The official minimum and the useful amount are two different numbers, and most people quoting the first are answering a question you did not ask. Here is the range that actually applies to someone training, losing fat, or simply trying to stop being hungry at 16:00.
The recommended dietary allowance is about 0.8 g of protein per kg of bodyweight. That figure answers one narrow question: how little protein can a sedentary adult eat without developing a deficiency? It was never designed to answer how much helps you build muscle, keep muscle while losing fat, or stay full through a long afternoon. For those, the research consistently points higher.
Per kilogram of bodyweight per day: - Sedentary, general health: 0.8–1.0 g/kg - Active, want to feel fuller: 1.2–1.6 g/kg - Building muscle with resistance training: 1.6–2.2 g/kg - Losing fat while training: 1.8–2.4 g/kg — protein need goes UP in a deficit, not down, because it is what protects the muscle you already have For a 70 kg person that is roughly 110–155 g on a training plan, and 125–170 g while cutting. If you are carrying a lot of extra weight, calculate from a target weight rather than current weight so the number stays realistic. Above about 2.2 g/kg the returns flatten out. More is not harmful for healthy kidneys, it is just no longer doing anything for you.
Your body handles protein better in regular servings than in one enormous evening portion. Aim for 0.3–0.4 g/kg per meal — roughly 25–40 g for most people — across three or four meals. The classic pattern to fix is a protein-free breakfast (toast, cereal, fruit), a light lunch, and then 90 g of chicken at dinner trying to carry the whole day. Moving 20 g of that to breakfast usually does more for afternoon hunger than any other single change.
- 100 g cooked chicken breast — about 31 g - 150 g Greek yoghurt (5%) — about 15 g - 2 large eggs — about 13 g - 100 g tinned tuna — about 25 g - 150 g firm tofu — about 17 g - 100 g cooked lentils — about 9 g - 30 g whey powder — about 24 g - 200 g cottage cheese — about 24 g Plant sources are generally less dense and less complete on their own, so if you eat plant-based, aim for the upper end of your range and mix your sources across the day — legumes with grains, soy, seitan, and a supplement if it makes the number easier to reach.
No. A shake is convenience, not magic — 24 g of protein from powder and 24 g from chicken do the same job. What a shake solves is a specific logistical problem: a morning where you have four minutes, or a training day where you would otherwise go nine hours between real meals. If food gets you there, food is better, because it brings fibre and micronutrients along with it.
Put it into practice today
CoreFeed turns the logging into a daily quest — log a meal, feed your Anima, keep the streak.
Work out your numbers — freeFor people with healthy kidneys, high-protein intakes in the ranges above have not been shown to cause damage. If you have existing kidney disease, protein intake is genuinely a medical question — ask your doctor rather than the internet.
The "anabolic window" turned out to be much wider than the thirty minutes the supplement adverts implied. Your total for the day matters far more than the timing. Eat a normal protein-containing meal within a few hours of training and you are fine.
Either works for most people. If you are carrying a significant amount of extra weight, using a target weight (or lean body mass) keeps the number sensible — 2 g/kg of a very high bodyweight produces a target that is hard to eat and unnecessary.
Yes, it just takes more deliberate planning. Soy, seitan, legumes, tofu, tempeh, and higher-protein grains do most of the work; aim for the upper end of the range because plant proteins are digested slightly less efficiently, and spread sources across meals rather than relying on one.