— Last summer I gained 5 kg of muscle mass
— How did you do that?
— I consistently ate more than I expended
— That’s not a way to gain muscle, bro
— What are you, a CICO denier? Increasing your muscle mass is an energy balance problem: when people gain muscle mass, it’s always because more calories were consumed than were expended. This is a hard fact, man
— You are right. No one can break the Laws of Thermodynamics

 

The simple, unavoidable fact of human physiology is that you can’t increase your muscle mass without creating a calorie surplus. Whether you do this by eating more, moving less or a combination of the two, is a matter of preference.