Gaining muscle requires an excess of calories, but it is important to ensure they come from quality sources – avoid foods like sugar, deep-fried food and processed meats as these contain empty calories that won’t contribute to building muscle.
Choose whole foods such as brown rice, oatmeal and quinoa; additionally consume healthy fats like nuts, avocado and low-fat cottage cheese for optimal health.
Refined Sugar
An overly sweet diet can have detrimental effects on muscle building. Refined sugar causes insulin levels to spike, leading the body to break down proteins rather than build them, increasing oxidative stress during workouts, and delaying recovery times. While consulting a registered dietitian will be invaluable in helping determine your specific dietary requirements when trying to build muscle mass, in general try to limit sugar and processed carbs intake when trying to build it.
Natural sugars occur naturally in whole foods like fruits, vegetables and dairy products. Common examples include lactose found in milk and fructose found in fruit. Refined sugars are produced through processing and extracting sugar cane, sugar beets or other plants and this process leaves behind only sweet flavor with little nutritional benefit; commonly recognized examples of refined sugar include table sugar (sucrose), brown sugar honey maple syrup and agave nectar as refined types.
These processed sugars can be found in breads, cereals, flavored yogurt, soups and condiments; food labels can help identify added sugars in what you’re consuming. Limiting your refined sugar consumption will improve both your health and give you more energy to dedicate towards muscle building at the gym. Consuming foods that provide protein, carbohydrates and fats can assist post-workout muscle recovery; some examples include low-fat cottage cheese and milk as well as lean meats like skinless poultry eggs fish or shellfish are ideal.
Deep-Fried Foods
Deep-fried foods contain excessive fat, which can hinder muscle-building. Furthermore, sodium in these products can cause bloating and water retention. Therefore, to maximize muscle growth it is wise to limit or avoid these types of meals before workouts.
Prior to workouts, consume foods high in protein and carbs for maximum success. Lean meats like turkey, chicken and beef provide ample sources of protein while eggs contain leucine that supports muscle protein synthesis. Other muscle-building foods such as dairy products such as yogurt and cottage cheese as well as citrus fruits and strawberries may help as they provide essential calcium needed for bone health as well as muscle building.
If you enjoy eating fried foods after exercise, try to limit how many you consume to keep calories and fat consumption within limits. This will also help manage weight.
Before frying, pat the food dry with paper towels to absorb excess moisture and use a wire rack if possible to ensure crispy results. Also be sure to use a clean metal thermometer as this ensures oil temperatures meet proper cooking and safety requirements – particularly essential if using an electric fryer; avoid plastic for safety as it could melt in hot oil, increasing health complications further.
Processed Meats
Consuming processed meats such as bacon, hot dogs and deli meat is not ideal for building muscle because these foods contain saturated fats, salt and chemical preservatives which may contribute to inflammation, bloating, high blood pressure and other health problems which could impede muscle growth.
Processed meats can be defined as any red or white meat product that has been altered in any way, including salting, curing, fermentation, smoking or adding preservatives. This includes cold cuts, salami, ham and sausages but does not include fresh chicken and fish products. According to World Health Organization classification of processed meat as carcinogenic while red meat probably carcinogenic is classified.
Epidemiological studies have linked eating processed meats with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and other chronic illnesses, with one meta-analysis showing a 1% nonstatistically significant increase in CVD mortality per 100 grams/day of processed meat consumed and 2 percent increase per 50 gram per day consumed of red meat with an associated relative risk ratio between 23-110.
Recent research has also demonstrated that eating processed meats increases your risk of colorectal cancer and digestive conditions, possibly because cured and salted meats contain carcinogenic compounds like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, heterocyclic amines, and nitrates – while high temperature cooking creates additional carcinogens.
Dairy Products
Dairy products contain both protein and saturated fat. While dairy provides essential calcium and vitamin D for bone health and muscle building, milk also contains inflammatory fatty acids that should only be consumed in moderation – when shopping for dairy products look for those labelled low-fat or no fat so that you can limit fat and calories consumed.
Opt for skim and 1% milk as they have less saturated fat than whole milk, yet neither one makes an appreciable difference to your overall protein consumption as their respective protein contents are comparable.
Alternative sources of protein may include beans, nuts and seeds; lean meats like chicken breast and tuna also offer rich sources of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids that will boost protein intake.
Avoid foods high in omega-6 fatty acids, such as deep-fried food. Menu descriptions like “fried,” “refried,” loaded,” breaded” or coated” could indicate high omega-6 concentrations that inhibit muscle growth and should be avoided. Omega-6s increase inflammation which hinders its recovery.
Avoid fad diets as they may prevent you from meeting all your nutrient requirements. Most of these restrictive eating plans tend to limit carbohydrates or fat. Instead, focus on developing muscle through healthy eating patterns like eating well-balanced meals.
Peanut Butter
Peanut butter is an indispensable staple in most households, yet many individuals fail to examine its label carefully before selecting their preferred brand. When making this choice it’s essential that minimal ingredients such as hydrogenated oils (linked with heart disease) are included; similarly it would be wise to select a peanut butter that does not use emulsifiers to maintain its semi-liquid state at room temperature as these additives could increase your risk of high-level inflammation affecting gut microbiome health and therefore should be avoided as much as possible.
Peanut butter offers plenty of nutritious options. From Justin’s natural peanut butter without added sugar to sustainable palm oil products that won’t displace or harm orangutans. There is something out there to meet everyone’s dietary needs when it comes to peanut butter!
Protein may get all the attention when it comes to muscle building, but eating foods rich in healthy fats is also essential for lean and strong muscles. Try adding avocado, hummus or tofu to your meals as ways to provide your muscles with essential dietary fats while strengthening them further. You could also incorporate whole eggs for their protein, calcium, and zinc benefits or wild-caught fish and legumes like black beans lentils quinoa or tofu for their clean protein sources.
Cheese
An effective diet should contain equal portions of proteins, carbohydrates and fats for muscle growth. Vitamin-rich foods should be chosen when choosing bodybuilding foods; it’s wise to stay away from those high in sugar, sodium or unhealthy fats as these could cause unnecessary weight gain that impede muscle gains.
Foods such as ice cream, cookies and cake contain excessive calories and saturated fat that may impede muscle building by slowing the process of protein synthesis. Furthermore, you should steer clear of high-salt products which could contribute to heart disease or high blood pressure.
Cheese is a low-carb food that provides protein and calcium. A staple in many people’s diets, cheese can be found in sandwiches, soups, salads, Mexican dishes and sauces. Cheese should be consumed in moderation; one ounce of Parmigiano-Reggiano or cheddar contains 120 calories, 8 g of protein, 6 g saturated fat and 180 milligrams of calcium per ounce. Unfortunately cheese often has very high sodium levels due to using salt to retain moisture but some varieties can have lower sodium than others.
Eggs contain leucine, an essential amino acid for muscle building. Furthermore, eggs provide protein and vitamin B12. Fish like salmon, trout and sardines provide omega 3-fatty acids which have numerous health benefits.
