In order to gain muscle mass, it’s essential to combine food with exercising. And when it comes to diet destined for gaining lean mass, our thoughts are immediately directed towards hypertrophy and a toned body, however, that’s not what muscle gain is all about. Strengthening your muscles provides a considerable margin between fat and lean mass, which is essential for being health. Proteins have the objective of fulfilling this role.
For people who start out at gyms, in search of a better shape, this is the first decision of those who are looking to define their own body. Gaining muscle mass is based on physical activities and an appropriate nutrition. For people whose goal is to gain lean mass through trainings that involve weight, they are mistaken.
If your goal is to define your body, your menu must be aligned with the kinds of food that contribute to muscle regeneration. It is important to remember that, after going through a professional evaluation with a nutritionist, there is a possibility of not adding supplements to your diet.
The excessive use of these products is able to cause damages to your health. In addition, this menu helps you to gain muscle mass. Combining it with physical activity is important to regulate the intensity in which you will gain muscle mass.
Ingest more calories than the amount you lose
Consuming more calories than you lose is essential for gaining muscle mass. Excessive calories work alongside physical activity, what allows the muscle to grow.
Don’t skip meals
Skipping meals is something that should be avoided. It’s important that you reach all the necessary calories during the day, without using any stimulants to lose lean mass. It’s ideal to have 5 or 6 meals daily, eating twice as much during breakfast and pre and post-workout meals.
How to gain lean mass
- Strictly follow a diet to gain muscle mass
- Include proteins in your menu and ingest carbs.
- Practice exercises to gain mass.
- Respect the rest time between workouts
- Stretch
- Sleep well
Diet for gaining lean mass
The ideal menu to gain muscle mass contains a variation of foods rich in lean proteins, whole carbs, vegetables and fruits.
It is very important to use the help of a professional, who can be a nutritionist, before starting your diet.
Below there are some important tips that could help you to gain muscle mass in a healthy way.
You should stick to a guideline of having balanced meals every 3 hours. By activating the metabolism, you can achieve such a contribution.
Some athletes reduce this period due to extremely high metabolic rates caused by excessive consumption of calories, in order to make up for them.
Foods that contribute to the gain of lean mass
- Proteins have a strong relationship with the gain of muscle mass. They contribute to repairing the muscles, which suffer micro injuries due to physical activities.
- Egg white is very suitable for increasing muscle mass. Its main difference is in relation to the relative content of amino acids, absorption speed and availability to the muscle.
- It works in a way that makes it seem that whey protein works in an isolated hydrolyzed form, for its greater absorption in the body.
What carbs should you eat?
In order to gain muscle mass, it is very important that you ingest carbs.
The path that the macronutrients need to follow is to save proteins by destining them for the process of muscle synthesis, preventing proteins from being used as the main source of energy.
It will depend on when the carbs are consumed. It is recommended to avoid simple carbs, such as white rice and pasta.
These simple carbs are absorbed more quickly, increasing the level of glucose in the blood.
The consequences are increased levels of insulin, causing the body to establish itself in the process of fluid retention.
Simple carbs in moderation are indicated to be part of processes that increase muscle mass during post-workout.
What fats should be consumed during your diet in order to gain muscle mass?
The important role that fats play is to generate energy without a glycemic peak, participating in the process of anabolic hormones creation, such as testosterone, which increases muscle mass.
The important things about consuming polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats is that they are responsible for contributing to muscle mass gain while keeping you healthy.
Foods that are rich in vitamins, minerals, fiber and antioxidants are still considered important.
Omega 3 is present in fish, especially those that live in the cold waters of Norway. Omega 6 can be found in eggs, milk and meat. These foods should not be consumed in great quantities due to the amount of concentrated saturated fats.
Omega 9 is a monounsaturated fat, which is present in the extra virgin olive oil, as well as in olives, avocado, sesame and in some oilseeds. Its anti-inflammatory action has a much stronger intensity than omega 3.
What to eat before training
Your last meal should be a solid one and should happen within an hour to an hour and a half before training. Eat complex carbs during meals: sweet potatoes, manioc, yams, whole-grain bread or whole-grain pasta.
Training uses the main source of energy, through the carbs, thus it will consume proteins in a significant way if there is a lack of carbs.
Post-training diet
The process of gaining muscle mass is essential so you should stick to carbs and proteins that are absorbed faster and in less time after training.
The faster the supplementation is, the more effective the processes in the body will be. That person will be able to eat eggs, semi-skimmed milk and meats.
Another option that may be left open for choice is whey protein or albumin. The carbs consumed after training can be simples carbs, such as bread, rice or potatoes.
Supplements serve as alternatives, such as dextrose. If the person has opted for liquid supplements after training, it is important to have a solid meal 40 minutes later.
What to eat during days where there is no training
On days when your strength isn’t used during the training, it is important to ingest complex carbs and not to consume supplements such as whey protein, albumin, dextrose and waximaize.
In addition to that, it is worth mentioning that the consumption of vitamins and minerals must be kept in order to keep this process in a healthy way.
How diet can damage the gain of muscle mass
Eating can prevent the process of gaining muscle mass from being effective when there is a lack of balance regarding the nutrients ingested.
Every diet must be aligned to its desired goal, balancing the ideal amounts, in order to achieve the result of increased muscle mass.
What makes it harmful in increasing muscle mass are dietary imbalances and not the food itself.
It is good to avoid some kinds of foods, for example, processed foods enriched with trans fats, sweets, soft drinks, which are sources of simple carbs and saturated fats.
Exercises that help you gain muscle mass
- Bodybuilding
- Swimming
- Kettlebell
- Fighting
- Crossfit
What to do after training?
The muscles have an excellent ability to regenerate after 24 hours of rest. The body already feels ready for a new series of physical activities.
For the muscles to grow and get in shape, it is necessary to reinforce some special attention during this resting period.
Respect the resting time for the muscle to regenerate and keep a good diet.
Do cross-stretch: You should do cross-stretch, working your legs, stretching your arms and vice versa. This keeps your muscles healthy.
Rest right after training: The rest period after physical activities makes the oxygenation muscle cells more efficient.
Recovery speeds up the process of micro-injury to muscle fibers.
Sleep well: The hormone responsible for muscle growth is optimized, with muscle regeneration occurring after a few hours of sleep, as this is when the GH is released.