Are you having trouble adding to body mass despite having a decent diet and exercise regimen? If so, have you tried various remedies including high calorie weight gain powders, liver function tablets or health drinks?

If you answered yes to the questions above, it is time you ascertained the causes for being underweight. For starters, the body-mass index or BMI has to be calculated to find out if you are truly underweight.

BMI is arrived at by measuring your weight in kilos and dividing it by the square of your height in meters. A BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 is considered normal for adults. If this is so, then here are ten tips to help you gain some body mass and weight.

1) Eat more calories: The approximate normal daily calorie requirement of an average male is around 2,200 while for women it is 1,900. You need to eat an additional 1,000 calories a day to gain about half a kg per week.

2) Make smart choices by using more dairy products, fish and meat. Always prefer eggs over vegetables and take high protein foods like pulses, beans, peas and starch-rich foods like rice, potatoes etc.

3) Eat a lot of mid-meal snacks. High calorie snacks like cheese sticks, milk shakes, muffins and dried fruit is a good diet for gaining weight. However, do not mistake high calorie snacks with junk foods.

4) Drinking a lot of water is good for gaining weight as well as losing it. They supply both nutrients and calories. Drink a lot of milk, fresh juices and energy drinks.

5) Intensify your workouts but do not go only for aerobics. Try out weights and workouts based on target muscle groups. Free weights put the maximum stress on muscles and stimulate the most number of fibers within muscles.