You're asking and I'm answering . . .
Dear Fit,
I saw your slideshow of snacks with 10 grams of protein or more. In it you stated that women need between 40 and 60 grams of protein daily, but my personal trainer told me I need much more than that, about 100 grams. So I'm confused. How do I know how much protein I should be eating? Is there anything wrong with eating more than you need?
—Protein-loving Patricia
This is a great question because everyone's protein needs are different, based on their weight and daily activity level. To find out how to what the mathematical equation is to figure out how much protein you should be getting each day, read more.
When it comes to knowing what your recommended daily intake (RDI) is for protein, just multiply your weight in pounds by .36, or your weight in kilograms by .8. If you're an extremely active person — exercising hard core daily on a competitive sports team, or are in training for a marathon, your protein needs will be higher. You'll need to multiply your weight in pounds by .5, or your weight in kilograms by 1.1. Also, the RDI of protein increases by 30 grams if you're pregnant, and 20 grams if you're nursing. Check out the chart below to see where your protein needs lie.
| Weight | Protein per day (g) | Protein per day if you're extremely active (g) |
| 100 lbs (45 kg) | 36 | 50 |
| 105 lbs (47.7 kg) | 37.8 | 52.5 |
| 110 lbs (49.5 kg) | 39.6 | 55 |
| 115 lbs (52.3 kg) | 41.4 | 57.5 |
| 120 lbs (54.5 kg) | 43.2 | 60 |
| 125 lbs (56.8 kg) | 45 | 62.5 |
| 130 lbs (59.1 kg) | 46.8 | 65 |
| 135 lbs (61.4 kg) | 48.6 | 67.5 |
| 140 lbs (63.6 kg) | 50.4 | 70 |
| 145 lbs (55.9 kg) | 52.2 | 72.5 |
| 150 lbs (68.2 kg) | 54 | 75 |
| 155 lbs (70.5 kg) | 55.8 | 77.5 |
| 160 lbs (72.7 kg) | 57.8 | 80 |
If you're consuming more protein than you need for your weight and activity level, then you're also consuming extra calories. This can lead to weight gain, or may explain why you're having a difficult time reaching your ideal weight.
Argos
Velvet
Vsct Jeans
It also depends on your goals...if you are working on muscle building with a personal trainer then you need up bump up the protein intake...I have my levels at around 80g being all lean protein.
1I agree with Berlin, if you want to increase muscle mass, you need more protein; to gain muscle, one needs to eat 1-2 grams per lb. Yes, it's a lot of calories; but when done correctly, your metabolism will increase and you will lose fat.
2Yep, my doctor told me that I should be getting around 90 grams of protein a day because I'm very active. If you choose lean protein sources, you can get it all in without eating a TON of calories. You just have to make smart choices...eggs, lean chicken, and nuts are my favorite sources.
3if you eat excessive amounts of protein, your body will produce more ammonia. Ammonia is toxic to the body and must be converted to urea. Your kidneys will need to work harder to remove this waste from your body. So two things: avoid excessive amounts of protein (> 2 g pro/kg body weight or > 0.9 g pro/lb body weight) if your kidneys are not fully functioning and drink lots!!! of water to help your kidneys excrete urea.
4I agree with spectra. I consume about 90 grams of protein a day because i am trying to gaim some muscle (I strength train with 4kg dumbbells - the equivalent of about 8.4 pounds dumbbells). BUT, I choose low cal sources of protein and it works great with my daily calore consumption (which is between 1600 and 2000, since I'm pretty active).
5That fish dish she is about to delve into looks absolutely delish... there isn't a recipe for that anywhere is there? Hehe
6These numbers seem low to me. I've been eating about 120 grams a day without going over my daily caloric needs.
7Yeah, I agree with juliefischer. The numbers seem low.
I usually get about 100-120 grams of protein a day. If you think about it, they say our calories should be balanced, in that 1/3 from carbs, 1/3 from fat, 1/3 from protein. so basically we should be shooting for 100 grams of carbs, 100 grams of protein and about 50 grams of fat. That totals to about 1250 a day.
Now if you're really active and consuming MORE calories (say 1600 - 2000), wouldn't you have to have even MORE protein to keep your calorie sources balanced??
8I eat pretty low-carb (except for the carbs in veggies), so I tend to eat a lot of protein. But I get it through lean meats, lean cheeses, and peanuts.
9I weight train hard, so I try to eat at least my weight in grams of protein a day. I don't see why that would be a lot of calories...protein has the same number of calories per gram as carbs (and protein takes more energy to convert to usable energy besides).
10thank you for making the chart there. i was going to try to figure things out for myself and realized that i need a calculator, and that didn't work for me at the moment!
11I shoot for a 100g of protein a day, I'm still working on balancing my diet!
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