HMB (β-hydroxy β-methylbutyrate) is a leucine byproduct that’s great for muscle recovery, but it’s barely present in foods. Getting 3 grams from diet alone? Good luck—it’s like chasing a unicorn. Here’s a rundown of foods with trace HMB, starting with chicken, and the crazy amounts you’d need to eat.
Table of contents
Foods with HMB
- Chicken : Packed with leucine (~1.8 g/100 g), which turns into a tiny bit of HMB. Direct HMB is basically nonexistent.
- Grapefruit : Has a smidge of HMB from leucine (~0.1 g/100 g). Not exactly a game-changer.
- Catfish : One of the few with natural HMB, plus leucine (~1.5 g/100 g). Still a long shot.
- Alfalfa : Trace HMB via leucine (~0.7 g/100 g). More of a garnish than a source.
- Asparagus : A pinch of HMB from leucine (~0.6 g/100 g). Side dish, not star.
- Avocado : Little HMB from leucine (~0.3 g/100 g). Better for toast than HMB.
- Cauliflower : Leucine (~0.4 g/100 g) gives a speck of HMB. Not much to work with.
How Much to Get 3 Grams?
Your body turns ~5% of leucine into HMB, so you’d need 60 g of leucine for 3 g of HMB (3 ÷ 0.05 = 60). Here’s what that looks like, assuming perfect conversion (which it’s not):
Chicken
- HMB per 100 g: ~90 mg
- Need: ~3.3 kg (~7.3 lbs)
- That’s: ~33 chicken breasts (100 g each).
Grapefruit
- HMB per 100 g: ~5 mg
- Need: 60 kg (~132 lbs)
- That’s: ~500 grapefruits (120 g each).
Catfish
- HMB per 100 g: ~75 mg
- Need: 4 kg (~8.8 lbs)
- That’s: ~40 fillets (100 g each).
Alfalfa
- HMB per 100 g: ~35 mg
- Need: ~8.6 kg (~19 lbs)
- That’s: ~86 bowls (100 g each).
Asparagus
- HMB per 100 g: ~30 mg
- Need: 10 kg (~22 lbs)
- That’s: ~100 bundles (100 g each).
Avocado
- HMB per 100 g: ~15 mg
- Need: 20 kg (~44 lbs)
- That’s: ~133 avocados (150 g each).
Cauliflower
- HMB per 100 g: ~20 mg
- Need: 15 kg (~33 lbs)
- That’s: ~75 heads (200 g each).
The Real Deal
These numbers are optimistic—your body doesn’t convert leucine perfectly, and some HMB gets lost (like ~20% in urine). A 70 kg person makes ~0.3 g of HMB daily from food, so 3 g is a pipe dream without supplements. Stick to Clear Muscle (3 g/day) unless you’re ready to eat a truckload of chicken!
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