14 foods to gain muscle mass fast

You are tired of hearing that you have to eat more to grow. But you don’t grow.

And you wonder if the problem is that you don’t eat enough or if what you eat is not ideal.

So you need to know the foods to gain muscle mass fast that bodybuilders consume and compare them with those that you normally eat.

Gaining muscle mass is a slow process, taking place most of the time imperceptibly.

So it is very likely that the more times you look in the mirror, you will not appreciate differences.

Do you want some advice? Stop obsessing over results and start doing it: train hard and eat right.

It is the latter where almost everyone fails.

It’s relatively easy to put all your effort into the 90 minute gym.

But it is not so much to maintain discipline in your meals for the rest of the day.

And the reality is that it is your diet that will mark your progress.

You can do your best with irons, dumbbell exercises, which if your body doesn’t get the nutrients it needs, it won’t be able to build muscle mass.

So today I want to talk about food. Those foods that will help your sacrifices to be rewarded.

These 14 foods should make up the basis of your diet if your real desire is to develop your muscles.

Consuming them in the right amounts will open the way for progress.

So take note, because we are going to the supermarket.

Foods that you cannot stop consuming if you want to build muscles

1-Cold turkey

Cold turkey breast cannot be missing from your gym diet. And it is not only for a nutritional reason, which also, but for a practical reason.

Cold turkey breast is a high-protein, low-fat food that you also don’t need to cook.

This means that you can take it anywhere and eat it at any time without the need for preparation.

2-Chicken

Chicken is the meat par excellence of the bodybuilder. A white meat with a low level of fat that is also practically clean in the breast area.

Eating chicken breast on a daily basis can get a bit boring so don’t get obsessed with the breast cliche, but of course, give it the importance it deserves.

100 grams of chicken breast gives you 30 grams of clean protein, so if you are determined to build lean mass, it will be an important food.

3 eggs

You need protein to build muscle mass , and egg protein is the most biologically valuable of all natural sources.

Surely you’ve heard more than once the tune that eating lots of eggs is bad. That is one of so many myths that it is already more than banished.

Not only is it not bad, but the Spanish Heart Foundation itself declares that there is no reason to limit your intake.

Forget about eating only the whites, the whole egg is much better food.

4-Red meat

100 grams of red meat provide about 22 grams of protein. Furthermore, this type of meat is rich in creatine, linoleic acid, alanine and iron / minerals.

Its less positive side is its high fat content, but since red meat is an optimal food to carry out hard and maximum intensity workouts, it is a good idea to include them in a volume diet.

5-Tuna

Another one of those foods to gain muscle mass.

It is usually presented packed in water or oil, and provides about 30 grams of protein, with very low fat levels.

For this reason, it can be used as the main protein source in definition diets or if you want to obtain lean mass.

And also, since it is normally taken in canned food, it can be easily transported and consumed without the need for any preparation.

6-Salmon

Like tuna, salmon is one of those foods you need to add to your must-have list.

Its combination of high protein content with essential fats (including the extraordinary Omega 3) make salmon one of the best foods to promote muscle growth.

In addition to being a very tasty fish, it contains beneficial substances for heart health.

7-Oatmeal

Oatmeal is one of the best cereals you can eat if you intend to gain muscle and lose fat.

On the one hand, it is high in protein (13.5grs) while at the same time it is a complex carbohydrate that does not create insulin spikes, but is slowly released.

If you add to this its high content of vitamins, Omega 6 and fiber, we have one of the most complete carbohydrates for muscle growth.

8-Nuts

Walnuts, almonds and hazelnuts are some of the nuts that you should include in your diet.

A diet to gain muscle mass must contain a high number of calories and nuts meet this requirement.

Its composition is rich in healthy fats.

They contain an appreciable number of proteins and other important substances for the body such as antioxidants, which fight the action of free radicals.

9-Brown Rice

Why brown rice? Because when choosing between white and brown rice, the second is a much more complete food in fiber and minerals.

Since you need to consume carbohydrates, the more complete they are, the better, and brown rice has 9 times more fiber, twice as much phosphorus and potassium, three times as much calcium and magnesium, and four times more iron and sodium than white rice.

10-Seafood

Seafood is an excellent source of low fat protein .

Cuttlefish, octopus, squid, prawns or mussels are fantastic foods, with the only drawback of their high price.

But if you want to give your diet some variety in its protein sources, you can include them once or twice a week.

11-Milk

Milk is a controversial food. In bodybuilding there are those who praise it and those who detest it.

But it cannot be denied that it is one of those foods that help those who have the most difficulties to gain weight to gain weight.

In its favor, the high biological value of its protein must be noted, but it is true that its fat content must be taken into account.

Even if you take it skimmed, lactose can still cover you up, by preventing your body from going into the ketone state, so you won’t see much of it on definition diets.

But if this is not your problem but the opposite, if you have tried everything and do not know how to gain muscle mass, add 1 liter of milk to your diet daily and you will soon appreciate changes.

12-Pulses

Legumes are a food that contains a good balance between carbohydrates and vegetable proteins.

Although the latter are not absorbed by the body as well as animal proteins, it is a good idea that lentils, peas, chickpeas or beans are part of your diet occasionally.

Consuming legumes 2 to 3 times a week allows you to add good quality nutrients and add some variety regarding your main and priority protein sources (meat, fish, eggs)

13-Sweet potatoes

When choosing the best foods to gain muscle mass, we will always opt for complex carbohydrates as an energy source , and within these, for those that cause a lower insulin spike.

Sweet potatoes are a very valuable energy source which, however, triggers a lower insulin response in the body than, for example, potatoes.

This means that we will benefit from their energy and transport capacity of amino acids to muscle, but it will be much more difficult for them to convert to fat.

14-Skimmed smooth cheese

With 8 grams of protein for every 100 grams, skimmed smoothie is a very versatile food, which is why it has become so popular with regulars at the gym.

You can take it as a dessert with sweetener and pieces of fruit, add dried fruit or add it to your smoothies.

You can even make a protein-rich pancake batter by mixing it with egg and oat bran.

In any case, the result is rich in protein to increase muscle mass, healthy and delicious.

General tips to increase muscle mass

Muscle growth involves many factors. If you have problems when it comes to building muscle look at this post , it will be of great help.

The training part is complex, but nutrition also has many details that determine more or less rapid progress.

Knowing the amount of protein you should consume, the proper macronutrient balance, or the frequency with which you should eat to keep your body in a permanent anabolic state are keys that you need to know to maximize your progress.

How much protein to take a day?

On the daily protein intake necessary for a person who trains with weights, there have been numerous studies.

On the one hand, there are the recommendations that health organizations make regarding daily protein intake.

The famous 0.8 grams of protein per Kg of body weight recommended by the WHO is far from sufficient for a person who engages in intense physical activity.

Then there are other studies, in some cases funded by supplement companies, which state that the needs of a person who performs high-intensity strength training are 3 grams of protein per kg of body weight.

I prefer a more objective approach, such as the one presented by the International Society for Sports Nutrition (ISSN), which provides a series of very interesting conclusions about protein and exercise after analyzing hundreds of studies that have tried this matter.

Basically what the ISSN says about the daily protein intake is that:

• To increase muscle mass and maintain muscle mass through a positive protein balance, a daily intake in the range of 1.4-2.0 g of protein / kg of body weight / day (g / kg * day) it is sufficient for most people who exercise.
• There is novel evidence to suggest that increased protein intake (greater than 3 grams per kg of body weight) may have positive effects on body composition in individuals trained in resistance to body fat loss.

And after analyzing aspects such as protein sources, consumption hours, amounts and other factors that influence its assimilation, he concludes that

“The amount depends on the mode and intensity of exercise, the quality of the protein ingested, as well as the energy and carbohydrate status of the individual. However, it should be noted that there is preliminary evidence that consuming much higher amounts of protein (> 3 g / kg * d) may confer a benefit in terms of body composition. ”

Obviously, if you are trying to gain muscle you know that you must eat a lot of protein.

But it is difficult to get these amounts through food alone.

At least, if you want to keep some control over the calories you consume.

How then to obtain that contribution that allows substantial changes in your body composition to take place? Where to get that protein?

Again we quote the recommendation that the International Society of Sports Nutrition makes in this regard:

“Supplementation is a practical way to ensure adequate quality and quantity of protein intake, while minimizing caloric intake, particularly for athletes who generally complete high volumes of training.”

Carbohydrates: the key to your physique

Carbohydrate intake is what will greatly determine the physique you show.

Do you want to be like the big boys in the gym, move big weights and feel strong?

Be prepared to eat many, but many carb.

Are you more of those who are looking for a marked physique in which the muscles show clearly under the skin?

Your approach must be the opposite. Reduce carbohydrates to the bare minimum.

In any case, the usual is an intermediate position.

Wanting to achieve a certain size while showing an acceptably good level of muscle definition.

Carbohydrates are the body’s priority energy source, and therefore we cannot do without them.

The important thing is to adjust the amount you consume to the goal you want to achieve.

In addition to the fact that you need energy to train hard, a requirement without which the muscles will not grow, carbohydrates generate the release of insulin, which is the substance that transports amino acids to the muscle so that it can repair and grow.

Therefore, carbohydrates and how you handle them, will have a great influence on the physique you achieve.

Between 40 and 50% of the calories you eat should be carb, preferably complex.

Fat yes or no?

Fat and a good physique seem like opposite concepts. truth?

However, fats are a necessary macronutrient that we cannot stop consuming.

Not only is it an alternative energy source to carbohydrates, but they are necessary for a multitude of internal processes in the body to develop normally.

The key to take advantage of the benefits that fats bring you and avoid their accumulation in the body or in the arteries where they can ruin your physique or, even worse, your health, is in knowing what type of fats you should eat and which ones to avoid.

It is important to maintain the amount of calories you put into your body from this macronutrient.

Avoid saturated and trans fats as much as possible, and give preference to monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.

Try to limit your fat sources to fish, nuts, olive oil and avocado.

These will help you stay healthy and will not interfere with the physical goal you want to achieve.

Therefore, fats, yes, but good and in the right amount.

How many meals a day?

Whatever your current level, building muscle requires a constant supply of nutrients, which allows the body to have an adequate level of energy and enough protein to meet the body’s needs and build new muscle tissue.

This is difficult to achieve with less than five meals a day, and this should be your reference.

Below this number it will be very difficult for you to provide the body with the proteins and calories necessary for this purpose.

Now, we must make some points in this regard:

• Five is not an immovable figure. In fact, depending on your level, there may be some more (professionals can easily make up to 7-8 meals a day), but if they are 4 and complete enough, nothing happens either.
•  Do we mean food or do we include protein shakes in them? It is advisable to make a minimum of 4 solid meals, and from there, add some more in the form of supplements. This can easily lead to 6-7 daily intakes of nutrients, which is surely enough to cover all the needs of an organism subjected to a high level of demand.

conclusion

It does not matter if you are on a volume diet or if you intend to gain muscle and lose fat.

Whatever your goal, you need to eat well to increase your muscles.

Here you have been able to learn a lot of valuable information regarding the best foods to gain muscle mass.

And now that you know what to eat to gain muscle mass, it’s your turn to act.

Plan your diet well.

Banish everything that keeps you from your goals from the shopping cart.

Have discipline.

The time and sweat you leave in the gym will do the rest.

If after all this, you still have trouble building muscle, I recommend this article.