Muscle Building Diet – How To Create One For The Best Results

Proper nutrition doesn’t have to be hard and can actually be straightforward. What makes it difficult is the popular diet trends that tend to confuse.

In this article, I’ll break down the three essential macronutrients of protein, carbohydrates, and fats into their simplest form and tell you how much you should consume each to create a muscle-building diet plan.

We now know a healthy diet will drastically reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer, the world’s leading killers. It will improve brain function, physical performance, and even sexual performance.

Big picture, we should all be incorporating a healthier diet into our lives. This is especially true if you have a certain goal in mind, such as building muscle.

Your nutrition plan is the foundation of your fitness goal. No matter how much cardio you do or how long you stay in the gym, you won’t see the results you want if you’re not eating the right foods.

Between fears of high protein diets, high-fat diets, and any carbohydrates, eating has become a complicated mess that creates more anxiety than needed.

I will explain why it’s not that hard and break it down into a simplified version where all you need is a little common sense.

How Much Should I Eat To Build Muscle

The first step is to determine your daily caloric needs (how many calories you should be eating every day). You can do this by using the calculator below.

Now you want to add 200 to 300 calories to your total, this is called a calorie surplus, and it has to be done to give your body the extra fuel it needs to build muscle.

Remember that the amount of calories I’m telling you to add is a recommendation. Everyone’s genes are different; some people may see results adding only 100 calories, and others may need to add 400 calories.

I would start at the low end and raise if needed; if you start at the higher end, you may store excess fat, and you don’t want that.

What Should You Eat To Build Muscle

Knowing your daily calorie total is the first step in creating a muscle building diet. The second step is breaking that total down into specific amounts of protein, carbohydrates, and fats.

This is because not all calories produce the same effect. 2500 calories from cookies and doughnuts aren’t the same as 2500 calories from chicken, rice, and vegetables.

Customizing your diet will ensure that you create a calorie surplus that will build muscle without adding excess fat.

I’m going to explain the three macronutrients, the best foods to eat for muscle growth, and how to calculate your daily needs for each.

Proteins

Protein is the most important macronutrient in a fitness plan; this is why I preach to my clients that it is imperative to consume the correct amount of protein in your diet.

If you’re having a hard time hitting your protein quota, I suggest getting started on carnivore diet is worth trying.

If you’re interested in learning more, here is a link to an article about the carnivore diet that interviewed 20 professionals, including doctors, nutritionists, and health coaches, to learn their best tips on implementing and starting a carnivore diet correctly.

Protein contains 4 calories per gram, and after being digested, it is broken down into amino acids, which help your body perform countless functions.

• Repairs tissue (organ tissue, muscles, hair, nails, bones, tendons, ligaments, and blood plasma)
• Involved in hormonal systems
• Makes up of enzymes that regulate metabolism
• Involved in acid-base balance to maintain a neutral environment in your body

I could go on about other activities protein does for the body, but the most important function in this discussion is how it rebuilds broken down muscles.

Every process that builds muscle relies on the amino acids that come from protein.

Taking water out of the equation, protein is the most prevalent bodily substance and can be found in every cell that comprises the human body.

If you don’t attribute the right amount of protein to your diet, building and maintaining muscle is impossible.

Certain proteins are better than others. You want proteins that have a grouping of amino acids that will trigger muscle recovery and growth. One of the most important amino acids is L-leucine; this is believed to cause protein synthesis in the body.

You also want proteins with the highest percentage of being absorbed into your body after digestion, which is called protein bioavailability.

For example, eggs and milk are rated as more than 90% is absorbed, but only 58% of beans are utilized.

Whole Eggs

Eggs are among the healthiest and most nutritious foods on the planet. They are loaded with vitamins, minerals, healthy fats, and brain nutrients that people don’t get nearly enough of.

Another great benefit of eggs is their versatility. Scrambled, fried, and hard-boiled are just a few ways you can prepare them. They can be made in so many ways that you can eat them regularly without feeling like you’re eating the same thing every day.

Eggs are very high in protein, coming in second on the bioavailability chart, only being beaten by whey protein.

Egg whites are almost all protein; since the egg yolk is very high in nutrients, you should mix whole eggs with egg whites to receive the maximum amount of protein and vitamins.

PROTEIN %  1 large egg contains 6 grams of protein, with 78 calories. 1 cup of egg whites has 26 grams of protein.

 Skinless Chicken Breast

Chicken is a staple in any macronutrient and bodybuilding diet plan. It is a great protein source; it’s also low in fat and sodium and contains zero grams of carbohydrates.

A serving size of skinless chicken breast is 3 ounces (about the size of the palm of your hand) which contains;

• Only 2 grams of fat
• 0 grams of carbs
• 19 grams of protein

Remember that the preparation method and any sauces or condiments you add can greatly affect the nutritional value.

The healthiest way to cook chicken breast is to bake it in the oven or saute it with vegetables.

Cut into strips or leave the whole, place in a baking pan with a little olive oil, add cut vegetables, and season to taste with garlic and other choice spices.

Cover and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 45 to 50 minutes until an internal temperature of 160 degrees is reached and there is no pink in the middle. There are endless ways to prepare chicken so that you don’t grow tired of it.

PROTEIN % The average chicken breast without the skin is about 2- 1/2 servings, so that means you would receive around 47 grams of protein, with only 284 calories.

Lean Red Meat

Chicken and fish are well-known bodybuilding staples, but red meat contains the highest amount of muscle supporting nutrients of any protein source. It’s loaded with high percentage amounts of creatine, b- vitamins, iron, and zinc.

It’s essential to pick the right cut; a steak’s wrong choice can quickly go from a top-notch food to a diet crusher.

Consider a 12 ounce cut of ribeye trimmed of all visible fat with 480 calories from fat alone. The total amount of calories will be around 600.

Can your diet handle this amount of calories in one meal?

You want to pick lean cuts of meat such as;

• Eye of round (protein to fat ratio 7:1)
• Sirloin tip side steak (protein to fat ratio 7:1)
• Top sirloin (protein to fat ratio 5:1)
• Bottom round (protein to fat ratio 4:1)
• Top round (protein to fat ratio 3:1)
• Extra-lean ground beef is also a great versatile choice

Protein % One  serving of cooked lean red meat (65 grams)  contains 25 g of protein, 180 calories and 9 grams of fat.

Fish/Seafood

Another high protein, versatile food group is fish and seafood, which also has dozens of options and different ways to prepare.

Tuna, salmon, halibut, snapper, and tilapia are the most popular choices that contain 26 to 29 grams of protein per 100 g serving, with swordfish and cod containing about 23 grams of protein at the same serving size.

Don’t overlook other sources of seafood, including shrimp, lobster, and scallops. A great place where you can get online seafood delivery is Lobster Anywhere

Skim Milk

One 8-ounce glass of skim milk, also referred to as fat-free milk, contains 8.5 grams of protein. Nearly 40% of the 90 calories come from protein. Almost all of the remaining calories come from carbohydrates.

Skim milk is utilized by mixing it into protein shakes and incorporating it into cooking methods.

Cottage Cheese

This makes for a protein-rich snack. Nonfat cottage cheese has 24 grams of protein per cup, while nonfat Greek yogurt is just under 20. Both options are great snack options high in protein and calcium.

Whey Protein

Milk is made of two proteins, casein and whey. Whey protein is separated from the casein in milk or formed as a by-product of cheese making. Whey protein is a complete protein containing all 9 essential amino acids.

This process isolates the whey protein into a powder form; at this point, it is actually food in the same way chicken or fish are food.

Whey has the most abundant amino acid profile of all the protein options. It has a very high concentration of L-leucine and the highest bio-availability. It also raises the antioxidant levels in the body.

Whey is a powder form that has versatility and can easily be added to recipes, smoothies, and protein shakes to make it into a quick and convenient protein source.

My top 3 recommendations for whey products are

• Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey
• Cellucor COR-Performance Whey
• Elite Dymatize Whey

How Much Protein Should I Eat On A Muscle Building Diet

The DRI (Dietary Reference Intake) is 0.82 grams of protein per pound of body weight.

To keep this simple, I suggest you eat 1 gram of protein for every pound of body weight.

Is A High Protein Diet Bad For You

Protein has been unfairly blamed for many conditions, including kidney damage and osteoporosis. However, these claims aren’t supported by science.

If you have an existing kidney problem, a high protein diet will be strenuous and not recommended. Protein has never caused any documented issues in people with healthy kidneys.

In fact, a higher protein diet has been linked to lower blood pressure and helps fight diabetes, which is two of the main culprits for kidney disease.

But, once you put the research in. There are no documented cases in which a high protein diet has caused negative side effects in an otherwise healthy person.

Healthy Fats

There are many misconceptions about fat, and since the ’80s, we’ve been told to stay away from all fatty foods if we want to lose weight.

This is true in some ways; fats have 9 calories per gram. This is more than double protein and carbs, which only have 4 calories per gram.

Since fats are dense in calories, they need to be monitored closely, but it is important to eat the right amount because they play important roles in your body.

• Keep testosterone levels optimized.
• Enhance brain and nervous system function
• Support your bones and joints
• Strengthen the immune system

The same rules apply to fats that apply to carbs, there are 2 different types of fatty foods, and common sense will go a long way in telling which are good and bad.

Good Fats

Good fats, which include monosaturated and polyunsaturated fats, come from plant-based sources like nuts, seeds, vegetable oils, and fish. These are all important to keep your body working properly.

Bad fats

Bad fats, also known as trans saturated fats, are found in highly processed animal-based products like meat and dairy. These should be limited in your diet. You should especially avoid processed meats like sausage, bologna, and other treated meats.

Examples Of Healthy Fats

• avocado
• couscous
• nuts
• natural peanut butter
• dark chocolate
• flaxseed
• coconuts
• eggs
• salmon
• olive oil

How Much Fat Should You Eat Daily

You want about 25% of your total daily calorie intake to come from fats.

To equate this percentage:

First, multiply your daily caloric intake by 0.25

This will tell you what 25% of your calories come to.

Now take that number and divide it by 9, since fats have 9 calories per gram. This will tell you how many grams of fats you should eat a day.

• (Daily calories) X (0.25) = X

(X) divided by (9) = Daily grams of fat

Here’s an example of using a daily caloric intake of 2500

• 3000 X 0.25 = 750 (number of daily calories that will come from fat)
• 750 divided by 9 = 83 ( grams of fat to be eaten daily)

The individual in this example would need to eat 83 grams of fat daily.

Carbohydrates

Simply put, carbohydrates are sugar; eating a spoon full of sugar or eating a piece of bread will have the same result. No matter what type of carbohydrate you eat, your body will eventually break it down into glucose, otherwise known as sugar.

When you search carbs on the web, you’re going to find articles that use words like monosaccharides, oligosaccharides, and polysaccharides, which are long fancy words for different types of carbs.

Or you’ll read about the Glycemic Index, which is a scientific-based chart ranging carbs from 0 to 100 depending on how fast or slow they raise your blood sugar levels in a two-hour period after you eat them.

I’m not saying this information isn’t valuable.

If you have diabetes, then the glycemic index is handy. If you’re a personal trainer or professional bodybuilder, then breaking carbs down using a scientific approach may benefit you.

For everyone else who is just trying to understand enough to develop a proper diet, the good news is common sense is all you really need.

We are going to break carbs down into two groups.

What Are Simple And Complex Carbohydrates

Simple carbs are the foods you will mostly stay away from.  Refined sugar products and processed foods make up the bulk of this category.

• raw sugar
• soft drinks
• cakes
• beer
• candy

Common sense will tell you not to include these foods in any diet plan unless during a cheat meal, which is okay once a week.

You can also find simple carbs in fruits, which for the most part, are healthy but, like anything else in life, need to be in moderation.

My recommendation is to get the bulk of your carbohydrate intake around 80% from starchy minimally refined sources that haven’t been over-processed. This is where complex carbs come in.

Complex Carbohydrates are foods that haven’t been radically changed from their natural state. Foods in this category will only contain one or two ingredients.

Here is a list of 15 complex carbohydrates

• Oatmeal (old fashioned or steel-cut)
• Yams
• Brown rice
• Sweet potatoes
• Multigrain hot cereal
• White potatoes with skin
• Ezekiel bread (a better source of wheat bread)
• 100% wheat bread (in case you can’t find Ezekiel bread)
• 100% whole wheat pasta
• Beans and lentils (great for healthy chili recipes)
• Cream of rice hot cereal
• Quinoa
• Couscous
• Butternut squash
• Fresh beets
• Pumpkin

How Many Grams Of Carbs Should You Eat Daily

The amount left over after you calculated how much protein and fat is in your diet will be allotted to carbs.

Example Of A Bodybuilder’s Diet Plan

This might sound confusing but let’s break it down piece by piece.

Remember calories per gram of each macronutrient

• protein = 4 calories per gram
• carbs = 4 calories per gram
• fats = 9 calories per gram

In our example, we’re going to use an individual who weighs 180 pounds and consumes 3000 calories a day.

Protein

Since this person weighs 180 pounds, he is eating 180 grams of protein a day. Since protein contains 4 calories per gram, we will multiply 180 x 4 to get the daily amount of calories from protein, which is 720 calories.

Fats

You want 25% of your daily caloric intake to be from fat consumption. So from this example, we take our 3000 calories and multiply them by 0.25. That number is 750.

Now add the total calories from protein and fats up: this number is 720+750=1520.

Carbohydrates

We now take our daily calorie number (3000) and subtract the protein and fat calories (1520) from it;

This means 1480 calories a day should come from carbohydrates.

Remember, carbohydrates have 4 calories per gram. so if you divide 1480 by 4, you get 370.

Your end result is that 370 grams of carbs will equal 1480 calories.

It’s easy once you break it down, BUT if you find yourself still confused, just read through the article again and, more importantly, redo your calculation to make sure it checks out.

What Should You Not Eat When Building Muscle

Before, I told you that you have to put the right food into your body to make significant gains in and out of the gym, but that means avoiding certain foods and drinks.

• Alcohol – I know you don’t want to hear this one, but too much alcohol will actually deter your body from building muscle and make you gain fat, especially if you drink it in excess.
• Processed foods – All processed foods are high in calories, fat, and salt. They’re made for convenience, not healthy nutrition plans, and don’t belong in your diet.
• Fast food – I’ve had clients that use fast food as an easy way to reach their daily calorie needs, don’t do this. You get out what you put in, meaning if you eat shit, your results are going to be shit.
• Added sugars – Your common sense will tell you that these foods shouldn’t be in your nutrition plan to build muscle. Candy, ice cream, cupcakes, soda, the juice will not help you build muscle, only a gut.
• Fried foods – High in unhealthy fats and calories, foods such as french fries, mozzarella sticks, fried chicken, and fish are a no-go.

Diet Changes You May Or May Not Have To Make To Build Muscle

We’ve gone over the foods you need to eat and avoid during a muscle-building diet; now, I want to go over some of the questions I constantly get that confuse people.

Some of these I consider myths that don’t need to be followed, but as always, I want you to decide what works best for your individual situation and, in the end, to do what is best for you.

Do You Need To Eat 6 Times A Day

When you’re trying to eat a diet that will sufficiently build muscle, the only important thing is that you eat the correct amount of calories, proteins, healthy fats, and carbs throughout the day while using the correct type of food to do it.

How you split this up is up to you, some people don’t like eating large meals, so they prefer to eat 5, 6, or 7 smaller meals throughout the day. Other people get annoyed at having to eat all day constantly, so they eat 3 large meals.

In the end, it’s the same damn amount of calories, carbs, fats, and proteins, and I would try to eat a bodybuilder’s breakfast every morning since your body is catatonic from not eating for 8 hours and is ready to absorb every nutrient you put in it.

The Importance Of A Pre Workout Meal

You’re trying to achieve 2 goals with your pre-workout meal.

1. Provide the correct type of fuel to achieve muscle recovery and growth after your workout is over. This is the most important factor; if your energy levels are at their peak, you’ll be able to create the most powerful muscle-stimulating effect possible.
2. The proper nutrients to aid in muscle recovery and growth after your workout is over.

Most people think that this is the job of the post-workout meal, but this is mostly untrue.

Nutrient absorption is such a slow process, and it is actually the nutrients from your pre-workout meal that are being broken down and absorbed after your workout.

What types of food should you include in your pre workout meal

High-quality protein and carbs will suffice.

The protein will give your body the amino acids it needs to recover and grow, while the carbs will provide your muscles with the energy needed to optimize performance.

Any high protein source will do, whether it’s whey protein, chicken, fish, or red meat.

As for the carbs, a minimum of 20 to 30 grams from any source like fruit, pasta, oatmeal, or rice is fine.

The one exception I would make is to keep the fat content of your pre-workout meal low. Fats slow down the movement of food from your stomach to your lower intestine, which may increase the chances of a bloated or sluggish feeling during your workout.

What Should I Eat Post Workout (Not a damn thing if you don’t want to)

I’ve gotten into many arguments with other personal trainers and gym-goers about my opinion on what you should eat at certain times of the day, but my thought process still hasn’t changed.

It doesn’t matter when you eat your food, just as long as you meet your daily requirements of calories, proteins, carbs, and healthy fats.

There isn’t one shred of scientific proof that eating a high-protein meal within the so-called 2 to 3-hour magic window after a workout will give you better gains than someone like me who eats when they’re hungry.

There are 2 arguments that people will make about your post-workout meal, and I’m going to refute them here.

Do You Have To Consume A High Protein Meal Right After Your Workout?

The truth is that protein digestion is prolonged; your body will only use even the fastest absorbing proteins at 8 to 10 grams per hour.

What this means is that if you were to consume a protein shake a couple of hours before your workout, that same protein would still be breaking down and utilized both during and after your workout.

For that reason, consuming a new serving of protein immediately after your workout is unnecessary.

Do You Have To Eat Simple Carbs To Spike Your Insulin and restore glycogen levels

Your glycogen levels are only depleted by about 30% during an intense workout; even then, there is no need to stress about immediately replenishing these levels unless you’re going to work the same muscle groups out again that same day.

As for spiking insulin levels, proteins elicit a significant insulin response from the body on their own, making additional carbohydrate consumption far less important than you think.

Given these 2 points, it’s fairly evident that there is no need to eat a meal right after your workout.

I’m not saying that you shouldn’t eat a post-workout meal; you certainly want to provide your body with high-quality protein and carbs to help with growth and recovery, but if your appetite isn’t there yet, don’t feel like you have to fit your meal into this so-called magic window of opportunity.

Do You Need To Eat a lot Of Protein

Yes, Yes, Yes

I always recommend receiving your protein through whole foods as much as you can, but a protein shake makes things a lot easier and convenient as well.

Your muscles can’t use more than 35 grams of protein at one time, so your body will start to place it in other places to use it as energy or flush it out with your urine.

Try to eat 20 to 35 grams of protein with each meal to help with protein synthesis; in fact, a study was done showing that people who ate high amounts of protein throughout the day increased their protein synthesis by 25% compared to people that ate it in larger bulks in only a couple of meals.

Are Carbs Important

Remember when I told you about your body only using about 35 grams of protein at each meal, this means that you need to find other sources to provide energy, which only leaves you with 2 options.

Fat and Carbohydrates

Since calories from fat are more easily stored as excess fat on your body, carbs are the best choice.

Protein gets all the glory when it comes to a muscle-building diet, but carbs are a fuel source you need to have the proper energy to stimulate muscle growth.

Do You Need To Eat A lot Of Calories

It would help if you definitely were on a calorie surplus during a muscle building diet, but exactly how much will depend on your genes and how active your lifestyle is.

I have clients that build muscle only by adding 150 calories a day to their diets, and I have others that need to add 350 to 400 a day to see results.

Keep track of your muscle growth progression and add calories if you don’t see results.

How Much Water Do You Drink To Build Muscle

There isn’t one set amount that will work for everyone because water intake will vary greatly between different people for several factors.

Aside from different body weights, how much you sweat plays a large role. The more you sweat, the more water you need to drink to replenish your body, and this can add up to a significant amount over the course of the day.

Drinking coffee throughout the day will dehydrate you, and you’ll need to drink more water.

Many recommendations range from 8 glasses per day to half an ounce per pound of body weight. These are fine and will generally get you in the right hydration level, but there is an easier way.

You can gauge if you need to drink more water by simply paying attention to your urine’s odor and color.

If it’s clear and odorless, then you are sufficiently hydrated; if it’s yellow and has an odor to it, then you need to drink more water.

Over time you will notice how much water you need to keep you hydrated, and it will become a daily habit that you don’t need to think about.

Can You Build Muscle Just By Eating

No, if this were the case, 67% of the American population wouldn’t be considered overweight.

You have to put your body under a certain amount of stress by lifting heavy weights to make it feel like it has to build muscle to survive.

This takes hard work and dedication, along with the correct muscle-building diet.

What class of body type are you

There are 3 classes of body types, and each one should attack their diet differently to build muscle.

• Ectomorphs – If you have a skinny lean body, light build, small joints, and thin limbs with stringy muscle, then you’re an ectomorph. Think of a long-distance runner.
• Endomorph – If you store fat easier than others, get tired easily, and have a large appetite that makes it hard to lose weight, then you’re an endomorph. Think of an offensive lineman, large bone structure, solid but accompanied by significantly more fat.
• Mesomorph – If you have a high muscle percentage, and find it easy to stimulate muscle growth and high metabolism, then you’re a mesomorph. Think of a boxer or professional bodybuilder.

If you’re an ectomorph, you’ll want to stay away from cardio and isolation moves and focus on multi-compound exercises that work for multiple muscle groups at once and increase the hormones needed to help your body build muscle. You’ll also need a larger calorie surplus, probably around 300 to 400 calories extra per day.

Endomorphs will need to use cardio as a tool to keep excess fat down; you’ll want to create a fitness routine that uses isolation and compound exercises together to also help with fat loss.

You’ll want to start your calorie surplus around 100 calories and slowly go up; make sure to keep track of your weight per week to make sure you’re not putting on too much fat. If you’re gaining more than 1/2 a pound a week, it’s most likely fat instead of muscle.

If you’re a Mesomorph, then you won the gene lottery, and your body is balanced well enough that just as long as you eat a healthy whole food diet, 80% of the time and you keep yourself on a fitness routine and don’t half ass your workout you’ll do just fine.

Conclusion

Creating a nutrition plan to support a muscle-building diet isn’t hard and complicated as long as you take the time to learn the basics and apply what you learn, and have the discipline actually to do it.

Remember the ratio of proteins, carbs, and healthy fats, and make sure not to overthink it when it comes to when and what you eat.