In order to gain weight, you must first create a calorie surplus in which calories are either used for building muscle or they are stored away as fat.

So, if you want to gain weight, you must first look at the way you're eating, before you look at your training or the supplements you take.

Here are 5 simple, proven things you can do to gain more weight in less time.

1. Eat a large breakfast

Start the day off right by eating a large breakfast. In fact, you want to consume most of your daily calories early on in the day and reduce them as the day goes on.

So the largest meal each day should be breakfast and they should get smaller as you go.

Your breakfast should be high in protein, moderate in carbs, and low in fats. A large breakfast will jumpstart your metabolism and give your body the nutrients it needs, when it needs them.

Never train on an empty stomach, that's the fastest way to lose muscle possible. If you train in the morning, the bulk of your calories should come after your workout, not before. It's tough training in the morning if you have a full stomach.

2. Eat often and eat a lot

You need to eat many meals throughout the day, spread apart by about 3 hours. This way, you have a steady, constant stream of nutrients that your body can use for muscle and tissue growth.

Eating often will also help your body use the calories you're taking in for muscle mass growth and will be less likely to store them as body fat.

3. Take in a lot of protein

Your body requires protein to build muscle mass. I'm sure if you want to gain weight, you'd like most of it to be muscle mass and not fat.

Protein is responsible for building muscle. Try and get 1 to 1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight. So if you weigh 150 pounds, you want to eat at least 150 grams of protein, preferably more.

For each meal, try and get 30 to 40 grams of protein from quality sources like chicken, tuna, fish, turkey, eggs, lean red meats, dairy, and meal replacements.

4. Consume a pre-workout meal

To gain weight, you need calories. You also want to protect yourself from muscle tissue breakdown.

If your body needs nutrients during a workout, it will break down muscle tissue to get it. But by supplying your body with nutrients before a workout, you give it the raw materials it needs for fuel, so it will not break down muscle tissue.

Take 12 ounces of grape juice or Gatorade and to it add a scoop of whey protein, 5 grams of creatine, and 10 grams of glutamine.

This pre-workout shake is guaranteed to help you gain weight.

5. Get the proper post-workout nutrition

You want to take another one of these shakes right after training, to supply your muscles with the nutrients they need to build new muscle mass.

At this time, you also want to replenish the lost glycogen in your muscles. The best thing to do for post workout is to drink another juice/protein/creatine/glutamine combination. You want to have about 50-75 grams of carbs and 35-50 grams of protein right after your workouts, depending on your size.

About an hour after training, eat a solid, whole food meal that's high in protein and complex carbs. Like breakfast, this is an important part of your daily nutrition because your workouts really depletes your body of needed nutrients and this is the perfect time to replace them for proper muscle recovery and growth.

These 5 tips will help you gain weight fast and also help you increase your muscle size and strength. If you're not gaining the weight you want, you're probably not eating the best way possible.