How much Protein do you really need?

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Bizurke51
Bizurke51 Posts: 190 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Headline says it all. I've heard between .6-1 gram per pound.

I've recently switched from dieting to maintaining and I want to know how much protein I need to eat to maintain and build muscle. I'm pretty good at hitting the 1 gram per pound mark, but it takes a lot of chickens and I've recently seen people saying that 1 gram per pound is a waste. Does anyone have any thoughts/suggestion?
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  • Bizurke51
    Bizurke51 Posts: 190 Member
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    MrM27 wrote: »
    http://bayesianbodybuilding.com/the-myth-of-1glb-optimal-protein-intake-for-bodybuilders/



    What do you mean by maintain and build muscle? Bulking? Recomp?

    Basically how much do I need to maintain the muscle mass I already have?

    And, when I do decided to bulk up (add 10 pounds of lean muscle) how much should I eat?

    If you need more info, Im pretty activie, I run or lift everyday. I've been doing my best to hit the 1 gram per pound, but there are just some days where I can't hit it. Like if i run out of Tuna or Chicken, FML haha
  • Bizurke51
    Bizurke51 Posts: 190 Member
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    MrM27 wrote: »
    Bizurke51 wrote: »
    MrM27 wrote: »
    http://bayesianbodybuilding.com/the-myth-of-1glb-optimal-protein-intake-for-bodybuilders/



    On a bulk protein requirements are lower than on a cut and they take a back seat to carbs.

    really? did not know what


  • syndeo
    syndeo Posts: 68 Member
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    Bizurke51 wrote: »
    Headline says it all. I've heard between .6-1 gram per pound.

    I've recently switched from dieting to maintaining and I want to know how much protein I need to eat to maintain and build muscle. I'm pretty good at hitting the 1 gram per pound mark, but it takes a lot of chickens and I've recently seen people saying that 1 gram per pound is a waste. Does anyone have any thoughts/suggestion?

    Why do you say it takes a lot of chicken? Almost every food out there has some protein in it. All the protein youeat, even from "non meat" sources counts.

    For example, I easily hit 120 grams of protein a day, and I don't pig out on meat. A serving of greek yogurt with oatmeal for breakfast, rice and a chicken breast for lunch, couple slices of pizza for supper, maybe a glass of milk before bed, and no problem.

    Also, you do not need 1g/pound of protein. It is too much. Good articles have been linked above.
  • sixxpoint
    sixxpoint Posts: 3,529 Member
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    0.60 g per 1 lb. bodyweight on the low end.

    0.82 g per 1 lb. bodyweight target to hedge your bets.

    1 g per 1 lb. bodyweight if you have money to throw around.

    ...more if you are a professional bodybuilder or sponsored athlete eating 6k plus calories per day.
  • M30834134
    M30834134 Posts: 411 Member
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    I found this post quite helpful on this subject: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=156380183
  • PatrickLim
    PatrickLim Posts: 3 Member
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    1-1.7 grams per kg of body weight. No need for any more.
  • sixxpoint
    sixxpoint Posts: 3,529 Member
    edited May 2015
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    If hitting your daily protein macro seems impossible unless you resort to ton of chicken and whey shakes, then you need to relearn how to eat. Like a previous poster said, it should be quite easy to hit 120 g protein.
  • BenjaminMFP88
    BenjaminMFP88 Posts: 660 Member
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    Bizurke51 wrote: »
    Headline says it all. I've heard between .6-1 gram per pound.

    I've recently switched from dieting to maintaining and I want to know how much protein I need to eat to maintain and build muscle. I'm pretty good at hitting the 1 gram per pound mark, but it takes a lot of chickens and I've recently seen people saying that 1 gram per pound is a waste. Does anyone have any thoughts/suggestion?

    This should answer most of your protein questions
  • Bizurke51
    Bizurke51 Posts: 190 Member
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    sixxpoint wrote: »
    If hitting your daily protein macro seems impossible unless you resort to ton of chicken and whey shakes, then you need to relearn how to eat. Like a previous poster said, it should be quite easy to hit 120 g protein.

    Well it's easy to get to 120, but I've been trying to hit 180 and that's my point. A disparity of 60 grams per day is a lot

  • ruggedshutter
    ruggedshutter Posts: 389 Member
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    When you guys are referring to grams of protein per pound of body weight, is that LBM or total body weight? Sometimes people use the terms interchangeably and they aren't so just making sure for my own sanity.
  • ruggedshutter
    ruggedshutter Posts: 389 Member
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    MrM27 wrote: »
    ruggedshutter wrote: »
    When you guys are referring to grams of protein per pound of body weight, is that LBM or total body weight? Sometimes people use the terms interchangeably and they aren't so just making sure for my own sanity.

    Bodyweight is total weight
    LBM is bodyweight minus fat.

    Thanks
  • ruggedshutter
    ruggedshutter Posts: 389 Member
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    I saw that when I posted my reply. You must have a friend out there somewhere...
  • slideaway1
    slideaway1 Posts: 1,006 Member
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    This is just from my own experience, I do not have any studies etc to back it up. I'm 6Ft, Weigh 200lbs so I eat 200g of protein a day. If I'm under by a bit I don't worry. On days that I do not work out I still try to get roughly the same but I don't stuff myself with protein if I've missed my target for the day. When bulking I believe it's a combination of the excess cals (From whatever macro) and the high protein that adds the muscle. When cutting it's a good idea to keep the protein high, but maybe be in a 250 cal deficit. I eat chicken, fish, steak etc with a complex carb source and veg. But protein can come from your carb sources too. I eat bread with 8g of protein per slice. That means a chicken sandwich can sometimes be 60g of protein etc with cheese. I eat a yogurt for breakfast with 20g in as well and 1 shake a day.
  • sixxpoint
    sixxpoint Posts: 3,529 Member
    edited May 2015
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    Bizurke51 wrote: »
    sixxpoint wrote: »
    If hitting your daily protein macro seems impossible unless you resort to ton of chicken and whey shakes, then you need to relearn how to eat. Like a previous poster said, it should be quite easy to hit 120 g protein.

    Well it's easy to get to 120, but I've been trying to hit 180 and that's my point. A disparity of 60 grams per day is a lot
    Bizurke51 wrote: »
    sixxpoint wrote: »
    If hitting your daily protein macro seems impossible unless you resort to ton of chicken and whey shakes, then you need to relearn how to eat. Like a previous poster said, it should be quite easy to hit 120 g protein.

    Well it's easy to get to 120, but I've been trying to hit 180 and that's my point. A disparity of 60 grams per day is a lot.

    What is your height, weight, age, gender, and activity level? Are you bulking, maintaining, or cutting?

    You might not need all that protein.

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