Advice on gaining weight

[PeachJelly]

I'm looking for some advice on the best way to gain weight.
I'm 5'11" and currently 51kg, my weight tends to fluctuate between 51kg-55kg but I can never stay at 55 or get over that. That still leaves me 5kg out of the normal range and I would really like to get to a healthy weight!
I eat consistently and the majority of the time I eat over 2000 calories, normally 60-70% of them coming from carbs.
If anyone has any tips of gaining weight they would be much appreciated, thank you!

Use lots of butter.

Do you like milkshakes? Maybe drink milkshakes with full fat milk / ice cream / nut butter in them.
Biscuits with your tea.
Full fat everything.
Gradually up your portions. So say you have 1 tablespoon of mash, use 2 for a week, then 3 etc. Gradually put a bit more cheese on your toast etc.

Don't just binge on chocolate etc, it's not sustainable and will make you feel rubbish.

Do you eat plenty of healthy fats? Full fat milk, yoghurt, nut butters, avocado.

Thanks for the ideas!

I use lots of butter, and eat a fair bit of cheese as well as lots of nuts and avocado but I use soya instead of dairy milk as it makes me gag so it's probably a no go on milkshake.

Im struggling to work out whether it's what I'm eating or the amounts, the example about mash potato, I use 3 baking potatoes to make one serving of mash for myself!

I don't eat any meat or fish either although I haven't for about 5 years

Have you worked out your TDEE? Is 2000 calories actually more than you’re using to enable you to put on weight? You’re tall so may well need more, especially if you’re quite active.

I’d recommend reading The Diet Myth - your gut microbes might just be ones that process food quickly and eat all the fat so you don’t put on weight.

I think you need to see a doctor. Your bmi is very low which I imagine is very hard to maintain at 2000 calories a day, you should be gaining weight. The obvious answer is to eat more and higher calorie foods but I would definitely go to the gp if you are genuinely eating 2000 calories a day. Are you very active?

I've just looked up my TDEE and it says 1683 for maintenance, so I should be gaining weight at 2000?

I'm not very active, 1 hour walk each day. I've tried getting a gp appointment but there's a 2 month wait for non emergency appointments unfortunately

Yes, you are eating an 'extra' 300 calories ish a day so you should be gaining weight, albeit slowly. Nuts, nut butters, butter, cheese are calorific. 3 baking potatoes for 1 portion of mash is a large portion, what would you eat that with?

I think you should take an emergency appointment, unexplained weight loss needs investigating.

How old are you?

Some people can never gain that extra bit of weight they want, until they're in their late 30s and their metabolism slows down a bit.

You might be overestimating your intake? TDEE is often far too low if you use the wrong activity multiplier. The only way is to measure and track everything over a period of time, boring but it works.

When I was very unweight, I went to the GP to see if there was an underlying cause. I was prescribed 2 weeks of very high calorie drinks, think they were 600 calories each. Worth trying!

I'd normally eat mash with either broccoli, cabbage or beans and 2 or 3 veggie sausages, I've also started putting lots of cheese on top of my mash!

They literally won't give me an emergency appointment, as it's not considered unexplained weight loss, I've always been this weight and can fluctuate 5kgs within a week. I'll have to wait it out for an appointment in January or try for cancellations. Thank you for your suggestions though

You need to see a gp. That’s a worring position to be in.

Over what period did you lose the weight and how?

I'm 21, I was worried that I was undereating so tracked my calories for a couple of weeks and I'm definitely eating plenty!

High calorie drinks to get the extra in may be the way to go!

Your BMI is 15.6 and your GP won’t see you?

I find that very hard to believe. If it’s true you need to see another GP. You are severely underweight. Very worryingly underweight.

I have always been underweight, this isn't something sudden. It also doesn't seem to affect my body, no fatigue and regular periods.
This may well just be my "normal", but I would still like to gain the weight to look better

This may well just be my "normal", but I would still like to gain the weight to look better

It is not normal for anyone to have a BMI of 15.6. Anorexics with a bmi that low are admitted for emergency treatment.

Did you tell your gp your weight and height figures?

My GP is aware of my height and weight, they've been the same since I was 15 and they've never expressed concern about it.
I would love a doctors appointment but when your practice is massively over subscribed and understaffed it's not that easy.

Your gp is an idiot.

Sorry, posted by accident.

Your gp is totally wrong to be unconcerned about a bmi that low. I say that as a (now non practising) doctor. It puts you in the same criteria as a severe anorexic.

Have you been tested for coeliac disease?

I think the fact that you can fluctuate 5kg in a week, especially when your weight is so low, needs looking into.

When I needed to gain weight to bring me up to a healthy weight I had cans of milkshake called Nurishment that contains around 500 calories a can. Had those as a snack and helped quite quick

I assume they're not concerned because I've been this way consistently for 6 years? I don't know; I'm not a doctor.

No I haven't been tested for coeliacs, would that be worth bringing up when I do manage to get an appointment?

"No I haven't been tested for coeliacs, would that be worth bringing up when I do manage to get an appointment?"

Definitely. Your GP sounds rather incompetent IMO.