Getting Your Muscle Building Diet In Order

If you’re looking to pack on some lean muscle mass, then it’s going to be of utmost importance that you’re looking after the foods that you’re consuming on a daily basis. If you aren’t feeding your body with high quality nutrients right around the time when your body needs it the most, you’re going to struggle to see the results you’re after.

Fortunately, getting down a good muscle building diet doesn’t have to be nearly as complex as some people make it out to be. With a few quick tricks at your side, you can plan out a muscle building menu that will take your body to new heights.

Let’s have a closer look at what you need to know so that you can achieve the body of your dreams.

Setting Your Calorie Target

The very first thing that you need to be doing is making sure that you set your target calorie intake. The number of calories that you consume will be the top determinant of whether or not you add lean muscle mass to your frame.

For most people with average activity levels, you should aim for a calorie intake of around 16-20 calories per pound of body weight. If you’re naturally very thin and have a hard time putting on weight, aim for the 20 calorie per pound range. If you naturally tend to gain body fat quite easily, then you’ll want to be more conservative and start at 16 calories per pound and work your way up as you go.
This ensures that you don’t start to gain additional body fat along the way.

Picking Your Protein

Once you have your calorie intake set, then it comes time to setting your protein intake. Protein should be set at roughly one gram per pound of body weight.

Some people feel the need to take it higher than this, but note that more protein does not mean more muscle mass. The body can only use so much protein per day and beyond that, any excess protein consumed with either be used for energy or converted to body fat.

Once you’ve met your intake, you’d be far better off adding more carbohydrates or dietary fat to the plan.

The top places to get your protein from include chicken breast, turkey breast, lean red meat, seafood and fish, low fat dairy products, and whey protein powder. These will all supply high quality amino acids to foster good muscle growth.

Considering Those Carbs

Next, you must also think about your carbohydrate intake. You’ll want to be especially sure that you’re placing as many carbohydrates as possible both before and after the workout session as this is when the body is going to need them the most.

Then you can space them out through the rest of the day to help with recovery and keep your energy levels higher.

Note that those who are concerned about gaining fat will want to cut carbohydrates out of their final two meals of the day as the energy just isn’t needed – unless you are doing a late-night workout in which case you should definitely be adding them in.

For your carbohydrate sources, focus on healthy, unprocessed carbs. This includes choices such as brown rice, quinoa, barley, whole wheat pasta, whole grain breads, sweet potatoes, and fruit. Make sure to take in a few sources of vegetables as well for a high intake of nutrients.

While there’s no specific requirement for exactly how many carbohydrates you must eat, aim for somewhere between 2-3 grams per pound of bodyweight.

Factoring In Fats

Finally, the last nutrient to consider is dietary fat. Dietary fat is important for generating anabolic hormones in the body, keeping your body functioning properly, and slowing the release of other nutrients into the blood.

The only time you want to avoid fat in the diet is right before and after the workout as at this point fast digestion is the goal.
For your healthy fat choices, lean towards sources such as olive oil, nuts and seeds, fatty fish, and avocados. Stay away from saturated fats as well as trans fats as these will only take away from good health.

Like carbohydrates, there is no set requirement for fats, but you should aim to consume at least 15% of your total calorie intake from this nutrient. Remember that fats contain 9 calories per gram while both proteins and carbs each contain four.

Once you have your protein and carbohydrate intake set, then the remaining calories in your diet will come from healthy fats.

So there you have the top things to remember when designing your muscle building diet plan. If you plan this out properly, it’s really going to boost the success you see and help you make that full body transformation you’re going for.

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