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80 percent, ehh, maybe closer to 90 percent of the gym going population would kill to have this problem. Some of you might even give up your second favorite child to have this problem.
I am talking about the young punks who simply cannot gain weight. They can eat all day long without gaining an ounce. How tragic!
The truth is, this can be a real issue for talented, motivated athletes who want to compete at the next level. Lets dig into some strategies to help pack some functional weight onto these punks!
Nothing is more important than hitting the right calorie numbers each day. An athlete can eat the cleanest foods imaginable but if his or her totals aren’t high enough, they will not pack on a pound! Start by multiplying bodyweight x 16. If our athlete weighs 165 lbs, he or she would need to consume about 2,700 calories per day. Specifically, he or she would need to consume 2,640 per day but to keep it simple and allow for a little wiggle room, lets just say 2,700.
We want to fill those calories with healthy foods that will keep energy levels high, pack on more muscle than fat, maintain or improve cognitive abilities and, generally, keep the athlete healthy.
Most high school athletes eat 5 meals a day; breakfast, lunch, a snack between school and practice or training, a post workout snack and dinner. A simple way to assign calories to each meal would be to consume 600 calories for breakfast, around 600 calories for lunch, a 2-300-calorie snack, a 2-300-calorie post workout snack and around 900-calories for dinner. You can obviously mix and match these based on your situation.
Breakfast:
4 Egg Whites, 2 Whole Eggs, 3 Links Turkey Bacon, ½ Cup (Dry) Oatmeal. Add in some fruit.
Lunch:
8 Oz Chicken Breast, Veggies mixed into 2 Whole Wheat Wraps.
Pre Workout Snack Options: Pick 1
1 Medium Apple and 2 TBSP Peanut Butter or 1 Mint Chocolate Oatmega Bar.
Post Workout Option: Pick 1
8 Oz Chocolate Milk
-OR-
Protein Shake: 1 Scoop Whey Protien, 8 Oz Unsweetened Almond Milk, ¼ cup dry oatmeal.
Dinner:
8 Oz Grass Fed Ground Beef, 90 percent lean. 2 Cups Cooked Jasmine Rice. Mixed Greens Salad with 1 TBSP olive oil as a dressing.
Totals with the Protien Bar and Shake options- Calories- 2,629, Protien- 181, Fat- 84, Carbs- 246
Totals with the Apple/Peanut Butter and Chocolate Milk Options- Calories- 2,618, Protien-156, Fat-96, Carbs-238.
If you have some calories left over, toss in some dessert. Try to eat organic and unprocessed foods, drink at least half of your bodyweight in OZ per day, eat veggies and/or fruit with most meals.
Now, I am a realist and I understand that this is a lot of food and that tends to hit the bank account pretty hard. Make the sacrifices you have to but also understand the way crap foods like cheesesteaks, soda, cookies, pizza and burgers impact energy levels and cognitive function on the field. The extra weight you gain will do nothing for your performance if you are slow, bloated and have limited focus. Consume calories, but try to consume good calories where possible.
By the way, I hate you.
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