Conflicting recommendations on how much protein to eat

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Doberdawn
Doberdawn Posts: 732 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Okay... I've been given a variety of protein recommendations. It is very confusing. Some say:

1) Eat 1g per kg of your IDEAL goal body weight (so if my goal is to weight 145 pounds, then 145/2.2= 65.9g protein)
2) Eat 1g per pound of current lean body mass (so if weigh 199, then 199x.38=75.62, 199-75.62=123.38g protein)
3) Eat 1g per kg of your current weight (so if weight 199, then 90.45g protein)
4) Eat .75g per pound of current weight (so if weight 199 then 149.25g protein)

Okay... so here I sit with an utterly ABSURD range of protein from 66g to 149g!

So, I thought I'd bring this up for conversation. Unless you are going to say WHY your method should be used, this is not a poll. Please don't just say which one you believe is right. Please indicate what calculation you use and WHY it should be used.
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Replies

  • jukyu
    jukyu Posts: 80 Member
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    Protein needs are proportional to body weight; not energy intake, so a gram per pound is a safe bet. Hence why I don't allow MFP to calculate my macros.

    Here is good, straightforward article on adult protein needs and optimal distribution: http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1743-7075-6-12.pdf
  • LolBroScience
    LolBroScience Posts: 4,537 Member
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    Depends on your goals....

    Typicaly 1g per lb bodyweight for maintenance/gaining.
    Slightly higher if at a deficit.
  • crista_b
    crista_b Posts: 1,192 Member
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    1g per pound (edit) can be extremely high. The Institute of Medicine recommends we get at least 10% and no more than 35% of calories from protein. Generally adult men need about 56g per day, and adult women need about 46g. Obviously various factors will influence that, but that's why I said "generally"

    Edited: someone who weighs 300lb, really doesn't need 300g of protein/day
  • erindh87
    erindh87 Posts: 94
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    10-35% of calories is a huge range. 1 g/lb is not as high as it may sound particularly for those wanting to build muscle. My protein goals are 30% of my calories (139g protein). I weigh 158 lbs. That's 0.88 g/lb.

    Edit: Also, my calorie goal is 1850. It would be fairly easy to get to 1 g/lb or more for people with higher calorie goals.

    Edit for OP's questions: I just use a general 30% of calories rule rather than gram/lb of mass. It ends up falling somewhere between 1 gram/lb of lean body weight and 1 gram/ lb of total weight. I don't necessarily have any sources to back it up, but it seems to work for me.
  • LolBroScience
    LolBroScience Posts: 4,537 Member
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    Yes, for sedentary populations. Im assuming OP doesn't fall within the category.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,139 Member
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    1g per pound is extremely high. The Institute of Medicine recommends we get at least 10% and no more than 35% of calories from protein. Generally adult men need about 56g per day, and adult women need about 46g. Obviously various factors will influence that, but that's why I said "generally"

    56 grams a day for an adult male? Damn I am blowing that one out of the water as I average about 220 a day...
  • crista_b
    crista_b Posts: 1,192 Member
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    Is everyone here ignoring the last sentence of my post??? I said generally because that is the base. Obviously people that are working out, building muscle, have higher weights, etc. would all have a higher need. The numbers I posted are based on the Institute of Medicine (as mentioned), CDC, ADA, and WHO. I didn't just pull them out of my a**. OP was asking which calculation to use and why, not just a poll of which you like.
  • erindh87
    erindh87 Posts: 94
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    My comment (and possibly the others' comments as well) was made because your original post stated that "1 g/lb is extremely high", and the number listed were low. For many people 1 g/lb is not high at all, hence the reason for the post. Your edit states it better.
  • crista_b
    crista_b Posts: 1,192 Member
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    I understand. I was thinking more about anyone significantly overweight when I initially worded it. Hence the edit. :smile: Unfortunately for OP, I don't think we're really helping since the range is still pretty big. :ohwell: Sorry, OP.
  • Doberdawn
    Doberdawn Posts: 732 Member
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    Thanks for all the replies. To answer one question, I am not sedentary. I do an hour of yoga 3 days a week, 40 minutes of New Rules of lifting for women 3 days a week, 40 minutes of cardio 3 days a week, and often hike several miles at least once a week. But, I'm still 55 lbs overweight with 38% body fat.
  • grantdumas7
    grantdumas7 Posts: 802 Member
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    I would go for the higher end of the protein count since you are trying to lose fat. Protein has a thermogenic effect so you will more than likely lose more fat on a higher/moderate protein/low/moderate carb diet than you would on a low protein/high carb diet.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,139 Member
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    Is everyone here ignoring the last sentence of my post??? I said generally because that is the base. Obviously people that are working out, building muscle, have higher weights, etc. would all have a higher need. The numbers I posted are based on the Institute of Medicine (as mentioned), CDC, ADA, and WHO. I didn't just pull them out of my a**. OP was asking which calculation to use and why, not just a poll of which you like.

    at 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight your "average adult male" would weigh 56 pounds....
  • crista_b
    crista_b Posts: 1,192 Member
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    Is everyone here ignoring the last sentence of my post??? I said generally because that is the base. Obviously people that are working out, building muscle, have higher weights, etc. would all have a higher need. The numbers I posted are based on the Institute of Medicine (as mentioned), CDC, ADA, and WHO. I didn't just pull them out of my a**. OP was asking which calculation to use and why, not just a poll of which you like.

    at 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight your "average adult male" would weigh 56 pounds....

    I didn't say to use the 1g/lb method. I said that method is not right.
  • Arkhos
    Arkhos Posts: 290 Member
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    I've seen all those ranges as well.

    1gram of protein per 1lb of Lean Body Mass is a common recommendation, especially when exercising. The below references the .8g per kg of body weight per day (not lean mass, but also uses kg not lbs). I converted the kilograms to pounds for easy calculation below.

    American College of Sports Medicine, American Dietetic Association, and Dietitians of Canada (2000). Joint Position Statement: Nutrition and athletic performance. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc. 32:2130-2145
    The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), American Dietetic Association (ADA) and Dieticians of Canada (DC) recommend

    The current dietary reference intake (DRI) for protein for persons over 18 years of age, irrespective of physical activity status, is 0.8 g per kilogram of body weight per day (i.e., 80 g of protein for a 220-pound person).

    200 lbs
    72g of protein (sedentary)
    127g of protein (endurance athlete)
    154g of protein (resistance/strength)

    .8 grams per kilogram or
    .36 grams of protein per pound (sedentary)

    1.4 grams per kilogram or
    0.635 grams of protein per pound (endurance athlete)

    1.7 grams per kilogram or
    0.77 grams of protein per pound (resistance/strength)


    However my personal trainer that does body building shows for women recommended 1g per body weight up to 250lbs. So as a 400lb man my protein is still 250 max (I usually get between 190-220g). She on the other hand consumes 400g and she weighs 160lbs.
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,022 Member
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    If you are trying to lose fat and retain or gain lean mass, go for 1 g per pound of lean body mass as a MINIMUM. Personally, I eat about 1.5 g per pound of body weight most days, which is high, but my macro priorities are protein and fats, not carbs. I prefer to keep my carbs at or below 30% and protein at or above 40%.
  • Arkhos
    Arkhos Posts: 290 Member
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    If you are strength training go for the higher end protein, if not go for a low-middle range. It's not going to cause any harm.
  • waldo56
    waldo56 Posts: 1,861 Member
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    Good rule of thumb that I've said before:

    Protein is about like sex. More is almost always better, and you can't really have too much unless you take it to downright silly and absurd proportions.

    I aim for 1 g/lb bodyweight at least. But I strength training frequently and am relatively lean. When I strength trained less and carried around a lot of midsection, I aimed for 1 g/lb LBM.
  • SGSmallman
    SGSmallman Posts: 193 Member
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    If you are trying to lose fat and retain or gain lean mass, go for 1 g per pound of lean body mass as a MINIMUM. Personally, I eat about 1.5 g per pound of body weight most days, which is high, but my macro priorities are protein and fats, not carbs. I prefer to keep my carbs at or below 30% and protein at or above 40%.

    I agree with this and am the same although my macros are 40%carbs (average 38-40%), 40% protein and 20% fats
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    For most exercising populations I think ranges between 1.6g/kg bodyweight to 2.2g/kg are reasonable and factors such as deficit size, leanness, age, activity all play a role in this.

    RDA uses old data mostly based on nitrogen balance and as such I'd really hesitate to rely on it for most people.

    Protein Roundtable videos (Aragon, Helms, McCarthy) cover this in detail.
  • jsd_135
    jsd_135 Posts: 291 Member
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    Thought experiment:

    If the world's population followed the higher protein recommendations (if it were possible, which it's obviously not), what impact would that have on the planet's resources? Thoughts like this are one of the reasons that I can't bring myself to significantly increase my protein levels for optimum personal health, fitness, body composition, etc. If I wouldn't want the rest of humanity following this course, I'm not sure I can ethically do so.

    Does anyone else have thoughts like this?

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