Skinny girls’ guide to curves

Being super-thin isn’t always as good as it seems

The skinny debate has sparked a lot of anger among slender readers. “Not everyone’s obsessed with food,” you raged after reading our talking point. The naturally thin among you longed to fill out your shape and asked for a realistic weight-gain diet.

Eating to increase your size is not about gorging on junk food. The weight must not be extra fat but lean muscle. Fat is dead weight and it goes where it wants to go. So that could mean a double chin, jelly belly or fattened hips. What you want to do is gain shape, so you look bigger and firmer, with a slim waist.

What you need to do

• You need-muscle building protein. But if you eat too much protein and don’t exercise, you’ll gain fat. Let your good work show.
• Food for building-up should be low in fat, with enough calories from lean proteins to fuel energy and muscle growth. 
  
• Eat a lot and often – but make sure it’s low-fat and low in sugar.
  
• Weigh yourself every week. You should aim to gain two to three pounds. This diet contains about 3,000 calories per day.
• If you can’t weight train, get as much strength exercise as possible, such as walking uphill, cycling, lifting, or carrying things.
  

Boiled sweets

Imagine food which isn’t food at all! Something with absolutely no nutrients, which adults and kids alike eat on a daily basis. Step away from boiled sweets. Their main ingredient is sugar, followed by glucose syrup. And if that doesn’t rot your teeth, citric acid is added! There’s also flavourings and three E-number colourings. The 8.6g of carbohydrate per sweet is ALL sugar – there’s no protein, no fat, no fibre and nothing else!

The eating plan

Take a look at this sample diet. Keep it up for about six months and you’ll be amazed by the results

Porridge made with skimmed milk, 1tsp honey and 1 chopped banana OR Omelette made with 3 egg whites and 1 egg yolk, 2tbsp baked beans. Both with 2 slices of wholegrain toast with olive oil spread, 1 glass of skimmed or soya milk.
Two hours later…
Banana, plain yoghurt and a handful of peanuts.

Lunch

Jacket potato with salad, 2tbsp baked beans. Also make a second baked potato and leave cold.
PLUS Wholegrain sandwich with tuna or tomatoes – NO mayonnaise.
1 apple, 1 banana and a handful of almonds.
Two hours later…
Cold baked potato, 2tbsp cottage cheese or 2 slices of Cheddar cheese, grated. Orange juice.

Dinner

Grilled or baked chicken, herbs, 6tbsp plain boiled rice. Broccoli. Salad with oil and vinegar dressing OR grilled 8oz steak, broccoli, tomato and mushrooms, rice as above. Fruit salad.

Two hours later…
Bowl of Special K skimmed milk, blueberries or raspberries OR porridge with milk and honey OR 3 rice cakes with honey and a large mug of warmed skimmed milk with honey.

The exercise plan

Hard work and good nutrition will give you the killer curves you want. Here’s how to work that body

A filled-out shape only comes from weight training. Less is more, so work each muscle group to exhaustion. Just when you think you’ve had enough, take a deep breath and do one more lift. This is the secret. It forces your muscles to grow more fibres so they can cope. And this is what builds shape.

• Muscle groups to focus on
• Front and back of arms 
• Chest and shoulders 
• Front and back of thighs 
• Tummy and back 
• Calves and shins 
• Bottom and hips 
• Inner and outer thighs
  

Spend 15 minutes on each of these areas once a week, and add cardio for 40 minutes three times a week. You’ll soon see a real improvement.