grams of protein

farmgirlsuz
farmgirlsuz Posts: 351 Member
edited October 6 in Food and Nutrition
I have seen conflicting guidelines and was wondering if someone could point me in the right direction.

Concerning grams of protein per day. Should I aim for 1 gram per pound of lean body mass or 1 gram per pound of body weight? Or does it really matter and more is better?

Thanks!

Replies

  • rhce40
    rhce40 Posts: 201 Member
    It really depends on what kind and how much exercise you are doing. If it is a very intense workout and you are breaking down a lot of muscle then you obviously need more protein. I have heard between 0.5 to 1 gram per pound of body weight. Although for me personally I don't think I have gone much over .5 gram per pound even while I was doing Insanity. I was always scared to because I learned in high school that unused protein gets converted to fat (not sure if that is true or not though).
  • ashnm88
    ashnm88 Posts: 748
    I've read that around 0.36g per pound you weigh. If weight lifting I believe its around 1g per pound you weigh.

    I believe this is where I read it.

    http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=50900
  • AdAstra47
    AdAstra47 Posts: 823 Member
    Depends on your goal. If you're maintaining your weight and trying to build muscle, you can figure on 1g protein per lb of lean muscle mass. But if you're trying to lose weight on a lower-carb higher-protein regimen, you should try to eat 1g protein per pound of weight, just use your total weight.

    I've been eating my weight in protein for eight months now: started out at 300 lb, so I was eating at least 50g protein at each meal & snack, 6x per day. Now I'm down to 250. :happy:

    FYI, the amount recommended by MFP and by the US RDA is really pretty low. It's the minimum amount you need to maintain your health if you're just sitting around. But extra protein is needed if you're doing any kind of exercise at all, because it's not just being burned as energy, it's also being used to repair & maintain your muscles.

    Hope this helps clarify!
  • farmgirlsuz
    farmgirlsuz Posts: 351 Member
    I have seen conflicting guidelines and was wondering if someone could point me in the right direction.

    Concerning grams of protein per day. Should I aim for 1 gram per pound of lean body mass or 1 gram per pound of body weight? Or does it really matter and more is better?

    Thanks!

    I guess I didn't state that clearly enough. I am aware of need to eat the protein but I just need to know which WEIGHT is used for the minimum amount of protein to eat.

    Is it 1 gram per pound of LEAN BODY MASS or 1 gram per pound of STRAIGHT BODY WEIGHT.

    And really what would one eat to get 50 grams of protein per MEAL??? Holy COW!
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
    And really what would one eat to get 50 grams of protein per MEAL??? Holy COW!

    It's not as hard as you might think. I personally don't have my goal set nearly that high, but I do take in over 150g of protein per day over 5 meals. If my calorie goal were higher, all I'd do is increase portion sizes (eat bigger pieces of lean meat, use 2 scoops of protein powder, etc).

    As for the original question, you are going to get lots of opposing viewpoints on that. There is nothing really set in stone anyway. Play with things until you find what's right for you. Some people whine at me about the high amount of protein that I eat (cause it's between 1-1.5 g of total weight that I consume) but that is what works for me. Eating just 1 gram per lean body weight would give me too many carbs and fat which are triggers for me to overeat. So I found what works for me and it is not causing any issues and hasn't for years.
  • CharlieLopez2005
    CharlieLopez2005 Posts: 114
    I guess I didn't state that clearly enough. I am aware of need to eat the protein but I just need to know which WEIGHT is used for the minimum amount of protein to eat.

    Is it 1 gram per pound of LEAN BODY MASS or 1 gram per pound of STRAIGHT BODY WEIGHT.

    And really what would one eat to get 50 grams of protein per MEAL??? Holy COW!

    Protein shakes or lots of meat, like tuna, are ways to get 50g protein easy into one meal. As far as lean body mass versus straight body mass, I'm not sure. Protein has many important biological functions within the body beyond muscle repair but not all of one's body weight requires protein (and excess, unused protein in the body will eventually convert to stored fat).

    As long as you're not suffering from any protein deficiencies (i.e. lack of essential amino acids), I guess the amount (and kind) of protein intake is really dependent on what you're trying to accomplish.

    My personal trainer always recommends what seems like an arbitrary number to me, but when I ask why, I never really get a good answer myself. It's what they read off of a book or magazine or textbook somewhere.
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
    I have seen conflicting guidelines and was wondering if someone could point me in the right direction.

    Concerning grams of protein per day. Should I aim for 1 gram per pound of lean body mass or 1 gram per pound of body weight? Or does it really matter and more is better?

    Thanks!

    I guess I didn't state that clearly enough. I am aware of need to eat the protein but I just need to know which WEIGHT is used for the minimum amount of protein to eat.

    Is it 1 gram per pound of LEAN BODY MASS or 1 gram per pound of STRAIGHT BODY WEIGHT.

    And really what would one eat to get 50 grams of protein per MEAL??? Holy COW!

    usually people throw out 1g per lb bw since most people have no accurate reading of their bf% and it's easy to remember, personally anywhere from 1-1.5g of protein per lb of lbm should be fine. you'd prob wan to be closer to 1.5g if you were heavily engaging in resistance training

    and 50g of pro per meal is a cake walk, i usually get close to 200g in 2 meals
  • Salpica
    Salpica Posts: 205 Member
    I have seen conflicting guidelines and was wondering if someone could point me in the right direction.

    Concerning grams of protein per day. Should I aim for 1 gram per pound of lean body mass or 1 gram per pound of body weight? Or does it really matter and more is better?

    Thanks!

    I guess I didn't state that clearly enough. I am aware of need to eat the protein but I just need to know which WEIGHT is used for the minimum amount of protein to eat.

    Is it 1 gram per pound of LEAN BODY MASS or 1 gram per pound of STRAIGHT BODY WEIGHT.

    And really what would one eat to get 50 grams of protein per MEAL??? Holy COW!

    usually people throw out 1g per lb bw since most people have no accurate reading of their bf% and it's easy to remember, personally anywhere from 1-1.5g of protein per lb of lbm should be fine. you'd prob wan to be closer to 1.5g if you were heavily engaging in resistance training

    and 50g of pro per meal is a cake walk, i usually get close to 200g in 2 meals

    That's because you eat babies..........and ICE CREAM!
  • IvoryParchment
    IvoryParchment Posts: 651 Member
    I always heard 1 gram protein per kilogram of body weight (total), but as low as 0.7 grams/kg if it is all high-quality protein (i.e., you have balanced the amino acids so it is 100% available. Animal proteins already have amino acids in the proportions humans need, but vegetable proteins are not adequate unless you get them from complementary sources, like legumes+grains)
  • AdAstra47
    AdAstra47 Posts: 823 Member
    I guess I wasn't clear enough in my first post: how much protein depends on your goals.

    If you are just maintaining your weight, you should eat at least as much as the US RDA / MDF guidelines recommend.

    If you are maintaining your weight but trying to build muscle / working out a lot, you should eat as much protein in grams per day as your lean body mass in pounds. (Though other posters were correct that sometimes this is a difficult number to accurately gauge.)

    If you are trying to lose weight, you should eat as much protein in grams per day as your total body weight in pounds.

    Why eat more if you're losing weight? Because the chemical reaction that burns fatty acids also requires amino acids (protein) in order to work. It's like a fire: doesn't matter how much fuel you have or how hot it gets, you can't build a fire in an airless room, because it also needs oxygen in order to burn. Same with fat-burning: the reaction requires protein. You burn roughly one part protein for three parts fat, so you need to be careful to eat enough protein or else your body will harvest it from your muscles instead.

    Hope that makes sense.
  • irishdad74
    irishdad74 Posts: 6 Member
    if you are lifting weights I heard of people eating 1.5 per pound of weight
  • maemiller
    maemiller Posts: 439 Member
    depending on your workouts, 1 gram per gram of body wgt, more if youre weight lifting. BUT, i was told not to go overboard on excessing protein. Too much protien can make you gain weight

    Example is the Atkins diet where all you ate was protien. People lost weight, but when they went back to a 'normal' diet, gained their weight back again.

    hope that helps
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