How to set your macros for muscle gain

Muscle can only be built at a limited rate, regardless of how much extra food is available. Past a certain point, additional calories are just stored as fat rather than used for growth. A surplus of roughly 5–15% above TDEE is a common, sustainable range that supports growth without an outsized amount of fat gain along the way.

The same broad range that applies during fat loss, roughly 1.6–2.2g per kilogram of bodyweight, applies during a surplus too. More protein than that generally doesn’t translate to meaningfully faster growth; the surplus and the training stimulus are doing most of the work.

A surplus phase is usually the right time to lean toward higher carb intake relative to fat. Carbs replenish glycogen and support training volume and recovery, which is a large part of what actually drives the muscle growth a surplus is meant to support.

Bodyweight alone is a noisy signal during a bulk, since it doesn’t distinguish muscle from fat. Watching training performance (are lifts trending up?) alongside weight and, if available, periodic measurements or photos, gives a much clearer picture of whether the surplus is doing its job.