If your goal is to gain healthy weight or 10 pounds of muscle mass in just four short weeks, you need to eat a lot of protein, a lot of carbohydrates, and even a good bit of fat. But it’s not as easy as eating anything and everything you can get your hands on — if it was, every Tom, Dick, and Joe would have their IFBB pro cards.

Major muscle growth isn’t achieved solely by training, but even beginner trainees know that. The gym is where the muscles are sculpted, but the marble that will eventually be your Adonis is made in your fridge and on your stovetop.

Sure, going to McDonald’s and scarfing down two Big Macs, large fries and a Coke on a regular basis will help you gain weight—but you’ll end up looking more like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man instead of Arnold Schwarzenegger in his prime. In fact, according to McDonald’s nutritional facts, that meal in itself would come out to 1,705 calories, which, yes, would put you at caloric excess but more than you’d ever need and your body would turn those stored calories into fat instead of muscle.

Building quality muscle, minus a protruding belly, takes a well-formed plan, one that has you eating the right types of foods, at the correct time of day, and in optimal proportions.

It might seem complicated, but we’ve broken down how to gain healthy weight in one month, nice and simple. All you’ll have to do is train, eat and track your results in the mirror.

10 Best Foods to Help Skinny Guys Gain Muscle

10 Best Foods for Skinny Guys

These surprising foods can help you bulk up in no time.

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