Muscle‑building basics

A large meta-analysis and the International Society of Sports Nutrition’s position stand place effective daily protein for people doing resistance training in metric terms (grams per kilogram), with a frequent optimal estimate near 1.6 g/kg/day rather than a single fixed number in pounds. (bjsm.bmj.com) (bjsm.bmj.com) Clinical reviews now recommend spreading protein across meals — roughly 0.25–0.4 g/kg per feeding (about 20–40 g of high‑quality protein for a typical adult) — and note older adults may need higher per‑meal doses to overcome anabolic resistance. (link.springer.com) (exerciseandsportnutritionlab.com) Coaches commonly operationalize progressive overload with simple rules: the “2‑for‑2” rule to add load when two extra reps are achieved twice, and weekly increases generally kept to about 10% or less to limit injury risk; practitioners also recommend smaller absolute jumps for upper‑body lifts and larger steps for lower‑body movements. (nasm.org) (nourishmovelove.com) Public‑health and sports bodies flag sleep as a recovery driver: the CDC identifies seven hours as the minimum for adults, while recent expert consensus papers for athletes emphasize habitual sleep ≥7 hours and highlight that sleep loss alters inflammatory and hormonal responses tied to muscle repair. (cdc.gov) (cdc.gov) Evidence syntheses show the biggest hypertrophy gains come from combining resistance training with adequate protein and a modest caloric surplus when needed, and that adding isolated “hacks” (supplements or extreme protocols) rarely outperforms these core inputs. (bjsm.bmj.com) (bjsm.bmj.com) The American College of Sports Medicine’s recent resistance‑training update reframes the takeaway: consistent, repeatable programs that train major muscle groups multiple times per week produce larger, more reliable gains than complex, constantly changing routines. (acsm.org) (acsm.org)