The ketogenic diet is a very low carb and high-fat diet that most people follow to lose weight and gain many other health benefits.

For ages, it is assumed that a keto diet meal plan can only help in losing weight but not gaining muscles. Well, you may wonder whether this low-carb diet actually hinders muscle growth. The answer to this question lies in this post. Read it till the end and know how you can build muscles with the keto diet.

Know Your Calorie Intake

The optimal way to build muscle is by consistently eating more calories than you burn. And the number of calories that you must eat in a day to gain muscles is highly dependent on your weight, height, lifestyle, gender, and other activity levels. The very first thing that you need to determine is the maintenance of your calorie intake. For this, track your weight three times a week and record your calorie intake a week through some calorie tracking app or a calculator. When you are trying to build muscles, you should increase your calorie intake by 15% above your maintenance calories. Make sure you do not go above 0.5% weight gain per week with your keto plan.

Eat More Protein

Muscle building demands eating plenty of protein. This is because protein is the building block of muscles. The more you consume protein the more your muscles will gain. Many people are confused about eating more protein. They believe that doing so will encourage your body to convert amino acids from protein into sugar and no ketones would be made. A keto meal plan has nothing to do with ketosis unless you consume protein safely. Consume 1 gram of protein per pound as per your body weight and see the difference.

Track Your Carbs

Carbohydrates are known to create a bulk of calories in the muscle-building diet. Well, this is true to an extent. If you are trying to stay in ketosis, you will have to restrict your carb intake with complete sincerity. In order to stay in ketosis, people must prefer eating less than 50 grams of carbs a day. Though the exact value can vary as per your weight. Try eating carbs around your workout as that can be really beneficial. If you are struggling to complete workouts, then go for a targeted keto diet meal plan.

Increase Fat Consumption

Monitoring fat intake is extremely important when on a keto diet. This is because your body primarily relies on fat for energy. After you are done keeping a track of your protein and carb intake, make sure fat makes up for the rest of your diet. Include fat-rich food items in your keto lunch to make the most of your body’s fat requirements. For the exact quantity of how much fat you must intake, try consulting a nutritionist or subscribe to meal plan delivery services that can help you with the same.

Resistance Train Regularly

Apart from right nutrition, training also plays a major role in helping you gain muscles. Resistance training basically involves lifting weights and doing strength-based exercises for core strength and muscle growth. Consider doing these exercises once per week or as your trainer suggests. As per recent research, resistance training is quite effective in promoting muscle growth. You can incorporate exercises like squats, bench presses, pullups, and pushups for encouraging muscle growth. In case you have just started, consider hiring a personal trainer for professional guidance and training. This will also reduce the chance of any injury.

Follow these steps and see the difference.