Depending on what type of mass you wish to gain, it might or might not be possible through diet alone. According to the American College of Sports Medicine, gaining mass will require that you eat more calories than you burn daily. For example, if your daily caloric intake is 2,000, and you burn 1,800 calories daily, you will begin to gain mass. The type of mass you gain -- muscle, fat or bone density -- will depend on a few factors.
Protein and Calories
One major factor in gaining mass is the proper consumption of calories. If you desire extra lean muscle mass, you'll need enough protein. According to the National Strength and Conditioning Association, you should consume a minimum of 20 percent of your daily calories as protein. Carbohydrates and fats will provide extra calories that your body needs to help maintain muscle mass. If your goal is just to gain weight, then simply eating more calories than you burn will help you achieve this.
Exercise
If you are looking to build bigger muscles, then you will need to add resistance training to your regimen. The body typically keeps enough muscle mass on hand to carry out daily functions and other activities you do, depending on your lifestyle. If you are a construction worker, farmer or someone who does a lot of lifting, you will carry more muscle mass and can even get a bit bigger if you consume enough calories in your diet. While exercise is not crucial in gaining mass, it is important for those who want mass in terms of muscles.
Rest
At rest, your body's metabolism slows down and begins to repair itself after a long day of activity -- or lack thereof. Most muscle and tissue repair takes place at night. If you're eating close to your daily caloric expenditure and still find that you're gaining fat weight, it might be due to lack of rest. According to the American College of Sports Medicine, when you don't sleep enough, your metabolism slows down, which can lead to weight gain. Muscle mass will not have time to repair itself and grow, and any mass gain will slow down. In other words, inadequate rest will hamper muscle mass gains, but further fat mass gains.
Considerations
If you want to gain more muscle mass, eating alone will not be enough unless you have a job or do activities that require significant use of muscles, and even then, your muscles will stop growing without resistance exercises. Exercise and progressive resistance training is required to make significant muscle mass gains. If you are underweight, and your goal is to gain overall body mass in the form of extra body fat, a small increase in muscle mass and bone density, this is possible by eating more calories than you burn.
References
- "NSCA's Guide to Sport and Exercise Nutrition"; National Strength and Conditioning Association; 2011
- "American Council on Exercise Personal Trainers Manual"; Cedric Bryant; 2003
- "Lifestyle and Weight Management Consultant Manual"; American Council on Exercise; 2008
- "ACSM's Resources for the Personal Trainer"; American College of Sports Medicine; 2010
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