Fuel to Gain Muscle
There’s a lot of talk about weight loss and weight maintenance in the health food space, but sometimes we forget that this isn’t everyone’s goal. You don’t have to be a bodybuilder to understand that muscle gain = weight gain. After all, muscle does weigh more than fat! If you’re someone who’s looking to bulk up and gain muscle mass (while burning fat of course!), your post-workout nutrition will look different than someone with a weight loss goal.
If you're looking to gain muscle mass, the most important thing is to refuel as quickly as possible after a workout. The ideal window of time is within 30 minutes post-workout, and you should focus on a high protein, moderate carbohydrate, moderately high calorie refuel. The idea is to replenish the calories you burned during your workout in order to gain muscle mass and prevent muscle loss, as you want to be in a metabolically anabolic state (building up tissue) as opposed to catabolic (breaking down tissue, which leads to weight loss). Getting in those extra calories after a workout can also help ensure they go toward muscle building, rather than being stored as fat.
Depending on the intensity of your workouts and your current height and weight, a woman looking to gain muscle mass should aim for a 400-500 calorie post-workout meal with at least 20g of protein, and a man looking to gain muscle mass should aim for 500-600 calories with at least 20g protein.