How much protein do we really need?

Spliner1969

I try for .8g/lb of my target weight. Since my final goal is 190 that puts me around 152g of protein a day. Some days it's tough to hit it, but I get close. If I work out a lot that day I allow MFP to up my macros automatically so I'll try to stay at the .8 or go above it up to 190g. I've gone over that in a day, but usually only on days I do a ton (as in excess of 1000 calories) of exercise. I started at 305 lbs a little over a year ago, and if I had tried to hit .8 to 1g/lb at that weight I don't think I'd have lost as much weight as I did. So I always calculated my protein intake by my final goal weight.

stevencloser

withoutasaddle wrote: »

No no no. It's .8g of protein per KILOGRAMof body weight. Not pound. But even without weighing yourself the AMA CDC and others only set the AI levels at around 50, depending on age and gender

That's absolute minimums for sedentary people. And even that might change in the future.

http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/apnm-2015-0549

ElliInJapan

Protein is important in weight loss because it helps minimizing loss of muscle mass. For the average non-dieting population, the needs in protein are lower, which explains why there is no that much protein consumption in the blue zones. Basically the amount of protein you need depends on your goals and your current body composition.

Eleted

Thank you all so much! So much wisdom so quickly. I will implement your suggestions and knowledge and see if it makes a positive impact on energy and weight loss.

lemurcat12

kommodevaran wrote: »

I think balance and variety and overall nutrition, plus enjoyment, is more important than any single foods or nutrients. And that that's why a lot of different diets (as in what you feed yourself, not as in crazy fads) and macro splits can work, also for the same individual.

I agree with this.

OP, I have tended to eat about 105 grams of protein (often more), which is based on lean body mass (or an estimate that is .6-.85 g per lb of healthy body weight) and actually a bit more than what I needed. Over the past few weeks I've been trying out a mostly meatless diet with limited eggs and dairy, and tried to stick to 90 g, but often was below it (between 70 and 90) and I felt fine, although I find it easier to eat more protein so am going to include more animal sources again for a while.

What I understand of the research is that 1 g/kg of healthy body weight is plenty for normal purposes, but if you are really focused on either athletic performance or muscle gain or weight loss you will want a higher amount, such as the .6-.85 g number quoted above. That's because it can help with recovery/protecting muscle tear down when training, help with muscle building, of course, and -- most important for many on MFP -- reduce muscle loss when at a deficit, especially a higher deficit (although your deficit should of course not be too high anyway).

So my general theory is that I am not so concerned when at maintenance -- and that's the case with the populations in the Blue Zones you mentioned -- but do try to meet the higher range when losing weight.

MelaniaTrump

Minimum for non active female 46 grams a day.
http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/protein

dopeysmelly

I ate more while I was losing - that 1g/lb lean body mass sounds about right. I now don't really bother a lot - I get around the 50g per day for a woman my age, and I feel just fine - lots of energy and no problem with muscle fatigue, and I've radically changed my diet for other health reasons. I guess the answer is that there are loads of different opinions out there - whatever you pick will probably work.

But if you want to retain your muscles while you are losing, you have to use them regardless of how much protein you eat.