How To Use THIS Protein Calculator To Build Muscle Fast (5 Smart Ways)

Introducing our Smart Calorie Calculator… the all-in-one calorie and protein calculator for muscle gain and fat loss.

No matter what your fitness goal is, figuring out your calorie intake is the first step to achieving that goal.

Having a solid exercise and meal plan is cool, but without properly estimating your energy needs, you could end up wasting time and energy.

In this article, I will break down the 5 ways I maximize my fitness and health plan by using this protein calculator as my foundation.

Ready to dive in? Let’s do it!

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How to Build Muscle Fast. An Overview

When it comes to building muscle, protein intake is important but your overall calorie intake is more important.

For example, think of a car: the body of the car is very important because it has cushioned seats and a fine interior, but what about the tires?

The tires ride in the dirt and moody waters but are all 4 tires not the most important features of a car? Of course, because they keep the car moving. Calories are the tires on a car.

Now that you’ve got that image in your head, my point is: it’s not enough to just eat a high-protein diet, you have to eat a lot of food and meet your calorie needs.

This is called being in a calorie surplus. This surplus, regardless of if it’s 5%, 10% or 20%, is needed if you want to build muscle and progress with your fitness.

Now let’s talk about protein.

Protein is an essential nutrient for building and maintaining muscle mass. Source

It is made up of amino acids which are the building blocks of muscle tissue, and it’s important to have enough protein to get the most out of your resistance training. (we’ll come back to resistance training later)

When it comes to eating protein for muscle gain, the debate is always around how much protein should you eat in a day to build muscle.

This is where our smart calorie calculator comes in. It will help you calculate not just your daily calories but your protein intake too. So you will have a solid foundation on which to build your fitness plan.

After calories and protein, the next important step for building muscle is resistance exercise.

Resistance exercise is the primary stimulus for increasing your muscle mass. This can include weight lifting, bodyweight exercises, or any other exercise that provides you with resistance.

The best part about this type of exercise is that it not only builds muscle but also burns more calories per session than a typical aerobic workout like running or cycling.

So now that you know what it takes to build muscle, let’s jump into the 5 smart ways you can use our protein calculator to maximize your fitness and build lean muscle mass.

5 Ways to Build Muscle Faster with our Protein Calculator

Building muscle requires all 3 things we mentioned above to work together for a long period.

It takes time to build muscle, and without setting the correct daily calories, eating enough protein and doing the right type of exercise, you will not be able to see the results you desire.

Follow these 5 steps if you want to build muscle fast:

Energy Balance
Macronutrients
Micronutrients
Training
Supplementation

Energy Balance

Energy balance is the first important step to consider when looking to build muscle or lose fat.

It sets the total energy requirement from which macronutrients and micronutrient targets must be met. This is the basic idea that your body needs a certain amount of energy (calories) for it to maintain its current weight, lose weight or gain weight.

In other words, if you’re trying to gain muscle, you need to take in more calories than you expend. Otherwise, your efforts will be pointless and you won’t grow and maintain muscle mass.

To set your energy requirement for muscle gain, use our protein calculator. It uses the Harris-Benedict equation to help you accurately determine your BMR and measure how much energy your body needs to achieve an ideal energy balance.

The calculator takes into account your age, height, weight, and activity level to calculate your daily calorie needs.

Once you know how many calories you need per day to maintain your current body weight, you can then adjust it up or down depending on if you want to gain muscle or lose fat.

For example, if my daily calorie intake is at 1797 calories and my protein intake is also 143g per day.

If I want to gain muscle, I will increase my daily calories by 14%. So my calorie intake to gain muscle will be 2047 and my protein will be 161g per day. (BTW, our smart calorie calculator does this for you automatically)

You can use our protein calculator to create a calorie surplus for muscle gain and get an estimate of your protein intake so you can start your fitness plan on a solid foundation.

Now unto the next important step.

Macronutrients

Macronutrients are the three main types of nutrients your body needs in large amounts to survive and hit your health goals. They are protein, carbohydrates and fats.

Different macronutrients have different functions in the body, so it’s important to make sure you’re getting enough of each type depending on your goals.

Protein provides the building blocks for muscle growth and repair, carbs provide energy to fuel workouts and fat is important for hormone production.

Protein is the most important macronutrient for building and maintaining muscle. Without enough protein in your diet, you won’t be able to see any major changes in your physique.

Protein and Carbs contribute 4 Kcal (calories) per gram, while Fats provide 9 Kcal per gram.

These macronutrients are important because once you’ve set your daily calorie intake according to your goals, now you have to calculate and proportion them to match your calorie intake.

Your macro ranges will be different to mine because our goals are different but if muscle building is your goal, then protein intake has to be increased to support your muscle building efforts.

Here is an example of one of my client’s macronutrient breakdowns. He aimed to build muscle and bulk up after recovering from a knee injury.

To ensure that you get enough protein, use our protein calculator to determine how much protein you need per day. The calculator also recommends quality fitness programs and tools you can use to get fit, lose fat and build muscle.

Lastly, your macro ranges should never stay the same for the whole duration of your fitness plan. As you begin to progress and see results, as your body changes so should your macros change to match your new calorie intake.

Micronutrients

Micronutrients are vitamins, minerals and other nutrients that are needed in small amounts to keep your body functioning properly.

Micronutrients play a vital role in repairing muscle tissue, providing energy for workouts and aiding digestion. Like macronutrients, micronutrient intake should also be tailored according to your goals.

For example, magnesium and potassium are both important micronutrients needed for muscle growth, so if you’re trying to build muscle make sure you are getting enough of these two minerals.

Magnesium is particularly important for speeding up muscle recovery after a workout. And it’s quite hard to get it from your diet.

A great way to increase your intake of this essential mineral is by supplementation, via magnesium spray oil.

Fibre is another important micronutrient that you need in your diet. It is a type of Carbohydrate, and it helps with digestion and keeps you feeling fuller longer.

The macronutrient ratio is only part of the equation when it comes to eating for muscle growth (hypertrophy).

In addition to eating enough quality protein, you also need to get enough micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals to support muscle growth.

Even though you need micronutrients in smaller quantities, and they don’t provide energy like macronutrients, they should always be considered. And don’t just opt for supplements right away, make sure you have a good diet in place first.

If you want to eat your micronutrients rather than spending money on supplements, then eat more fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, meat and fish.

Lastly, our protein calculator also recommends supplements and foods that are rich in micronutrients you need for optimum muscle building.

Training

Calories, macro and micro are all important but so is training.

Don’t neglect training when it comes to building muscle. Resistance exercise is the primary stimulus for increasing your muscle mass and building strength.

Your training program should be optimized to help you achieve your muscle gain goals. It should be personalised to suit your lifestyle so that you can maintain it for the duration of your fitness transformation.

Each exercise should be familiar to you and easy for you to perform. If you can’t create a solid training program by yourself, get a coach.

If you want to achieve maximum results, it’s important to have a good training program that includes compound exercises such as squats, deadlifts and bench presses.

These exercises will help you build strength and muscle size in the shortest amount of time possible.

They are not the safest exercises to perform in the gym but if you are looking to make significant muscle gains, they will help you achieve your goals faster.

A good gym training program should have exercises that challenge you but can also be performed on your own as comfortably and safely as possible. I take a safety-first approach to training.

Don’t go to the gym and lift heavy weights with poor form and technique. I’d rather you lift lighter weights that you can handle and progressively lift over time. Safety first, that’s how you grow and recover quickly from your workout sessions.

Lastly, don’t forget to hydrate properly in and out of the gym.

Our FREE protein calculator also recommends quality gym training programs that are designed to help you maximize your muscle building efforts.

Related Article: 3 Amazing Benefits of Magnesium Spray Oil

Supplementation

In addition to having the right diet in place and doing the right type of exercise, supplementation is another important part of building muscle.

Taking supplements was one of those things that didn’t sit right with me when I started my fitness journey 7 years ago. It felt like cheating whenever someone told me they drink a protein shake after a workout.

But Creatine and whey protein are two of the most popular supplements for building muscle and maintaining good performance in the gym. You can drink a protein shake after your workout, and take creatine before or after your workout.

They can help you maximize your gains by providing your muscles with added nutrients, energy and amino acids for speeding up post-workout recovery.

But as I mentioned in the micronutrients section, before taking any supplement make sure you have a well balanced diet in place and then supplement wherever you’re lacking.

Also, don’t fall into the trap of taking just any supplement. Have a structured diet in place that supports your goals and only take supplements that are necessary for you to reach your goals.

If you want to know which supplements are right for you, try the ones we recommend on the results page after using our protein calculator. They will help you build muscle faster and sustainably.

Conclusion

Building muscle fast is not rocket science, it’s all about eating right, training regularly and supplementing wisely.

Our FREE protein calculator will help you determine how much protein you should eat for muscle growth.

As well as help you calculate your daily calorie intake. It also recommends meal plans and training programs you can use to achieve your goals faster.

And before supplementing with protein powder, make sure to read up on the side effects of protein powder. So you can choose the right powder to support your goals and avoid heavy metal poisoning.

Remember, there is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to building muscle so take your time with it and be patient.

If you find this article helpful, please leave a comment below!

How to Use THIS Protein Calculator to Build Muscle Fast (5 Smart Ways)

How to Build Muscle Fast. An Overview