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Products for gaining muscle mass
Medical expert of the article
Last reviewed: 04.07.2025
10 Foods to Gain Muscle Mass
It is generally accepted that there is no ceiling for gaining weight in the human body. There are known cases when excess weight reaches several hundred kilograms, which turns a person into a helpless cripple. This is an unhealthy weight, fatty. Most often, the cause is various diseases that are not subject to modern medicine.
Proper use of muscle building products eliminates unhealthy consequences. However, those wishing to build it up should remember the ancient doctors' advice: do no harm!
In order for muscles to grow, you need to eat a lot, regularly, often. Food should be of high quality and high in calories, but with healthy protein calories, not harmful fat calories. It is not advisable to save on food, since a lack of balanced nutrients during intense training definitely has a negative effect on health.
We recommend ten products for gaining muscle mass:
- eggs
- cottage cheese
- beef
- chicken fillet
- turkey meat
- red fish
- fish oil
- buckwheat
- oatmeal
- water.
The listed products (except water) contain a complex of vital substances: proteins, useful carbohydrates and fatty acids, fiber, vitamins, microelements. Water in the right amount promotes normal digestion, maintains strength, adds energy.
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Protein Products for Muscle Gain
Excellent products for gaining muscle mass are the recognized “protein leaders”: eggs, cottage cheese, meat, fish, cereals, nuts.
Cottage cheese consists of proteins that are digested differently: some quickly, others slowly. This is the special value of the fermented milk product, which contains more than 20 percent of protein substances.
Beef, white chicken meat (breast), and turkey top the list of foods of interest to athletes.
Salmon, more than any other seafood, helps build muscle, and thanks to its positive effect on metabolism, it accelerates the desired result.
Fish oil also affects metabolism. Having an anti-inflammatory effect, it supports the body after active training.
Eggs themselves are a balanced, complete mini-product for sports nutrition.
Oatmeal is good for everyone, it is included in a variety of menus: from dietary to sports. Its presence is very useful in our case. Oatmeal contains enough healthy carbohydrates, they maintain a feeling of satiety and blood sugar levels.
Buckwheat porridge also affects muscle growth, so it should not be ignored when choosing protein products for gaining muscle mass.
Edible nuts and seeds, in addition to plant proteins, supply the body with antioxidants, which speed up recovery processes after exercise.
High-calorie foods for muscle gain
As a rule, men build muscle mass. They want to look more masculine, for this they are ready to give up some harmful hobbies and even go to the gym. But it turns out that this is not enough, you also need to watch your diet. Since a diet of high-calorie foods for gaining muscle mass along with training provides the expected result.
The principle of nutrition for a man who wants to have a beautiful and strong torso is that he should receive all the nutrients, vitamins and minerals with food. But the amount of protein should prevail; in a day with such a regimen, you should eat significantly more protein food than usual.
- Protein is meat, fish, eggs, milk. Its daily requirement is at least 2 g per kilogram of body weight. It is absolutely necessary to get more than you spend, because only in this case will muscle mass really increase. Experienced people advise not to take into account protein of plant origin, only from animal products.
- The second rule: in order for the protein from food to successfully turn into muscle fibers, enough energy is required for active metabolism. Energy functions, as is known, are performed by useful, complex carbohydrates. These are various cereals, vegetables, bread from wholemeal flour - but not semolina or rich pastries.
In general, the proportion of useful substances differs significantly from the usual daily diet in that the protein content is increased due to fats. Approximately like this:
- 20-30% proteins
- 50 – 60% carbohydrates
- 10 – 20% fat.
It is allowed to make up a diet taking into account individual tastes, giving preference to a favorite dish or product for gaining muscle mass. The total amount of high-calorie products should not exceed 70% of everything consumed per day.
The daily portion of high-calorie foods for weight gain should be eaten in six to eight meals. Start the morning with carbohydrates, and leave the lion's share of proteins for dinner.
Products for gaining lean muscle mass
Gaining lean muscle mass is building muscle without fat or with a minimum of it. This is usually achieved in two stages, dividing sports training and taking products for gaining lean muscle mass into two stages:
- muscle mass gain
- muscle grinding (fat loss).
Experts who hold this opinion are convinced that it is unrealistic to immediately gain lean mass and you should not feed yourself with empty hopes. It is better to eat right and exercise regularly.
Nutrition at different stages is fundamentally different. If at the first stage the body needs an excess of calories, then at the second stage – a deficit. Such a diet is achieved by limiting carbohydrates.
When building up mass, eat often to constantly and evenly support the body. The peculiarities consist of different needs during the day. In the morning and the entire first part of the day, you need a source of energy, that is, carbohydrates. From lunch until night - protein. Before training, it is advisable to take slow carbohydrates and proteins, drink water after it, and after a while again feed the body with complete proteins and carbohydrates. Casein protein is useful at night.
The second period is fat burning. Here is an approximate diet:
- rice (boiled)
- chicken breast
- low-fat cottage cheese
- egg or egg white
- vegetable salads
- water.
The main thing in dry nutrition is to exclude simple carbohydrates in the form of sweets, juices, baked goods with fatty creams. Otherwise, the products for gaining muscle mass remain the same.
Rating of products for gaining muscle mass
There are different ratings of products for gaining muscle mass. Most of the products are similar, they just occupy different positions. The proposed simple set consists of food products rich in healthy proteins and carbohydrates:
- chicken breasts
- fresh natural beef or veal
- rice, buckwheat, oatmeal
- pasta
- potato
- black bread
- water
Carbohydrates - for breakfast and 25% of the norm - after training. Fats no more than 15%. Without an abundance of water, muscle growth is impossible.
An example of a somewhat exotic rating of three dozen positions:
- Sunflower seeds, mackerel, kiwi, pineapple, venison, coffee, beef, ginger, natural yogurt, turmeric, cucumbers, chocolate milk, buckwheat, almonds, cherry juice, pastille, watercress, sesame halva, eggs, tuna, papaya, sweet pepper, herring, lentils, pasta, asparagus, sprouted wheat, spirulina (green algae), still mineral water, turkey meat.
There are other rating options. But it is not only the quality that is important, but also the quantity of food. First, you need to double your usual portion. And also prepare yourself psychologically: tune in to the optimal diet and training regime, be sure to follow all the requirements and believe in success. Without diligence and willpower, no muscle building products will help.
Cheap Products for Gaining Muscle Mass
To make a good figure affordable for everyone, you can create a diet of cheap products for gaining muscle mass. For example, like this:
- pollock fish is a source of the cheapest proteins and essential fats;
- fish oil;
- chicken fillet;
- low-fat cottage cheese;
- rice, oatmeal, millet, buckwheat (one after the other, for variety) as a side dish;
- potatoes (mashed);
- egg powder (contains several times more protein than in the fermented milk group);
- eggs;
- mushrooms;
- beans;
- accessible vegetables, greens, fruits, nuts;
- dried fruits;
- water.
In a budget diet, the emphasis should be on quality, giving preference not so much to taste and smell, but to usefulness. Although it is quite possible to combine both.
There are special tables for counting calories. Over time, you can determine how much of something to eat "by eye". Low-calorie vegetables do not need to be counted.
It is useful to cook steamed, stewed, boiled dishes. Vegetables, greens, fruits are eaten raw.
Best Foods for Gaining Muscle Mass
The best products for gaining muscle mass are, of course, purely natural, organic products. If such nutrition is supported by regular physical exercise, you can achieve an ideal figure and weight.
- Water is the number one product on this list. And for good reason, because both muscles and the entire body are chemically water, with only about 20 percent of the rest. You need to drink constantly, and during exercise - intensively, to replenish the moisture lost through sweat and breathing.
- Sea fish of all kinds, especially tuna and herring. Proteins and unsaturated omega-3 acids are the protection of your own muscles and joints from self-eating after intense exercise. The body, in dire need of protein, does not stand on ceremony, and omega-3 slows down protein hunger - until lunch or dinner. It is advisable to eat fish three times a week.
- Milk and fermented milk products are indispensable in the diet of every healthy person. Milk relieves muscle pain, yogurt, kefir, sour milk contain vitamin D and calcium necessary for bones and muscles, lactic acid bacteria are important for stimulating digestive processes.
- Chicken eggs are an easy-to-digest protein, vitamins A, D, E, very necessary for the strength of muscle ligaments. Nutritionists recommend up to ten eggs a week.
- Meat, but not all of it. Choose beef, chicken, turkey – a source of essential amino acids and creatine, which helps increase muscle mass and reduce fat reserves.
- Cereals and legumes also make an indispensable contribution to the useful cause. And also soybeans, lentils, buckwheat, sprouted wheat, even pasta, especially with lean oil and vegetables.
- Vegetables and fruits: potatoes, hot and sweet peppers, lutuk and other salads, spinach, tomatoes, asparagus, imported pineapples, papaya, kiwi and native strawberries, cherries, currants, cherries - do not deny yourself anything, everything is beneficial if the products are fresh and the diet is balanced.
- Nuts and seeds – roasted, raw, mixed with other ingredients, but in moderation: a handful per day.
The article was about natural products for gaining muscle mass. There are other means, which may give a quick result, but conceal undesirable consequences. The choice is always up to the person. Although, of course, gradual effectiveness is better than a hasty and bright effect, but with a risk to health.