The Best Bulking Foods
When choosing the best foods to bulk up, it is essential to understand that different macronutrients have different numbers of calories. Protein and carbohydrates contain 4 kcal per gram, while fat contains 9 kcal per gram.
Three Essential Macros Play Different Roles:
Protein:
If you want to build muscle, you need to eat protein. The recommended amount of protein to consume is 0.8g to 1.5g per kg of your weight.
Protein has a bigger effect on satisfaction. So if you find it hard to get enough calories, eat protein that is not more than 1.8g per kg of body weight, including plenty of carbohydrates and healthy fats. It will facilitate your contentment maintenance.
Fats:
You need enough calories, and a diet rich in healthy fats is a great way to get them. There’s evidence that healthy fats like omega-3s can help your body build muscle by increasing muscle protein synthesis.
Carbohydrate:
Complex carbs are good for building muscle, recovering, and doing more strenuous training sessions. They usually have a lot of fiber and a low GI. These carbs are generally the best option for people who want to lose or maintain weight. However, sometimes simple, high GI carbs may be more appropriate.
You must ensure that you eat more calories than usual, but not too many. So you can healthily gain weight. Unfortunately, it can be easy to eat too many unhealthy calories. That’s why eating healthy foods is essential when trying to bulk up. Here are 8 of the best bulking foods.
Quick Picks: The Best Bulking Foods
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8 Bulking Foods
1. Meat:
Most people want a better body, and many choose to eat lean protein sources instead of meat. However, overeating red meat can be bad for you. For example, chicken is a good source of protein and fat, which helps in muscle growth.
Meat is an excellent source of protein, healthy fats, and many calories. It makes it the perfect food to help you gain weight.
2. Whole Eggs:
A whole egg is a good source of protein and fat. They usually have around 75-90 calories each.
Many people think eggs are bad for you because they have a lot of saturated fat and fat, but did you know they also have a lot of healthy fats? If you don’t eat 12 eggs daily, the amount of saturated fat shouldn’t be an issue. Instead, make an egg omelet or some tasty scrambled eggs for a good source of protein and fat.
3. Fish:
Healthy fats and lean protein are abundant in salmon and other fatty fish. You should include them in your diet as a whole. Salmon contains monounsaturated fatty acids, which help build muscle and are suitable for your heart.
Apart from these benefits, the large amounts of omega-3 fatty acids we get from fatty fish can help with joint maintenance and improve heart health. During intense training, consume 2-3 fatty fish per week. You can also consider adding this healthy bulking food to your daily diet.
4. Avocados:
Avocados are a great food to eat because they contain healthy fats. These fats are called monounsaturated fatty acids. They suit you because they add healthy calories and fats to your diet. Avocados also have high levels of antioxidants and vitamins, including vitamin E.
Vitamin E is an essential vitamin for your overall health. It is a good choice for foods that help you bulk up.
5. Nuts:
You know that nuts are a good energy source and rich in healthy monounsaturated fats. Nuts make excellent foods for bulking up.
Because of their tiny size and high-calorie content, nuts make a terrific snack. They also have protein and fat, which help you stay healthy. Nuts have minerals like magnesium, phosphorus, selenium, and zinc. These minerals help your body stay healthy.
6. Oats:
Oats are a great source of complex carbohydrates that can help you gain weight. They have a lot of fiber and complex carbohydrates. It facilitates digestion and provides energy for exercise. Oats also have a lot of healthy fats and calories that can help you bulk up.
7. White Rice:
White rice has a high GI. If you eat it with other high-carbohydrate foods that have low fiber content, then you will not overeat. It will help if you find it difficult to eat enough food to meet your calorie requirement. Adding more rice to salads and other staples is a great way to keep your calories and carbs high. It will allow you to maintain your level of training, which is an essential factor in building muscle.
8. Sweet Potato:
Adding sweet potatoes to your diet can provide a lot of benefits. Sweet potatoes have a low glycemic index, which means they give you energy for a more extended period. Additionally, they’re an excellent source of carbs, which is great for those who work out first thing in the morning.
THE BEST FOODS FOR BULKING
What foods are best for faster, leaner, and healthier muscle growth? It might seem like a basic question, but if we want to design a fantastic diet for bulking, we can get very in-depth with it.
For instance, junk food tends to be low in nutritional value but is simple to digest. It means that it is excellent for gaining weight. But it is also full of empty calories. Junk food does not have a lot of protein, which may weaken our digestive systems over time. Eating meals high in saturated fats and fructose is prevalent in fast food. And other types of junk food are associated with an increased risk of visceral fat deposition, according to research conducted not too long ago.
Luckily, many great foods can help us eat more calories. These foods can also help us grow muscle and improve our digestion.
Furthermore, constructing an excellent bulking diet is more complicated than simply consuming a lot of healthy food. The ideal bulking diets, for example, are relatively high in meals that break down into glucose. Lower-fiber starches, such as white rice and pasta, are great because they are easy to digest. That is not typical of other popular diets, such as the ketogenic, low-carb, or paleo diets. It makes bulking diets unique because they are easier to follow than t some of the other popular diet options.
WHAT MAKES A FOOD GOOD FOR BULKING?
The good foods for gaining weight are those that have a few characteristics, including:
- Rich in calories (high energy density).
- Good for stimulating muscle growth.
- Good for our general health.
- Unlikely to be stored as fat.
Not every food we eat needs to satisfy all of these requirements. For example, spinach is not rich in calories or easy to digest. Still, it does have some unique benefits, such as its high nitrate content. Nitrates improve weight training performance and speed up muscle growth.
For a different example, consider white rice. White rice is lacking in micronutrients, but it is rich in easily digestible calories. It can make white rice an excellent food to eat if you want to bulk up or put on weight.
If you want to bulk up, you can eat a mix of high and low-fiber foods.
THE BEST BULKING FOODS
Skinny guys have a fast metabolism and small stomachs, making it hard to eat enough calories to gain weight. If you’re struggling with this, here is our guide on how to eat more calories.
WHOLE MILK (AND ALL MILK)
Milk is one of the best foods for bulking up. It is easy to get calories and protein from milk. Milk also leaves our stomachs quickly, which is suitable for people trying to gain muscle mass.
A liter of whole milk contains:
- 630 calories
- 34 grams of fat
- 49 grams of carbohydrates
- 32 grams of protein
If you increase your milk intake by one liter per week, you could gain approximately one pound. You would also consume more protein than if you used a standard scoop of protein powder.
In addition to being packed with calories and protein, milk contains many properties that help encourage muscle growth:
- It includes a lot of zinc, selenium, and magnesium.
- It has an amino acid composition that is well-balanced.
- It is frequently fortified with vitamin D.
- It’s high in calcium, which helps with bone density.
- It’s high in casein protein, which digests slowly.
Some researchers think that milk makes people’s muscles grow faster. They’re not sure why, but it might have something to do with the milk’s proteins or sugar.
OLIVE OIL (AND OTHER OILS)
Olive oil contains 120 calories per tablespoon. If you’re behind on your calorie goal, don’t worry. Pour a shot of olive oil, and you’ll be good to go.
When we realized how many calories were in oil, we took shots of olive oil before going to bed to get into the calorie surplus we needed to bulk up. Olive oil is healthy because it has a lot of antioxidants.
A wide range of oils provide similar benefits:
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Avocado oil Flaxseed oil
- Oil from walnuts
- Oil from fish
- Oil from krill
Fish and krill oil have distinct bulking properties. Some preliminary research shows that up to a tablespoon of fish oil per day can help us build muscle more leanly.
It would help if you tried to select oils with less processing and more monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t eat saturated oils like coconut or butter. Just make sure you don’t eat them too often.
That doesn’t mean that all saturated fat is bad. Many health organizations recommend limiting the amount of saturated fat in our diet to around 10% of our daily calorie intake. Many typical bulking meals, such as ground meat and other oils, already include some saturated fat, so we don’t need to add any more. Going above that limit may increase our risk of gaining visceral fat.
DRIED FRUITS
Dried fruits have just as many vitamins, minerals, and fiber as regular fruits. They are a fraction of the size but contain the same amount of nutrients. When comparing fiber, vitamins, and minerals, dried fruit has approximately 3.5 times the amount of fiber, vitamins, and minerals as fresh fruit.
Since dried fruit is so dense in nutrients, I will keep this section short, sweet, and incredibly muscular.
MUESLI CEREAL (TRAIL MIX + MILK)
Muesli is a food made by mixing different ingredients like oats, grains, nuts, and dried fruits. People usually eat it by pouring milk or yogurt on it, like cereal.
Putting together all the best foods to bulk up is unfair to people trying to stay thin.
DARK CHOCOLATE
Dark chocolate is high in antioxidants, minerals, and healthy fats. It makes it an excellent food to eat if you want to gain weight. Dark chocolate is also calorically dense and easy to digest, meaning that you can eat a lot of it without feeling sick.
Chocolate also contains a compound called epicatechin. This compound helps to open up blood vessels and improve blood flow. It has a similar effect to pre-workout supplements like L-citrulline.
These foods have beneficial effects on the body. It means that if you eat a lot of these foods while trying to gain weight, You’ll get better benefits from your workouts and gain muscle faster.
PROTEIN SHAKES
Protein shakes are easy for a guy with a small stomach to get more protein. If you are eating a meal that is low in protein, have a protein shake. After a rigorous workout, have a protein shake before heading home. If you found at the last minute that you haven’t eaten enough protein that day, take a protein shake.
BANANAS
Prebiotics can be found in reasonable amounts in bananas. Prebiotics are beneficial because they help your digestive system function typically. Bananas are another type of fruit that is abundant in calories.
Here’s how to incorporate bananas into your bulking diet:
- Blend them into your morning smoothies.
- As a pre-workout snack, consume these.
- Mix in a few banana slices for your muesli breakfast.
- Consume peanut-banana sandwiches.
SMOOTHIES
A blender can help you eat more calories. Blending foods makes them easier to digest and have more calories. Blending up food also doesn’t reduce its nutritional value.
Here are some great bulking smoothie ingredients:
- A little handful of mixed nuts
- A portion of spinach (for the nitrates).
- Oats, a handful (for the starchy carbs).
- Yogurt (for the probiotics).
- 1 tbsp protein powder
- Mixed frozen berries
- Either water or milk.
There are ways to make tastier smoothies, but nothing will beat that in fueling muscle growth. However, there are many things you can try to make your smoothies even more delicious!
CHEESE
Cheese is a high-calorie food that contains a lot of protein. It also makes food more flavorful. Some cheeses, like Parmesan, also have probiotics suitable for your digestive health.
A helpful hint is that grating some Parmesan cheese over practically any savory dish will make it tastier. It increases the total number of calories in the dish and improves your digestive system’s health.
FULL-FAT YOGURT
Yogurt is a high-protein, probiotic-rich food. It can be mixed into smoothies or cereal or eaten as a snack. When seeking to increase your calorie intake, pick full-fat yogurt over the low-fat “diet” yogurts that are becoming increasingly popular.
KEFIR (MADE FROM MILK)
Milk is used to make a drink called kefir, fermented. During the fermentation process, any sugar present in the milk is removed. In its place, probiotics are produced. Because of this, kefir has a higher protein content than milk and is easier on the digestive system than yogurt.
SPINACH, BEETS, AND LEAFY GREENS
These foods have a low-calorie count but contribute to muscle building. They are suitable for our health, immune, and digestive systems.
However, the reason they are on this list is significantly more intriguing. According to new research, eating foods high in nitrates, such as spinach and beets, can assist boost the “pump” we experience from lifting weights. We can increase our blood flow by drinking beet juice or mixing spinach into our morning smoothies. And allow us to pump more muscle-building nutrients into our muscles while lifting weights. It can slightly increase the rate at which we build strength.
GARLIC
Garlic doesn’t have any calories, but it is also very healthy. When we chop, crush, or chew Garlic, it releases sulfur compounds. Some people think this causes bad breath, but those same sulfur compounds are also suitable for our health.
Eating Garlic can help you avoid getting sick while bulking. In one study, people who ate Garlic every day were 63% less likely to get a cold. Garlic also helps us recover from colds faster than those who don’t eat Garlic.
Garlic is fantastic because it encourages the growth of beneficial gut bacteria and has a rich flavor. It can make eating more enjoyable and easier to eat more calories.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The best bulking diet is one that includes foods that are rich in calories and nutrients. These foods will help us stay healthy and have more energy. Many different foods can help us with this.
It is not a detailed list of all reasonable options. These goods might be a source of inspiration for you, but remember that bulking diets are flexible. Consume food that you enjoy, can afford, and that makes you feel good.
Finally, don’t change your diet all at once. Your digestive system is used to the way things are now, including your diet, meal schedule, and routine. Making significant changes to your diet will probably mess everything up.
For example, if you’re eating dinner late at night, your body might not be used to it, and you might feel tired or thirsty afterward. You won’t be able to avoid all the unpleasant side effects of eating late, but you can try to minimize them.
If you want to start drinking smoothies for breakfast, that’s great. But don’t suddenly start following a brand new meal plan made up of foods you can’t pronounce yet. Instead, add a few small trail mix snacks to your usual diet.
Frequently Asked Questions About Best Bulking Foods
Many foods can add bulk to your diet, but some provide more bulking fiber than others. Good bulking fiber sources include wheat bran, raisin bran, brown rice, wheat bread, almonds, kidney beans, black beans, chickpeas, prunes, dates, oranges, blueberries, apples, bananas, and carrots.
Dirty bulking means eating lots of food to try and gain weight. You want to do this while you are also working out hard so that you can build muscle.
You’re not eating enough – one of the main causes of not being able to build muscle is not eating enough, and more importantly, not eating enough of the right food. Everyone says about the importance of protein, but carbs and fats are just as important when building muscle.
