How Many Calories and How Much Protein to Build Muscle

Updated October 3, 2026. This uses the same method as the TrackAI app. General information for healthy adults who train; not medical advice.

Building muscle needs two things from your diet: a little more energy than you burn, and enough protein to build with. Training is the signal; food is the material.

1. Find your maintenance calories

Start with Mifflin-St Jeor for your basal metabolic rate:

• Men: 10 × weight (kg) + 6.25 × height (cm) − 5 × age + 5
• Women: 10 × weight (kg) + 6.25 × height (cm) − 5 × age − 161

Multiply by your activity: 1.375 for 0–2 workouts a week, 1.55 for 3–5, 1.725 for 6 or more. That is maintenance.

2. Add a small surplus

One kilogram of body mass is about 7,700 kcal. For a lean gain of 0.25 kg a week, add 0.25 × 7,700 ÷ 7 ≈ 275 kcal a day. Experienced lifters gain muscle slowly, so a fast surplus mostly adds fat.

3. Set protein first

Aim for at least 1.8 g of protein per kg of body weight. Spread it over three or four meals; each one with 25–40 g is easy to hit with fish, chicken, eggs, Greek yogurt, tofu or lentils. Our high-protein recipes list the grams up front.

4. Split the rest between carbs and fat

Carbs fuel training; fat covers the rest. A balanced split is about 50 : 30 of the calories left after protein.

A worked example

A 28-year-old man, 178 cm and 75 kg, lifting 3–5 times a week, gaining 0.25 kg a week:

1. BMR = 10 × 75 + 6.25 × 178 − 5 × 28 + 5 = 1,728 kcal
2. Maintenance = 1,728 × 1.55 = 2,678 kcal
3. Surplus = 275 kcal, so the target is 2,953 kcal
4. Protein: 1.8 × 75 = 135 g is the floor; a balanced diet's 20% share is a little higher, 148 g
5. The remaining calories split into about 369 g carbs and 98 g fat

The calorie calculator does this for you, and switching the diet to High protein moves more of the calories to protein.

5. Track the trend, not the day

Weigh in a few mornings a week and look at the weekly average. If it is not moving after two or three weeks, add 100–150 kcal. If it climbs faster than your pace, take some away. TrackAI keeps the trend line next to your intake, so you see both at once.

Logging without the busywork

Bulking means eating more, and logging more meals is where people give up. Snap the plate, describe a shake ("40 g whey with 300 ml milk and a banana"), scan the bar's barcode. TrackAI shows protein on Home all day, and its AI coach can tell you how much you still need before bed.