How to gain weight in your arms may be inquired by those who want to build muscle and tone their arms, or by some who feel their arms are on the thinner side and could use some more weight. Either way, how to gain weight in your arms is going to involve a change in your diet and exercise habits. Naturally, weight gain in the arms can be seen as you increase your overall body weight with a higher calorie intake. However, since we cannot deter specifically where gained weight goes, increasing muscle mass in the arms through strength exercises will provide more benefit. Nonetheless, here is how to gain weight in your arms for women and men:
Disclaimer: We are not medical professionals or experts. What is written throughout the content of our website is for informational purposes only and should not be taken as medical or professional advice. What you choose to do with the information provided is at your own risk and discretion. Before making any significant changes to your diet and / or lifestyle, be sure to contact your health practitioner.
How to Gain Weight in Your Arms: Increase Your Calorie Intake
As mentioned previously, once you begin to increase your overall body weight, naturally your arms will gain fat as well. For some individuals though, this change may not be as noticeable. It is still essential that you increase your calorie intake when seeking how to gain weight in your arms. A consistent caloric surplus where you are consuming more calories than you burn off will help to boost your weight and provide a good foundation for building muscle mass as well.
If you are not consuming a surplus of calories, you will either maintain your current weight, or lose weight. So, since we are trying to gain weight in the arms a caloric surplus is key. A caloric surplus is generally 300-500 calories more than your recommended daily calorie consumption. To find out what your recommended daily calorie consumption is, check out a variety of calorie calculators available online.
Within this caloric surplus for weight gain should be a variety of healthy, nutrient-dense foods. Foods that contain a good amount of protein aid in providing our muscles with the proper nutrition needed for growth. This source of nutrition will in turn help to increase mass in your arms through exercise. We need healthy carbohydrates in our diet for different functions, one of which is to provide a natural source of energy. Carbs also aid in muscle recovery post-workout.
To gain weight the healthy way, nutrient-dense foods instead of junk foods should be your aim. There are healthy, nutrient-rich yet high-calorie foods that still help to encourage weight gain. But what are some specific types of foods that are good for how to gain weight in your arms?
Here are a few good examples of food choices for how to gain weight in your arms:
Oats / oatmeal:
Oats and oatmeal make good options of food choices when trying to gain weight because of their nutrient density. You can get a generous number of key vitamins and minerals, including protein, that will provide your muscles with many nourishing benefits to aid in building mass. Add oats to your own blended shakes for a boost of nutrition.
Weight gain shakes:
Weight gain shakes are an easy way to get a fast delivery of calories for weight gain and nutrition for muscle growth. You can either create your own with the use of varying small edibles or select from numerous ones available for retail.
Lean cut meats:
Meats serve as a convenient and helpful source of protein, calories, and other nutrients. This of course can benefit those trying to gain weight in the arms. Lean cut meats in particular, have more of the fat content removed, but still provide other fats, proteins, etc. that can contribute to increasing your overall body weight.
Avocados:
From avocados you can receive a good amount of healthy fats to help with how to gain weight in your arms. Additionally, avocados contain a decent number of calories – per one whole avocado you can get around 300 calories. Use this fruit in a variety of recipes for a boost of essential nutrition.
Click here to check out 20 meal ideas for weight gain:
How to Gain Weight in Your Arms: Build Muscle Mass with Exercise
The most effective and efficient way to gain weight in your arms is to build mass with exercise. There are a variety of strength exercises that encourage growth in muscle mass to benefit the arms. Add targeted strength exercises that work out the biceps and triceps to your workout, as this will help to create the appearance of thicker arms. Be sure that you are also exercising other areas of your body as well so that your muscles are proportionate to each other.
Strength exercises involve creating resistance as you workout, which provides more engagement of the muscles, helping to improve your body strength. These types of exercises have been found to produce multiple other health benefits including better flexibility and improved bone health. Other ways to add resistance and give your arm muscles a better workout is with the help of dumbbells, barbells, etc. Strength exercises, when it comes to how to gain weight in your arms, provide much benefit. However, keep in mind to not over-work the arms. We use our arms in many daily activities and other exercises, so it is easy to lose mass as well. Allow your muscles time to recover for growth with rest days some time throughout the week.
Here are some examples of exercises that can help with how to gain weight in your arms:
Alternating biceps curl:
With your choice of weight load, start in a standing position with both dumbbells in either hand. Center your strength as you curl your biceps, slowly raising and lowering your arm. Then, complete the same movement on your other arm. After you have completed curls for both arms counts as one repetition. This is a simple yet effective exercise that can contribute to increasing mass in the arms.
Overhead triceps extension:
This exercise will help the back area of the upper arm, the triceps. Get a comfortable weight load that is not too heavy because it will be held over your head. Start standing straight up, holding one dumbbell clasped in both hands in front of you. Slowly raise your weight straight above you, then lower it behind you with your arms bent back towards your shoulders. Lift the weight above you, and then back again. Each extension counts as one repetition.
Straight-arm pulldown:
With a cable machine at the gym, you are going to be in a standing position with this exercise as well. Grab the pulley with your hands at shoulder-width apart and pull down without bending your elbows. Pull down the bar to around the thighs. Slowly release the bar up for a completed repetition.
Bent-over dumbbell reverse fly:
Begin with your knees bent and body slightly leaning over. With dumbbells in both hands, extend your arms outwards to your sides. Bring your arms back in towards your body with each repetition. Depending on your weight load, this exercise can really help to increase your strength and challenge your arm muscles for growth.
While there is no way to specifically gain weight in the arms only, there are targeted exercises you can do that build muscle mass in the arms. In addition to this, increasing your calorie intake to maintain a surplus is key to increasing your overall body weight which can also contribute to visibly thicker arms.