Muscle Building Diet

A Simple Easy-to-Follow Muscle Building Diet

“Gaining weight is like going to war, and your weapon of choice is a fork”

In the most basic sense, eat more than you’re eating now.  A lot more. I recommend eating carbohydrates with each meal for muscle building.  When trying to put on muscle you should be eating anywhere from 3000-5000 calories per day depending on your current weight.  Building muscle is 80% diet and 20% lifting.  Your diet is that important.

But that’s not license to go crazy with Krispy Kreme and crapolla.  Oatmeal, brown rice, whole wheat pastas and breads, and potatoes should be included in every meal.  But that’s not at the sacrifice of your protein source: you should be eating a good protein source with each meal.  Ideally about 6 oz. per meal.  Unless of course you’re of the vegetarian persuasion, then no problem. . . tofu will work, as will beans and rice.

And to keep your vitamin and mineral content on point, eat at least one serving of fruits or vegetables with each meal.  Nuts are another fine addition as they are calorically dense and nutrient packed.

Also, bring on the dairy!  I’m typically not a big fan of dairy (is there another animal besides humans that drinks the milk of another animal?).  But if you’ve been afflicted with Skinny-Man Syndrome your whole life, slurping down the cow juice will go a long way in adding the calories you need to pack on slabs of muscle.

Drinking 1/2 gallon – 1 gallon of whole milk per day is a good idea if you’re super skinny.  It’ll add an additional 1200-2600 calories to your day.  Super skinny guys can put on 10-15 lbs in a month by doing this.

Get protein right after your workout

An important thing to remember is you need to make sure you are eating breakfast everyday and also getting a lot of protein in right after your workout.  Most guys that are skinny, have problems getting enough protein, so 20 oz+ of chocolate milk right after a workout will help.  You can also eat protein after your workout, but chocolate milk is just much easier to deal with.

Strive to eat 3 meals per day with 3 snacks, with about three hours between meals.  A sample meal plan follows.  When in doubt, just friggin’ eat!

Meal plans for gaining weight and building muscle

6:00am    4 eggs scrambled.  Serving of homefried potatoes with green pepper and onion.  Cup of oatmeal with mixed berries.

9:00am    8 oz glass whole milk.  Large handful of walnuts.  Fruit cup of melon and pineapple.

12:00pm    Stir-fried chicken and broccoli with a large serving of brown rice.

3:00pm    Turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread with lettuce, tomato, and mustard. 1 apple with natural peanut butter.

6:00pm    Grilled steak with tomatoes, peppers, and onions wrapped in a whole wheat tortilla with cheddar cheese and black beans.  Side salad of raw spinach.

9:00pm    8 oz. glass whole milk.  1 banana.  Large handful of raw almonds.

The hardest thing about getting bigger is eating enough food.  To make it easier I suggest cooking your meals ahead of time so they’re always ready.  You can cook on Sunday and have meals that will last until Thursday.  Things like burgers, chicken, pork, eggs, mashed potatoes, chili and veggies can all be prepared ahead of time.

Recap – what you should be eating

Protein – Eggs, chicken, pork, steak, burgers, tofu, almonds, walnuts, peanut butter, chili, beans

Carbohydrates – Potatoes (mashed or baked), whole wheat pasta, whole wheat bread, rice (w/beans)

Vegetables and Fruits – Bananas, oranges, apples, strawberries, green beans, lentils, broccoli, cauliflower

Dairy – Whole milk, plain yogurt with fresh berries