Training Question

[jvuolo17]

So I'm about 150lbs and very physically fit. I always lift, run, blah blah blah. However I am looking to put on about 15-20ish lbs over some time. How does one do this without losing speed? Because I know how hard it is to gain weight anyways right now, my metabolism is so high that I haven't gained a pound in a few years, and just adding the fact that I need to continue running will make it even more difficult. I'm looking to play some college rugby and a few pounds won't hurt, just the catch is I can't lose any speed, and if possible I would like to get faster. I'm not slow right now, but with 20 extra pounds I will lose speed. So to sum it all up...gain/maintain speed, gain weight.

 

[Karky]

Well, you need to eat more than you need to maintain your weight. You shouldn't gain too much in a short time, though. I'd try and go for maybe 0.5kg a week, maybe even less, but most scales aren't that accurate. If you make sure most of the weight you gain is muscle and not fat and make sure you lift heavy and do some speed work then your speed shouldn't suffer that much. 150lbs is pretty light, a lot of sprinters, etc, are much heavier and they are very fast. Added muscle can help your speed since you can produce more force and with more force you'll accelerate better, and with minimal fat gain the gained weight shouldn't be enough to ruin that effect.