Nutrition for Muscle Growth: What and How Much Should You Eat?

By Roel van den Bogaard, personal trainer and founder of Aurora Personal Training in Eindhoven.

Nutrition supports muscle growth by providing energy and building materials. Combine regular strength training with sufficient protein, varied meals and recovery. For many healthy adults training specifically to build muscle, approximately 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day is a useful starting point. More protein is not automatically better.

But what does that mean on your plate? How much should you eat, what roles do fats and carbohydrates play, and do you need a protein shake immediately after training?

This guide turns the basics into practical choices you can maintain during a busy working week.

Start with your daily eating habits. Details such as the exact timing of a shake come later.

A supplement cannot compensate for regularly missing meals or rarely following your training programme.

Protein provides amino acids your body uses to build and maintain tissues, including muscle. Strength training and sufficient protein work together to support muscle growth.

How much protein do you need to build muscle?

Your needs depend on factors including training demands, goals, age and overall food intake.

For many healthy adults who train specifically to build muscle, approximately 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight per day is a useful starting point. A practical range is often 1.6–2.0 grams.

Sports nutrition literature also discusses a range of 1.6–2.2 grams. This does not mean everyone needs the upper end. A large meta-analysis found no further average increase in fat-free mass from additional protein beyond approximately 1.6 grams per kilogram per day. That is a group average, rather than an exact individual limit.

These are calculation examples for healthy adults. When someone carries substantial excess body fat, calculating requirements from their full body weight may not be appropriate. If you have kidney disease or follow a medical diet, discuss your protein intake with your clinician or dietitian.

Which protein sources can you choose?

Include a variety of foods, such as:

• Quark, yoghurt, milk and other suitable dairy products.
• Eggs.
• Fish and chicken.
• Tofu, tempeh and pulses.
• Unsalted nuts and seeds as additional sources.

Beef also provides protein, but does not need to be a daily staple. Including plant-based sources helps create variety.

When eating a plant-based diet, sufficient overall food, protein and variety matter. You do not need to create a perfect combination of protein sources at every meal.

Fats provide energy and essential fatty acids. They also help your body absorb the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K.

Regularly choose sources of unsaturated fat, such as:

• Olive oil and butter.
• Unsalted nuts and seeds.
• Avocado.
• Fish, including oily fish.

Butter can be part of your diet, but contains a substantial amount of saturated fat. A higher price or a “premium quality” label does not automatically change its fatty acid composition. Choose sources of unsaturated fat more often for everyday use.

Should you eat more fat for your hormones?

A nutritionally adequate diet matters for your health. This does not mean that adding extra butter, oil or avocado automatically raises testosterone or accelerates muscle growth.

Avoid removing fats without a reason, but do not treat them as a special hormone booster. Your overall diet and energy intake remain relevant.

Carbohydrates provide energy and help replenish glycogen stores. Glycogen is a stored form of carbohydrate found in your muscles and liver.

How much carbohydrate benefits your training depends partly on session duration, training volume and frequency. A short workout places different demands on you than a long, intensive session.

Practical sources include:

• Oats and wholemeal bread.
• Wholegrain pasta and brown rice.
• Potatoes.
• Pulses.
• Fruit.

Vegetables also contain carbohydrates, but usually do not replace a substantial portion of bread, potatoes or grains when you need an energy-rich meal.

You do not automatically need to restrict carbohydrates to manage body fat. Consider your total diet and adjust portions to your goals and activity.

A muscle-building diet involves more than quark, chicken and rice. Vegetables and fruit provide fibre, vitamins and minerals.

General Dutch guidance for adults recommends:

• At least 250 grams of vegetables daily.
• 200 grams of fruit daily.

Eating more vegetables can also fit your diet. An intake of 400–500 grams is a possible personal choice, rather than a required minimum for muscle growth.

Spread vegetables across lunch and dinner. Add fruit to breakfast or take it with you as a snack.

There is no need to attach special recovery promises to antioxidants. A varied diet supports your nutritional foundation without any single food determining muscle growth.

There is no single target for everyone. Your energy needs depend on factors including your body size, daily movement and training.

Start with an eating pattern you can maintain, then review several weeks of:

• Training performance.
• Recovery.
• Average changes in body weight.
• Changes in measurements and body composition.

Do you always need a calorie surplus?

A calorie surplus is not an absolute requirement for all muscle growth. Beginners, in particular, may build muscle without gaining weight under certain circumstances.

If muscle growth is your main goal and you have trained for some time, a modest increase in energy intake may be appropriate. Eating substantially more does not guarantee additional muscle growth and can mainly increase fat gain.

Adjust portions according to your progress. Avoid drawing conclusions from one weigh-in: fluid, digestive contents and glycogen also affect body weight.

Your total daily intake matters more than achieving a perfect meal time.

A meal containing protein around your workout is practical. However, you do not have to eat within exactly two hours of your final repetition to make progress.

If you ate a meal a few hours before training, there is usually less reason to rush to eat immediately afterwards. If you train fasted or your next meal is a long way off, eating after your workout can be useful.

What can you eat before training?

Choose food you tolerate well, such as:

• Yoghurt with oats and fruit.
• Wholemeal bread with a protein source.
• A regular meal with rice or potatoes, vegetables and tofu, fish or chicken.

Some people find a large, high-fat meal uncomfortable immediately before exercise. Adjust portion size and timing according to your experience.

What can you eat after training?

A normal meal can be sufficient. Examples include quark with fruit and oats, or potatoes with vegetables and a protein source.

A protein shake is a convenience option when eating is difficult to organise. It is not a compulsory step.

A normal meal can be sufficient. Examples include quark with fruit and oats, or potatoes with vegetables and a protein source.

A protein shake is a convenience option when eating is difficult to organise. It is not a compulsory step.

The example below shows how you can combine different food groups. It is not a personalised meal plan and does not provide fixed calorie or protein totals.

Check the protein content of plant-based dairy alternatives: products can differ considerably.

Choose portions according to your needs. Adding more eating occasions is useful only if it helps you eat enough and maintain a varied diet.

Focusing only on protein

You can eat sufficient protein while still getting too little energy or missing important food groups. Review your whole eating pattern.

Having protein only after training

A post-workout shake does not replace attention to the rest of your day.

Removing fats or carbohydrates entirely

Unnecessarily restricting your food choices can make your diet harder to maintain. Choose appropriate portions rather than automatically excluding entire groups.

Prioritising supplements over meals

Start with meals you can organise consistently. Then consider whether a supplement solves a specific problem.

Adjusting your plan too quickly

Muscle growth takes time. Compare several weeks and assess your nutrition alongside training and recovery.

Can you build muscle without protein shakes?

Yes. You can get sufficient protein from ordinary foods. A shake can be convenient, but is not necessary.

Should you eat less protein on rest days?

Not automatically. Recovery continues between workouts. Your daily protein intake deserves attention on rest days too.

Can you lose fat and build muscle at the same time?

It is possible, particularly for beginners or people returning to strength training. How much is achievable varies between individuals.

A large energy deficit generally makes maximising muscle growth more difficult. Choose a clear main goal and assess your progress.

Is a plant-based diet suitable for building muscle?

Yes, provided you get sufficient energy and protein and plan your diet appropriately. Tofu, tempeh, pulses and high-protein soya products can help.

Why am I seeing little progress despite eating well?

Also review your training stimulus, consistency, sleep and expectations. Good nutrition cannot fully compensate for an unsuitable training programme.

If you need help choosing a training structure, read our guide to full-body versus split workouts.

At Aurora Personal Training, we connect nutrition habits with your training demands, recovery, sleep, stress and schedule.

We look at which meals are manageable, where your diet may fall short and how your progress develops. Together, we build choices you can maintain during busy weeks.

Want to understand the roles of protein, fats and carbohydrates? Read our guide to macronutrients.

Book a free intake at Aurora Personal Training in Eindhoven to discuss how training and nutrition can support your goals.

• Morton and colleagues: meta-analysis of protein intake and adaptations to resistance training.
• International Society of Sports Nutrition: position stand on protein and exercise.
• Voedingscentrum: additional protein when exercising — Dutch.
• Voedingscentrum: dietary fats — Dutch.
• Voedingscentrum: vegetables and recommended amounts — Dutch.