You’ve probably already heard about the power of protein. This is a magical macronutrient that helps you stay full and maintain muscle mass even as you lose weight. And you’re probably wondering, “How much protein do I need?” Well, we can help you figure it out.
of my fitness pal The Protein Calculator is a simple, easy-to-use tool designed to help you determine your approximate daily protein needs based on your unique lifestyle and health goals.
How to use MyFitnessPal Protein Calculator
This tool takes some of the guesswork out of how much protein you should aim for. All you need to do is enter some basic information about yourself, such as:
- year: Protein needs vary with age, especially since muscle mass naturally decreases over time.
- sex: Although this is just one consideration, men and women tend to have different protein needs.
- Weight: Your weight helps determine your protein needs. It directly affects the amount your body needs for maintenance and growth.
- Activity level: Whether you’re sedentary or very active, your activity level plays a big role in determining how much protein your body uses.
- Fitness goals: Whether your goal is to lose weight, build muscle, or maintain your current health, the calculator will adjust its recommendations accordingly.
Protein is essential for building and repairing tissue, producing enzymes and hormones, and maintaining muscle mass. Our calculator uses evidence-based guidelines to ensure your protein intake doesn’t exceed your goals (1).
However, as always, recommendations are just guidelines provided for your reference. Always consult your doctor or registered dietitian for personalized advice or if you have a medical condition.
Recommended daily intake (RDA) of protein
The RDA for protein is 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight for most adults. However, this amount is minimum The amount needed to support basic body functions and prevent muscle loss (7).
The amount of RDA may not be sufficient to meet the needs of active people or those with specific fitness goals. The amount of protein needed to gain muscle or maintain muscle mass is another issue.
Protein intake guidelines
Other organizations that issue recommendations. Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and International Sports Nutrition SocietyIt is recommended to consume 1.2 to 2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. (1)
A person weighing 150 pounds would consume between 82 and 136 grams of protein per day. Plug your numbers into the calculator to better understand the protein goals that are right for you.
How to calculate dietary protein intake
Your protein goal for the day may seem like a high number when you first look at it. It is effective to work towards that goal with each meal and snack.
Here are two great strategies for figuring out how much protein is in each meal.
Read the nutrition facts label
The nutrition label lists the protein content per serving. Multiply this number by the number of servings you consume to calculate your total protein intake from packaged foods.
Use MyFitnessPal
and my fitness palprotein tracking is easy. Just log your meals in the app and it will calculate your daily protein intake to help you reach your goals.
High protein food sources
Many everyday foods are rich in protein. Here are some of the most common foods to help you reach your protein and overall nutrition goals.
Risk of insufficient or excessive protein intake
Protein is necessary for every cell in our body. Without it, muscle growth, development, and tissue repair cannot occur properly (2).
But there can be too much of a good thing. When you’re focused on eating protein, other nutritious foods can become a priority. “It’s becoming increasingly difficult to include all food groups, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to have variety and structure in your diet, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to balance your carbohydrate and fat needs. ,” says Stephanie Nelson, lead nutrition scientist at MyFitnessPal.
Striking the right balance is important to avoid these problems while optimizing your health.
Protein Calculation FAQ
Use the MyFitnessPal protein calculator to enter your weight, age, activity level, and goals.
Build your meals around protein-rich foods, such as eggs for breakfast, grilled chicken for lunch, and stir-fried tofu for dinner.
Most people benefit from consuming 1.2 to 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight during weight loss (1).
Building new muscle and maintaining muscle mass requires a positive balance of muscle proteins. Research shows that combining resistance exercise with protein consumption stimulates muscle protein synthesis (muscle growth) (3).
This means that it’s important to consume the right amount of protein, not only to gain muscle through weightlifting, but also to maintain your current muscle mass. Technically, the body can build muscle from stored amino acids, but it’s not ideal and hasn’t been proven to be very effective, so protein intake recommendations for physically active people is higher than that of sedentary people (4).
Not consuming enough protein is not ideal, but consuming too much protein can also have negative effects. Because the kidneys filter byproducts of ingested protein, people with altered kidney function should avoid consuming large amounts of protein. Water is also needed to break down and excrete these byproducts, so consuming too much protein can affect your hydration status (5).
Remember that the source of protein is just as important as the amount. Research shows that eating too much red and processed meat can increase your overall risk of death. You may want to choose protein sources more often, such as fish, poultry, nuts, legumes, and low-fat dairy products (6).
Additional resources to learn more
- A basic guide to protein for optimal health
- Carbohydrate, protein and fat ratios: the role of macronutrients in weight loss
- free macro calculator
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