Hardcore bodybuilders, powerlifters, and other weightlifters eat a ton of protein in a day. OK, they don’t eat a “ton”, but they do eat more than the average person.
Just now much protein do they eat?
How much protein do you eat?
How much protein is appropriate?
Can we eat too much protein?
If so, what are the side effects?
The ultimate question is: how much protein should I eat in a day?
As with how much fat to eat in a day and how many carbs to eat in a day, it all depends on a couple factors:
- age
- body size
- diet
- activity level
- lifestyle
The recommended amount of protein for a healthy adult is 0.8 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight. Since a kilogram is roughly equal to 2.2 pounds, that translates into 1.76 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight.
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An exception to this rule is the recommended levels for pregnant women, which say that pregnant women should eat 10 grams more each day than the recommended amount. Lactating women require an additional 15 grams of protein during the first six months of nursing, and an additional 12 grams after that.
Males who participate in regular vigorous exercise typically will eat from 1 to 1.5 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight. This can be both positive and negative for the body. The additional protein will assist in muscle recovery and fat loss, but the effects of digesting the protein will place additional stress on the body.
Why Should I Limit My Protein Intake?
While protein is as vital to cellular metabolism as oxygen, there certainly lies a threshold for healthy and unhealthy consumption levels especially for those in poorer health. Processing protein requires a lot from kidneys and liver which is why those with problems with either of those organs are often ordered by their physicians to eat a lower protein diet.
An indirect drawback from excessive animal protein consumption is its effect on the cardiovascular system. Since many meats contain a fair amount of saturated fat, this can lead to atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, as well as obesity.
For example, only 25% of a T-bone steak’s calories come from protein while the rest comes from saturated fat. Even a leaner cut of beef like a flank steak is still roughly 50% fat. The same holds true for eggs. Only 31% of eggs’ calories come from protein. Fish and chicken are certainly better sources of protein.
Remember when eating a diet higher in protein to drink plenty of water in order to replenish the considerable amount lost during protein metabolism. Try and stay on the safe side by avoiding extreme high-protein diets full of saturated fats like the ketogenic diets (Atkins) and you will be in much better physical standing.
To Gain Muscle:
I recommend 1 gram of protein per lb of lean body mass for males and females who exercise at least 3 times per week and are trying to gain muscle mass.
A 200 lb man with 10% bodyfat would aim to consume about 180 grams of protein in a day. That’s 6 meals with an average of 30 grams of protein per meal, and THAT, my friends, is quite doable.
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If you have trouble consuming that much protein with food alone, I highly suggest you pick up some Optimum Nutrition Protein Powders, a source of inexpensive, high quality protein. One extra protein shake a day could make all the difference in the world.
To Lose Fat:
I recommend .8 grams of protein per lb of lean body mass for males and females who exercise at least 3 times per week and are trying to lose body fat.
A 150 lb woman with 25% bodyfat would aim to consume about 90 grams of protein in a day. That’s 3 meals with 20 grams of protein per meal and 3 snacks with 10 grams of protein, and THAT, my friends, is also very doable.
More importantly, keeping your unhealthy fat consumption and processed carbohydrate consumption low, will go a long way to preserve your health for the long haul.
See also:
How many grams of fat should I eat?
How many grams of carbs should I eat?
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Whats up? im 19 5`5 163 i work out everyday. im trying to loss fat and gain muscle at the same time what you recommend?
luis: I recommend you eat healthy, lift weights, and use additional cardio to burn fat. The cardio can be in the form of HIIT, HIRT, or endurance cardio as a last resort. About 1900 calories for fat loss or 2400 calories to gain muscle. About 150-170 grams of protein a day. Lower carbs for fat loss, higher carbs for muscle gain. For any other questions, you should read some Project Swole posts.
i am 18 year old, 6-2, 150 lbs and am trying to gain about 10/15 pounds of muscle. I have been lifting about 3 times a week since september but havent seen much results. Please help me determine how much protein/when to drink shakes, and if I should be working out more or doing certain exercises. Thank you very very much.
I am not going to do all the work for you. You are going to have to read. Get started by setting a goal weight, then multiply that by 14 to get total calories in a day. Get 1 gram of protein per pound of your goal bodyweight a day. Use Werewolf Training for Muscle Gains to gain muscle. Good luck!
Steve,
I am 23, 6′3 180 lbs. I want to get to 200, and have the least amount of body fat possible (bruce lee, lol.) MY problem is, i am fairly thin throughout my whole body but, I have a little extra fat in my stomach. Since I am thin for the most part, how much cardio should i do? Keep in mind I want to attack my body fat. Thanks!
Your problem is probably more about diet than it is about extra cardio. Try adding some HIIT or HIRT sessions twice a week for increase muscle gain and fat loss – eat more to prioritize muscle gain, eat less to prioritize fat loss. It is hard to tell you what to do if you don’t choose a goal. Attacking body fat and gaining 20 pounds are conflicting goals, and that doesn’t work.
OK, well since i’d rather have more mass, do you suggest “bulking then cutting” I just want to gain mmuscle and be ripped.
Yes, bulk then cut. But don’t bulk stupidly and get really fat. Bulk intelligently to minimize fat gain for a couple months, then shred it up.
Im 19, 130lbs and im very active in martial arts, i want to move up to 155, how many times should i take whey protien a day and when? thanks
One or two shakes a day would be good. Morning and pre-workout would be ideal as long as you have a good post-workout supplement like Biotest Surge Recovery. If you don’t have surge, then use a protein shake post-workout.
I am a 24 year old female, about 5′5 and 163lbs. Over the past 5 years Ive lost almost 60lbs. Ive hit a plateu and I am stuck. I go to the gym about 6x a week not too much lifting i would love to loose 30lbs, any ideas!
Step 1: Choose a goal body weight and multiply by 12. This is your daily calorie limit.
Step 2: Eat .8 grams of protein per pound of goal body weight.
Step 3: Limit carbs to 100 grams on days you don’t workout, and 120 grams on days you do workout.
Step 4: Use 3, 45 minute weightlifting sessions a week to build muscle and elevate your metabolism.
Step 5: Use 3, 45 minute cardio sessions a week to burn extra calories, although I would prefer you use 3, 30 minute HIIT or HIRT sessions instead.
Step 6: Adjust calories in step 1 according to your weight loss progress after 2 weeks.
Step 7: Make sure you get enough rest and recovery.
i am a 16 year old female at about 6 feet tall. I workout about four days a week and struggle trying to get results from it. i realize that i dont eat right so now im beginning to start a protien diet. the only problem is that i am having a hard time trying to figure out how much to eat and how long to persue this diet. i dont want to be extremely swole like tthe hulk but still yet i dont want to be this little noodle. please help me.
Hi
I was recently given a nutritional plan for building mass. Im 28, 5ft 10in, 22%bf and weigh 190lbs. Ive been told to consume 1950 calories per day, 225 grams of protein, 225 grams of carbs and keep fat to 20ish grams per day. In my opinion, that is a lot of protein and not enough calories. My aim is to reduce bodyfat while increasing muscle mass. I currently workout 4 days per week. Since starting this diet, ive been feeling very run down.
Would appreciate your views and advice.
I wud like to consume whey protein in order to gain my muscle size, but I’ve heard that whey protein causes hair loss, is it true?? Secondly, even if i consume a low amount of protein from whey protein will that also help me somehow?
thanks
Whey protein does not cause hair loss. That is absurd. You should get .8-1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight each day. Most of it should come from whole food, some of which includes whey, and you can consider supplementing with 1-2 protein shakes or protein bars a day containing from 20-40 grams of protein, whether it’s whey, egg, casein, animal, or any other kind of protein.
im 17 yrs old, im 5′2 and i weigh 125 pounds, ive been consuming 80 grams of protein per day, some times 85, is that enough protein intake or should i consume more, thanks.
Depends on your goals. If you want to weigh 150 lbs, then you should be eating between 130-150 grams of protein a day. If you are comfortable at your current bodyweight, then 80-100 grams should be fine.
I am six feet tall and weigh 170. I workout once everyday and workout twice for two days. On the days that I workout once I take one protein shake (20g) and one protein bar (30g). The days I workout twice a day I take two protein shakes (40g) and one protein bar (30g). This is not counting the protein that I am consuming during my meals. Am I taking too much protein?
You should be getting about 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight. Add up your total protein including food and see what it adds up to. If you’re getting over 250 grams then you are pushing it. If you are somewhere between 160-200 grams, then you should be fine.
Steve, thanks for the site, this is really helpful for someone like me. I am 6′3″ and weigh 285lbs (down from 350). I dropped the weight with a low carb/high protein diet and rigorous work outs. I now am starting to lift regularly as well (thanks for the 5 bests) and take supplements/protein powders. According to your .8 calculation though, I should be consuming 228 grams of protein a day. I read somewhere that the body can only breakdown 30 grams every three hours though (maybe somewhere on here). Is there something you would recommend for a guy my size on a 2500 calorie diet?
30-40 grams every 3 hours is the max. Some people think they are doing the right thing by drinking a protein shake with 80 grams of protein in one sitting, but it’s not true. Your body can only digest so much protein at a time. Slow and steady should suit you perfectly.
Thanks for your info and comments so far – very helpful. I’m a 23yr old guy, 6′3 and 175lbs. I’ve lost about 65lbs in the last 9 months strictly from cardio. I’m now thin pretty much everywhere in my body except my stomach where this layer of fat/flab just won’t go away. Have started doing about 30 minutes of various dumbbell exercises about 3 times a week and also drinking 1, sometimes 2 EAS Myoplex Strength Formula protein shakes a day. I also fit in about 30 minutes of cardio about 3 times a week. My ultimate goal is to remain on the leaner/thinner side, but also finally get a defined stomach and abs (don’t need to be totally ripped and some weight gain is OK). Any suggestions? Thanks.
Hit your abs hard every other day. Consider using the abdominal HIRT routine defined in the Werewolf for Strength gains program (or just follow that whole routine). Stick with your plan for a couple months, making sure to keep your calories in check in order to maximize fat loss. Your abs will show once you’ve added muscle to your body and continue to burn fat with exercise.
steve im 25 6′2″ 239lb from 250lb i ride an exersize bike 9 miles in the morning before i eat or drink anything then eat 3 small meals a day mostly meat and fruit then ride 8 miles at night ride both in 20 min or less i feel like i should be loseing more its my 2nd week i lost 7 lbs the first week now i seem to be not loseing much at all i want to weigh around 200lbs what do you recomend???
I recommend you stop riding so much and start lifting weights. You would be better off investing your bike-riding time into HIIT and HIRT workouts, with at least 2 days a week of dedicated strength training. If your goal is to weigh 200 lbs, you should keep your total daily calories around 2400, possibly even lower, and your daily protein intake should be no more than 200-220 grams.
Hey Steve, I’ve been reading what you have to say and just wanna know if I picked everything up properly. I’m 6′3 185 Lbs I want a goal weight of 215 so I need just under 3000 Cals a day with 278 grams of protein a day to reach it?(following the 1.5 rule) This seems doable I am committing to 5 days a week of heavy lifting and 3 days of cardio. Am I missing anything? and if you could give me a guess how long do you think it’ll take to reach my goal?
To gain 30 pounds of lean muscle, you will probably need a solid 2 years of training, but you might be able to get it done in a year and a half. However, in one year you might end up gaining, for example, 20 lbs of muscle and 10 lbs of fat if you eat too many calories. This is easiest way to gain muscle – by eating more than maintenance calories, you will assure yourself of muscle gains, but you also risk some fat gains. When you eat to avoid fat gain, you also risk avoiding muscle gain by consuming too many calories. It is a give-and-take situation when it comes to gaining muscle and also staying super-lean.
Hi Steve
I’m a 30 year old female with 36% body fat, trying to get down to about 29%. I do 20 min cardio excersises 6 times a week and have begun a low carb diet. Do you have any tips that can assist me in this goal?
You should start lifting weights three times a week, and either increase the length of your endurance cardio sessions to 45 minutes, or switch to a HIIT routine for cardio. You could also switch to a protocol where you strength train twice a week, use HIRT twice a week, and throw in one or two HIIT sessions on the off days.
Also, in order to lose fat your calories in must be less than calories burned, so make sure you are not eating too many calories.
Hi Steve
I’m 20 years old, 5′11 and 175lbs. I have been going to the gym for almost 4 yrs now. I used to be obese (280 ibs of fat), but lost the the weight and has been working out to gain muscle eversince. I currently have a ok build. I workout five times a week and eat alot of protein. But Sometimes I feel like it takes longer for me to gain muscle. My goal is to gain at least 185-190ibs or higher in muscle. Anything else I should be doing, or stay with what I’m doing? Thanks
Doing the same things over and over again, expecting different results, is insanity. If you are not realizing your goals, you should either set new goals or change your approach. If your main focus right now is to gain muscle, I suggest you read up on Werewolf Training for Muscle Gains, and if you don’t like that then I suggest you lift heavier and/or increase intensity, and probably eat more.
What does HIIT and HIRT stand for??? Thanks
HIIT – High Intensity Interval Training
HIRT – High Intensity Resistance Training
Hey,
Im about to turn 15. I am 5′10 1/2, weighing 147lbs and trying to gain about 3-5 pounds of muscle.I work out 3-4 times a week.Although i dont think i get enough calories and proteins,cause my mom is way to busy.CAn you give my some advice?
Drink whole milk and protein shakes, eat all natural peanut butter, use a post workout drink like Biotest Surge Recovery.
Hi im 23 and 5′9 and 180 pound im an appliance installer, by trade we have huge legs but i have a ripped back and arms but i have a little belly i do ab workouts and eat right is there any trick to belly fat? If u already eat heathly and exercise, i cant do intense cardio because of the condition of my knees from the 400 lb fridges any suggestions would be great
Can you do full body endurance cardio? The elliptical trainer is pretty low impact. I don’t usually advocate endurance cardio, but for someone like you it might be appropriate. Either that or eat less food, because eating fewer calories than you burn will cause fat loss.
I have never really tried i used to run but it just made my days at work that much longer from all the pain but recently i tried the insanity workout which lasted a whole 4 days its def interval training mixed with plyo which equals pain if u have bad knees lol so i just stick to evening walks with my wife and eat correctly im trying to stay under 2000 cal, i take a multivitamin and drink a protein shake in the morning, i eat a lot of fruit def no soda just maily water about 70 oz daily i have a bowflex which i do three mornings a week i just cant beat this belly problem…lol
Your belly problem might also be related to a weak transverse abdominus, which means you will puff out as if you are preggers. You should try to contract and hold your abs several times a day in a vacuum pose. If your abs are solid and flat, but you just have several inches of fat over them, then the answer really is just to eat less or different calories.
hi Steve, i work out 3 to 4 times a week, do i need to take protein only on the days i work out or all the week?
It is important to supplement with protein every day.