Day 10: Weight Gain (plus an update)

Hey all! I think I’ve been a bit ambitious in terms of my updating schedule. I’m in a show at the moment which takes up a fair bit of my time (I should be working on lines right now, for example), so my updates might slow down here for a while. No fear, I’m not abandoning this blog, it just probably won’t get an update every single day. But I’ll do a little chapter today for funsies, and (hopefully but no promises) I’ll be back again tomorrow with more. In the meantime, enjoy and share with your friends!

Let’s talk about a topic I’ve never in my life needed to know about: Weight GAIN. Oh yes, Sylvia has the answer to that too! The chapter is entitled “Gain Fifteen or More Pounds a Month” –  which is definitely ambitious. As I said, I’ve never in my life needed to gain weight, and I’m definitely not about to try this particular meal plan (no need to temp fate) but if anyone out there does need to put on some pounds, give it a whirl and let me know how it goes! 

First off, before she even gets to the food, Sylvia says “You must have a (sic) least nine hours of sleep. Some require ten.” I mean, so far I’m on board. But alas, I’m one of Sylvia’s “fat babies” (eyeroll) so I’m not allowed to sleep. 

I’ve included below a rundown of the meal plan:

Let me just say, this all looks pretty darn tasty. Honestly, she’s just giving permission to eat a lot of carbs and fat, which my body is always up for. I’ve been taking a break from lifting while I’m doing this diet (no need to pass out while I’ve got a barbell on my shoulders), but I could see this diet being great for gym days. Very filling and warm.

You get to have dessert! Twice in a day! What a life. I only get a half a cup of gelatin once a day, which I mean, is delicious, but thin girls who want to gain weight get to have bread pudding! Custard! Ice cream! Ugh. Unfair. 

It does seem like an awful lot of food. And on top of the regular plan, she also encourages eating “all the fresh fruit you like during the day”.  

Sylvia HATES hot baths and showers. According to this chapter, she tells women who love hot showers and baths “That’s fine, if you want to kill yourself.” I mean…kind of harsh I think. But she’s Scandanavian, so I assume that’s part of the reason she’s so into the cold shower with a body brush thing. I don’t know if I could handle it. My poor skin. 

Encouraged exercise for thin girls: swimming and tap dancing. Both of which are OUT for bigger girls, according to Sylvia – they’ll cause them to bulk up. Which…is definitely not true, but then, women of this time also didn’t think you could swim while on your period. So I’ll forgive the ignorance. 

She has a set of exercises for thin girls to “build up” parts of their bodies they want to be larger. I’ve posted some pics and instructions below with captions. 

Unfortunately the exercises for “Enlarging the Chest” don’t have pictures, but I’ll run through the suggestions here (in Sylvia’s own words so don’t blame me for how strange they sound):

• Before an open window: Stand erect. Raise your arms straight in front, palms downward. As you do this, inhale through the nose. Don’t raise the arms any higher than the level of the shoulders. The raising of the arms and the inhaling are done together and very slowly, permitting you to count up to eight. From this position, arms straight in front of you, level with shoulders, without releasing your breath, slowly turn the palms outward and move the arms until they are on a horizontal line with your shoulders. In this movement you are still holding your breath for another eight slow counts. From this position, turn the palms downward and lower the arms to your sides by eight slow counts, exhaling through your mouth. Begin at five times on this exercise, working up to ten or fifteen times.
• Just to the regular swimming exercise featuring the breast stroke, before an open window for fifteen minutes. Do it as if you were really cutting through water. It will develop your bust, shoulders and arms, and is much better than actual swimming because it will not enlarge your hips at the same time, in case they’re already well developed.
• Singing is also a great chest builder. Have you ever seen opera singers with a flat chest? No! That’s becaues they sing. Well, you sing too. Sing for a lovely, feminine figure. It doesn’t matter whether or not you have any voice. But is essential that you know the proper breathing required in singing. Ask any of your singing friends to show you the correct breath control and the simpler exercises that all singers use. Then sing! Sing for a few minutes every day! Sing for beauty!

Lastly, Sylvia encourages girls who wish to gain weight to nap whenever possible. A half an hour after lunch, and again before AND after dinner. It is Sylvia’s theory that girls can’t gain weight because of a “nervous” disposition – naps are meant to calm them down, and thus allow them to put on weight. It’s interesting, if not particularly sound logic.

Well, there you have it. All the information you need to gain 15 or more pounds a month if that is what your heart desires. If you decide to try it out, please let me know how it goes!!!