How do you build muscle?
Train hard, at least twice a week. Add weight or reps as you get stronger, and eat enough protein. How fast? Trials average about 1 kg of lean mass in 3 months.
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How do you build muscle?
Lift hard on at least 2 days a week, and keep making it a bit harder. Then eat enough protein to back it up.
The NHS says adults should work all the major muscle groups on at least 2 days a week. That means legs, hips, back, tummy, chest, shoulders and arms.
Hard has a clear meaning. Keep going until you need a short rest before you repeat it.
| Basic | What to do |
|---|---|
| Train every muscle | At least 2 days a week: legs, hips, back, tummy, chest, shoulders and arms. |
| Work hard | Each set ends when you need a short rest. |
| Make it harder | Add weight or reps as you get stronger. |
| Eat enough | About 1.6 g of protein per kg a day, plus enough calories (energy) and carbohydrate. |
Weights, resistance bands and bodyweight moves like press-ups all count. So you can start at a gym or at home.
Pick your two days now. Our beginner gym plan has a session ready to copy.
What exercises build muscle?
Start with big moves that use several joints, then add smaller ones. ACSM, a US body of sports doctors and scientists, advises large muscle groups before small ones.
| Muscle group | Gym | Home |
|---|---|---|
| Legs and hips | Squat or leg press | Sit-to-stand from a chair, or mini-squats |
| Back | Row or lat pulldown | Row with a resistance band |
| Chest | Bench press or chest press | Wall press-ups, then floor press-ups |
| Shoulders | Overhead press | Overhead press with a resistance band |
| Arms | Biceps curl | Biceps curls with filled water bottles |
| Tummy | Plank | Plank |
Source: NHS home moves
Heavy or light weights? Both can work. In 21 studies where every set went to failure, meaning no more reps were possible, muscle growth was similar with light and heavy loads.
Heavy loads did build more maximum strength. So if you want to lift more, go heavier over time.
Training at home? Try these resistance band exercises.
How many sets and reps to build muscle?
New to lifting? ACSM advises a weight you can lift 8 to 12 times. It counts you as new if you’ve never lifted, or haven’t for several years.
When to add weight
- 1
Pick a weight
One you can lift 8 to 12 times.
- 2
Do several sets
Rest 1 to 2 minutes between them.
- 3
Beat your reps
Wait until you can do 1 or 2 more than planned.
- 4
Add 2 to 10%
On a 20 kg lift, that’s 0.4 to 2 kg.
Source: ACSM
More sets help too. Across 15 studies, each extra set a week was linked to slightly more growth.
So once your sessions feel easy, adding a set is another way to make them harder. See when to add reps or weight for more.
Wondering if soreness means it’s working? Read muscle soreness and progress.
How fast can you build muscle?
Slowly. A review of 49 trials found that strength training alone added about 1.1 kg of lean mass on average, over about 3 months.
Lean mass is everything except fat, not just muscle. Results varied a lot between people.
Protein supplements added about 0.30 kg more on top. It was less with age, more in people who already trained, and small in beginners.
Anabolic steroids are prescription-only drugs. The NHS says using them to build muscle can cause serious side effects and addiction, including heart attack, stroke and liver or kidney problems.
Prescribed a steroid? Never stop or change a prescribed medicine without your prescriber.
So judge progress over months, not weeks.
What should I eat to build muscle?
Enough food overall, with protein spread through the day. The British Dietetic Association (BDA) says muscle gain needs training plus enough calories (energy) and carbohydrate. It also needs about 1.6 to 1.7 g of protein per kg a day.
If you weigh 70 kg, 1.6 g per kg is about 112 g a day. In the review above, gains stopped rising past about 1.6 g per kg.
The BDA says a balanced diet should give enough protein in most cases, if you eat enough overall. It advises spreading it evenly through the day.
Six steps to start building muscle this week
- Book 2 strength sessions into your week.
- Work your legs, hips, back, tummy, chest, shoulders and arms each week.
- Take each set to the point where you need a short rest.
- New to lifting? Use a weight you can lift 8 to 12 times.
- Add 2 to 10% when you can do 1 or 2 reps more than planned.
- Aim for about 1.6 g of protein per kg a day, spread across your meals.
For foods and amounts, see how much protein to build muscle. Thinking about creatine? Read creatine benefits and side effects.
When to speak to a GP
Speak to a GP first, or book an appointment, if:
- You haven’t exercised for some time, or you have medical conditions or concerns.
- You get chest pain that comes and goes, or goes quickly but you’re still worried.
- You have kidney disease and plan to eat more protein. A sports nutrition review says people with kidney failure benefit from less protein.
- You think you’re addicted to anabolic steroids.
Call 999 if you get sudden chest pain or discomfort that does not go away. Also call if it spreads to your arm, neck, jaw, stomach or back.
The same goes for chest pain with sweating, feeling sick, light-headed or short of breath.