PROTEIN.... HOW MANY GRAMS A DAY TO YOU EAT?

Since I weigh 130 lbs my goal is 130 g. Definitely try to go over if possible.

Phrick wrote: »

nordlead2005 wrote: »

Need2Exerc1se wrote: »

mom2kpr wrote: »

Need2Exerc1se wrote: »

prettywingss04 wrote: »

0.8g should be the minimum (multiplied by your weight). This minimum is to ensure that while you losing weight, you are not losing muscle mass.
0.8g is currently what I do. I will increase to 1g when I'm on my maintenance/goal weight.

0.8g x my weight? I get about half that. Where did that minimum come from? Is it a medical thing?

The recommended is .8g - 1.6g (strength training &/or endurance) per weight in kg (wt/2.2). So you're probably pretty close to the min requirement. If you are weight training you may want to increase it to 1g - 1.2g per kg.

Thanks! Where does that recommendation come from? Is the only issue muscle mass?

http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/DRI/DRI_Energy/energy_full_report.pdf

usda.gov wrote:

The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA)
for both men and women is 0.80 g of good quality protein/kg
body weight/d and is based on careful analyses of available nitrogen
balance studies.

Really??????? Not questioning the validity of the USDA quote above, but for me that would only be 52g/day needed (weight 144 lbs / 65 kg, * 0.8). It just seems so low! I'd be ravenous LOL

Realize that the USDA is going for average intake. If your goal is muscle gain, then you'll want to increase your protein intake. Some studies have said you need as much as 1g/lb (or 2.2g/kg) for optimal muscle building.

I'm working on a recomp and was told by my coach to eat 1g per lb of body weight. I get in anywhere from 120-150g per day. My average last week was 138g. I can naturally eat about 100g per day, so the extra jump I have to do to get more requires a bit of work especially to stay within the calorie goals.

Need2Exerc1se wrote: »

yarwell wrote: »

Another way of looking at it is that the Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Range is 10-35% of calories for protein. So at 3000 calories that's up to about 250 grams/day, at 1200 it's about 100 grams as a ceiling.

http://fnic.nal.usda.gov/fnic/interactiveDRI/ puts me at 65 grams.

Wow, that put me at 246-340g of carbs. That's a lot of carbs! And only 59 protein.

And the thing is, if I increased by activity level the only thing that went up was carbs. Protein, fat, fiber all stayed the same. So, with more activity I should add more low fiber carbs?

There are two things going on here. 1st, they have you pinned at 0.8g/kg for protein, which only leaves fat and carbs as the variables. 2nd, a high fat is considered bad, so they give you a range from minimum to maximum. That leaves only carbs as the only real variable when it comes to daily energy needs. As for fiber, well, too much fiber can lead to bad side affects, so yeah, that leaves only low fiber carbs.

Again, USDA is calculating for average people. For most people the recommendation works. If you are trying to gain muscle you would probably want to increase protein and decrease carbs. Some people may need more/less fiber to have good digestion. etc...

nordlead2005 wrote: »

Need2Exerc1se wrote: »

yarwell wrote: »

Another way of looking at it is that the Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Range is 10-35% of calories for protein. So at 3000 calories that's up to about 250 grams/day, at 1200 it's about 100 grams as a ceiling.

http://fnic.nal.usda.gov/fnic/interactiveDRI/ puts me at 65 grams.

Wow, that put me at 246-340g of carbs. That's a lot of carbs! And only 59 protein.

And the thing is, if I increased by activity level the only thing that went up was carbs. Protein, fat, fiber all stayed the same. So, with more activity I should add more low fiber carbs?

There are two things going on here. 1st, they have you pinned at 0.8g/kg for protein, which only leaves fat and carbs as the variables. 2nd, a high fat is considered bad, so they give you a range from minimum to maximum. That leaves only carbs as the only real variable when it comes to daily energy needs. As for fiber, well, too much fiber can lead to bad side affects, so yeah, that leaves only low fiber carbs.

Again, USDA is calculating for average people. For most people the recommendation works. If you are trying to gain muscle you would probably want to increase protein and decrease carbs. Some people may need more/less fiber to have good digestion. etc...

I'm not trying to gain muscle, but I still think the protein and fat are too low. But I also shoot for 45g of fiber per day.

I shoot for 125g on days with running *and* CrossFit. I go for 100g on days with just running, or just CrossFit. Sometimes I totally eff up, but most of the time, hopefully, I don't.

In the last 90 days, I've eaten between 26g and 86g of protein. My goal is 72.
http://fnic.nal.usda.gov/fnic/interactiveDRI/ gave me a recommendation of 56 g of protein.

My protein intake averages about 70 g/day. I eat 100+ on the thee days that I work out and then at least 50 on the other days.

I honestly have no idea how you guys are getting so high on protein. If I REALLY try, I just about reach 100g. Are you all drinking protein shakes or eating meat with every meal? I don't understand. >_<

I have 2 shakes a day but get around 200g from food....beef, chicken, seafood, mostly lower fat options

You guys are killing it with protein! My daily goal is 80 g/day. I try to get closer to 100 but that's very difficult for me. I'm not a vegetarian but tend to prefer more carby foods, so i'm usually happy if I can get past 80. I eat quite a bit of greek yogurt and eggs and have meat in at least 2 meals a day usually but still struggle to get enough.

yeahfatty wrote: »

I honestly have no idea how you guys are getting so high on protein. If I REALLY try, I just about reach 100g. Are you all drinking protein shakes or eating meat with every meal? I don't understand. >_<

I eat a significant source of protein with every meal. For breakfast that often means eggs+dairy, but commonly might include meat instead of the dairy (usually smoked salmon, but last week it was leftover chicken and this week I have some bacon from a farm I've been eating). When I have just oatmeal, fruit, and veggies, I will add protein powder to the oatmeal as I think it's more filling that way. If I don't have meat with lunch or dinner I'll make sure it includes a good source of protein like lentils or tofu and often supplement that with some dairy (cottage cheese or greek yogurt).

Meat includes fish/seafood, and I do eat a lot of that.

Getting protein and vegetables at all meals is my main nutrition goal.

235 grams. I take 2 protein shakes a day (27 grams each) which leaves me with 181 grams to consume.

I eat 5 meals a day with about 4oz of meat per meal (this generally is 20-24 grams of protein with varying levels of fat).

If you are struggling to get protein in your diet try using ground meats. The prep is simple and it mixes well with any side dish.

It's interesting to see how much the answers actually vary. And when you try to find recommended amounts on the net, the recommendations vary almost as much, it seems crazy to me that the #'s or %'s would vary sooooooo much. MFP set me up at 20% of 1200 calories, or 60 grams per day. I felt that was too low & bumped it up to 30% & 90 grams which I still try to go over more often than not.

I try for 150+