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Isn’t it frustrating when you try all tips and tricks to put on weight, and are seemingly forever stuck with a skinny physique despite your efforts?
I’ve been there and I totally get it.
I was skinny before. And after years of trying to crack the code to weight gain, I discovered that your genes or food preferences might be holding you back from getting the bulky body you want.
But, I know something that can totally change the game — weight gain supplements.
Take note that, if you are a chronic under-eater, all the supplements in the world can’t help you add bulk to your frame. So, you have to improve your real-food intake as well so your supplements will work for you.
In this post, I will be sharing with you the best supplements you can buy to help you add significant mass to your body.
- Mass Gainer
- Creatine
- Protein Powder
- Omega-3 Supplement
- Multivitamin and Mineral Blend
5 Mass Gain Supplements That Will Turn You From Skinny to Swole
1 – Best Weight Gain Supplement: Optimum Nutrition Pro Gainer
2 – Best Mass and Strength Aid: MyProtein Creatine Monohydrate
3 – Best Protein Powder: BSN Syntha-6
4 – Best Healthy Fat Supplement: Biotest Flameout
5 – Best Micronutrient Supplement: Optimum Nutrition Opti-Men
1 – Best Weight Gain Supplement: Optimum Nutrition Pro Gainer
- Nutrition per serving:
650 calories
60 g protein
85 g carbohydrates
8 g fat
- Number of servings: 28
- Top 3 Ingredients: Maltodextrin, Protein Blend (Whey Protein Isolate, Whey Protein Concentrate, Calcium Caseinate, Egg Albumen, Hydrolyzed Whey Peptides, Glutamine Peptides), Cocoa (Processed with Alkali)
- Allergen: Milk, Soy, Egg and Wheat
- Type: Powder
- Size: 10 LBS
| WHAT WE LIKE + | WHAT WE DON’T LIKE – |
|---|---|
| ✅ High amount of protein per serving | ❌ All its carbs come from maltodextrin |
| ✅ Added vitamins and minerals | |
| ✅ Healthy fat sources |
The Optimum Nutrition Pro Gainer contains fast-digesting protein and carbohydrates from whey and maltodextrin, respectively.
Thus, it is best used pre-workout for an anti-catabolic effect and post-workout to immediately put you in an anabolic state.
These two periods are crucial stages for nutrient timing — providing your body with key nutrients so you can function and recover in the most optimal way possible.
Despite all its carbs coming from maltodextrin — which is high-GI and fast-absorbing — 85g in one serving is nothing to worry about.
That amount is just enough to serve as a quick energy source before a training session or to replenish your glycogen stores and kickstart recovery after.
This mass gainer has your macronutrients and micronutrients covered.
The blend of 22 grams of vitamins and minerals helps you recover, perform, and grow better, not to mention keep your overall health in check.
This combination of macros and micros make it the top supplement for weight gain.
It helps you gain weight holistically and healthily — the way that it should be.
Compute for your basic daily caloric need, design your meal plan around that caloric threshold, then simply add in one serving of this mass gainer a day. And you are set for building muscle mass!
Verdict
| Not everybody has the budget for all sorts of weight gain supplements. If there’s one supplement you should buy to help you gain weight, then it should be a mass gainer (as long as you truly are not under-eating). The Pro Gainer is a high-protein and moderate-carb drink with enough calories to push you into a caloric surplus and with the least amount of fat gain, so long as your overall diet is kept in check. |
2 – Best Mass and Strength Aid: MyProtein Creatine Monohydrate
- Specifications: 5 grams of Creatine Monohydrate per serving
- Allergen: Gluten free
- Type: Powder
- Size: 2.2 LB (1Kg)
| WHAT WE LIKE + | WHAT WE DON’T LIKE – |
|---|---|
| ✅ Increase muscle mass | ❌ None for its contents |
| ✅ Increases strength gains | ❌ Most negative reviews are on the packaging, scoops, etc. |
| ✅ Great ergogenic aid |
When you are hitting all your macros and calorie needs, I recommend adding this supplement to your nutrition regimen.
Creatine is the best supplement to increase muscle mass and strength according to the International Society of Sports Nutrition.
Out of the numerous types of creatine available, creatine monohydrate has proved to be the best.
This MyProtein supplement comes in a 2.2-pound bag, giving you a total of 200 servings per bag.
It’s vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free. Thus, it is the best supplement to use if you have a lot of dietary considerations.
Creatine mono is simple in form yet complex in the positive effects it gives.
In all honesty, I can recommend just about any creatine monohydrate brand out there because they do offer the same benefits in strength, mass gain, and fat loss.
However, I recommend MyProtein Creatine Monohydrate because of its big packaging for its fairly cheap price.
One bag of this gives you about a couple of hundred servings enough to last you 3-4 months!
Tip:
Creatine Loading – I recommend loading your muscles for the first 5-7 days with 4 servings (20g) of creatine to benefit from the effects of creatine supplementation ASAP.
This maximizes your creatine stores and allows you to induce its strength and power, muscle protein synthesis, and fat oxidation effects as fast as possible.
After this period, you can proceed to take just 3-5 grams of creatine a day to maintain your muscle creatine stores.
Verdict
| This is the best supplement you can take by far. It is not expensive, simple to use, easy to consume, and will last you a very long time. Creatine is the most researched supplement out there, and studies consistently show that creatine mono is the best type. If there’s one supplement you cannot go wrong with, it would be the MyProtein Creatine Monohydrate. |
3 – Best Protein Powder: BSN Syntha-6
- Nutrition per serving:
200 calories
22 g protein
15 g carbohydrates
6 g fat
- Number of servings: 48
- Top Ingredients: Whey Protein Concentrate, Whey Protein Isolate, Calcium Caseinate, Micellar Casein, Milk Protein Isolate, Dried Albumen, Wheat Glutamine Peptides, Polydextrose, Sunflower Oil Creamer
- Allergen: Milk, Soy, Egg and Wheat
- Type: Powder
- Size: 5 LB (2.27 Kg)
| WHAT WE LIKE + | WHAT WE DON’T LIKE – |
|---|---|
| ✅ Blend of fast and slow-digesting proteins | ❌ Limited flavor options |
| ✅ For any time of the day |
The best protein powder for skinny guys would be a mix of fast and slow-digesting proteins.
This makes sure that you have a constant supply of amino acids so your body is always in muscle-building mode.
BSN Syntha-6 has a whey, egg, milk, and casein protein blend that does just that. That’s why it’s a great protein drink for any time of the day.
It has whey concentrate, whey isolate, and calcium caseinate to kickstart recovery post-workout, since it is absorbed rapidly in the bloodstream.
It also halts any catabolic process that occurs from a fast (sleeping, long work hours, etc.)
The egg albumen and milk isolate help keep you full for 3-4 hours — buh-bye unhealthy snacking, and hello muscle-building progress!
Finally, the micellar casein provides you with a constant stream of amino acids for up to 7 hours, putting you in a constant anabolic state.
You already have a hard time holding on to your gains, so don’t deprive yourself of the most important muscle-building compound.
You wouldn’t want to hinder your growth process or, at the worst, reverse it, right?
Verdict
| Protein is the most important macro you need to gain healthy weight. Hitting your daily protein requirements allows you to gain muscle mass instead of fat mass. Thus, for skinny guys, a protein blend is more preferred than a pure fast or pure-slow digesting protein supplement. This is why BSN Syntha-6, with its blend of slow, medium, and fast-acting proteins will be a great choice for slim and slender folks trying to gain mass. |
4 – Best Healthy Fat Supplement: Biotest Flameout
- Specifications:
Omega-3 Fatty Acids
DHA: 2,200 mg
EPA: 880 mg
CLA: 350 mg
- Ingredients: Molecularly distilled concentrated fish oil (triglyceride form from anchovy, sardine, Atlantic menhaden, skipjack tuna, yellowfin tuna, Alaska pollock), gelatin (bovine), glycerin (from palm oil), conjugated linoleic acid, water, polysorbate 80.
- Allergen: Fish
- Type: Softgels
- Number of Softgels: 90
| WHAT WE LIKE + | WHAT WE DON’T LIKE – |
|---|---|
| ✅ Formulated with higher DHA | ❌ Can be pricey |
| ✅ Optimal DHA:EPA ratio for men and women | |
| ✅ Purely Omega-3s |
Omega-3 and Omega-6 are known as essential fatty acids.
However, most western diets are already high in Omega-6 which is, unfortunately, pro-inflammatory. This isn’t good for weight gain, specifically for muscle gain.
Resistance training induces muscle damage. The damage then causes inflammation.
Without enough Omega-3s, you are prone to prolonged inflammation. And prolonged inflammation causes even further muscle damage, totally canceling out the benefits of strength training for weight gain.
This is where Flameout comes in. It is purely an Omega-3 supplement that helps you reach an optimal 1:1 or 2:1 ratio of Omega-3s to 6s.
This supplement contains the purest fatty acids — DHA and EPA — in high concentrations.
In comparison, you would have to triple the dosage of similar fat supps to even come close to a single serving of Flameout.
A study suggests that high DHA and EPA levels have been linked to increased muscle protein synthesis, decreased muscle breakdown, and reduced inflammation.
All of these contribute to significant improvement in mass gain.
Another notable ingredient of Flameout is conjugated linoleic acid, or CLA. It’s another highly effective anti-inflammatory.
Thus, this supplement is one of the most potent Omega-3 supplements out there.
Verdict
| Chronic inflammation is an often-overlooked factor for muscle growth. Most people simply focus on macros when trying to gain weight. Flameout will help you get rid of this often ignored chronic inflammation that significantly hinders your weight gain efforts. Not only that, it will drastically improve your muscle-building, fat-burning, and other metabolic capacities. |
5 – Best Micronutrient Supplement: Optimum Nutrition Opti-Men
- Specifications:
25 Vitamins and Essential Minerals
Amino Acids
Phytochemicals
Virility Support
Digestive Enzymes
Antioxidants
- Top Ingredients: Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin D, Vitamin E, Vitamin K, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Folic Acid, Vitamin B12, Biotin, Pantothenic Acid), Calcium, Iodine, Magnesium, Zinc, Selenium, Copper, Manganese, Chromium
- Allergen: Soy
- Type: Tablets
- Number of Tablets:150
| WHAT WE LIKE + | WHAT WE DON’T LIKE – |
|---|---|
| ✅ Extensive blend of essential and important micronutrients | ❌ Pills crumble when stored in pill cases |
| ✅ Very affordable |
Opti-Men is a powerhouse micronutrient supplement. It is one of the best in terms of composition, dosage, and price.
Just take a look at its nutrition label and you’ll be surprised by how many and how high the dosages are for each ingredient.
It does not only focus on bridging nutritional gaps, but also has added ingredients to support muscle health, immune function, and cellular metabolism.
Another stand-out feature of this multi is the added digestive enzymes.
They help you break down all the food you consume so all of their nutrients are absorbed by the body. Without these enzymes, all the nutrients you consume go to waste.
If you are consuming a wide variety of healthy and high-quality food, then you can cut down the dose to 1-2 tablets a day.
I use them to assure that I have “topped off” the highest effective doses of all my micronutrients so that my body is saturated with all the compounds it needs to recover and grow. You can take them this way, too.
Verdict
| Opti-men is a very affordable way to keep your overall health in check. Since the body functions as a unit, this multivitamin and mineral supplement makes sure you have all the micronutrients you need to perform and recover at the highest level. |
Alternatives
For true hard gainers, you may need a mass gainer with a bigger number of calories to help you gain weight.
You can opt instead for the Labrada Mass Gainer. It has 1930 calories per serving with 84g of protein and 315g of carbohydrates, as well as added creatine.
For the other “small” supplements, you can always opt for cheaper products. But, keep in mind that this could mean a step down in the potency and quality of the product.
For a fat supp, you can buy the Arazo Nutrition – Omega 3 which has 1200mg of EPA and 900mg of DHA.
For hardcore bodybuilders and powerlifters, another awesome micronutrient complex is Animal Pak. It is complete with multivitamins, minerals, amino acids, antioxidants, digestive enzymes, carnitine, and more to provide foundational support for your body.
FAQs
What do weight gain supplements do?
Weight gain supplements help you add mass to your physique by augmenting your food intake with essential nutrients that will either put you in a caloric surplus (the single most important factor for weight gain), make your body more efficient at utilizing key nutrients, or both.
What supplement is best for weight gain?
The best supplement for weight gain is a mass gainer. This provides you with a high number of calories enough to put you into an energy surplus and a high number of proteins to build muscle mass.
What vitamins and minerals can help in gaining weight?
Vitamin D3 has been attributed to a 20% increase in testosterone production in men, according to one study. Other vitamins to gain weight for men are sodium, magnesium, calcium, vitamin K, zinc, and selenium.
Will weight gain supplements make you fat?
It depends on what weight gain supplements you’re taking and how you consume them.
Mass gainers, for example, can make you fat if you fail to account for your overall caloric consumption. Thus, the thing you need to be wary most of when using weight gain supplements is their calorie content.
Can I take weight gain supplements without working out?
Yes, you can take supplements to gain weight without working out. However, you may be robbing yourself of the significant effects that working out does for the body.
Resistance training helps with nutrient partitioning, or the process of how your body utilizes calories for storage (including protein synthesis and fat storage) or oxidation. You wouldn’t want to miss out on that!
What to Consider When Selecting a Weight Gain Supplement?
Formulation and Ingredients
For formulation, double-check that the doses in the supplement you are buying are at an effective dose.
Otherwise, you won’t be benefiting from them at all. Always check the labels because they can be deceiving at times.
Also, check if the ingredients fit your dietary restrictions.
Make sure they won’t cause allergic reactions, bloating, and other adverse effects. Equally important, make sure they are sourced from high-quality ingredients.
Taste and Flavor
For powdered supplements that you mix into a drink, never underestimate the power of taste.
When your supp does not taste good, chances are you will not be drinking it consistently.
And, that lack of consistency may mean you would be leaving huge nutrition gaps that will throw your weight gain efforts out the window!
Macro Split
For weight gain and protein powders, make sure you get at least 40g of protein in one serving.
Protein is the most important macronutrient for healthy mass gain, which is the ideal route to take.
After making sure you are hitting your protein needs, the carbs and fats can be as many or as few as you would like them to be. Just make sure you are at a caloric surplus.
Micronutrients
The top two micronutrient supplements I recommend that you take are creatine and digestive enzymes.
To reiterate, creatine has continually shown positive and significant benefits for muscle and strength gains.
Digestive enzymes, on the other hand, ensure that you absorb all the food and supplements you consume to maximize your body’s response to them.
Price
Cheaper is not always better. What you should look at is the quality of the weight gain supplements you are eyeing.
Think of supplements as a long-term health investment, not just shelling out money to achieve a short-term goal.
Considerations for Aspiring Bodybuilders
Would you be better off just eating more food?
If you always under-eat all the supplements in the world cannot make up for all the real food you should be eating instead.
Supplements are a mere aid to support your weight gain efforts. They should enhance a sound meal plan, not replace it.
Another thing to ask yourself is whether or not you can afford to add supplements to your nutrition protocol.
In relation to the first point, maybe you will be better off spending your money on higher quality food sources, a membership at a better-equipped gym, or an experienced physique coach.
What do you think would be best for you?
Importance of Sticking to a Schedule
Discipline is important for success in anything, and that includes weight gain. You have to have a schedule and, more importantly, stick to it.
You have to eat at the scheduled time and take your supplements according to the label to get the most benefits from every nutrient you ingest.
Proper nutrient timing means you are delivering what your body needs when it needs it the most.
Use this table with the specific supplements you will be taking to fit your individualized needs:
In the broader view, a schedule also helps you track your progress. It keeps you accountable for every factor that plays into your mass gain journey.
One tip that helped me gauge whether my schedule is working and if I had to adjust is by plotting goals on my long-term schedule. Hitting goals and milestones meant I was on the right track.
How about you, what goals and milestones would you like to achieve throughout your mass gaining journey?
Importance of Seeking Medical Advice
If you have a sound nutrition and training program, yet you still are not seeing any improvement, then maybe it is time to seek medical advice — especially if you experience discomfort like constant fatigue, headaches, and other symptoms.
Visit your doctor to see if you have underlying health conditions that may be affecting your weight gain efforts. Again, ask a medical expert, not a gym bro.
They can run tests to determine the cause of your inability to gain weight and prescribe possible interventions specific to your condition.
And, if you have any medical condition, better see a doctor first before trying any supplement, diet plan, or workout routine.
Conclusion
Again, weight gain supplements are not bodybuilding’s ambrosia. They aren’t miracle pills and powders.
What they do is considerably reinforce your food intake to put you in the most optimal state to gain mass.
Nutrition is half of the equation. You have to put in hard work not just in the weight room. So, better eat properly and supplement appropriately
To all my skinny bros, you may have a harder time putting on weight, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible.
My advice: Enjoy the journey! I have been where you are. Don’t get too caught up in the results. Just put your head down, do the work, and the results will follow.
What’s the first step you’re taking to your weight gain journey?
