Here, a free 7 days of a very healthy macrobiotic vegan diet for weight gain, with some necessary tips to get results like sports and the best time to eat!
How to gain weight during a macrobiotic/vegan diet?
The macrobiotic/vegan diet is two different diets at the same time, the Japanese macrobiotic diet, and the famous vegan diet (without any animal flesh food).
These two diets are certainly a bit restrictive, but it is very possible to gain weight with this diet. Because it gives us a diversity of foods; low-calorie and high-calorie foods such as oleaginous fruits for example, which can be included in the diet to gain weight. This diet can let you gain weight for several reasons.
- It contains a list of high-calorie foods
- Diet rich in vitamins which are the essential component to gain weight.
- It is a diet that does not calculate calories.
- A diet that allows snacks according to the eating habits of each individual.
7 days of macrobiotic/vegan diet for weight gain
Here is a typical 7-day executive meal plans to gain weight during the macrobiotic/vegan diet. Having at least one snack a day is necessary for people who have a lack of appetite. Have at least one snack with your best food.
Day 1
Breakfast
- 1 glass of almond milk (transitional food)
- 50g of homemade whole grain bread with 5g of hazelnut butter
- 200g of fresh local and seasonal fruit.
Lunch
- Miso soup with tofu as a starter
- Broccoli and some sweet potato ( sweet potato is a transitional food), salad seasoned with rice vinegar.
- 20 portions of raisins.
Dinner
- Root vegetable salad cooked in water
- 100g of tempeh
- Dates (maximum 7 portions).
Day 2
Breakfast
- a cup of rice milk
- Lentil pâté in 50g of homemade whole grain bread
- 150 to 200g of fresh local and seasonal fruit
Lunch
- Pumpkin and carrot soup
- 50g whole grain bread
- 100g of tempeh
- A banana
Dinner
- Cooked vegetables seasoned with 1 tbsp of organic olive oil.
- Fried tofu with brown rice
- 80g of pineapple.
Day 3
Breakfast
- Coconut milk with sesame seeds
- Dried fruit compote
Lunch
- Miso soup with seaweed as a starter
- White beans in sauce
- 50g whole grain bread
- 3 portions of dried figs
Dinner
- Endives, beet, and carrots cooked and seasoned with 1 tbsp of tahini.
- lima beans in sauce
- 50g of Tempeh
- 3 portions of dry dates or figs
Day 4
Note: Starting from the 4th-day snacks can be introduced for people suffering from a lack of appetite.
Breakfast
- Dried grapes and a cup of homemade rice cream
- 250g compote of local and seasonal fruits
Lunch
- Mixed veggies soup with vegetable cream
- Breadcrumbs soaked in 100g of hummus
- A local and seasonal fruit
Snack at 4 pm
- 3 Dates dipped in hazelnut puree
Dinner
- Light miso soup with tofu
- soybeans in sauce with vegetables
- fruit
Day 5
Breakfast
- a jar of vegetable cream (about 120g) with sesame seeds
- 10g of sesame butter in 40g (two slices) of whole-grain bread
Lunch
- Root veggies cooked in water
- Fried tofu with hummus
- Fruits compote
Snack
- Yannoh seed coffee
- 8 portions of almonds
Dinner
- Carrot soup
- Lentils and chickpeas in sauce (do not cook chickpeas alone for better gut health)
- Fruit
Day 6
Breakfast
- Homemade seitan (here is a healthy recipe)
- 60 g of whole grain bread, the equivalent of three slices soaked in vegetable cream.
- 3 dates.
Lunch
- Green salad with some sesame seeds
- Japanese natto (fermented soybeans in sauce) with brown rice.
- Fruit
Snack at 4 pm
- 3 dried figs stuffed with sesame butter.
Dinner
- Boiled veggies seasoned with 2 tbsp of olive oil.
- Red beans in sauce
- A local and seasonal fruit.
Day 7
Breakfast
- Hot cereal cream with cherries and raisins
Lunch
- Japanese seaweed salad seasoned with sesame seeds and 1 tablespoon of olive oil and a little lemon juice with 2 slices of seitan.
- Hummus with 40g of whole grain bread (2 slices).
- A fresh, local, and seasonal fruit.
Snack
- A glass of natural fruit juice.
Dinner
- Pumpkin soup
- Lentils and chickpeas in sauce with 2 pieces of seitan
- 10g of sesame butter
- 40g of whole-grain bread
- Fruit
Do sports prevent me from gaining weight during a macrobiotic/vegan diet?
Yes, when the sport is not compatible with your diet!
In fact, the macrobiotic/vegan diet is not a diet for high-intensity sports such as bodybuilding, boxing etc. because it is too restrictive regarding high biological value proteins and collagen essential for high-intensity sports activity.
What’s the best sport for a macrobiotic/vegan diet?
If you want to gain weight with the macrobiotic/vegan diet, sports will not prevent you from doing so. On the contrary, sports will help you regulate your metabolic hormones: Sport is a hormone regulator!
- Preferably fast walking at least 35 minutes/day.
- Or jogging: 20 minutes/day regularly.
When is the best time to practice during a macrobiotic/vegan diet for weight gain?
To gain weight during the macrobiotic/vegan diet, it is preferable to practice your sport after the meal for 2 to 3 hours, it is the same recommendation as the sport to lose weight. The important thing is to practice a low or moderate sport intensity as mentioned above.
Avoid going too far away from your last meal for more than 3 hours!
Don’t do sports right after your meal, otherwise, you will burn what you just ate. Try to have a copious meal before the exercise! Preferably to practice your sports activity after a good breakfast and why not after 2 hours of lunch.
When is the best time to eat during a macrobiotic/vegan diet for weight gain?
It is necessary to follow the program that suits each person, that’s why we say that a diet is personalized, there are those who work at night and those who work during the day.
If you work overnight
For people who work at night and want to gain weight by following the macrobiotic/vegan diet, it is important to take snacks during working hours, to have energy and to balance between the energy lost and the calories gained.
So you can have dinner as usual at home, and place a snack of about 250 calories at midnight, then take a balanced meal from 3pm.
Then have your hearty breakfast in the morning and sleep after you finish your work.
This is an example, however, each person must agree with what the dietician suggests.
Is it better to snack during a macrobiotic/vegan diet for weight gain?
To gain weight, it is better to take snacks that have healthy quick sugar like fructose contained in fruits.
This will let them eat once they are hungry, in small amounts because people lose weight generally do not have much appetite. So it is good to have a snack in the morning at 10am and in the afternoon at 3pm or 4pm.
Dividing the meals into three main meals and two snacks per day is recommended for people who want to gain weight.
Best Snack during a macrobiotic/vegan diet for weight gain
Example of macrobiotic/vegan snacks to take at midnight to gain weight
- 3 dates stuffed with sesame butter
- 3 slices of seitan stirred in a vegetable cream
- Lentil pâté with 3 slices of whole grain bread (60g).
Best breakfast during a macrobiotic/vegan diet for weight gain
The best breakfast is a meal that consists of a liquid like milk or soup or fruit juice. In the morning it is important not to shock our stomachs with solid food. It’s better to consume a glass of liquid food to make our intestines expand, dilating throughout the night.
We can start our day during a macrobiotic/vegan diet with a healthy breakfast such as :
- Rice milk with dried fruits.
- A light miso soup with tofu.
- Vegetable cream with sesame seeds. and a fruit compote.
Macrobiotic/vegan allowed foods list
- In-season & local fruits dried cooked or raw.
- Dried fruits
- Root vegetables
- wild vegetables
- Tofu, tempeh, tahini, miso soup, lentil pate, sesame butter, natto, seitan, hummus, panisse.
- Rice milk, almond milk,
- Boiled salads. Lacto-fermented vegetables such as sauerkraut.
- Seaweed
Seasoning
- Rice vinegar, soy sauce, parsley, horseradish, salted plums, cider vinegar First cold pressed oils. Sesame oil.
Beverages
- 3-year-old tea twigs or leaves, yannoh grain coffee, rice tea, thyme, rosemary, mature tea, spring water. Light miso soup.
Syrups
- Rice syrup, wheat syrup, corn syrup, and barley malt, amasake or brown rice maltose, almond and sesame confit.
To be consumed occasionally
- Vegetable pate
- Soy milk
- Yogurt with vegan soy milk.
- Raw vegetables also in limited quantity
- Potatoes in limited quantity
- Herbal teas, green tea, natural black tea without tannin, apple juice, cider, mineral water, spring water, organic beers and wines. Reduce the amount of liquid absorbed.
- Maple syrup, raw cane sugar, perry, malt candies, fruit compotes
Macrobiotic/vegan diet foods to avoid
- Meat and meat products, cold cuts, pâtés, broths, farmed fish.
- Dairy products, cheese, milk, cream, butter, yogurt, animal fats, industrial margarine, and bakery products containing lard.
- Fruits and juices of tropical origin, tomatoes, eggplants, potatoes, salads, and asparagus. Out-of-season and out-of-region fruits
- Seasoning: mustard, oils, vinegar and industrial sauces.
Top 15 high-calorie foods in a macrobiotic/vegan diet
- Dried fruits
- Sesame butter
- Hazelnut puree, sesame puree, almond puree
- Tahini
- Natto
- maple syrup and corn syrup
Note: Use maple syrup and corn syrup only to replace table sugar or jam. That is to say, consume them in reasonable amounts because even if they help you gain weight, they don’t do so in a healthy way. that’s why I didn’t mention them in the sample macrobiotic/vegan diet menu above.
On the other hand, sesame butter is rich in vitamins, and tahini and the other high-calorie foods mentioned in this list are good for your health but always in reasonable quantities.
Preferably to stuff the dried fruits with as I explained in the sample menus, following the quantities quoted so as not to go overboard which can harm your health. The key to gaining weight in good health is to go slowly!
Macrobiotic/vegan drinks list to gain weight
Macrobiotic/vegan drinks are best taken with snacks if you want to gain weight. We can mention: Rice milk, fruit juice mixed with vegetable cream, and fruit juices, in general, are rich in vitamins and good sugar ( fructose) that can add you a few extra pounds.
Bottom Line
The macrobiotic diet is already close to the vegan diet if we exclude some non-vegan foods that are already to be limited (in the list of transition foods) like eggs . It is very possible to gain weight by following the macrobiotic/vegan diet because it is a diet that contains healthy foods that can provide you with vitamins and calories at the same time, so gain weight in a healthy way.
