Vegan Muscle Gain: Fueling Your Body For Growth

Gaining muscle on a vegan diet is possible, and numerous athletes and bodybuilders have proven its effectiveness. A plant-based diet can be just as effective as an animal-based diet for building muscle and improving athletic performance. This is because food quality, not just quantity, is key to achieving body composition goals.

To build muscle on a vegan diet, it is important to consume adequate calories, fats, and carbohydrates, as building new muscle is an energetically demanding process. It is also crucial to eat enough protein, as this is the building block of muscle. In addition, supplementing with creatine can help increase strength through higher power output. Finally, implementing a strength training routine with progressive overload and adequate rest is essential for muscle growth.

Overall, gaining muscle on a vegan diet is achievable and offers various health benefits, such as lowering the risk of heart disease and cancer and promoting a healthy body weight. However, it requires careful planning to ensure sufficient intake of all essential nutrients.

Eat a caloric surplus of plant-based foods

Eating a caloric surplus of plant-based foods is key to building muscle on a vegan diet. This means consuming more calories than you burn each day. While it doesn't have to be a huge surplus, it's important to ensure you're eating enough, especially if you're doing resistance training or other forms of exercise.

• Don't cut out food groups: Eating a variety of plant-based foods from all food groups will help ensure you're getting enough calories. This includes not cutting out fats or carbohydrates, which are essential sources of energy.
• Eat regular meals: Eating regular meals throughout the day will help you consume more calories. If you're struggling to eat enough due to feeling full, try including more lower-fibre foods in your diet.
• Choose calorie-dense foods: As plant-based foods tend to be less calorie-dense than animal-based foods, it's important to include plenty of calorie-dense options. This includes nuts, nut butters, seeds, avocados, dried fruit, grains, beans, tofu, and tempeh.
• Use plant-based protein powders: Adding a plant-based protein powder to your smoothies or shakes is an easy way to boost your calorie and protein intake.
• Include healthy fats: Fat is the most calorie-dense macronutrient, providing 9 kcals per gram. Include healthy fats like nuts, seeds, and oils in your diet to increase your calorie intake.
• Calculate your calorie needs: Use a calorie calculator or food tracker to estimate how many calories you need to maintain your weight. From there, you can determine how much extra you need to consume to be in a caloric surplus.

Consume a variety of plant proteins

Consuming a variety of plant proteins is essential for vegans looking to build muscle. This is because most plant-based sources of protein are incomplete, meaning they contain limiting amounts of at least one amino acid. However, by eating a variety of plant proteins, your body will be able to combine two or more low-quality proteins into one high-quality package.

A good way to ensure you're getting a variety of plant proteins is to eat a range of legumes, grains, nuts, and seeds. For example, you could include beans, lentils, chickpeas, tofu, tempeh, quinoa, nuts, nut butters, and seeds in your diet.

It's also important to note that soy is the exception to the rule, as it contains all the essential amino acids. Therefore, soy is a great choice, especially after a workout, as it is high in leucine, which is important for stimulating muscle protein synthesis.

Take supplements like creatine and beta-alanine

Creatine and beta-alanine are compounds naturally found in meat products. They are available as supplements in vegan-friendly varieties and can play a role in energy metabolism and muscle gain.

Creatine is a naturally occurring compound in our bodies, mostly stored in our skeletal muscles. It plays a crucial role in energy generation for quick, high-intensity movements like lifting weights by recycling ATP through phosphocreatine. Research suggests that vegans benefit more from supplementing with creatine than omnivores since a plant-based diet provides very little creatine.

Beta-alanine improves exercise performance by increasing carnosine levels in your muscles. Carnosine is an acid-buffering molecule that helps delay the buildup of lactic acid in your muscles during exercise. This can improve your performance during high-intensity exercise and allow you to train harder, potentially leading to greater muscle gains over time.

Supplementing with creatine and beta-alanine is not necessary for building muscle on a vegan diet, but it can be beneficial, especially if you are highly active and engaged in intense strength training. These supplements are generally safe and well-studied, but it is always a good idea to consult your healthcare provider before adding any new supplement to your routine.

Plan meals to ensure nutritional needs are met

Planning meals to ensure nutritional needs are met is a crucial aspect of building muscle on a vegan diet. Here are some detailed instructions and considerations to help you design a meal plan that supports your muscle-building goals:

Determine Your Caloric Needs

To build muscle effectively, you need to consume more calories than you burn. This is known as a caloric surplus. Aim for a slight surplus of around 350 to 450 calories per day above your maintenance level. You can estimate your maintenance calories using an online calculator that takes into account your gender, height, weight, age, and activity level. Alternatively, you can manually track your food intake and body weight over a week to determine your maintenance calories.

Eat Adequate Protein

Protein is essential for muscle growth and repair. Research suggests that consuming 1.4 to 2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day is ideal for building muscle. Vegan sources of protein include tofu, tempeh, legumes (beans, chickpeas, lentils), quinoa, nuts and nut butters, seeds, and plant-based protein powders.

It's important to note that most plant-based sources of protein are incomplete, meaning they don't contain all the essential amino acids your body needs. However, you can address this by eating a variety of plant-based proteins, as your body can combine these to create complete proteins. For example, pair legumes with grains, such as brown rice and beans, or oatmeal with nut butter.

Include Healthy Fats

Fat is an important part of your diet as it provides essential fatty acids and supports hormone production. Aim for a fat intake of 0.5 to 1.5 grams per kilogram of body weight per day. Healthy vegan sources of fat include nuts and seeds (e.g., walnuts, flax seeds, chia seeds, cashews), avocados, healthy oils (olive oil, avocado oil, hempseed oil), and tahini.

Monitor Your Micronutrient Intake

A vegan diet can provide all the essential vitamins and minerals, but there are a few nutrients that require extra attention to ensure adequate intake:

• Vitamin B12: Found mainly in animal products, so vegans should consider supplementing with 50-100 mcg daily or 2000 mcg weekly.
• Iodine: Include seaweed or iodized salt in your diet, and consider an iodine supplement if you're not meeting the recommended daily intake of 150 mcg for adults.
• Vitamin D: Get regular sun exposure, and consider taking a vegan-friendly vitamin D2 or D3 supplement, especially during winter.
• Calcium: Fortified plant-based milk and yogurt, tofu, soybeans, dried figs, almonds, chia seeds, and leafy greens are good sources.
• Iron: Include iron-rich plant foods like legumes, and pair them with vitamin C-rich foods to enhance absorption.
• Zinc: Include whole grains, nuts, seeds, and beans in your diet, and consider soaking and fermenting these foods to improve zinc absorption.

Consider Supplements

While not necessary, supplements can help ensure you're meeting your nutritional needs. Creatine, beta-alanine, and protein powders are popular choices for vegans looking to build muscle.

Sample Meal Plan

• Day 1: Breakfast - Protein oatmeal with oats, vegan protein powder, soy milk, banana, and nut butter. Lunch - Tofu stir-fry with veggies and vegan pasta. Dinner - Teriyaki tempeh with broccoli and quinoa. Snack - Strawberry-banana protein shake.
• Day 2: Breakfast - Tofu scramble breakfast burritos on vegan tortillas. Lunch - Lentil loaf with lentils, kidney beans, veggies, and nutritional yeast. Dinner - Black bean veggie burger with sweet potato fries. Snack - Peanut butter and oatmeal snack bars.
• Day 3: Breakfast - Hummus toast with sprouted grain bread, hummus, hemp seeds, and sunflower seeds. Lunch - Vegan burrito bowl with rice, beans, and homemade mock taco meat. Dinner - Sweet and sour stir-fry with tofu, rice noodles, and veggies. Snack - Mock tuna salad sandwich.
• Day 4: Breakfast - Chocolate-peanut-butter smoothie bowl with bananas, peanut butter, almond milk, and vegan protein powder. Lunch - Black bean and quinoa "meatballs" over whole grain vegan pasta. Dinner - Vegan chili with tofu, kidney beans, tomatoes, and lentils. Snack - Roasted chickpeas with red pepper flakes.
• Day 5: Breakfast - Protein pancakes made with whole grain flour and vegan protein powder. Lunch - Coconut-tofu-curry stir-fry with tofu, soba noodles, and edamame. Dinner - Vegan sloppy joe with lentils and veggies. Snack - Chocolate-peanut-butter protein shake.

Remember, this is just an example, and you can adjust portion sizes and food choices based on your specific calorie and macronutrient needs.

By planning your meals and paying attention to your nutritional needs, you can ensure that your vegan diet supports your muscle-building goals.

Drink plenty of fluids to avoid complications from high fibre

A vegan diet is typically high in fibre, which is great for health but can cause some discomfort if you're not used to it. When you significantly increase your fibre intake, you may experience bloating, flatulence and abdominal pain.

Drinking plenty of fluids can help to prevent these complications. Aim for a minimum of 1ml of fluid per calorie consumed. For example, if you eat 2,000 calories in a day, try to drink 2 litres of water. Keep in mind that your fluid needs may vary, especially when exercising.

In addition to drinking enough water, it's important to be mindful of the following when following a high-fibre vegan diet:

• Increase your fibre intake gradually to give your body time to adjust.
• Soak and boil legumes, such as beans, to reduce the number of lectins, which can cause stomach issues and bloating.
• Include a mix of high-fibre and low-fibre foods in your diet. Opt for more refined carbohydrates, such as white rice and bread, if you're experiencing digestive issues.
• Take a probiotic supplement to support digestive health.
• Manage your stress levels and practise relaxation techniques, as stress can exacerbate digestive problems.

Frequently asked questions