How to Determine Weight Gain Calorie Needs

A lot of people who start their weight gain journeys eat as much food as possible without knowing how much calories they need to gain weight. We do this with the hopes that we will magically turn into the next Jay Culter or Ronnie Coleman.

Mindless eating for Hardgainers usually results in:

1. No weight gain because you are under eating and not aware of it
2. Minimal weight gain with more fat than muscle
3. Great weight gain (you probably aren’t a hardgainer)
4. A Bad case of diarrhea (I told you not to eat that last piece of anchovy)

We need to eat a lot of food.  There is no way around it. Without getting enough surplus calories there is no hope for us. To gain 1 measly pound we need an excess of 3500 calories. Where the heck can we fit an excess of 3500 calories into our diets? It’s bad enough that our genetics are playing against us but now we start a new war in the kitchen.

A lot of planning goes into determining what and how much we need to eat to attain mass. The first step is actually determining how many calories you need to gain weight.

There are 2 general methods that I personally rely on. There is a simplistic general method and a VERY complex method developed by John Berardi. I’m going to show you both and let you decide which is best for you.

In order to appreciate the simplicity of the general method I advise that you take a look at John Berardi’s method for Determining Caloric Intake first

How to Determine how many Calories you need to gain weight

1. John Berardi Method

2. General Method

Note: Both of these methods provide you with a starting point for how many calories you need for weight gain.  As you start to put on weight you’ll need more calories per day to maintain and to also continue to add weight. It’s a great idea to monitor your weight every couple of weeks to see if you’re gaining, loosing or maintaining your weight. If you are maintaining or loosing weight add another 250 -500 calories and continue to monitor bi weekly.