Question 4 DHX, and anybody who is able to advise...

After 10yrs of trying to pick up some weight, and then finally giving up, I discovered how to work around my hyperactive metabolism.
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I LOVE FOOD, especially junk that's 'bad' for you, so my current eating plan has been HARD, to say the least
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When I was eating 3 big meals a day and or snacking inbetween, I could never weigh more than 41kg I tried exercising to add muscle mass, but that was in vain too.
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During my über long depression last year, I picked up 4kg on my non-existant appetite January when the cloud lifted, and I started eating regular meals, I lost the weight again in a matter of weeks
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Currently I'm restricting myself to 1 full sized portion a day, and a snack or light meal, when required. N0W, this was initially very difficult to do, but I'm seeing results, so I'm sticking to it.
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Problem is, I know that once I get a job, (hopefully soon) I'll be WAY more active and will need much more to sustain me through-out the day...
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Any advice on how to get around this? I really want to maintain my current weight or even add a few kilos.

Since this forum is full of people battling the opposite issue, I am not sure you will get a good sampling of advice here. livestrong.com has a great forum to post this question on. you will get detailed accounts, because there there are people from all walks of life, not just those who want to lose weight)

But I thought I'd ask since I'm getting the type of results I want, using techniques others do to achieve the opposite... So in my thinking, I figured people losing weight could share their techniques, coz it would probly work for me too...
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I've stopped checking health websites coz more often than not they want me to eat and drink special concoctions I am unable to afford. I want advice based on what I HAVE in my kitchen, since I'm unable to make any drastic changes there, save for maybe a protein shake or something similar. I spoke to a nutritionist once and she was way more interested in selling herbal life products than guiding me in the right direction. At present I'm using my phone for internet access, and since it's a fossil I have limited choices for interactive websites... Thanks for the tip tho

I think livestrong.com would not go farther than a protein shake in terms of concoctions. I do not even have a protein shake at home - not just the price but I looked at the ingredients list... In America, there are several types of nutritionists. Only those that are certified as RD - Registered Dietitician - are trustworthy in terms of working with you through your struggles based on what you have in the kitchens; they rarely (though sometimes) sell stuff. People called nutritionists quite often push herbal mixtures. So it is important to choose an RD and only an RD if you seek advice. Nutritionists MIGHT be quite good, but then you have to interview in advance to make sure you won't get yourself into a marketing session. Any worthwhile helper would have you track your food for two weeks prior to the appointment.

In S.A., is there a parallel situation or do all nutritionists sell stuff?

I can't navigate Livestrong with this fossil! Arg! Idk much about nutritionists here, they are not a POPULAR people, idk ANYBODY that consults one, I don't even know where I'd find 1! When I had medical aid, my gp'S REFUSED to give me a referral to a nutritionist which falls under specialist. They all (3) said the same thing, have more kids or wait for your mid 30's when your metabolism will slow down The lady I did manage to see was at my previous job during health-awareness week. My BIL gave me a contact of his, who works with him at VirginActive, SAME story, they want me to purchase certain EXPENSIVE products!
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So, my logic just calculated that using weight loss tactics work for me, and that's why I posted...

The only thing I can think of is nuts. Nuts are calorie dense - you eat a small amount of food ingesting a big amount of calories. And they are mightily healthful - what with protein, fiber, oils, and all. I buy walnuts and almonds directly from a grower who advises me to keep both in the fridge. I think that if you like them, you should have a serving of nuts every day.

Thanks for the tip that is definitly do-able!

Try drinking whole milk as well. My 6 year old is in the 5% for weight and has that super fast metabolism. When he was 3 years old I was giving him a bath and wanted to cry. He was eating just fine, but he looked so thin! It was freaking me out. One of the dietitians I work with used to work for WIC. She advised me to give him whole milk instead of 2%. He has filled out a tiny bit, he's still really skinny. He's tall and skinny, and it seems the baby is going to be the same. (He's only in the 4% and everyone is freaking out.... except me... because he looks like a normal rolly polly baby.)

The nut idea is also really good. Not just nuts but peanut butter. When we have underweight people come in, peanut butter is one of the main foods they are advised on. You can put peanut butter on almost anything, not just crackers and breads, but also fruits like apples and bananas and celery.

Thanks peanutbutter could definitly increase my non-existant fruit intake. I used to cover fruit in chocolate sauce so that I'd eat them, but that's not a luxury I'm able to afford anymore. I don't do low or no fat anything, tastes 'empty', so milk is always fullcream. Will be trying, peanutbutter fruit soon thanks again DHX!

Hey no problem. That's the bonus of working with registered dietitians, I've really learned a lot.

One of the educators is often trying to pack on weight. But then she'll eat a rice cake with peanut butter. I'm thinking, "Maybe if you put that on something with a few more calories...?" Our office always smells like peanut butter.

Oh, another idea I had for you was yogurt. If you eat yogurt try that greek style yogurt. But, any type of yogurt put nuts in it. Nuts go with almost anything.

We have delicious cream-on-top yogurt here.

Oils! You need oils, another calorie dense food, a full serving (1 Tbsp=120 kcal) every day or more. And avocados, which can simply be spread on bread with perhaps a tomato piece and sea salt and a tiny drizzle of oil on top.

Are oils and avocados something you can bear the thought of eating?

Making dressing with oil and lemon juice or vinegar is also much less expensive than buying prepared vinegars.

I love Avos and yogurt! But not together tho, you guys are giving me some real great ideas, it's appreciated

Trippin, are you eating lots of fish? One of the brain supporting foods is Omega 3 oils, and this is something my pdoc put me onto. 2-3g of Omega 3 oil capsules per day. You need a balance of EPA and DHA in them, so watch the labels.

Here is a good article on advantages and risk considerations:
http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/omega-3-000316.htm

I'm not a fish person... Sushi's great tho, and also I eat fish cakes/fingers thanks for the link Pete, will check it out.

Plain dark chocolate without fillings, 70-90% or about.

Trippin - I have had a similar problem - I lost an excessive amount of weight with some of my meds, and I have a very active metabolism as well. I've been able to keep weight on and gain some using some very simple things. I use a protein drink - either Ensure or Boost - daily. It is like a thick milk and is used specifically to help people maintain a healthy weight. I also have gotten into the habbit of eating more protein and carbs. Sometimes I just force myself to eat more in order to keep the weight up. Good luck!

Thanks RC, I tried the ensure, and it made me eat like a horse, which led to losing weight. Will see if I can get a meal replacement shake...