The first thing you need to know if you are trying to build muscle is that weight training doesn't build muscle; weight training breaks down muscle mass so that the body has to rebuild it. Real muscle building actually takes place during the recovery phase after weight training, and how you control the variables during this time will make all the difference in the quality of the muscle you build. This includes diet, which is one of the most---if not the most---important building blocks in muscle development.
Calories
As you begin to build more muscle, your body will require more calories, from which it derives energy to get you through that next killer workout and to build more muscle. Determining your daily caloric requirements is done by figuring out your basal metabolic rate, BMR, or the amount of calories your body needs in a 24-hour period while at rest, and then adding on the calories you burn during your daily physical activity, including work, exercise and house cleaning.
You can use a BMR calculator such as the one on the Discovery Health website listed in the Resources section. For example, a 34-year-old female, 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighing 139 lbs., has a BMR of 1,402. This means she burns 1,402 calories doing absolutely nothing during a 24-hour period. To determine her daily caloric intake, she will estimate the additional number of calories she burns each day and add that to her BMR to find out her daily caloric requirements.
In order to build muscle, the body needs material with which to build it and this comes in the form of food, or fuel. When figuring out your daily caloric intake, remember that you will need to consume considerably more calories to build muscle than if you are just trying to maintain your weight. According to askthetrainer.com, you need to consume 500 calories a day beyond your BMR to build muscle mass. These calories will come primarily from proteins, carbohydrates and fats.
Protein
Your muscles are made of protein, so it makes sense that protein would make up an important part of any muscle-building diet. Your muscles use the more than 20 amino acids in protein to repair muscles and build new muscle. According to muscleandstrength.com, you should aim to consume 1 to 1 1/4 g of protein per pound of body weight per day. So a 180-lb. man looking to gain muscle mass will need to consume 180 to 225 g of protein per day. Good sources of protein include eggs, turkey, chicken, fish and low-fat dairy products. It can often be difficult to get enough protein for mass-building through the foods you eat alone, so muscleandstrength.com and bodybuilding.com both recommend whey protein as a supplement to the protein-rich foods you consume. You can make a whey-protein shake as a snack between meals and post-workouts.
Carbohydrates
The low-carb diet is not for those looking to build mass. Carbohydrates are as important to building muscle as proteins because they keep protein from being used as fuel for intense workouts. Carbohydrates also serve other important purposes in the body including hormone regulation, energy production and recovery. Muscleandstrength.com recommends consuming 2 g of carbs per pound of bodyweight on a daily basis. Stay at this level for four to six weeks and observe the changes that happen before making any changes. If at the end of that period you are staying lean and putting on muscle, continue at this level; if you are losing weight and not gaining muscle increase your carb intake by between 1/4 and 1 g; if you are gaining fat you'll need to decrease your carb intake by 1/4 to 1/2 g per pound.
The most important thing about carbs is that they must come from a quality source. Quality sources include whole grains, fruit and vegetables. Avoid any processed or refined carb sources.
Fat
You may at first think that fat is something you want to stay away from when you are trying to build lean muscle mass, but fats play an important role in muscle building, including regulating testosterone, raising energy levels, burning fat and keeping metabolism going. According to muscleandstrength.com, fats should compose about 30 to 35 percent of your diet and should come from quality sources like eggs, fish, olive oil, nuts and avocado, which are all examples of healthy fats.
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