How much protein a day to eat? Find out your requirements

Even if your goal is not 50 cm in the paw, you need to look after the protein in your diet. Talk of protein is dominated by muscle, but the body needs it not only there.

Statistics show that many Poles can't tell how much protein they should be eating per day and don't know how much they are actually getting. No more eating in the dark. Together with nutritionist Kuba Pągowski, we will help you count how much protein you need - taking into account your goal and health situation.

See also:

• Whey protein concentrate (WPC)
.
• Whey protein isolate (WPI)
.
• Whey protein hydrolysate (WPH)
.
• Protein-rich products
.
• Protein nutrients
.
• Plant protein
• Casein

Daily protein requirements

The daily requirement for protein ranges from 1 g to 2.2 g per kg of body weight and is dependent on age, health, activity level and body composition goalsand.

Adequate dietary protein is important for the proper functioning of your body. Proteins are essential for many of the processes that occur in the body, such as the production of enzymes and hormones, tissue repair and regulation of metabolism .

By controlling the protein in your diet, you can also 'manipulate' the composition of your physique, i.e. build muscle mass or minimise its loss during reduction .

How much protein do you need per day?

In the table you will find information on how much protein per day you should eat depending on several factors. In some situations your protein requirement increases significantly and there is a reason for this. Find out how much you need.

The recommended minimum amount of protein for the average adult, or 1 g/kg body weight, is the portion a person needs to avoid deficiency. It does not specify the amount needed to improve body composition, that is, for example, to increase muscle relative to body fat.

The requirement of 1 g/kg body weight is therefore the absolute minimum. No one should go lower with their dietary supply of this macronutrient, especially seniors who are at risk of age-related muscle loss (sarcopenia), chronic disease or malnutritionand.

How to calculate protein requirements

The basic formula is:

Your body weight x recommended amount of protein per kg body weight (see table)

Examples:

• A woman with a body weight of 63 kg, training at the gym 2 x per week, who is starting to reduce and wants to lose weight healthily, should eat about 100 g of protein (63 × 1.6).
• A man weighing 86 kg, training at the gym 3 x per week, who wants to build muscle mass, should consume approximately 172 g of protein (86 × 2).
• A healthy senior woman weighing 50 kg, who walks daily, should eat approximately 60 g of protein (50 x 1.2).

And how much do you need? Take a calculator or count in your memory.

How many grams of protein by weight?

On weight it is recommended to consume between 1.8 and 2.2 g of protein per kg of body weight to ensure that the body has the right amount of protein needed for muscle building and regeneration.

When you strength train hard, micro-damage forms in your muscles. The body repairs the damaged fibres by fusing them together, which increases muscle mass and size - and proteins are like bricks in this process, building them up.

Protein is a key part of this process.

Because the body uses protein for many other tasks, it needs to have plenty of it available to take part in energy production, as well as leaving something for the muscles. Therefore, your need for mass increases.

How many grams of protein on a reduction diet?

During a reduction diet, an adequate amount of protein helps to preserve as much muscle mass as possible and can also have the effect of increasing satiety after a meal. It is therefore recommended to consume 1.8-2.4 g/kg body weight.

Some scientific studies suggest even higher intakes - up to 3.1 g/kg body weight for trained individuals. Work suggests that this amount helps athletes (mainly those competing in figure competitions) to retain more muscle mass during reductionand.

During a reduction you lose both body fat and muscle. By keeping an eye on the amount of protein in your diet, you can minimise the loss of valuable meat. However, tailor the amount to suit you and look at the total and components of your diet. It's not an art to get clogged up with a cottage cheese cube, only to be unable to look at it after a week (a colleague told me...).

How much protein for vegans and vegetarians?

Protein from plant foods is not as well absorbed as that of animal originand. In addition, most non-animal foods will not provide you with all the essential amino acids (EAA)and. Therefore, non-meat eaters should eat a variety of foods.

Vegetarians have it somewhat easier, as they eat eggs or dairy products. Vegans, on the other hand, must take special care to ensure that their plate is a composition of different proteins. Protein requirements will be the same as for those on a diet without dietary restrictions.

Coke-vegetarian and coke omnivore need the same amount of protein, although the vegan friend needs to eat more carefully. I have noticed, however, that the further into the vege diet one gets, the better these people do in terms of composing and providing the necessary ingredients.

How much protein in pregnancy?

Pregnancy increases the need for protein, as well as other important nutrients (e.g.  DHA acid or vitamin D). A woman expecting a baby needs to eat for two (not for two) and provide herself with the right amount of protein, as it affects both the health of the mum and the development of the foetusand.

If you are pregnant, eat around 1.1-1.2g protein/kg body weight and ideally this should be protein from a variety of sources - animal but also plant-based. Protein supplements are not recommended during pregnancy - rely on a nutritious diet.

Dietary protein deficiency today mainly affects developing countries, where hunger and nutritional deficiencies are generally prevalent. However, this doesn't mean you don't need to be vigilant during pregnancy - against the odds, it's worth monitoring the amount of protein-rich foods in your diet.

How to break down protein into meals?

Optimally, it is advisable to spread your protein supply over 3-4 meals, and there should be 0.4-0.55 g/kg body weight in each. This will ensure that each of your meals is nutritious and promotes muscle protein synthesis. This is typically 20-40g of protein per meal.

Examples:

• A woman aged 65 years and weighing 60 kg consumes 72 g of protein per day. She eats 4 meals a day and tries to make sure there is about 20 g of protein in each.
• Woman aged 65 and weighing 60 kg.
• A woman aged 35 years and weighing 60 kg who trains at the gym eats 120 g of protein per day. She eats five meals - in four main meals she eats 20-30 g of protein, and in one she puts on a carbohydrate snack.
• A 40 year old man weighing 95kg, strength training and occasional boxing eats 190 protein a day. He eats 3 main meals and 2 snacks, aiming for around 40g of protein per meal.

How to beat protein

Some people find it difficult to eat enough protein. Sometimes the reason is a very high requirement (a friend of mine really suffered when he had to eat 200g) or an aversion to certain protein-rich foods (e.g. vegans). And sometimes, just like that - protein doesn't come in.

What to do then?

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• Check that you are not overdoing it with protein. I know there is a protein craze at the moment, but you only need as little as 1.8g/kg of body weight for effective muscle building - not necessarily 2.5g/kg.
• Get to know all the products rich in protein and add them to your menu. You're sure to find something for you, even on a meat-free diet.
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• Consider a protein supplement. The choice is huge - from whey protein to plant-based. And there are dozens of flavours.
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• Incorporate protein nutrition into your meals - oatmeal, omelettes or desserts.
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Feedback articles:

• Protein-rich foods
.
• Whey protein concentrate (WPC)
.
• Whey protein isolate (WPI)
.
• Whey protein hydrolysate (WPH)
.
• Protein nutrient
• Plant protein
.

Protein bioavailability in meals

Till now there is a circulating misconception that the body will not assimilate more than 30g of protein at once. Really - some people claim that you will eat 40g and that 10g will go to waste. It will go English out of the body, convinced of its uselessness.

This statement may have been derived from a 1950s study in which increased urinary nitrogen loss was observed with higher protein intakeand. This was thought to mean that extra protein was being 'wasted'. Fortunately, this is not true.

In practice, muscle protein synthesis (MPS) reaches its maximum level when you provide yourself with approximately  20-30 grams of protein per serving, and larger amounts will simply be used by the body for many other processes, such as energy or hormone productionand.

Think about it - restricting protein uptake makes no evolutionary sense. Your body is more than happy to use protein to... simply function properly. Excess protein can also be converted to urea and removed from the body.

Role of protein in the body

Proteins affect many processes in your bodyand:

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• promote tissue growth and repair,
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• participate in the production of hormones and enzymes,
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• strengthen the immune system,
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• are a source of energy,
• are a source of energy.
• regulate metabolic processes (e.g. digestion),
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• transport components in the body (e.g. oxygen to cells),
.

See also:

• Omega-3 in the diet of athletes
.
• Protein nutrition
• Collagen for athletes
• Creatine
• Arginine
• Citrulline
• Caffeine
• Cordyceps
• Maca
• Glutamine

Summary