Getting Enough Protein Per day? Too Much? Too Little?

The key is to look at your daily activities and make the proper adjustments. I’ve also uploaded a personalized daily quota for carbs, proteins, fats and calories for various bodytypes and goals for your benefit!

How much protein should you eat?

The current craze surrounds protein supplements. Avoid the hype and learn the truth behind how much protein you should eat.

Let’s start with assuming an inactive lifestyle. Well, the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for a sedentary individual is about 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight. Since the U.S. has yet to adopt the metric system, let’s work through this conversion…

There are 2.2 pounds in a kilogram. Let’s say you’re 200 lbs…

200 lbs / 2.2 lbs (per kg) = 90.9 kg

So how much protein should you be eating?

90.9 kg x 0.8 g/kg = 72.7 g of protein

Basically, if you live a fairly sedentary lifestyle with little activity and much sitting, you should be taking in about 73 grams of protein daily. Simple!

Now, what if you’re on a strength training regimen? In this case, it’s often necessary to take in about twice as much protein as the RDA. Caution! Remember that eating too much protein will slow your strength training goals and can be detrimental to your health!



It is, however, realistic to take in between 1.4 and 1.8 g of protein per kg of body weight when following a weight training program. Remember that you only need enough protein to repair the damaged muscle fibers. Anything in excess will be excreted in the urine or stored as fat. Then again, not getting enough protein can result in muscle wasting and decreased muscle growth!

Let’s say you’re 200 lbs again, but this time you’re an avid gym-goer. Using the conversion above, a 200 pound individual is about 90.9 kg. How much protein per day? Let’s do the conversion…

90.9 kg x 1.4 g/kg = 127 g of protein on the low end

90.9 kg x 1.8 g/kg = 162 g of protein on the high end

In other words, if you follow a legitimate workout program, it’s usually necessary for a 200 lb individual to take in between 127 and 162 g of protein per day to aid in repairing and rebuilding damaged muscle.

It’s not necessary to do this conversion all the time, however. Check out the chart of daily quotas for fats, carbohydrates and protein for both weight loss and weight gain (as in a gain in muscle mass) for different body types.

Where to get your protein

However, if you’re a strict vegetarian, you may need to vary your sources and possibly take a protein supplement. Whatever the case, be sure to get all your essential amino acids and proteins!

What are your thoughts on protein and protein supplements?

Let's hear your thoughts and comments!

Click below to see contributions from other visitors to this page...