Posted September 12, 2005 Share Posted September 12, 2005 Hi! This is my first time posting, but I've been trying to gain weight for years now with no luck. When I was younger I was average for my age, but then when I was in middle school I grew straight up and have been incredibly skinny ever since. My current weight is 128lbs and I'm 6'2", which makes me look anoxerically thin. I'm 22 years old, if that makes a difference! Growing up we never really had much food around the house, so I never really ate much. I think maybe this has caused me to have a small stomach. Also, throughout high school I was mildly anorexic since I was afraid to eat out of fear of growing taller! It's kind of silly I know, but I avoided dairy products at all costs and would purposely go without food for a day or two at a time sometimes. Maybe this affected my metabolism in some way? I've tried and tried to gain weight to the point of eating myself sick. My appetite varies wildly... sometimes half a bagel will satiate my stomach completely, while other times I can eat an entire combo meal at Taco Bell. I've considered going to the gym to try and bulk up a little bit, but I don't want to gain any muscle at all. I think I'm a bit too tall for that! Anyways, I've been trying to eat a lot of snack foods and keep a pretty constant calorie intake. The only problem with this is that my husband has no problems gaining weight. If I load the freezer with ice cream and keep high carb foods around, he plows right into them. He's gained about sixty pounds since we've moved in together, so apparently the foods I've been eating are fattening! They just don't seem to be working for me. So I guess I'm just looking to put about twenty pounds on me without putting my health at risk or having it come in the form of foods that will make me look like a wrestler. That's why I haven't tried the protein shakes -- I really don't want noticiable muscle mass. Am I worried about nothing? I think I'd actually prefer supplements to actual food, so that way my hubbie can't grab them. If anyone else has had been in this same situation and had success, I'd love to know. Doubly so if you're tall too! I've heard from lots of people I've talked to, including two of my doctors, that I should "consider myself lucky" for being so skinny without trying, but it really does wear thin, if you'll pardon the pun. I'm not just thin in the tummy and normal everywhere else, I'm thin all over! Link to post Share on other sites
sophia34 Posted September 12, 2005 Share Posted September 12, 2005 I think you're missing out on probably two of the best ways to gain weight if you're avoiding strength training and protein shakes. It's a total myth that women will look like wrestlers if they strength train. We don't have enough testosterone in our systems for that. Those women you see on television who look like mutants are shooting up with testosterone every day in order to get that big. Even those women you see on Fit TV like Sharon Mann and Cathe Friedrich--who are toned but yes, muscular--get that way because it's their jobs to work out for hours every day. We regular female mortals won't get there just strength training 45 minutes, 3 times a week. If you weight train with light weights, up to 10 lbs--probably under the direction of a gym trainer at first--I think you would really help proportion your body so that you don't look so skinny. A little extra muscle mass will add the bulk that you are looking for. Furthermore, the protein shakes are densely packed with protein and vitamins (I'd steer clear of the shakes that have creotine and all that in them...just get a straight protein-and-vitamin shake powder from Whole Foods or Trader Joe's). Even better, you can down 300 to 500 calories in one shake. Don't worry about bulking up like a wrestler--you won't. It's hormonally impossible. You'll just get more toned and better proportioned all around. Link to post Share on other sites
Author BasketballGirl Posted September 14, 2005 Author Share Posted September 14, 2005 Oh, okay! I'll definitely pick up some of the protein powder and look into the weight training when we have a bit more money to go around. Thanks for pointing out to avoid the creotine shakes -- I'd actually looked in the protein shake section before but was scared by the giant pictures of muscles on everything! I'll give it a try and post again eventually, hopefully with some good results Thank you so much for your help! Link to post Share on other sites
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