To increase muscle mass, it is important to follow some strategies, such as consuming more calories than you burn, increasing the amount of protein you eat during the day and consuming more good fats.
Furthermore, if you want to lose fat and gain muscle mass at the same time, you should avoid consuming sugar, white flour and processed products, and should prioritize the consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as whole grains.
In addition to diet, it is also important to practice aerobic exercises regularly to promote muscle growth. It is advisable to have the support of a physical education professional to recommend a suitable training routine according to your objective.
How to increase muscle mass
Some tips for increasing muscle mass are:
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Consuming more calories than you burn
Consuming more calories than you burn is essential to gain muscle mass more quickly, as the excess calories, together with training, will allow muscle growth.
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Don’t skip meals
Avoiding skipping meals is important so that you can reach all the calories you need during the day, without encouraging possible loss of lean mass during a prolonged fast. Ideally, you should eat 5 to 6 meals a day, with extra attention paid to breakfast, pre-workout and post-workout meals.
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Consume more protein
Increasing protein consumption is necessary to allow muscle growth, and it is important that protein sources are well distributed throughout the day, and not concentrated in just 2 or 3 meals.
These foods are mainly of animal origin, such as meat, fish, chicken, cheese, eggs and milk and dairy products, but proteins can also be found in good quantities in foods such as beans, peas, lentils, peanuts and chickpeas. Learn about foods rich in protein.
The foods to be consumed and the amount of protein that should be consumed per day to increase muscle mass varies according to the intensity of the physical activity practiced, weight, gender and age of each person, and between 1.5 and 2g/kg of body weight of protein may be recommended.
Additionally, it may sometimes be necessary to use protein-based supplements, such as whey protein and casein, especially used post-workout or to increase the nutritional value of low-protein meals throughout the day. See the 10 best supplements for gaining muscle mass .
Check out the following video for more tips on how to include proteins in your daily diet:
Protein-Rich Foods for LOSS and GAINING MUSCLE MASS
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Consume good fats
Contrary to popular belief, consuming good fats helps reduce the accumulation of fat in the body and also makes it easier to increase calories in the diet to gain muscle mass. These fats are present in foods such as avocado, olive oil, olives, peanuts, peanut butter, flaxseed, chestnuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, and fish such as tuna, sardines, and salmon.
Throughout the day, these foods can be added to snacks such as crepes, healthy muffins, yogurts, smoothies and main meals.
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Drink plenty of water
Drinking plenty of water is very important to stimulate hypertrophy, because for muscle cells to grow, more water is needed to fill their larger size. If you do not drink enough water, gaining muscle mass will be slower and more difficult.