Jessica Bippen, MS, RD, enlightens us on what to eat to build muscle so you can get the results you’re looking for Prime Boosts at the gym… You know the saying "abs are built in the kitchen"? As cliché as it sounds, it carries some truth. You can do squats and crunches all day, but until you focus on what you’re eating for fuel, you aren’t going to get the results you want! Truth be told, the food you put in your body can either help or hinder your progress. If you want to gain muscle mass and see your hard work at the gym pay off, these are the foods you need to reach for. Before diving into the foods that support muscle growth, let’s talk about calories. Coupled with a solid strength training routine, increasing your caloric intake is imperative to supporting muscle growth and seeing results at the gym.

If your goal is building muscle, you need to eat more calories than you’re burning. This surplus allows the food to fuel your gym sessions and support the muscle repair and growth that happens between those sessions. If you’re eating too little, Prime Boosts your goal to gain muscle can backfire on you. With too much of a calorie deficit, your body starts breaking down muscle. Adding 250 to 500 calories per day can help you increase your overall calorie intake in a healthy way. However, that doesn’t mean you can blow through pints of Halo Top or turn every mealtime into a full-fledged buffet. Your choices matter. The additional calories should come from quality, whole foods, especially protein, complex carbohydrates like fruits and veggies, and healthy fats. Now let’s take a closer look at the foods you should be eating to build muscle. You might have guessed it! In order to gain muscle, you need more protein-but it might not be as much as you think.

The current recommendations advise getting 10 to 35 percent of your daily calories from protein. However, to support muscle growth, you need to be closer to the 25 to 35 percent range. Current research shows that most people need 1.2 to 2.0 g/kg/day to support muscle growth. Protein isn’t the only food group you need for muscle growth. Carbohydrates are also necessary for fueling your muscles. Why? Because carbohydrates are partially converted to glycogen, and your body stores glycogen in muscle to use as energy. In order to power your workouts, you tap into these glycogen stores. To build muscle, you need about 50 percent of your daily calories from carbohydrates. The healthiest carbohydrate options are complex carbohydrates. Last but not least, you also need fat. Your body relies on stored fat to supply energy to muscles when you’re working out. The general recommendation is to have fat make up 20 to 35 percent of your total calories. However, This product range will vary from person to person, depending on their goals.