Nuts Nut butters like peanut or almond butter Dried fruit like banana chips Fresh fruits like mangos and avocados
Replace water in your diet with high-calorie fruit juices like apple, grape, or orange juice. Each of them are great options that won’t leave you feeling too full. Smoothies are great ways to drink a large number of calories in a healthy fashion. If you can make your own, add protein powder, dense fruits, cream-based liquids and yogurt. Smoothies will move through the stomach quickly and allow you to fuel up prior to exercise. Try to limit your beverage intake during meals to leave more room for calorie-dense foods, but ensure you maintain healthy hydration levels.
If you are training to be an endurance athlete, you should incorporate between 0. 5 and 0. 7 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight (1. 2 to 1. 4 g/kg of bodyweight) each day to help your body rebuild the muscle you break down through training. If you are doing heavy weight training, your protein intake should be more like 0. 7 to 0. 8 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight (1. 2 to 1. 7 g/kg of bodyweight) every day. This will provide your body with the amino acids it needs to not only restore your damaged muscle, but help your body build new muscle through training. [3] X Research source Don’t increase your protein intake at the cost of other important elements of your diet. Developing and maintaining healthy muscle also requires that you take in carbohydrates and healthy fats each day. Ignoring them for the sake of protein can cause your body to use that protein for energy instead of muscle development and retention. [4] X Research source It is possible to eat too much protein and some clinicians believe it may cause irreversible damage to your kidneys. The Institute of Medicine recommends that you do not consume greater than 35% of total calories in protein. Additionally, increased dietary protein can result in elevated urinary calcium, which may contribute to bone loss and the subsequent development of osteopenia and osteoporosis. [5] X Research source Sahni S, Broe KE, Tucker KL, et al. Association of total protein intake with bone mineral density and bone loss in men and women from the Framingham Offspring Study. Public Health Nutr. 2013;29:1-7.
Calories aren’t the only things that matter. Nutritional value in your foods is just as important. Make sure your diet provides the nutrients you need to be healthy. [6] X Trustworthy Source FamilyDoctor. org Family-focused medical advice site run by the American Academy of Family Doctors Go to source Junk food and greasy treats can raise your cholesterol and blood pressure. Too much saturated fat can even lead to cardiovascular problems that include heart attack and strokes. Recent studies also suggest saturated fats can affect insulin production in your body and lead to other health problems like diabetes.
Use lots of eggs — they’re a healthy source of calories and a huge boost to your protein intake. Add a steak to bolster your protein and fats. Include oatmeal or another good source of fiber like granola. Couple your breakfast with whole milk to add calories and fat.
Five ounces of walnuts alone can account for nearly 1,000 calories of your daily diet. One serving of oil roasted pecans has nearly 800 calories. [7] X Research source One serving of macadamia nuts had 948 calories. [8] X Research source
Have a carbohydrate-rich soup. Latka Soup can provide over 2,000 calories in a one and a half servings. [9] X Research source When choosing foods, remember that your body can only absorb a certain amount of nutrients at once. While three to four chicken breasts might provide up to 1,000 calories, you will only be able to absorb 20 to 30 g of protein, or about the amount of protein in one chicken breast. Don’t let focusing only on calories cause you to lose sight of the bigger picture — this amount of chicken is simply too much protein to eat at once.
Mass gaining protein shakes are an excellent source of the right nutrients coupled with a load of calories. Many exceed 1,000 – 1,200 calories per serving. [10] X Research source If you like making your own smoothies, incorporate protein powder, Greek Yogurt, and cream based liquids with the calorie-dense fruits. Peanut or other nut butters are good choices for added calories, protein, and fat.
Take advantage of the protein content in beef. Steak or burgers can be a great source and the condiments you add can provide a significant boost to your overall calorie intake. Couple your main course with a calorie-dense carbohydrate like beans, potatoes, or biscuits. [11] X Research source Include vegetables with your dinner. Roasted vegetables are an excellent source of nutrition and fiber. Add butter for increased caloric value.
Walnuts or other nuts make for a great before bed snack. Another protein shake could help make up for any missed protein throughout the day.
Don’t let more than four hours go by without eating a meal (unless you are sleeping). Eating often will provide you with an opportunity to increase your caloric intake. Drink healthy beverages that have a high caloric content between and with your meals. Fruit juices like apple juice, orange juice, cranberry juice, and grape juice are high in calories and nutrients. Buy bigger plates so meals seem smaller. Silly as it may seem, bigger plates can make it easier to add more food to your plate (and your diet) without it seeming like too much.
Stay warm to inhibit the production of thyroid hormones. Thyroid hormones aid in uncoupling proteins to create body heat and are also known as one of the stronger metabolism regulating hormones. [13] X Research source Stress also increases your metabolism. Stress can release adrenaline and thyroxine which both can speed up your metabolism. Reducing stress will limit your body’s production and release of these chemicals.
There are a number of Apps on the market designed to help you not only track how many calories you take in, but also the amount of nutrients. MyFitnessPal and other similar smartphone apps allows you to scan the barcodes or utilize their food catalog to find the caloric content of your meals. It can provide you with a breakdown of how many calories you’ve eaten and where you may be lacking in nutritional content. It can also let you know when you are exceeding healthy levels of things like sodium or saturated fat. [14] X Research source Keeping track of your diet will also help you remember which foods and beverages agreed with you and which didn’t. When striving to increase caloric content to 9,000 calories per day, eating things that make you feel sluggish or sick could interfere with maintaining the calorie intake you planned on.
