How Much Protein Do You Really Need Per Day? The Science Explained
- Chris Protein
- Mar 8
- 4 min read
Updated: Mar 18
How Much Protein Do You Need Per Day?
If you've looked into improving your nutrition at all within the last few years, you have probably seen protein being pushed everywhere.
Protein pancakes, protein bars, protein cereal, protein, protein, protein everywhere!
So is it just another nutrition fad, or actually one of the most important parts of your diet?
And how much protein do you really need per day?
Depending on who you ask, the answers can be all over the place. I see bodybuilders recommending as much as 300 to 400 grams a day, while some claim you barely need any at all.
This leaves a lot of people unsure of how much protein to eat.
Which can cause problems on both ends. Too little may limit muscle growth, slow workout recovery, and can even make fat loss results worse. Stalled progress in these areas is not fun, and leads to frustration when the results you expect don’t show up.
On the flip side, some people will go too far the other way and dramatically increase their protein intake assuming more must be better. While higher protein diets are certainly not life threatening for healthy people, going beyond what you need can make your diet needlessly restrictive, crowd out other important nutrients, and harder to sustain long term.
The good news is, that research done over the past couple decades has created clear recommendations for how much you need to optimally support muscle growth, fat loss, and general fitness.
Why Getting Protein Right Matters
Protein plays many important roles in your body. It is an essential nutrient that provides the building blocks for muscle growth, as well as for connective tissue, organs, bones, skin, and even parts of the immune system. It also improves workout recovery and fat loss.
Even if you just want to lose weight, protein is still crucial. Adequate protein (especially when combined with resistance training!) ensures the weight you lose comes from fat, not muscle. Protein is also filling and makes dieting easier. Finally, it has a higher thermic effect of food than carbs or fat, which means you burn more calories digesting it.
Consistently hit a proper protein target and your body will have the resources it needs to optimally grow muscle, get stronger, and lose fat.
The Perfect Protein Target
A large scale meta-analysis (study analyzing the results of many studies) by Dr. Shoenfeld and Dr. Aragon found that as protein intake increased, muscle growth increased:
But only to a point.
The benefits plateaued around 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram bodyweight per day.
This comes out to roughly 0.7 grams per pound of bodyweight per day, and is the minimum intake reccommended to maximize muscle growth and to maintain muscle when losing fat.
The researchers recommend a slightly wider range to account for variance in individual needs: 0.7 to 1 gram per pound of bodyweight.
Going a little higher than the minimum provides a buffer for very hard training or dieting, and natural variation between people.
Example Protein Targets
For a 120 pound person:
Minimum intake: 84 grams of protein per day
Optimal: 84 to 120 grams of protein per day
For a 200 pound person:
Minimum intake: 140 grams of protein per day
Optimal intake: 140 to 200 grams of protein per day.
To find your own intake just multiply your bodyweight by 0.7 for the minimum, and by 1 for the high end.
When to Eat Less Protein
Grams per pound works well for many people, but it may not be necessary for those that are very overweight.
If you are significantly overweight, you can use your goal bodyweight to set your protein target. For example, a 250 pound person aiming to be 180 pounds could set their target based on the goal weight of 180 pounds.
When to Go Higher
Eating a bit higher than the ideal intake ranges is not harmful for healthy people, and can sometimes be beneficial.
Higher protein can be beneficial if:
It helps you control hunger when losing fat
You just enjoy high protein foods
You feel stronger or recover better with a higher intake
Individuals can vary in their protein needs, so you may find even higher than the evidence-based range feels best.
My practical advice for someone beginning to get more protein in:
Start with the minimum, and once that becomes manageable add more and see if it makes for an improvement.
Protein Sources Matter
The recent protein craze has flooded the market with protein cookies, protein chips, protein cereals, and other packaged foods claiming to help you hit protein targets.
Some of these can be convenient, but approach them with caution. They are mostly just the same foods with a little protein added, and often the amount of protein is insignificant. I’ve seen protein cookies that contained a whopping 6-7 grams of protein.
Just because something has protein in it doesn’t automatically make it a wonderful protein source.
Also, if foods like sausage, fatty cuts of steak, or hamburgers come to mind when you think of protein, be aware that these sources contain lots of calories, saturated fat, and carbs in addition to protein.
While these foods can be included in moderation, it is best to get most protein from leaner sources such as chicken breast, turkey, fish, eggs or egg whites, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, tofu, tempeh, and protein powders. This is especially true if you find it easy to overeat or are trying to lose fat.
Protein is one of the most important nutrients and supports muscle growth, recovery, and long-term health and fitness.
Research shows that a range of about 0.7 to 1 gram per pound of bodyweight will maximize muscle growth and retention.
Keeping your intake in this range will ensure your hard work in the gym pays off, support recovery from that hard work, and even make it easier to lose fat.
If you are unsure of how to structure your training or nutrition, working with one of our personal trainers can help take out the guesswork.
We’ll give you the training and nutrition guidance you need to build lean muscle, lose fat, and feel your best.
Click here to book your free Transformation Session, and we’ll build a roadmap to success with your fitness goals!
Sources:
Schoenfeld BJ, Aragon AA.
How much protein can the body use in a single meal for muscle-building? Implications for daily protein distribution.
Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. 2018;15:10.
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