Gaining weight in IB

MOST IMPORTANTLY: Avoid all bullshit/trendy nutrition advice  (aka almost all nutrition advice)

Ultimately close to all nutrition advice is trying to sell you something or has a vested interest. There is a reason there are multiple diets put forward every year as the new panacea. 

Basic tips that are generally true (nothing is an ironclad law in nutrition since bodies differ based on ethnicity, metabolism, age, exercise)

1 - Good calories and Bad calories are mostly bullshit (but avoid sugar)

Calories in, calories out. Eat less than you need to maintain and you will lose weight. Vice versa to gain weight. WARNING: eating less than you need to maintain body weight WILL fuck with your hormones. Your body will think its starving. Also skip the bull shit advice about good and bad calories. It gets so complicated you'll never be able to keep track of all the food and nutrients you intake. Simplicity wins. Try to eat less calories and avoid sugar/high fructose corn syrup which fattens you up quick. Avoid eating out at fast food but don't be afraid of olive oil and butter. People get fat at McDonalds from the soda NOT from the fries. Meet and veggies over starch and carbs but dont cut out carbs entirely (because thats not sustainable and thus retarded).

2 - Eat like an elephant: leafy and bulky food 

Food that is leafy or bulky relative to calories will fill you up each meal without making you fat. Eat leafy kale caesar salad or spinach wrap with chicke thigh and lots of veggies. Veggies and whole grains are king for filling you up without knocking up your calorie count. Chips and soda are the polar opposite. You could eat 4 bags of chips and probably reach for a 5th bag. Goodluck doing that with a kale chicken bowl over brown rice. 

3 - Lifting won't make you skinny but it will make you a big, intimidating, sexy motherfucker

Get the idea out of your head that lifting is for a 6 pack and biceps. Look at Starting Strength and treat Mark Rippetoe as a god until your above an intermediate lifter. Workout 3 days a week, do basic barbell exercises that are easy to get the fundamentals down for, get stronger on a linear progression, maintain. High cardio is for pussies but do it twice a week anyways because you don't want to have a strongman body (this is coming from a guy who ran a few marathons before realizing I had a body that would lose the bar fight to any tweeked out frat bro). Abs are for pussies and emo boys who wear skinny jeans and listen to My Chemical Romance in their Jeep Wrangler. Get strong because youll be healthier, happier, more dangerous, intimidating, and confident. Its okay to have some pudge. But let that pudge surround a chest and back that bench 275 pounds and squat 400. 

4 - There is a reason bodybuilders are rarely alcoholics

Alcohol is technically a toxin or poison or idfk I'm not a retard nutritionist— its something naughty in your body. Either way its fun as hell on weekends but it will make you fat. No nutritional value and calorie dense. Easy to eat healthy all day and then have your healthy day ruined by an 8 drink sesh at your local dive bar. Also fat and greasy high calorie food follows drinks. It also makes you hungover and less likely to follow up your good eating habits the next couple days. Its okay to drink once and awhile but avoid most of the time and try your best to drink with MODERATION most of the time.

5 - Wake up early

Win the morning so that you can win the rest of the day. Waking up early helps set a tone and gives you time alone to set good habits while all your bad influences are still asleep or just going to bed. I wake up at 5:30 every week day and sleep in MAX 7:00 on weekends whether I stayed out late or not. It is this habit that helped me quit nicotine, shed the baby fat, and get in a habit of reading and lifting everyday. A man needs some quiet time alone everyday, especially when they are in an industry constantly in communication. The easiest time to do this is early in the morning.