Big Little Gains

My biggest struggle with this weight gain journey is actually gaining the weight.

A micro-struggle within that struggle is finding the best ways to gain the weight.

Here are my roadblocks / what I’m looking for in a weight gain drink / shake:

1. Lactose-free
2. Tastes good
3. Not overly expensive

These 3 things remind me of that triangle that says ‘You can only choose 2’ and it lists “Money”, “Love” and “Happiness”… something like that. I just Googled it and found something similar:

Anywho. You know what I mean.

It’s almost impossible to find quality weight gain drinks that are lactose-free, tastes good AND decently priced.

After some extensive research, I found two options.

ENU Nutritional Drinks

I’ve had these before. And honestly, they’re fine. I don’t know if I just got sick of them, but I stopped drinking them.

They did pass the test:

1. Lactose-free – YES
2. Tastes good – Eh, I’d say a 7/10. Not the worst, but not delicious.
3. Not overly expensive – $20.29 for a pack of 6 (vanilla and chocolate); $3.50 a shake

Kate Farms Nutrition Shakes

I’ve never had these. Reviews seem decent. I just ordered, so we shall see SOON.

So far, they pass the test:

1. Lactose-free – YES
2. Tastes good – Reviews are mixed BUT I’ve seen decent reviews of the Coffee flavor specifically. So that’s what we ordered.
3. Not overly expensive – $51.00 for a pack of 12; we got a 20% discount –> $40.80 for a pack of 12; $3.40 a shake (with the discount); $4.25 a shake (without discount)

Here is a comparison chart that the ENU website showed; you can see how Kate Farms compares to ENU:

Caloric Intake

The main thing we’re looking for in these drinks is CALORIES. I mentioned it in a previous post, but we need high calories for weight gain. I found this calculator that tells me how many calories I need to meet my weight gain goal of 110 lbs.

I do see different calorie calculators give slightly different numbers. However, it seems like I should be eating at least 1600/1700 calories for my height and weight to maintain my weight. I think.

To gain weight, at least based on above & what my dad tells me, I should be eating at least 2300-2500 calories a day. Which kinda sounds insane, but if I’m really dedicated to gaining the weight… I gotta fucking do it.

If I somewhat plan it out:

• Breakfast (7-8am): 300-400 calories
• Snack (10am): ~150-200 calories
• Lunch (12-1pm): 400-500 calories
• Snack (3pm): ~150-200 calories
• Dinner (5-6pm): 500-600 calories
• Snack (8pm): ~150-200 calories
• Pre-Bed Snack (9-10pm): Cereal & Lactose Free Milk = ~300 calories

We’re looking at ~1950-2400 calories with the above planning. I think we can start with this and iterate to try to get to that 2500 calories a day goal.