Athena Vale
Gaining muscle is a common goal for many people, and for good reason. Building muscle can lead to a variety of health benefits, including increased metabolism, improved everyday functioning, and reduced risk of various health conditions. While the process of muscle growth is influenced by genetic factors, anyone can effectively gain muscle mass by implementing a few key strategies. Firstly, it's essential to engage in regular strength training or resistance training, challenging your muscles with moderate to heavy loads. Secondly, proper nutrition is critical, ensuring sufficient calorie intake and prioritizing protein, which acts as the building block for new muscle fibres. Finally, allowing adequate recovery time between workouts is crucial for optimal muscle growth and strength gains. By combining these strategies, anyone can effectively gain muscle mass and experience the associated health benefits.
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What You'll Learn
Resistance training
The process of resistance training breaks down the muscle, and when muscles break down, they build back larger, as long as you are consuming enough protein to help them repair. This is known as muscle hypertrophy, the increase in growth of muscle cells. It is the adaptation our muscles experience from continual exposure to progressively overloaded forms of resistance training, which results in an increase in our muscle fibre size, both in diameter and length.
The amount of resistance training you need to build muscle is a topic of debate. Some sources suggest that more is better, but others argue that training frequency is overrated. Research has shown that muscle gains can be achieved by training three days a week or six. During your training, you should aim to do 3 or 4 sets of every exercise, and stay in the 8-to-12-rep range, or even as low as one-to-six reps and three-to-six sets per session. This is the best range for packing on muscle, as it gives you a chance to learn each exercise and get consistent with the motions. Start with light-to-medium weights, so you can learn each movement and start to learn how to contract your muscles correctly, and then you can go heavier. Aim for multi-joint motions, like bench presses, rows, squats, and deadlifts.
Isometrics are a somewhat overlooked method of resistance training. In most muscle contractions, the target muscle changes length. In an isometric, your muscle creates force, but does not change length or move at all. For example, when you push against a wall, your muscles are creating force, and the wall presents a resistive force, inertia, which can be a challenge.
To build muscle, you must push your muscles to the limit, and then let them recover and grow stronger. This means creating the proper recovery environment for them when you're not working out.
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Nutrition and diet
Nutrition and exercise go hand in hand when it comes to building muscle mass. A well-balanced diet that includes healthy carbohydrates, fats, and proteins is essential. Consuming adequate dietary protein is crucial, as proteins are made up of amino acids, which are the building blocks of muscle. Aim for at least 1g of protein per 454g of body weight per day. This can be achieved by including a whole protein source, such as red meat, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy, or plant-based options like lentils, tofu, and nuts, with each meal.
It is recommended to consume four to five small meals at regular intervals throughout the day, each providing approximately 20 to 30 grams of high-quality protein. However, it is important not to exceed 40 grams of protein in any single sitting, as the body can only absorb a limited amount at once. In addition to protein, include complex carbohydrates and healthy fats in your diet. Carbohydrates provide the energy needed for physical activity, and healthy fats help lower bad cholesterol and raise good cholesterol. Avocados, for example, are an excellent source of healthy fats and also contain some protein.
To maximise muscle growth, focus on consuming nutrient-dense, whole foods rather than simply eating high-calorie meals. This means choosing lean proteins and avoiding processed foods, which often contain added sugars, trans fats, and other unhealthy additives. While it is important to be mindful of your calorie intake, it is more crucial to ensure that the calories you consume come from nutritious sources.
Consider using a nutrition app to track your daily protein and calorie intake, which can help you stay on track with your muscle-building goals. Additionally, if you are struggling to consume enough calories to support muscle gain, weight-gain supplements can be considered. However, it is important to note that making the right food choices and adding nutrient-rich extras to your meals, such as nuts, avocados, or beans, can often be sufficient to meet your calorie and protein needs.
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Weight training
To effectively gain muscle through weight training, it is important to understand the concept of muscle growth. Muscle growth occurs when muscles are pushed beyond their comfort zones, leading to muscle hypertrophy. This means that a stimulus must be placed on the muscle, creating a progressive overload. This doesn't necessarily mean increasing the weights but rather, finding ways to increase the strategic effort of your workouts over time. For example, you can increase the number of reps or sets, or reduce the rest time between sets.
When designing your weight training program, it is recommended to include compound exercises that work multiple major muscle groups. Examples of such exercises include squats, squat variations, bench press, deadlifts, lat pull-downs, and overhead press. Aim for shorter and more intense workouts, rather than long and leisurely ones. Additionally, it is important to allow your muscles time to recover, as muscle growth occurs during recovery. Train two to three times per week, or four to five days a week if possible, and avoid strength training the same muscle group on consecutive days.
In terms of diet, protein is key to building muscle. It is recommended to consume 1.4–2 grams of protein per kg of body weight per day. This can be achieved through a variety of protein sources, such as full-fat dairy, nuts and nut butters, beans, and lean meats. It is also important to ensure a caloric surplus, aiming for 300–500 calories above your baseline needs to support muscle growth without excessive fat gain.
Consistency is crucial when it comes to weight training for muscle gain. Track your progress by recording your exercises, weights, and measurements in a journal. This will help you see the improvements over time and ensure you are challenging your body enough to stimulate muscle growth.
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Muscle recovery
Hydration
Hydration is critical for muscle recovery. Dehydration can impair the muscles' ability to repair themselves. It is recommended to drink 1.5 litres of water for every kg lost during exercise, or roughly 3 cups of fluid for every pound lost. Sports drinks can also help replenish electrolytes lost during sweating.
Nutrition
Consuming a high-protein meal or supplement before or after a workout can aid in muscle recovery and help achieve daily protein goals. While the timing of protein intake is important, overall dietary protein intake is more crucial for muscle recovery. Carbohydrates are also essential, as they provide energy and help replenish glycogen stores used during exercise.
Active Recovery
Incorporating active recovery exercises such as light yoga, tai chi, stretching, or a leisurely walk can help accelerate muscle recovery. These low-intensity activities stimulate blood flow and promote healing without inhibiting the recovery process.
Sleep
Getting enough sleep is vital for muscle recovery. Aim for at least seven hours of sleep per night to allow your body to rest and rejuvenate. Sleep debt can impair recovery and have negative consequences on overall health.
Compression Techniques
Compression techniques, such as wearing compression garments, have been found to reduce muscle soreness and improve recovery. Cryotherapy, which involves exposing the body to extremely cold temperatures, can also speed up recovery by reducing pain, inflammation, and muscle tiredness.
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Building muscle mass
The first step to building muscle mass is to understand what muscle-building entails. Muscle hypertrophy, or the increase in growth of muscle cells, is often initiated by resistance training. This involves continually pushing your muscles against progressively heavier loads for repetitions. This stimulates the release of muscle-growing hormones and metabolites, which, in turn, increase your muscle fibre size and length.
To build muscle mass, you must push your muscles to the limit and then allow them to recover and grow stronger. This means creating the proper recovery environment for your muscles when you're not working out. It is recommended to allow at least 48 hours between sessions for muscle recovery.
When it comes to diet, you need to provide your body with adequate calories and nutrients, especially protein. Eating a variety of protein sources is ideal, with research suggesting that those training to gain muscle should eat 1.4–2 grams of protein per kg of body weight per day. One gram of protein per pound of body weight is a good starting point. This supports the creation of new muscle proteins, which are stimulated by resistance training.
It is important to note that you need to eat more calories than you burn to support muscle growth. A surplus of 300–500 calories per day above your baseline needs is recommended for sustainable muscle gain without excessive fat accumulation.
In addition to resistance training and a proper diet, getting sufficient rest is crucial for muscle growth. Make sure to give your muscles time to recover between workouts, and focus on getting enough high-quality sleep each night.
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Frequently asked questions
To gain muscle, you need to perform resistance training with moderate to heavy loads and eat a diet high in protein.
Research suggests that those training to gain muscle should eat 1.4–2 grams of protein per kg of body weight per day.
Weight training for 20 to 30 minutes, 2 to 3 times a week is enough to see results. Always allow at least 48 hours between sessions for muscle recovery.
Eat a variety of protein sources, such as lean meats, fish, eggs, dairy, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
