I’ve been following the nutritional principles laid out by the Amens since August 2016. At that time I weighed 165 lbs; now, after almost a year of quite slow, yet continuous weight loss (which I see as a _side_ effect of my REAL goal of supporting my _BRAIN_ health) I now weigh 121 lbs… a 44 lb. loss that I definitely do NOT want to continue! I would actually like to GAIN about 4 – 5 lbs, but need to learn a way that will _not_ sabotage what I have been working on, which is truly aimed at my _brain_ health; the weight has simply been a nice side effect. I am pretty sure I have always been fighting ADD (self-diagnosed through reading Dr. Amen’s blogs, books, seeing the videos on this topic, etc.). I certainly have been uncontrollably showing many of the basic symptoms all my life and “it” has really held me, or rather, I have held mySELF… _back_, I have sabotaged myself in major ways throughout my life. I am female, am 66 now and will soon turn 67… and STILL live in the strong belief/hope that, through following these “new” ways of living a healthier life style as promulgated by the Amens, I can finally get my brain to actively work as a _partner_ with me. My plan was that this would allow me to build my current two businesses on much more of a solid basis (which I have ached to do all my life… ) and yet I have so far still been unsuccessfull at this. I AM stubborn and have _no_ intention of giving up on the hope/belief that I can and WILL improve my “brain” situation. I live in Stuttgart, Germany and, at least so far, coming to an Amen clinic has simply been financially out of the question. If I can build my business better and shift my financial situation more positively, then I would invest in myself and come to one of the Amen clinics to get accurately diagnosed and, with their advice, get a pragmatic program set up to help me/my brain. I’m to the point now where I do occasionally think… “maybe I’m just not as intelligent as I would like to believe”… and then I double my efforts to improve the workings of my brain (yes, my frontal cortex shuts off when I concentrate). So I don’t want to endanger in any way what progress I _have_ made to date.
So my question, and as you can see from all this, this topic really _DOES_ crucially matter to me… how do I shift my nutritional plan in order to GAIN some weight… or at least stop the gradual weight loss?
Better Together
hmmm… so how do I now GAIN some weight… healthily??
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Hello
I believe i can be of some help in this area. As a Master Herbalist (for 16 years) and Elite level competitive powerlifter for 26 years, if it is one thing i have come close to getting mastered is how to gain quality muscle tissue. There are 2 areas you need to improve upon in order to accomplish your goal. First, is to look at this as a calories in verses a calories out situation. This simply means, that in order to gain that small amount of weight back, you need to take in more calories that you are burning off. This can be done with adding in more of specific foods you may or may not already be eating. A few examples are nuts, avocados, bananas, high quality grass fed meats ect. They are high in both calories and nutrient density. These foods will also give you more fuel for your brain (Fats) so it is a win/win for you. In regard to the bananas, this is a great source of fast acting glycogen to fuel your muscles pre and post workout.
Next, regardless of your age, some type of weight training and or strength training is essential to not just put on quality weight but, weight that will make you healthier in the long run. Allow me to explain. One of the biggest issues we have in our society is, as we get older we loose quality muscle tissue. This in turn makes out body less adaptable when stress and dis-ease begin to take its toll. The only way to build muscle is to weight train. I am not telling you that you need to train like Mrs. Universe but with all the strength building programs out there, who knows, you may really fall in love with it. People much older then you compete in bodybuilding and powerlifting. One thing i can promise you is that if you do a little something everyday, you will begin to feel amazing. The worst thing we can do as we get older is to move less. When my mothers boyfriend was in the hospital about 6 months ago, i noticed how people who has come out of major surgeries just 6 hours earlier, were being required to get up and move there body in order to increase recovery. I was actually impressed that this was going on and was glad to see a step in the right direction for the patients. The bottom line, you need to weight train and move everyday. I hope this information helps.
Mike Stuchiner
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In addition to weight training, eating adequate protein and healthy fats, I would also encourage you to increase use of gluten free whole grains,and potentially supplement with plant-based protein smoothies in addition to meals for gaining weight. Additionally, to make sure you are absorbing all that you are eating, you may want to work with a nutritionist or physician to assess status of digestive enzymes, probiotics, and other factors influencing the break down and absorption of foods you are eating. – Coach Zoe
Thank you, both “bigmike” and Coach Zoe, for your responses! I will take your advice to heart and report back as to how things have shifted. I have a set of weights and a mat… but have not been using them. It became clear to me as I read the response that muscle weighs more than fat, so this advice is good for me! I can easily increase bananas and nuts, avocados and meat, I like all of them, simply been being careful about the quantity. I’m still looking for a good source of meat where I know what I’m getting.
Coach Zoe, what grains do you mean when you write “gluten free whole grains”? Frankly, I have cut ALL grains out of my eating habits for the last year, substitute shirataki noodles for all rice and noodles and sweet potatoes for white ones. I haven’t had bread or anything with grains as a base (or any milk products) since last August. It would be nice if I could incorporate something on this level back into my nutritional program, as long as it doesn’t conflict with what I am trying to do here.
Coach
Gluten free whole oats, brown rice, and “grain like” seeds such as buckwheat and quinoa can be used in place of refined grains. We suggest using these as small sides to a plant-based diet of mostly vegetables, healthy fats, and organic protein sources. Hope that helps!
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