Gaining weight while overweight

Nutrition Q&A [Moderated]
1

Okay let us begin with the facts, I’m 19y/o, 192cm(6’4") and weigh around 106kg(233lbs) with a waist measurement of 100cm(39.4"). My bodyweight has been consistent for about 8 months, although I went through some decent body recomposition. I play in a sport1 where long term (next 3-4 years), I should weigh 120kg(265lbs). Now, for obvious reasons I would like the weight I gain to be primarily muscle. I think this is realistic since I’m still pretty undermuscled (aren’t we all) and there are plenty of examples of guys leaner and heavier than me at my height.

My question now is: What would be best for my long term outcomes, gaining weight, maintaining or cutting? I am currently in my off season and in a hypertrophy-ish phase. My current understanding is that gaining weight will still be superior to maintaining for building muscle. I also think that, as long as I don’t bulk too agressively, I shouldn’t gain too much fat.

1I compete in swiss wrestling, a grappling/wrestling sport with no weight classes, weighing more is beneficial(unless your cardio is affected too much), since it’s harder to move you(as well as the other known benefits of weighing more)​​

2

SB,

Thanks for the post and thanks for the background in Swiss wrestling. I wasn’t familiar with it until now. Looks like a cool sport!

Regarding the ratio of muscle to fat gained, it looks like that this is primarily influenced by training (^ muscle), protein intake (^ muscle), recent weight loss (^ fat), and degree of energy surplus (higher = ^ fat). Outside of these things, the ratio is pretty static and rooted in genetics. You may be well-suited to gain a lot of muscle relative to fat or maybe not. I can’t tell from here, unfortunately.

In the next 3-4 years, I don’t think there is a clearly superior path to being 120kg at a similar or better body composition than you are currently at. If it were me, I’d probably favor a small surplus (250 cal or so) and really push the training (including conditioning). I’d favor a strength-focused program over hypertrophy with some exposure to higher rep ranges.

-Jordan

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