Q: I am a 20 years old boy who has been using the gym for a long time but I am not getting any results. I want to gain weight and increase my size but I am only getting shape. I am lacking somewhere in my diet. Please clear my doubts about the following:

1. How many eggs I can eat in a day?
2. Can I eat boiled or raw eggs pre-workout too? Should I eat only egg white and leave the yolk?
3. How many bananas I should take in a day?
4. What are the things I can eat pre- and post-workout?
5. How many potatoes should I eat in a day? Can I eat them at night?
6. Can I have glucose pre- or post-workout? What should be the timings? Please suggest.

A:

1. You can have 2 whole eggs every alternate day.
   
2. Eat cooked eggs post-workout. If you eat only egg whites eat 8- 10 post workout with 1 yolk.
   
   
3. Three a day will help you get sufficient amount of Vitamin B and carbohydrate intake.
   
   
4. Pre-workout: 2 bananas, or 1 apple, 1 whole-wheat vegetable sandwich. Post-Workout: 8- 10 egg whites, and 1 glass of fresh fruit juice.
   
   
5. Eat 2 potatoes per day, and avoid them after 7 pm.
   
   
6. No glucose either time.

To gain weight in a healthy fashion requires eating calorie dense yet nutritious food. An example of a breakfast while on the weight gain diet includes muesli, chopped nuts, a banana, milk and fruit juice. Or you could have 2 egg whites with 1 yolk, 3 slices whole grain toast, and 1 glass of fruit juice. A lunch would involve 2-3 rotis, ½ katori rice, 1 serving of dal or whole pulses, 1 serving of curd or any non-vegetarian item, 1 serving of vegetable. You are also allowed snacks spaced mid-way between meals, like teatime in the evening where you could have a fruit milkshake and perhaps a whole grain cheese sandwich. Eat a sensible dinner similar to what I have suggested for lunch. The key to any meal for weight gain is to concentrate on a sensible blend of complex carbohydrates, lean protein, and healthy fats. When attempting to gain weight, it is often beneficial to eat multiple small meals per day, rather than a few large meals. Especially when coupled with exercise, eating multiple small meals encourages your body to use the calories to build lean tissue (muscle).

• Drink at least 2 glasses of milk each day. You can replace tea with a glass of milk. Eat bananas and 2 fresh anjeer daily for gaining weight, or you can have banana/ chikkoo milkshake, which is an easier way of including these fruits in your diet.
  
  
• Avoid junk food; it is not a healthy way to gain weight.
  
  
• Drink lots of fruit juices, which will help increase your calorie intake.
  
  
• Increase the proportion of starchy food in your diet like potato, sweet potato, corn etc., which are helpful for weight gain.
  
  
• Include fish, meat and legumes in your diet and increase the proportion of rice that you eat each day, have eggs for breakfast.
  
  
• Make sure that you eat lots of fruits and dry fruits.
  
  
• Include Ragi, Nachni in your diet, it is a very rich source of iron and calcium, Nachni pudding or custard is good for putting on weight.
  
  
• In order to gain weight some might indulge in fattening fast foods, but this is definitely the wrong route to take if you want to remain healthy. The focus should be on eating nutritious foods from a variety of sources. Creatinine supplements are not necessary so long as you are eating a well-balanced diet that includes more calories per day than you burn. You should gain half a kilo per week when they appropriately follow the weight gain diet. It is also necessary that you sleep at the right time avoid overnight studies and work.