Weight Gainer Shakes

These weight gainer shakes are high in calories but made with healthy ingredients! Packed with protein and suitable for males and females, they come with 10 flavor options! 

The best weight gain shake

Over the last two years, I’ve been actively increasing my calories to aid muscle gain.

As someone who competes in fitness competitions, I usually go the other way- Cut calories to become as lean as possible (I lived off low calorie smoothies). To challenge myself, I competed in a higher weight class, which requires me to eat more calories than my body needs.

Now, this might sound like a dream for most people. However, it isn’t an excuse to eat ice cream, cookies, and potato chips in unlimited amounts. The way to gain weight safely and healthily is to consume weight gain smoothies and shakes.

Protein shakes for weight gain

Most of us are familiar with protein shakes, which are a great snack for weight loss diets, but actually, you can enjoy them the other way and have them as part of a weight gain diet.

By adding more healthy but high calorie ingredient, like peanut butter and rolled oats, you can create your own homemade weight gainer shake that packs in the calories without being too heavy or filling. 

These homemade weight gainer shakes are also much more affordable and healthy than pre-packaged and store-bought ones. Most retail for over $8 a serving, and the ingredients include several kinds of sugars and fillers.

What I love about these weight gain smoothies is just how delicious they are. They are so smooth and creamy and easy to drink, and come with 10 flavor options to try.

How to make weight gainer shakes

The Ingredients

• Protein powder– Plant based, casein, whey, or brown rice protein powder. Do NOT use a mass weight gainer protein powder.
• Rolled oats– Also known as old fashioned oats. Quick oats can work, but the former will yield a thicker smoothie. 
• Peanut butter OR nut/seed butter– Adds healthy fats and calories. I enjoy using peanut butter, but almond butter and sunflower seed butter work. 
• Maple syrup OR honey– Add sweetness which is very important, especially if your protein powder is unsweetened. 
• Milk of choice– Whichever milk you like. 
• Mix-ins– For the three main flavors, you can choose between cocoa powder, banana, or strawberries. See below for more flavor options. 

The Instructions

Add all your ingredients into a blender and blend until completely smooth. Pour into a large glass or protein shake bottle and enjoy immediately. 

What is the best weight gainer?

While you can resort to a weight gain protein powder (like a mass gainer), you can actually increase calories even more, by choosing one of these calorie dense yet healthy options.

• Avocado– Adds heart healthy fats, along with fiber. Per one medium avocado, there are approximately 245 calories. 
• Full fat yogurt– Adds extra protein and creaminess. Per one cup serving, there are 220 calories. 
• Coconut flakes– Add some coconut flakes to one of the chocolate based smoothies. A 1/2 cup serving provides 150 calories. 
• Ice cream– The more indulgent option, but transform your weight gain smoothie into a milkshake! Choose good quality ice cream and a scoop can easily provide around 300 calories. 
• Chia seeds– Add extra fiber and protein and healthy fats. Per 1/4 cup serving, there are 200 calories. Be sure to add an extra 1/2 cup of milk to the shake so it will blend properly. 

Ingredient swaps and dietary substitutions

Regardless of what diet you follow, you can easily adapt these weight gain shakes to be compliant. 

• Make it vegan. Use a plant based protein powder and a dairy free milk, like almond milk. 
• Ensure it is gluten-free. Choose certified gluten free rolled oats and ensure the protein powder is suitable for celiacs. 
• Change the fruit. Coconut, pineapple, raspberries, blueberries, apples, etc. 
• Swap out the peanut butter. Peanut butter is affordable and delicious. Any nut or seed butter works. 
• Use other grains. Buckwheat flakes, brown rice flakes, or any other flake cereal. 
• Lower the carbs. Try making keto shakes instead.

Ten delicious flavors

To make any of the ten flavors below, simply prepare the base shake recipe and add the mix-ins as instructed. 

• Blueberry muffin– Add 1/2 cup of fresh or frozen blueberries. 
• Cookies and cream– Add 1-2 chocolate sandwich cookies or homemade Oreos. 
• Nutella– Instead of peanut butter, use Nutella or healthy Nutella. Add 1-2 tablespoons of cocoa powder to take the chocolate flavor up a notch.
• Double chocolate– Use chocolate protein powder, add 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder and drizzle with chocolate syrup on top. 
• Chocolate peanut butter– Use peanut butter and add 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder. 
• Banana– Add a frozen banana and use honey as the sweetener. 
• Strawberries and cream– Add 1 cup of frozen strawberries and replace half the milk with Greek yogurt. 
• Snickers– Add cocoa powder, caramel syrup, and cocoa powder. 
• Chocolate coconut– Add 1/4 cup of unsweetened shredded coconut flakes and use coconut milk. 
• Tropical– Add coconut chunks and pineapple chunks and use coconut milk. 

Storing and prepping instructions

• To store: Weight gain smoothies should be enjoyed within 2 hours of preparation, but they can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two days. When ready to drink, be sure to add a splash more milk to thin it out. 
• To prep: Prepare baggies of oats and protein powder. When ready to make a shake, simply throw it into a blender with the nut butter, maple syrup, milk, and any add-ins and blend until smooth.

More smoothie and shake recipes to try

• Peanut butter smoothie
• Strawberry smoothie
• Blueberry smoothie
• Green smoothie
• Avocado smoothie

Frequently Asked Questions