How to Eat to Gain Muscle

For many of us, gaining muscle may conjure up images of countless hours in the gym, but diet doesn't come to mind. Your body needs calories and nourishment to feed growing muscle mass and to adjust to varying amounts of activity. Before making sudden changes in your lifestyle, though, you may want to consult with a physician, personal trainer, and dietitian.

Steps

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   Know the difference between complete (whole) and incomplete proteins. In order to build muscle, you need complete proteins; these are found in eggs, meat, fish, cheese, milk and most other animal products. The protein found in plant products tends to be incomplete, though there are exceptions (e.g. soy beans, quinoa, potatoes).
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   Eat sufficient amounts of protein. The rule of thumb is that you need between 1 and 1.5 times your body weight (if you are overweight, then substitute your target body weight) in grams of protein. For example, if you weigh 150 pounds, you should eat between 150 and 225 grams of protein per day if you want to consistently gain muscle. Full time bodybuilders can eat two to three times their body weight in grams of protein, and sometimes more, but for most of us that would be overkill.
   • Proteins that are great for building muscle include:
     • Red meat. Beef, pork, lamb, venison, bison, etc.
     • Fish. Tuna, salmon, swordfish, bass, trout, mackerel, etc.
     • Poultry breast. Chicken, turkey, duck, etc.
     • Eggs. The yolk is high in cholesterol, but one or two a day isn't unhealthy.^[1]
     • Dairy. Milk, cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt, etc.
     • Whey. Protein shakes rely on whey protein regularly.
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   Include carbohydrates in your diet in the morning and post-workout. It is important to have carbohydrates so that your body can tap into glycogen (energy) stores within your muscles while you are working out. If you do not eat enough carbohydrates your body will not have energy reserves and will break down your muscles instead!
   • Try to select carbohydrates low on the Glycemic Index, which are healthier and release their energy more slowly ^[2]. Good examples are:
     • Brown Basmati Rice
     • Quinoa
     • Rolled Oats
     • Sweet Potato
     • Wholemeal Rye Bread
     • Wholemeal Spaghetti
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   Don't skip breakfast. Breakfast is probably the most important meal of the day aside from your post-workout meal. Eating breakfast packed with protein, complex carbohydrates, and fiber will get your metabolism going. It will also keep your body from cannibalizing any muscle for energy. Remember the saying: "Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper." Because you're not on a diet, however, you don't have to be a pauper at any time.
   • Get protein into your breakfast. Omelets, shakes (or smoothies) and cottage cheese are great sources of protein.
   • Eat complex carbohydrates. While simple carbohydrates such as sugar and donuts are broken down easily and cause a spike in your sugar levels, complex carbs (oatmeal, bran, beans, whole grains) are broken down over longer periods of time and don't cause spikes in blood sugar.
     
     • Carbs get a bad reputation from dieting guides. Because complex carbs are broken down slowly and have a low-glycemic index (not as much sugar), they are acceptable to eat after a workout and — you guessed it — at breakfast.
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   Eat less food more often. Eat at regular intervals to keep from getting so hungry that you splurge when you do eat. Your body will start to get hungry at the predetermined times you do eat because you've kept a consistent routine.
   • Try eating breakfast, lunch, dinner, post workout, before bed, and slip in two snacks in between. Snacks can include everything from nuts and seeds to sides of veggies or fruit.
   • If you're trying to gain muscle and lose weight, skip the before-bed meal. Eating right before you go to bed will cause the body to convert any not metabolized food into fat instead of energy or muscle. Your body's metabolism shuts down right before bedtime.
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   Consider supplements. These are an easy way to gain more protein without having to actually eat it. Whey and soy proteins are common. Some doctors say that whey protein is difficult to digest and can strain your liver or kidneys. A high protein diet in general can be straining on the kidneys, so it is important to drink a lot of water. This will flush out your system and negate the negative effects of eating a high protein diet.
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   Eat healthy fats. Not all fats are created equal. In fact, there is evidence to suggest that eating healthy fats is actually good for you.^[3] You should get about 20% to 35% of your calories from fats.
   • Eat monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. These are the "good" fats. They include:
     
     • Olive, peanut, sunflower, canola, and avocado oils.
     • Fish.
     • Nuts.
     • Flaxseed and pumpkin seeds.
     • Soy products such as tofu or soymilk.
   • Stay away from saturated and trans fats. These are the "bad" fats. Make sure saturated fats make up no more than 10% of your caloric intake, and that trans fats make up no more than 1% of your caloric intake.^[3] Bad fats include:
     
     • Ice cream, candy bars, and packaged snack foods.
     • High-fat cuts of meat.
     • Lard, stick margarine, and vegetable shortening.
     • Fried foods.
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   Learn about Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score (PDCAAS). This is a measure of how well different proteins are digested by the body. Think of PDCAAS as grading the quality of protein with 1 being the highest score and 0 the lowest.
   • For example, whey, casein, and milk all score 1 whereas whole wheat scores a 0.42.
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   Drink plenty of water. Dehydration can mean poor muscle recovery, so make sure you drink lots of water throughout the day. Sip on water throughout your workout. Studies suggest you'd have to drink 30 or 40 glasses of water in a short amount of time to suffer from a potentially fatal case.^[4] The recommended daily amount for men is about 3 liters, and 2.2 liters for women.^[5]
   • Get a water filter to filter tap water. Buying a water filter is an economical way of converting your tap water into healthy, great-tasting water. Buy one and see your water consumption grow.
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    Monitor your salt intake. It may be true that excessive consumption of salt can lead to hypertension but you lose tremendous amounts of sodium when you sweat. Also, sodium (a key electrolyte) aids in muscle contraction, which is one reason why it is found in many sports drinks.
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    Eat what you like. Eating what you like, within the parameters mentioned above, is the key to gaining muscle mass. If you're not eating what you like, it'll be harder to consistently follow through with your diet.
    • Here's a sample diet to give you a better idea of what someone might eat throughout the day:
      
      • Breakfast: egg-white omelet with turkey; whole grain toast; banana.
      • Pre-lunch snack: mixed nuts; apple.
      • Lunch: tuna salad with olive oil, onions and capers; sauteed kale.
      • Pre-workout snack: cottage cheese with blueberries.
      • Post-workout snack: protein shake; sauteed spinach.
      • Dinner: orange-soy chicken breast with quinoa; stir-fry with carrots, onions, peas, and peppers.

Tips

• Rather than eating all of your protein or carbohydrates in one meal, it is ideal to try to spread it out over the course of the day. Five or more small meals is best. This is because if you eat all your protein at one time, your body won't be able to use all of it. It's about maintaining a high blood protein level so that your muscles can slowly regenerate throughout the day and while you are sleeping.
• Remember it is important to include green vegetables in your diet such as spinach or broccoli to ensure that you receive an adequate amount of vitamins. As well, green leafy vegetables are high in fiber which is essential for removing waste from the body.
• Balance your workouts. If you are doing a highly aerobic activity of any kind and don't eat a high protein diet you will consistently lose strength and muscle mass. Many high school and college athletes, such as wrestlers, are faced with declining strength throughout the season because they are unaware of this fact.
• Creatine supplements are often used by bodybuilders. Creatine is a natural substance that helps increase pure muscle mass and helps regenerate muscles when not working out. However, it is merely a supplement, and is not necessary to gain muscle mass. If you do take the creatine, be sure to drink plenty of water, because the creatine dehydrates your muscles while regenerating and also imbalances your electrolyte levels.

Warnings

• Make sure you drink a lot of water. A gallon a day would not be too much. This will prevent your diet from harming your organs.
• No matter how difficult gaining muscle may seem, taking steroids is never the answer. Steroids can be very harmful to the body and can cause side effects.