Calculate your daily protein needs by body weight, training intensity, and goal. Backed by current sports nutrition research.
Spread your target across 3-4 meals of —g each for optimal muscle protein synthesis.
The protein recommendations come from the current sports nutrition literature (Phillips, Helms, Schoenfeld, ISSN position stands 2017–2024). Your daily target is calculated as grams per kilogram of body weight, modified by your goal and training load.
| Goal | Minimum (g/kg) | Target (g/kg) | Upper (g/kg) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maintenance | 0.8 | 1.2 | 1.6 |
| Muscle gain | 1.6 | 2.0 | 2.4 |
| Fat loss (preserve muscle) | 2.0 | 2.3 | 2.6 |
| Strength / powerlifting | 1.6 | 1.8 | 2.2 |
| Endurance training | 1.4 | 1.6 | 1.8 |
Training frequency adds a small adjustment — more frequent training raises baseline protein needs by 10-20%.
Of the three macros — protein, carbs, fat — protein is the only one your body can't produce from the other two. Carbs and fat can interconvert in metabolism, but the amino acids that make up muscle, enzymes, and connective tissue have to come from food.
The research consensus for active adults is 1.6-2.2 g/kg (0.73-1.0 g/lb) of body weight. Sedentary adults need ~0.8 g/kg as a minimum. Lifters cutting calories should aim higher to preserve muscle.
For healthy adults with normal kidney function, intakes up to 3.0 g/kg are well-tolerated in research. Diminishing returns for muscle building start around 2.2 g/kg.
Yes. Combine incomplete plant proteins (rice, beans, nuts) throughout the day to cover all essential amino acids. Vegan lifters often aim 10-15% higher to account for lower bioavailability.
Total daily intake matters most. The "anabolic window" is largely a myth. Splitting protein into 3-5 meals of 25-50g supports muscle protein synthesis throughout the day.
Yes — whey, casein, and plant protein supplements all count toward your daily total. They're essentially convenient food.
Logging protein every day is the bottleneck most lifters hit. PRPath solves it two ways: