Building muscle is one of the best ways to stay fit. You need to eat a healthy diet and ensure you’re getting enough nutrients to build muscle and reduce inflammation in your body. The best muscle-building diet for women will support their strength, energy, and performance needs without affecting their weight.
In this article, we’ll go over everything from protein powders and shakes to whole foods (including those delicious carbs) so that you know what you should eat each day for your body-building efforts to pay off!
Muscle Building Diet for Women – Calories
Calories are the units of energy that your body needs to function. The number of calories you need depends on many factors, including age, activity level, and gender.
You will gain weight if you eat excessively more than the calories required for maintenance (the amount needed to keep your body weight at its current level). On the other hand, you will lose weight if you eat less than your body needs for maintenance.
To build muscle mass quickly, you must create an optimal calorie surplus so your body gets all the nutrients it needs during its workout session. If you’re not eating enough calories, your body will have to break down its muscle tissue to make up the deficit.
BMR
Knowing your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is important to calculate how many calories you should eat. BMR is the number of calories your body burns in a day at rest without any physical activity or exercise.
BMR = 447.593 + (9.247 x weight in kg) + (3.098 x height in cm) – (4.330 x age in years).
The Activity Factor
The figure from the above BMR calculation is the number of calories your body needs for its daily biological processes. Based on the daily calorie maintenance level, you can calculate how many calories you’ll need to add to help you reach your body composition goals.
For every calculation on calories, you will need to know your daily activity multiplier:
- Light workout – 1.55
- Moderate physical activity- 1.65
- Intense physical activity -1.80
- Very intense physical activity – 2.00
Example:
For a highly active 25-year-old woman who weighs 61 kg and is 5’3” tall, her BMR would be:
447.593 + (9.247 x 61) + (3.098 x 161) – (4.330 x 25) = 1402.19
Her daily calorie requirement for muscle building would be 1402.19 (BMR) X 1.80 (activity multiplier) =2523.94.
Tracking Calories
You can use a food-tracking app or website to estimate your daily caloric intake. Then increase it by 500 to 1,000 calories per day — or more if you’re very active in addition to strength training.
You can increase your calorie intake by eating more or increasing your protein intake. Ensure that at least 20 percent of every meal comprises protein-rich foods such as meat, fish, and dairy products.
Eat High Protein Foods
To build muscle, you need to consume enough protein. Protein is the building block of muscle, so it’s crucial for muscle growth and repair.
Protein can also help with fat loss by keeping you satisfied throughout the day, reducing your appetite and cravings for unhealthy foods like junk food. It will also keep you feeling full longer than carbs or fat so that you don’t overeat after a workout session or meal later in the day.
To ensure you consume enough protein daily, focus on eating lean animal-based sources such as chicken breasts, tuna fish, and salmon. You can also choose plant-based options such as Greek yogurt or lentils instead of animal products if those options work better for your lifestyle.
Use a High-Quality Protein Powder
Protein powders offer a great way to get more protein into your diet. They are worth considering if you want to increase your protein intake and add muscle mass. Protein powder can also serve as a meal replacement to help you stay fuller longer.
There are many different types of protein powders on the market. Each type of supplement has its benefits that should be taken into account when deciding on what kind of powder to use.
Dry Protein Powder
Dry protein powders are made from soy, rice, or hemp. Unlike the original protein powders, they are easily digestible and do not contain lactose. They are suitable for vegetarians and vegans.
Whey Protein
Whey protein is a by-product of cheese production, a good source of amino acids that help build muscle mass. It is absorbed quickly, but its effectiveness depends on the quality of the product and how it was processed.
Egg White Protein Powder
Egg white protein powder contains all nine essential amino acids required for muscle growth. It also includes fats that should be taken in moderation because they can cause weight gain if you take too much of them.
Pea Protein Powder
Pea protein powder is an excellent protein source and a great alternative to whey protein powder. It contains all the essential amino acids, including branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs). The main downside to pea protein powder is that it doesn’t taste as good as other kinds of protein powders.
Brown Rice Protein Powder
Brown rice protein powder is made from brown rice and is another vegetarian source of complete protein. It contains BCAAs and all nine essential amino acids. You can use this type of plant-based protein powder in smoothies or shakes for an added boost of nutrients and calories.
Eat Carbs To Increase Your Glycogen Stores
Carbs are one of the body’s main sources of energy, and your muscles and liver store carbs as glycogen. That means you need to eat enough carbohydrates if you want your muscles to recover properly from exercise. You also need carbs for strength training because they boost muscle growth by increasing glycogen stores in the muscles, which is crucial during weight-lifting sessions.
Some people avoid carbs because they think doing so will help them lose weight or gain more muscle mass—but this isn’t true! Carbs are essential to any diet to maintain a healthy weight and build muscle mass.
Eat Healthy Fats To Boost Nutrient Absorption and Reduce Inflammation
There are three types of fat: saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated. Saturated fats come mainly from animal products like cheese, butter, and meat. They raise cholesterol levels, leading to heart disease if you consume too much of them.
Monounsaturated fats lower your LDL cholesterol levels but don’t affect your HDL levels. Monounsaturated fats are found in nuts, seeds, and plants such as avocados or olives. Polyunsaturated fats include omega-3 fatty acids, found mainly in plant foods like flaxseed oil or chia seeds. This fat can help reduce inflammation by reducing blood pressure, among other things.
Eat Six Times a Day for Faster Muscle Building
Your body needs a constant supply of nutrients to maintain a high metabolism and to keep your hunger at bay so that you don’t feel like you’re starving yourself on a diet. You should eat six times a day, which means eating every 2-3 hours.
Slow metabolism is bad news if you want fast muscle gains because a slower metabolism means fewer calories burned daily. Eating every 2-3 hours also keeps your body from going into starvation mode, burning fewer calories than normal as it tries to conserve energy for survival. You don’t want only one large meal at night because your metabolism will slow overnight when no food comes in.
Eat Foods Rich in Vitamin D and Calcium
Vitamin D is essential for calcium absorption and is necessary for strong bones. It is also known to increase muscle strength, and it’s especially important for athletes. Foods like milk, cheese, and yogurt contain vitamin D, while fish such as salmon and tuna have lots of calcium. You can also take supplements to ensure your body gets the right amount of vitamins and minerals.
Take Creatine
Creatine is an amino acid that helps your muscles produce energy quickly, which makes it great for weight-lifting sessions! It also helps build muscle mass by improving muscle recovery time between workouts. One study found that women who took creatine supplements for four weeks increased their upper body strength by 24% more than those who didn’t take it.
Drink Plenty of Water
Water is essential to every process that goes towards building muscle. It’s important to keep your kidneys and liver healthy and hydrated to do their jobs properly. Water also helps flush out the toxins that build up when you work out. Drink eight glasses of water daily to ensure your body stays hydrated.
Drink Coffee
Caffeine stimulates the central nervous system, which increases energy levels and alertness. Caffeine is also a performance-enhancing drug that helps build muscle by increasing the release of fatty acids into the bloodstream. In addition to stimulating fat burning, caffeine blocks adenosine receptors in muscles, making it easier for them to contract.
Choose Nutrient-Packed Whole Foods
These foods contain plenty of the essential vitamins and minerals your body needs for good health and proper functioning. They also tend to be high in fiber and low in saturated fat and cholesterol, which is important for maintaining a healthy heart.
Examples include fruits (especially berries), vegetables (especially leafy greens), whole grains like brown rice or oats, lean meats like chicken breasts or turkey breast meat without skin on them as well as nuts such as almonds or walnuts (but not peanuts).
You don’t have to go crazy here. Make sure there’s some balance between eating these nutrient-rich foods often enough so they meet your daily nutritional needs without leaving you feeling stuffed after meals all day long!
Eat Proteins and Carbs Together
Protein and carbs work together to help you build muscle, so combining them in your meals is a great idea. Studies have shown that eating carbs with protein can help you feel fuller for longer.
You can combine carbs and protein in several ways: for example, you could have a portion of pasta and some chicken or fish on top (or vice versa). If you want to make the process easier, there are even pre-prepared dishes available at the supermarket that already contain proteins and carbs – so all you need to do is heat them!
Protein Shakes
Protein shakes are a great way to get the nutrients you need. They’re easy to make, easy to digest, and can be used as a meal replacement or post-workout meal.
If you’re following a muscle-building diet for women, there are some things that you should keep in mind as you plan out your meals. Knowing how much protein your body needs daily is important. The recommended amount is 0.5 grams per pound of body weight (1 gram per kilogram).
Timing
When planning your meals for the day, it’s important not only what foods contain certain nutrients but also when they should be consumed. For example, we know that protein is best absorbed after exercise. So if we want our bodies to absorb all those fabulous amino acids during our workout, having them with breakfast won’t cut it.
Instead, try having them shortly after finishing up at the gym, so they’re still fresh in our system before hitting new fuel sources throughout the day (like carbs).
Sample Muscle Building Diet for Women
Here is an example of a muscle-building diet for women:
Breakfast: 2 eggs, 1 cup oatmeal (cooked), one slice of whole wheat bread, and 1 cup low-fat milk or yogurt.
Snack: Protein shakes with water or skim milk (1 scoop protein powder mixed with eight oz. water).
Lunch: 6 oz. Grilled chicken breast, 1 cup brown rice (cooked), 4 cups steamed vegetables (broccoli, carrots, and green beans).
Snack: Protein shakes with water or skim milk (1 scoop protein powder mixed with 8 oz. water).
Dinner: 6 oz. grilled salmon steak with lemon juice/olive oil mixture, 1 cup brown rice (cooked), and 4 cups steamed vegetables (broccoli, carrots, and green beans).
Choose What Works Well for You
These tips are great if you’re looking for a muscle-building diet for women for quick results. Try them out and see how they work for you. Remember that even though there are a lot of different foods in the world, not all of them will help you build muscle. Find and stick to the approaches that work well for you.