muscle gain diet

Question
Hi Lela, sorry to bother you. I wanted to know how I could improve my diet to gain muscle mass. I workout 3 days a week with weights:Monday,Wednesday, and Friday. I get 8 hours of sleep. I am 17 years old. not very active. I weigh 145 pounds. I'm not naturally lean. I use to be overweight as a kid. I can't really eat what I want and stay skinny. I always have to watch what I eat. I have to buy my own food. I know to build muscle you need protein. Complete proteins come from meat. I can't really afford meat. I was wondering if I eat things like peanutbutter sandwiches, beans, peas, bananas, peanuts, and milk, could that combine all the amino acids to form complete proteins for me to build muscle? I eat 8 times a day. I even snack on peanuts between my small meals. My total calorie intake a day is 3700 calories. 188 grams of protein. I eat 5 peanut butter & jelly sandwiches with 100% whole grain bread, 3 canned vegetables with 20 grams of protein or more, 2 glasses of milk, 1 banana, and some peanuts. could i gain muscle eating this way? i know it's not perfect, but its all i can afford. Could you please give some advice on how to fix my diet. I really appreciate your help. Thank you.

Answer
Chris,
Certain foods are complete on their own- Things like soy (tofu) and quinoa (type of grain). Other foods need to be combined to be complete- Try mixing nuts/seeds with grains (Peanut butter on Wheat bread) or Grains with Dairy (Oatmeal and Milk) or Dairy and Beans (Beans and Cheese) or Beans and Grains (Beans and Rice). Also don't forget eggs as an inexpensive protein source.

Hope this helps,
Lela Simon

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