Gaining weight or building muscles means we have to take a calorie surplus diet.
And fruits can be an excellent option to get extra 300-500 calories a day to fulfill our daily calorie intake for muscle gain.
In this article, I’m going to give the ten best bodybuilding fruits that you can include in your diet to fulfill your daily calorie requirement and improve overall health.
TOP 10 Best Bodybuilding Fruits For Size Gain
Include the following fruits in your diet to speed up your muscle-building progress.
1. Mango
Let’s begin the bodybuilding fruits list with one of the most delicious and my favorite fruit, mango.
It’s one of the great sources of vitamin C and vitamin A which are critical for enhancing our skin quality, eye health, and reproductive system.
And due to its high-calorie content, it’s a great fruit for muscle gain as well.
Serving options:
- Eat one cup of mango before or after a workout. Or you can eat it as a snack.
- Mango shake. Just put a cup of mango, milk, peanut butter, protein powder into a blender and blend them well. Enjoy your delicious mass-gaining mango shake.
Calories: One-cup mango offer about 25 grams of carbs and 100 calories.
2. Pineapple
“Oh no, it’s very difficult to chop it, so ignore it” — you might be thinking like that. But actually, it’s very easy to chop if you know how to do it.
Let’s learn how to cut it easily:
Pineapple is one of the most nutrient-dense fruits you can consume.
It contains vitamin C and vitamin A, which are excellent for boosting immunity, improving eyesight, enhancing skin quality and your reproductive system.
Serving options:
- Taking one-cup pineapple is one of the best post-workout snack options you can eat.
- You can make pineapple juice to drink before and after a workout.
Calories: One-cup pineapple contains about 22 grams of carbs and 85 calories.
3. Banana
If we’re talking about muscle building or gaining size, it’s impossible to ignore banana, one of the cheapest and best fruit for size gain.
Banana contains a good amount of potassium with helps the kidney to flush the fluids properly.
It also provides electrolytes that are important after a workout to replenish the electrolytes that are burned during the training.
Serving options:
- Add 1-2 bananas before and after your workout.
- Top it with your oatmeal recipes.
- Add banana to your smoothie or protein shake.
- You can have a banana before a morning workout.
- Eating a banana with peanuts or almonds is a great snack option.
Calories: One-medium size (120g) banana has about 105 calories and 27-gram carbs.
4. Kiwi
When we’re trying to build muscle fast, we have to consume lots of foods, and sometimes it may feel bloating or heavy in the stomach; that is where kiwi fruits come into play. It is the aid of digestion.
Besides digestion, kiwi fruits have lots of benefits, including it helps to treat asthma, boost the immune system, prevent sickness, manages blood pressure, and protects against vision loss.
Serving options: Take a 1/2 cup to 1 cup of kiwi fruits as a snack, and you’re good to go.
Calories: One kiwi fruit (70g) has 42 calories and 10-gram carbs and of course, vitamins and minerals.
5. Watermelon
The next we have is a juicy one, watermelon. It’s is an excellent source of nitric oxide, which improves blood flow to the muscles, allowing you a fast supply of vital nutrients throughout the body.
Watermelon is also a good hydrating fruit and very effective in improving post-workout recovery.
Serving options:
- Taking 1-cup of watermelon before a workout will give you a solid muscle pump during the training.
- You can also take this as a snack in between your meals.
Calories: One cup (150g) of watermelon offer about 45 calories and 10 grams of carbs.
6. Blueberry
The next bodybuilding fruit we have is blueberries, a powerhouse of antioxidants that help improve our brain function and blood flow throughout the body.
Having a good blood flow in the body is critical for a faster supply of nutrients and better post-workout recovery. It also helps during intercourse, prevents heart diseases, and regulates blood sugar.
Serving options:
- Having half a cup to a cup of blueberries is a go-to snack option.
- You can add it to your oatmeal to get a delicious flavor.
Calories: One cup of blueberries contain about 85 calories and 21 grams of carbs.
7. Dates
Dates are very nutritious, and a high-calorie fruit helps you get extra 100-150 calories to your required daily calorie intake.
Dates are natural sweeteners that will fulfill your sugar craving and have disease-fighting antioxidants that kill free radicals and promote muscle growth. (1)
Serving options:
- Eat 3-4 dates before and 2-3 after a workout to enhance your workout performance and post-workout recovery.
- You can take 5-6 dates with roasted chickpeas as a muscle-building snack.
Calories: One date contain about 5 grams of carbs and 20 calories. So, you can easily get about 100 calories by taking 5 dates.
8. Cherry
Here is another natural sweetener — cherry.
Cherries are high in fiber, vitamin A, C, and K and have potassium, magnesium, and antioxidants, which are critical for promoting muscle growth and improving overall health.
Serving options:
- Take about one cup of fresh or frozen cherries or tart cherry juice in the post-workout to speed up your post-workout recovery.
- You can take it as a snack as well.
Calories: One cup (100g) of cherries offer about 50 calories and 13 grams of carbs.
9. Grapefruit
The second last fruit on our list is grapefruit, an excellent source of vitamin C and other vital ingredients that help you lose fat while gaining muscle.
You can take grapefruit after a workout to replenish energy after an intense workout quickly.
Serving options:
- Take a half grapefruit or a glass of grapefruit juice before a meal as a snack that fills you up for the next 60-90 minutes.
- Taking them after a workout can be more effective for recovery.
Calories: 100-Gram grapefruit provides 42 calories along with 11 grams of carbs and 52% of your vitamin C.
10. Apple
The last but one of the most important muscle-building fruit we have is the apple. Apple isn’t only helping you keep the doctor away, but also eating apples makes you bigger and stronger.
Apples contain polyphenols that have been shown to increase endurance and muscular strength. They also increase the fat-burning rate of our body. (2)
Serving options:
- Add an apple in between your meals as a snack.
- It can be a great pre or post-workout snack option.
Calories: A medium-size apple contains 95 calories and 25 grams of carbs.
Final Words
Okay, we’ve got the ten best bodybuilding fruits. So, all we need to do is, pick any 2-3 of them and enjoy in our snacks, pre-and post-workout meals.
To get the maximum benefits from the fruits, eat them during the day. Remember, it should not be after sunset.
Now I’m interested to know, what is your favorite fruit?
Mine is mango. What yours?
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