Hi there, devoted reader? I’m here to discuss another fitness secret. It pertains building muscle. I’ll be touching on what and how you should eat, how you should train, and how you can put on muscle mass, in general.

The Caloric Surplus

The term “caloric surplus” simply means consuming more calories than your body needs. The greatest error that many run into while trying to build muscle is not eating enough. 

You may be wondering how this can be a factor, but I assure you, it is a most important one. You must eat more!

Just How Much do I Consume to Build Muscle?

Well, the easiest way to calculate your caloric need is using the TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) online calculator.

Here’s a link to the TDEE calculator: https://tdeecalculator.net/.

Fill in the required parameters and tap “Calculate.” The figure you get is the number of calories needed to MAINTAIN YOUR WEIGHT. Below this figure, you’ll lose weight, which is exactly what you don’t want while building muscle). Above this number, you’ll gain weight, which is just what you need.

My Recommendation for You?

Granted, in order to build muscle, you should be taking in more calories than the amount needed to maintain you weight. But just how much more will do?

The acceptable amount is 500 calories over your daily maintenance caloric amount (TDEE). That is, +1 lb per week or +4 lbs per month. You may also do 1000 calories over yourTDEE. That is, +2 lbs per week or +8 lbs per month.

For example, my daily TDEE is 3200. So, if I want to gain 1 lb per week, I must add 500 calories, and thus, 3700 calories is the least amount I must consume daily to build muscle.

You must note that consuming less than your TDEE will NOT help you build muscle. Rather, you will lose weight. You must hit your minimum. Also note that consuming 500 calories or more over your TDEE comes with a tendency of trace fat accumulation.

Building Muscle without Accumulating Fat

It is absolutely possible to build muscle without accumulating any fat. “Lean bulk” occurs when you consume 200-300 calories above your TDEE and consume at least 1g of protein per pound of your lean body weight at the same time.

Calculating Your Lean Body Weight

To calculate your lean body weight, you must first get the percentage fat in your body. This can be tricky unless you have the right tools. Consulting your doctor might help.

After getting your percentage body fat, you can use the formulabelow to obtain your lean body weight:

%Body Fat x Total Body Weight = Body Fat in lbs

Then:

Total Body Weight – Body Fat in lbs = Lean Body Weight

For example, 

16% (or 0.16) x 190 lbs = 30.4 lbs

Then:

190 lbs – 30.4 lbs = 159.6 lbs (my lean body weight)

How Much Protein do I Need?

Rounding up the value of my lean body weight previouslycalculated to 160 lbs, my minimum intake in grams of protein should be 160g per day. You have to hit that minimum every single day in order to build lean muscle and surpass it if you want a regular bulk.

Diet to Build Muscle

High glycemic carbs (including white rice and rice cakes) are thebest carbs to consume.

In fact, I highly recommend that you eat white rice 3-4 times a day in spaces of about 4 hours interval, if you are really serious about this.

Lean organic protein is the way to go. Eggs, beef, turkey, chicken – about everything excluding non-organic dairy products.

You only need protein powder when you are not hiting your minimum grams of protein. But, it’s great to take a protein shake right after you work out. Please, watch out for my blog post on protein powders and supplements.

The Workout Method

We’ll be discussing two principles – hypertrophy and frequency or volume.

Hypertrophy:

“Hypertrophy” refers to the increase in the volume of an organ or tissue owing to the enlargement of the cells that make it up.

Most people lift moderate weights in the 10-12 rep range while trying to build muscle. While moderate lifting isn’t bad in itself, the problem is on a cellular level. Non-intense training only adds cells to the muscles. Lifting heavy, on the other hand, hitting about 5 reps on the larger muscle groups (legs, chest and back), and 7-8 reps on the smaller muscle groups (everything else), will lead to hypertrophy, which is the actual enlargement of the cells as against just adding new cells. This naturally leads to the enlargement of the whole muscle, which is exactly what you need! Lifting heavy with a lot of rest is the way to go.

Volume or Frequency:

Another big mistake that a lot folks make in the process of buildingmuscle is that they don’t record how heavy they are lifting and how many reps they do. This is an absolute must if you want to build muscle much faster! Squatting 225 lbs for 7 reps this week leaves you have one of two options for next week. It’s either you lift 230 lbs for 7 reps, or you do 225 lbs for 8 reps. This matters so muchbecause it ensures that you are increasing your capacity each week, is highly crucial!

As per frequency, let’s assume you did squats today. Your leg muscles would be in an anabolic state for the next 48 hours. What this means is that, over the next two days, they will be in a “build/repair muscle” state. After that, your body will stopbuilding/repairing your muscles. And so, you can work out any muscle you want once in three days. My recommendation is PUSH/PULL/LEGS workouts for ideal muscle growth.

Push/Pull/Legs Workouts:

These workouts are crafted to hit each muscle group once every four days, and thus boost your overall strength. A wonderful additional benefit of these workouts is that injuries are minimized, as you make the same motions all on the same day. This means that you avoid overusing any one body part, unlike with traditional body building. Check it out:

Day 1: Push • Chest (link to the best chest workouts: https://ryankamanu.com/killer-chest-workout-gainz-certified/) • Front & Side Deltoids • Triceps • Abs/Core (optional)

Day 2: Pull • Back & Traps • Rear Deltoids • Biceps • Abs/Core (optional)

Day 3: Legs (link to the best leg workouts: https://ryankamanu.com/gainz-certified-leg-workout/) • Quadriceps • Hamstrings • Gluteus • Calves • Abs/Core (optional)

Day 4: Rest • Abs/Core (optional) • LISS – Low Intensity Steady State cardio (optional)

Repeat!

I’m hoping you’ve enjoyed reading this article as much as I’veenjoyed writing it. I’m certain you now know the best way to build muscle! Stay built!