muscle gain FAQs

If you use the dotFIT Me program all the answers you need are within. Enter your weight weekly or weight and body fat bi-weekly and the program feedback will tell you what to do to stay on goal. More...

Muscle building requires protein, nutrients and energy. Meat is just one source of protein, there are many vegetarian sources. It doesn’t take much protein to meet requirements even for a vegan if you use a variety of sources. More...

To date there is one published study related to the efficacy of NO (nitric oxide) boosters via oral ingestion. The major finding of this recent study was that the nitric oxide booster (arginine alpha-ketoglutarate, or AAKG) increased strength and power in resistance-trained men. More...

When exposed to the stresses of training, the body adapts in a manner consistent with the type of stress applied to it. This is referred to as the SAID Principle (Specific Adaptations to the Imposed Demands). More...

No – as long as you are performing appropriate resistance training and eating enough calories and protein to support growth, you can add muscle (up to a certain point). More...

Creatine monohydrate is one of the most widely used supplements to improve sports performance, muscle size, strength and power. Loading Creatine has been a point of controversy and clarity on this issue will be provided here. More...

Muscle being burned during exercise is determined by a couple of factors: 1) calorie intake (including carbohydrate (CHO) and fat intake) and 2) duration of activity. More...

Absolutely, and it is also possible to add weight while losing fat. It is not uncommon for a change in body composition to occur when one begins getting serious about exercise and nutrition. More...

While it is true that you need some protein after a workout, carbohydrate should be present in an amount that is 2-4 times greater than protein. More...

By vigorously training the same muscle group each day with weights, you end up in an over-training cycle where the body spends more time damaging and repairing muscles than building them to a bigger, stronger level. More...

It’s better to think of the goal in pounds of fat loss and let the percentages fall where they may. We measure body fat as a percentage of total body weight but calculate the loss in pounds. More...

If you wanted to gain one pound of body fat, you would have to consume 3500 calories more than you burned in any timeframe. But your question is probably referring to gaining a pound of muscle, not fat. More...

It depends on your sport. If you are an endurance athlete, you want a significantly higher carbohydrate (CHO) to protein (P) ratio than most other athletes – somewhere in the range of 2-4 grams of CHO to 1 gram of protein with relatively low fat. More...

It really is dependent upon your goal. If you are a recreational exerciser or simply working out for fitness, weight loss, etc., then the timing of pre- and post-workout feedings is not crucial. More...

As soon as food is digested it is used for immediate energy needs (blood sugar), stored for future use (fat or glycogen stores) or used to replace or rebuild tissues (e.g. muscles or protein tissues). More...

There’s more to achieving your goal than taking supplements. The proper workout strategy and nutrition approach play a crucial role in “getting bigger.” More...

That would depend upon your goal. If fat loss is the primary goal then it’s a simple formula: the more work you perform, the more calories you will burn – the work being a combination of time and intensity. More...

Beer is not exactly the perfect post-workout formula. But if you are eating properly (daily menu planning) in order to maximize the workout, a couple of beers included in your daily calories will not reduce the potential positive effects of your workouts. More...

No – your body will let you know when you are over-training but you have to “listen” to it. More...

Building muscle helps with the fat burning process because a pound of muscle burns more calories than a pound of fat (approximately two times more at rest and up to ten times more when exercising intensely). More...

One pound of muscle burns approximately six calories per day at rest and can burn many times more while in motion (such as running, working out, hiking, etc). The more intense the activity, the more calories muscles will burn (running stairs, for example, can burn ten times your resting rate, weight lifting approximately four times, etc.) More...

If you’re intensely working the same body parts with resistance training and not resting the minimum of 24-48 hours before working the same muscles (the more intense and voluminous the workout, the longer the necessary recuperation time), you are definitely holding back your progress. More...

The actual recommendation for someone with your goals (dieting and presumably exercising with a fat loss goal) is listed below under “active recreational athlete” and “adaptation period”. You should strive for 1.2—1.8 grams of protein per 1 kg of body weight, or .5--.8 grams of protein per 1 pound of body weight. More...

Whether anyone gains muscle depends upon several factors, including total caloric intake (you must have a surplus of nutrients to build muscle), type and amount of activity/exercise and appropriate rest. More...

Yes, and these are the ideal conditions for long-term success, but it takes the right formula of calories, nutrition and exercise to build muscle while losing body fat. More...

The easiest way to gain weight is to consume more calories than your body needs. Assuming you want to gain muscle, the best way to do that is to incorporate resistance training into your life. More...

To gain weight you need to eat more calories than you burn so that the extra calories are deposited into your body tissues, with the majority More...

The most commonly used muscle gain supplements that actually work are considered safe for the vast majority of people. These supplements More...

If you are deficient in any of the essential nutrients involved in developing and building muscle the answer is yes. Our recommendation is that everyone, More...

Protein is responsible for rebuilding your muscle tissues after exercise and also plays a minor role in producing energy under more extreme More...

Depends on how much you are eating now. If you are eating Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of protein and resistance training intensely, then yes More...

If you feed yourself properly, including taking a multivitamin/mineral daily, you would only add muscle by performing high intensity More...

You need to use the bodybuilding formula of feeding the muscle while starving the body fat. Meaning, eat correctly and enough including protein intake More...

Yes – but what is happening to you is every bodybuilder’s dream. If your statistics are correct, you’ve gained over 10LBS (estimating More...

Yes, and it’s very common among athletes, especially bodybuilders and people new to weight training but it requires daily food planning and supplementation More...

Following a good workout, in order to maximize exercise-induced results, you want to consume a formula containing 10-20gms of protein, ~20-50gms of carbs More...

Yes, you can and that's what we always recommend, or at least try not to lose muscle when dieting. With conventional dieting (as prescribed by More...

No, you need to perform unaccustomed exercise 2-3 days/week. Muscles need at least 48 hours of rest following the type of workout More...

Yes, as long as the muscle soreness was caused by exercise or some unaccustomed activity that did not injure the muscle to a point where it can't More...

The formula for gaining weight is to consume more calories than you burn so the extra calories are stored in the body as lean body mass (LBM) such More...

Carbohydrate loading is a protocol that endurance athletes, and often bodybuilders, use to fill their body's glycogen (carbohydrate/energy) stores in order More...

Power athletes need more protein than non-athletes/exercisers but about the same as other hard-training athletes. The easiest and safest formula More...

Depends on how much protein you consume from food and your training goals. All healthy athletes can attain their protein requirements from More...

Most professionals use the simple and safest formula for figuring out an athlete's protein needs and that's ~ 1gm of protein per pound of body weight More...

Kat Barefield, MS RD is our dotFIT lead dietitian. She also was a competitive athlete and works with many others on nutrition for performance and weigh gain. More...