The plant-based population continues to grow with 6% of United States consumers saying that they are vegan.
Switching to a vegan diet offers you a range of health benefits. You can get more nutrients, lower the risk of heart disease, release excess weight, and more. But with all the benefits of eating vegan, there is one question that is asked more and more frequently.
How do you increase muscle mass while on a plant-based diet?
Fortunately, you can see gains while on a plant-based diet as long as you know what you are doing. If you are wondering how to increase muscle mass when you’re vegan, this short and simple guide is for you.
1. Understand a Plant-Based Diet
The first thing you need to do for increasing muscle mass is to understand a plant-based diet. Building muscle is as simple as eating the right plant-based meals and combining them with the right exercise.
From there, you need to reduce cardio exercise, make sure you are overloading your muscles, and have a compound exercise program. Even with your vegan diet, you will see gains in your muscle mass.
2. Set Realistic Expectations
The second tip for increasing muscle mass is setting realistic expectations. No matter how much you are lifting weights and eating the right foods, your body composition dictates how big you can get. Make sure you have achievable expectations for your muscle-building program.
3. Give Yourself a Calorie Surplus
If you want to have a bulking season, give yourself a calorie surplus. You should eat about 20 to 40% more calories than you normally do. Try to eat nut and nut butters, dried fruit, meat and dairy alternatives, avocados, and more.
4. Get Enough Protein
If you want to build muscle mass when you’re vegan, you need to get enough protein. Fortunately, there are a lot of foods that are high in protein on a vegan diet. If you want to supplement your diet with protein shakes, visit this website for pea protein versus whey protein.
5. Increase Your Muscle and Tension Aim for Muscle Damage
To successfully increase your muscle mass, you need to work on diet and exercise. You can create muscle tension by applying more stress than your muscles were expecting.
This is referred to as progressive overload, adding more reps or lifting heavier weights to stress out your muscles. This will cause damage to your muscles, releasing new fibers that, once healed, help your muscles grow.
Increasing Muscle Mass Is Simple on a Vegan Diet
By following these tips, you can increase your muscle mass and reach your fitness goals while on a vegan diet.
When you think of protein and increasing muscle mass, you probably think of eggs, chicken, red meat, and more. However, this is not the only way to get protein in your diet. You can have rice, oats, edamame, black beans, almonds, chickpeas, and more.
Eating this food will help you get improve even when you’re on a plant-based diet.
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