For context, I am roughly 5’10” and 150 lbs. I work outside and generally on an 8 hour day which is my norm, I’ll walk at LEAST 4 miles. I realized recently that’s probably the main reason I don’t gain weight, I walk all my fat off. I obviously have no problem with people that are overweight or people that don’t look like vogue models, that’s an unrealistic standard to be set(and feeds into consumerism but that’s a whole nother convo) but I would like to gain weight without being overweight. I am not skinny, I’m decently muscular not to pat myself too hard but I would like to get bigger. I know muscle weighs more than fat but I know I also need body fat. I eat lots of chicken and meat. I really kinda eat unhealthy and have lots of typical American comfort foods but I don’t go hard on dessert really. I do like fruit and yogurt too. What should I do to gain weight without eating unhealthy foods? Will exercise make me gain weight eventually or would it take a crazy long time?
Personally I had a real hard time gaining weight without a calorie counting app. The foods I eat with the most calories are rice, beans, olive oil, popcorn (I buy it unpopped and pop it in a wok with oil using a lid), cheese, sunflower seeds, whole milk, mixed frozen berries, and tempeh. I also aim for at least 30 different kinds of plant foods a week, that variety being important for health. I make a smoothie with a lot of vegetables and some other things for breakfast and for other meals I stir fry about 350 grams of vegetables with about 100 grams of tempeh or meat in addition to some rice, soup, or popcorn. But what works for me may not work for you, since you get a lot more exercise than me. In your case it would probably come down to eating more than 3 meals a day.