Best high calorie foods when you’re not hungry?

[JakeWasHere]

The particulars:

33/M 10 months of training(from basically 0), 6 months working with an SSC and doing it properly, transitioning from LP to Intermediate

Height 5’9
Weight: ~180->208
Waist: 33->36
BF: ~18-20% by pictures, seems to have held relatively steady during the weight gain

As I’ve gained weight I’ve found my appetite basically shutting down. After struggling to maintain weight gain I’ve found a rhythm of a 2 scoop whey shake in the morning, 2 ~1000 calorie-ish meals and then a 2 scoop whey shake that seems to work. As the scale has gone up the proportion of those meals that are fast food and washed down with a lot of soda has gone up because I’ve just stopped being hungry and getting those calories in any other way was making me feel sick. My lifts are going up so I’m clearly getting enough fuel, but I’m also not 15 anymore and my insides seem to be having enough of the garbage. Do you have suggestions for better calorie dense food that’s easy to eat in quantity when you aren’t hungry?

[Robert Santana]

The particulars:

33/M 10 months of training(from basically 0), 6 months working with an SSC and doing it properly, transitioning from LP to Intermediate

Height 5’9
Weight: ~180->208
Waist: 33->36
BF: ~18-20% by pictures, seems to have held relatively steady during the weight gain

As I’ve gained weight I’ve found my appetite basically shutting down. After struggling to maintain weight gain I’ve found a rhythm of a 2 scoop whey shake in the morning, 2 ~1000 calorie-ish meals and then a 2 scoop whey shake that seems to work. As the scale has gone up the proportion of those meals that are fast food and washed down with a lot of soda has gone up because I’ve just stopped being hungry and getting those calories in any other way was making me feel sick. My lifts are going up so I’m clearly getting enough fuel, but I’m also not 15 anymore and my insides seem to be having enough of the garbage. Do you have suggestions for better calorie dense food that’s easy to eat in quantity when you aren’t hungry?

Thanks for posting! Although fast food is an easy way to get calories most of those calories are non productive calories and contribute to weight on your waistline versus weight on the bar. Fortunately, your waistline is in a good range right now so I’m not concerned about that. In terms of driving calories up while preserving food quality the easiest things to eat to accumulate good calories are rice,beans, potatoes, bananas, milk, and cereal (this will save your life!). Weight gainers are probably better for a guy like you the a standard protein shake so swap that out as well. Drink a big Gatorade or Powerade during your workouts will make a big difference too and up the calories during a time where you won’t get so full from that. Have you tried any of these strategies?!

[JakeWasHere]

I have not. We’ll start with the Gatorade and the cereal (which might help with fiber intake too, any suggestions on good high fiber cereals?) and see what happens. I’ve got about 2 months worth of whey from buying in bulk, should I add something like honey to the whey to get the gainer shake effect? Thanks for your thoughts!

[Robert Santana]

I have not. We’ll start with the Gatorade and the cereal (which might help with fiber intake too, any suggestions on good high fiber cereals?) and see what happens. I’ve got about 2 months worth of whey from buying in bulk, should I add something like honey to the whey to get the gainer shake effect? Thanks for your thoughts!

Honey, bananas, dextrose all will ramp up your intraworkout calories. All bran and all bran buds are good high fiber cereals just be careful with the portions and drink lots of water.

[Confusean]

Hey Robert, was wondering why didn't you recommend nuts or other high fat foods? (My thinking being that fats provide more calories per gram than carbs so you would get more calories in with less food)

[Robert Santana]

Hey Robert, was wondering why didn't you recommend nuts or other high fat foods? (My thinking being that fats provide more calories per gram than carbs so you would get more calories in with less food)

Fats are easy to accumulate without having someone try to eat them and they don’t contribute directly to performance under the bar. Carbs and protein are where I find most people struggle to get the volume in