How much protein?

How much protein should you get daily? I heard 1 gram per pound and then Ive heard half your body weight??

In general or as part of a muscle building regimen? In general, not nearly that much would be needed, but 1 gram per pound could be about right if you're trying to put on some mass. Just keep in mind that too much protein in your diet can have side effects as well.

Depends on how big you are and how much you're working out, too. If you're doing a large strength and size building routine I've seen nutritionists put their guys on a 150% of body weight protein intake. So, if you weigh 200 lbs. you'll be taking in 300g of Protein a day. Personally I think that's a little high, but in those cases it was almost always collegiate athletes with plenty of muscle mass to assimilate the protein. We're talking hammer throwers and football players here.

Also keep in mind that quality of protein plays a large factor, and you're going to be a regular fart and turd factory if you're taking in that much protein. The amount of farts and/or excrement you're letting out is a good gauge of how much you're assimilating compared to how much you're wasting. Get with a certified personal trainer (preferably one with nutritionist qualifications) at your gym if you can. He can tell you a lot more than we can since he'll be able to monitor your progress and will have a much clearer picture of you in person.

ok i usually drink a shake in the am after ahalf hour cardio workout and one at night after a body weight routine i do and its 52 grams a shake

I'm looking for more lean muscle than mass

From what I've studied, the average American consumes 2 to 4 more protein than what is recommended for a normal person.

Although active athletes should probably consume more protein than most, 2 to 4 times more is a little extreme.

The RDA for protein intake is .35 g per pound of body weight. Since protein use is increased from extensive training and recovery, Although the jury is still out about how much protein athletes need, I think it would be safe to double the RDA #s for people who spend a lot of time performing resistance or endurance training.

Hope this helps and look forward to hearing about your progress.

0.8- 1.2 per grams per KG of boyweight a day.
eg 88Kg man needs 88g protein per day ish

more active people may need up to 2.0 grams per Kilo.

typical consumption of a normal person is 1.5g of protein per Kg of body weight.
the suggested amount of protein for a person doing intense physical training is a range from1.2-1.8 g per Kg of body weight. these numbers come straight out of my exercise physiology text book so i think they're pretty reliable. if you take in excess protein your body is just going to get rid of it. no need to go crazy on your protein intake. that's why most of these protein shakes and diets are a waste of time and money.

There really is no definitive answer. Why? Different people are different. Different protein sources are digested and absorbed differently. Also, many other foods also contain protein.

Find sources and amounts that work for you by experimentation.

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Posted by Jackelope

Depends on how big you are and how much you're working out, too. If you're doing a large strength and size building routine I've seen nutritionists put their guys on a 150% of body weight protein intake. So, if you weigh 200 lbs. you'll be taking in 300g of Protein a day. Personally I think that's a little high, but in those cases it was almost always collegiate athletes with plenty of muscle mass to assimilate the protein. We're talking hammer throwers and football players here.

Also keep in mind that quality of protein plays a large factor, and you're going to be a regular fart and turd factory if you're taking in that much protein. The amount of farts and/or excrement you're letting out is a good gauge of how much you're assimilating compared to how much you're wasting. Get with a certified personal trainer (preferably one with nutritionist qualifications) at your gym if you can. He can tell you a lot more than we can since he'll be able to monitor your progress and will have a much clearer picture of you in person.

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Not much to add that that...Jacklope is dead in what he is saying.

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Posted by telnights

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Posted by Jackelope

Depends on how big you are and how much you're working out, too. If you're doing a large strength and size building routine I've seen nutritionists put their guys on a 150% of body weight protein intake. So, if you weigh 200 lbs. you'll be taking in 300g of Protein a day. Personally I think that's a little high, but in those cases it was almost always collegiate athletes with plenty of muscle mass to assimilate the protein. We're talking hammer throwers and football players here.

Also keep in mind that quality of protein plays a large factor, and you're going to be a regular fart and turd factory if you're taking in that much protein. The amount of farts and/or excrement you're letting out is a good gauge of how much you're assimilating compared to how much you're wasting. Get with a certified personal trainer (preferably one with nutritionist qualifications) at your gym if you can. He can tell you a lot more than we can since he'll be able to monitor your progress and will have a much clearer picture of you in person.

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Not much to add that that...Jacklope is dead in what he is saying.

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Few things to add, is to look into the diff types of proteins. Certain mixes / blends get absorbed differently. Some are fast (IE Whey) Some take a while (IE Casein). Each with its own benfits. Tons of diff things you can look at.

Best info, would be best to monitor your food intake for a two weeks. See what type of breakdown you have protein / carb / fat. If you are far from your goals you might need to up your protein 100 grams and drink your shakes accordingly.

If you are going massive muscle you want high protein to carb / fat ratio. If you are trying to just tone keep them pretty balanced, and go with a bit more expensive protein such as casein, as they take longer to get absorbed. Letting you feel fuller throughout the day.

Its your body, you know it best. Just try and do what it is saying and or reacting to the best ability you can.

Hope this helps.

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Posted by Jackelope

Depends on how big you are and how much you're working out, too. If you're doing a large strength and size building routine I've seen nutritionists put their guys on a 150% of body weight protein intake. So, if you weigh 200 lbs. you'll be taking in 300g of Protein a day. Personally I think that's a little high, but in those cases it was almost always collegiate athletes with plenty of muscle mass to assimilate the protein. We're talking hammer throwers and football players here.

Also keep in mind that quality of protein plays a large factor, and you're going to be a regular fart and turd factory if you're taking in that much protein. The amount of farts and/or excrement you're letting out is a good gauge of how much you're assimilating compared to how much you're wasting. Get with a certified personal trainer (preferably one with nutritionist qualifications) at your gym if you can. He can tell you a lot more than we can since he'll be able to monitor your progress and will have a much clearer picture of you in person.

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This is an awesome post, personally i take about 1g per lbs of body weight. I do workout at the gym and do a lot of martial arts as well.

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Posted by Jackelope

The amount of farts and/or excrement you're letting out is a good gauge of how much you're assimilating compared to how much you're wasting.

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How is this necessarily the case? There are a lot of other foods that increase the volume and frequency of bowel movements so I don't think this can be used as a gauge for efficient protein usage.

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Posted by Rush

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Posted by Jackelope

The amount of farts and/or excrement you're letting out is a good gauge of how much you're assimilating compared to how much you're wasting.

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How is this necessarily the case? There are a lot of other foods that increase the volume and frequency of bowel movements so I don't think this can be used as a gauge for efficient protein usage.

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Well I couldn't speak on that with any level of scientific expertise outside of my own personal experiences and something that seems to be universally true throughout the weight lifting/protein assimilating world. Which is why I suggested that the OP see someone with actual nutritionist qualifications about the situation.

That being said I have taken several collegiate courses and attained a young lifetime's worth of exercise experience upon which to base my statement.

Speaking completely based on speculation and nothing more I would suspect that maybe the nitrogen bonds in proteins are a source to consider where farts are concerned? Again, though.. I'm not a scientist and I can only speak on a fairly significant amount of experience complimented with a small amount of actual education on the matter.

IMO there are a lot of oversimplified myths in the nutritional world, which is why you need to mix professional advice (as you suggested) with personal experimentation.


About the protein thing, I don't eat a lot of meat, certainly not at the levels being dicussed in this thread. Some days I do and some days I don't. However, I have anywhere between 1-3 bowel movements a day. Why? I eat a lot of fibre (aka pre-biotics). Certain foods also bulk up your stools, like apples.

I have't looked it up, but I have heard that high protein diets (i.e. high meat diets) make it difficult to take a crap.

The way I have always thought to check whether you are wasting protein is through a urine analysis.

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Posted by Rush

IMO there are a lot of oversimplified myths in the nutritional world, which is why you need to mix professional advice (as you suggested) with personal experimentation.


About the protein thing, I don't eat a lot of meat, certainly not at the levels being dicussed in this thread. Some days I do and some days I don't. However, I have anywhere between 1-3 bowel movements a day. Why? I eat a lot of fibre (aka pre-biotics). Certain foods also bulk up your stools, like apples.

I have't looked it up, but I have heard that high protein diets (i.e. high meat diets) make it difficult to take a crap.

The way I have always thought to check whether you are wasting protein is through a urine analysis.

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Is there a simple way to check for protein waste in your urine?

As far as eating lots of meat in order to get the desired protein I would assume you are absolutely right considering most red meats don't digest well and lead to more blockages than they do easy turds. When you're getting a lot of protein from shakes and the like (which I'm assuming most folks do since eating that much protein is damn expensive) the shakes .. well... for lack of a better phrase... come right out. In that sense I could always tell whether I was taking way too much powder or not. If I toned down a scoop or two a day the ridiculous amount of crapping would usually taper off.

I somehow don't get the feeling that the OP is trying to get too scientific about it all, though.

EDIT: In the effort of full disclosure and so as to not be completely irresponsible I will say this, though- There can certainly be repurcussions for doing things recklessly and not everything is at it seems on the surface. As a matter of fact, eating too much red meat (or taking in too much of any one substance really) can be seriously detrimental to your health. Even water. The best way to do things is usually the hardest way to go about them. The advice I originally gave would probably be ignored by a very serious professional outside of the original premise for the advice which is to consult a certified trainer with nutritionist qualifications.

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Posted by Jackelope

Is there a simple way to check for protein waste in your urine?

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Way back in high school I tested for it. It is simple in theory, but I have to look it up and see what was tested for and how. If you are interested I can get back to you.

ok, I looked in some scientific journals regarding protein intake and ways to assay for it.

It turns out one of the more accurate ways is measuring nitrogen levels in urine. However, a caveat is that it becomes inaccurate when very low/high levels of protein are injested or due to periods of physical stress, etc.

On a side note, a problem with looking at protein levels in urine (an easy test to do) really doesn't tell you much because there are a whole slew of medical conditions that result in high levels of protein in urine.

I figured the nitrogen would be the key. Then again, if high levels of protein intake and lots of physical stress affect the test, it's basically pointless to run on a guy eating a ton of protein and lifting a lot of weights.

I know it sounds like mom and pop's remedy type B.S., but like I said earlier in the thread you can tell a lot about your body by just monitoring what is going on with it on a very basic level. The poop factor cannot be ignored

(Oh how I know this must be hard to accept with your scientific sensibilities )

I don't doubt the importance of monitoring poop to check your health. I'm just not convinced that the quantity of it gives one any definitive answers.