What to Eat to Gain Muscle Mass Quickly and Naturally

The saying that "you are what you eat" holds true when it comes to muscle building. Many people ask what to eat to gain muscle quickly and naturally, without pills and needles. Well, it is not just a question of what but also how.

The first thing you should think of, as any professional bodybuilder will tell you, is protein. Protein is what builds up muscle mass and strength, and not getting enough of it could live you frustrated. Many experts put the optimum muscle building protein amount at 1 gram per pound of body weight.

This is not to say that other food groups are not important. They all play a part. For, example, without carbohydrates, you will not find enough energy reserves to put you through an intense weights training routine. Your meals should always be balanced, but not in the way you may have been taught in school. That triangle with lots of carbohydrates taking most room somewhere at the bottom just won't do in the muscle sport.

It is not just what by how to eat right. You have to eat more to build strength but gobbling up a ton of food in one sitting is not the way to do it. You should eat small well balanced meals throughout your waking day.

Not only that, you should eat at the right times before and after a workout. Eating the right foods approximately one hour before your workout prepares the body for the onslaught ahead as well as giving you sustained energy. This meal should have a good amount of complex carbohydrates, plus the usual protein, and vitamins.

As an example, if you workout in the morning a breakfast of eggs, whole wheat toast with grape jelly and a bowl of oatmeal or grits plus a glass of orange juice and/or milk an hour before the workout should do You could possibly add a banana in the mix. If you take a vitamin supplement this is a good time to take one too. If you like your coffee at this time, go ahead and take it.

Immediately after the workout, an easily digested carbohydrate-protein shake may be best as this can be prepared and ingested quickly. Some experts even say that a glass of chocolate milk works as well (and it's cheap).

You should also supplement your diet with good quality nutritional supplements. Modern mass production farming has increased food production but compromised on the nutrients - add to that weeks and even months of refrigeration. But be careful too, as commercial supplements could easily leave you broke yet some of them are not even necessary.