How much protein do I need? ohh! I asked this question to myself so many times, saw a lot of YouTube videos, read many articles, and asked a lot of friends. Every answer was different from each other, but the most satisfying answer I got was that I need around 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, which means that a person weighing 70 kilograms (154 pounds) would need around 56 grams of protein per day.
But this doesn’t satisfy me Every person is different; every person’s goal is different; every person’s physical level or daily activity is different. Do we have a concrete answer to this one No, not yet, but worry not.
This article is specifically focused on the individual level; no matter what your age, gender, physical level, or daily activity, in the end you’ll get the exact number of grams of protein you need in a day. Stay with us and let’s begin.
What is whey protein?
Almost everyone in 2023 knows what whey protein is, but if you don’t, I’ll explain in brief: whey protein is the by-product of cow’s milk. The whey protein is obtained during the cheesemaking process and goes through further filtration as well.
If you want to know in detail what whey protein is and how it is obtained, then check out the detailed post dedicated only to whey protein.
How much protein do I need in a day?
Well, the question all of you are curious about is: how much whey protein do I need in a day? The answer to this question is a little complex, but I’ll try to explain it as easily as I can.
How much protein I need in a day depends on a lot of factors, like:
- Age
- Gender
- Daily physical activity
- fitness goal
- health status
Age
One of the factors influencing your protein intake is your age; during infancy, the baby gets protein through the mother’s milk.
As he enters the child stage between the ages of 5 and 12, his motor skills are developing faster, and his brain is developing the most at this stage. He needs protein for growth, but not too much.
When a child enters the teenage stage, his protein requirement rises; now he needs more protein as his hormones are changing and his body is developing the most.
An adult’s protein requirement is even higher than that of a teenage kid because, once he starts working, his physical and mental stress rises, so he needs more protein to recover his body and be healthy.
As an adult becomes a middle-aged adult, his protein requirement is still good but is on the slight decline because the increase in age has a direct relationship with loss of appetite.
As for an old person, the protein intake requirement is not so high. First, his appetite will not be good; he can’t eat much, and second, his body will not grow anymore, which means he doesn’t need much protein; he just needs enough protein to maintain his current state or to slow down the loss of muscle.
Gender
Protein intake is different for men and women because a man’s body is bigger and his metabolism is faster than a woman’s. Because of this, a man needs more calories per day than a woman, so a man needs more protein than a woman.
A woman has a smaller body, a lower metabolic rate, and more fat compared to a man, so they burn fewer calories than a man, but still they need to focus on their protein intake for good bone health and the maintenance of muscle.
Daily Physical Activity
This is the most important part, I believe, because everyone’s physical activity is different from one another, and everyone needs to fulfill his or her nutrition requirements, whether you have a desk job or are an athlete.
It’s important that you’re clearly aware of your daily calorie expenditure in order to know the exact amount of protein intake you want in a day.
Health Status
You should be aware of your health status if you want to know how much protein I need in a day. Women who are pregnant need more protein than other women so that the baby’s body can grow properly. People who have broken bones or torn muscles also need more protein to heal faster.
On the other hand, a person with liver or kidney disease cannot consume too much protein because he or she will not be able to digest it as well as a normal, healthy person can.
Here’s the protein intake calculator
you can use this to calculate how much protein you need in a day. This calculator is not 100% accurate, but it’ll give you a reference range of your protein intake requirements.
The exact number is only known to you; use this calculator as a guide. be aware of your health status, your daily physical activity, your gender, and your age.
[fcp-protein-intake-calculator]
How much protein do I need to build muscle?
The answer to this question is very complex and depends on each individual. As I told you earlier, make sure you’re aware of the factors that affect protein intake requirements. But let me explain it to you by taking one example:
Suppose you’re a 20 year old adult who is a skinny guy whose height is 180cm and whose weight is 136 pounds and wants to gain muscle and weight, but you wonder in order to gain muscle how much protein you need in a day.
First, let’s calculate how many calories you need in a day in order to improve your overall body composition.
multiply your weight in pounds by 11.5
136*11.5 = 1564. This is your BMR (basal metabolic rate). In simple language, it means you’ll burn this many calories in a day if you do nothing in a day.
Now multiply 1564 by your daily activity level.
- Lightly active (light exercise 1–3 days/week): x 1.2
- Moderately active (moderate exercise 6–7 days/week): x 1.4
- Very active (hard exercise 6–7 days/week): x 1.6
- Extra active (extra-hard exercise 6–7 days/week): x 1.8
- Super active (extra-hard exercise 6–7 days/week and a physical job): x 1.9
Like if you exercise moderately, then multiply 1564 by 1.4
then you’ll get 2189 kcal, which is your maintenance caloric intake.
Now, if you want to gain weight, multiply 2189 by 1.1, and you’ll get 2407 kcal a day to gain weight.
In order to gain muscle, make sure you’re getting 35% of your total calories from protein.
meaning 35% of 2407 is 722/kcal, and 1 gram of protein is 4/kcal, so now divide 722 by 4, then you’ll get
180 grams of protein a day.
By this method, a guy who is 20 years old, is 180 cm tall, weighs 136 pounds, and exercises 3-5 times a day needs 180 grams of protein a day to build muscle.
How much protein do I need to lose weight?
The answer to this is also very complex, but to know exactly, we need to use the same method as we used above with the example. You just need to make a slight decrease of 250–500 kcal from your maintenance calories to lose weight and try to get 20–30% protein from your overall calories, remember that 1 gram of protein is equal to 4 kcal.
How much protein do I need after my workout?
This period after a workout is known as the “anabolic window” and is perfect timing for consuming protein. In this time frame, you can add a high carb and a protein rich food to your whey protein shake in order to maximize your gains and recovery. recommendations are that you can consume 15–30 grams of protein per meal.
So we recommend you consume 20–30 grams of protein after working out with some carbs in order to get maximum benefits.
Free Calorie Calculator
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Conclusion
There are many general recommendations for daily protein intake, one of which is that you need 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. However, if you want to know the exact number of grams of protein you need based on your age, gender, physical activity level, and health status, this post is for you. To grow muscle, you need 35% of your entire daily calorie intake from protein, and to lose weight, you need to go into a 200-500 calorie deficit while keeping protein at 20–30% of your total daily calorie intake.
I hope you learned how much protein you need in a day after reading this post, but if you want to learn more about nutrition, please visit our website at thesigmafitness.com for more knowledgeable posts like this.
References
“Are You Getting Too Much Protein?” Mayo Clinic Health System, 16 Nov. 2022, www.mayoclinichealthsystem.org/hometown-health/speaking-of-health/are-you-getting-too-much-protein.
“Healthy Weight-Gain Meal Plan.” EatingWell, 16 Nov. 2022, www.eatingwell.com/article/2060706/healthy-weight-gain-meal-plan.
Barrett, Holland &. “Your Guide to Basal Metabolic Rate | Holland and Barrett.” Your Guide to Basal Metabolic Rate | Holland & Barrett, 13 June 2022, www.hollandandbarrett.com/the-health-hub/weight-management/fitness/exercise/what-is-bmr/#:~:text=Men’s%20BMR%20tends%20to%20be,the%20day%20at%20complete%20rest.
