5 myths you need to unlearn about building muscle, according to experts
The first time I said out loud, “I'm going to work on building muscle,” I thought it meant getting used to being sore 24x7. I’d leave the gym drenched, arms quivering, convinced that pain was proof of progress. Dinner looked like a science experiment with chicken breasts weighed on a kitchen scale. Yet weeks later, nothing changed except my level of frustration. My body was just plain confused.
No matter how much we chase instant results, worship protein and expect muscle to appear like an Amazon Prime delivery, the truth is that muscle isn’t made in a shaker or by doing a one-hour workout. It’s a long game of chemistry and recovery, of timing and discipline; a conversation between your training, your food and the way you live the other 23 hours of your day.
Myth 1: Protein is everything
Protein has been elevated to near-religious status in fitness circles and everywhere in the world, but it’s only one player in a much larger orchestra.
Shruti Maheshwari Baid, a functional medicine practitioner, explains it this way: “Protein is essential for muscle repair and growth, but it’s not a standalone miracle. Muscle-building is a symphony of nutrients, not a solo act. We also need healthy fats, complex carbs, micronutrients, and adequate recovery to optimize muscle protein synthesis. The body can only utilise so much protein at once; beyond that, factors like training intensity, sleep, and stress play equally critical roles. So more protein doesn’t necessarily mean more gains.”
So yes, protein matters. But so does the meal that comes before your workout, the sleep that follows it and the micronutrients that make recovery possible. More shakes don’t mean more strength.
Myth 2: You can’t build muscle in a calorie deficit
Here’s a truth that contradicts half of fitness Instagram: you can build muscle while eating less, depending on who you are and how you train. “It’s called body recomposition,” explains Akshita Singla, co-founder of Akya Wellness and a certified nutrition coach. “If you’re new to training or returning after a break, you can build muscle even in a slight calorie deficit.”
“Enough protein (1.6–2.2g per kg body weight), high-intensity resistance work and recovery lets cells do their job,” Shradha Sounil Khanna, AVP of nutrition and research at Wellbeing Nutrition adds nuance. “The rate of muscle gain changes, not the possibility of it,” she says.
Myth 3: Lifting heavy will make women bulky
This one refuses to die. Women don’t have the hormonal environment to bulk up easily. They have one-tenth the testosterone levels of men, which means building lean, defined muscle is a far more realistic reality than looking ‘bulky.’
In fact, resistance training is one of the best tools for hormone balance, bone density and fat loss, particularly for women in their 30s and 40s. It raises metabolism, improves posture and strengthens the joints that high-intensity cardio often stresses.
Myth 4: More sweat means more muscle
A dripping T-shirt might feel satisfying, but it’s not a sign of growth. Sweat is your body’s cooling mechanism, not its progress report. Muscle isn’t built through exhaustion. It’s built through adaptation.
Hypertrophy, the cellular process that grows muscle, depends on controlled resistance. Lifting with intention, using progressive overload and recovering properly will do more for your strength than any “no pain, no gain” mindset ever could. The goal isn’t to break your body, it’s to teach it resilience.
Myth 5: Muscle building is all about food
Food lays the foundation, but it’s not the full equation. “If your workouts are inconsistent, your sleep is off and your stress is high, even perfect nutrition won’t fix that,” Singla notes.
The real builders are invisible: hormones, recovery and neural recalibration. During deep sleep, growth hormones and testosterone peak, guiding the very repair we credit to protein. Chronic stress, on the other hand, floods the body with cortisol, a hormone that signals breakdown, not growth. One drink of alcohol can flatten your recovery curve; one sleepless night can erase a week of careful eating.
Beyond the gym
Muscle is vitality. It’s your body’s savings account of strength, one that compounds with consistency. Omega-3s temper inflammation. Creatine fuels ATP turnover. Vitamin D modulates insulin sensitivity. And no supplement can replace what seven hours of deep sleep delivers effortlessly.
And as with everything else in life, patience is key. Build the confidence of someone who knows progress is happening beneath the surface, even when the mirror hasn’t caught up yet, and the muscle will build itself.