How many grams of protein do I need a day?

[hulkangry]

I was told that if I weigh 180 pounds (lets pretend I weigh 180) then I need to consume at least 180 grams of protein a day. Is this true? How many grams of protein do I need to consume a day?

[rand18m]

I was told that if I weigh 180 pounds (lets pretend I weigh 180) then I need to consume at least 180 grams of protein a day. Is this true? How many grams of protein do I need to consume a day?

How active are you?

[jaklcrow]

Dont bother answering how active you are. You should get anywhere from .80-1g per lb. Just to be safe 1g per lb is good to go with. This applies to cutting and bulking. You actually need more protein during a cut so dont start slashing it if you arent working on gaining muscle.

[rand18m]

Dont bother answering how active you are. You should get anywhere from .80-1g per lb. Just to be safe 1g per lb is good to go with. This applies to cutting and bulking. You actually need more protein during a cut so dont start slashing it if you arent working on gaining muscle.

You'd be surprised how many come here that are completely sedentary.

I've been working out for a while. (2, mabye 3 years) I just joined a gym because I believe I will get better results. I work out 3 days a week or 1 day a week if I do multiple muscle groups.

I also want a bigger chest and the gym has the equipment for me to achieve that.

Fair enough, there is nothing wrong with 1g/lb/bw, you can likely get away with a little less if you like, a range of 150-180 would work just fine.

[ZMan45]

1g/lb bodyweight is a very good universal number IMO. Plenty enough for bulking and easily can get you by on a modest cut. More aggressive deficits will probably require a bit more.

[hulkangry]

Dont bother answering how active you are. You should get anywhere from .80-1g per lb. Just to be safe 1g per lb is good to go with. This applies to cutting and bulking. You actually need more protein during a cut so dont start slashing it if you arent working on gaining muscle.

Ok thanks. So if I weight 180, then need 180 grams of protein, right?

[hulkangry]

Thanks everyone.

[jaklcrow]

You'd be surprised how many come here that are completely sedentary.

Fair enough, there is nothing wrong with 1g/lb/bw, you can likely get away with a little less if you like, a range of 150-180 would work just fine.

Either way his protein macro should be the same though. A higher % of fat or carbs for someone very sedentary wouldnt be productive, and higher protein still wouldnt be necessary.

Np Hulkangry. Yes 180 is great.

[Attila1905]

Ok thanks. So if I weight 180, then need 180 grams of protein, right?

Nope,

If you weigh 180, then you should eat 179 grams of protein.
180 grams would be too excessive

[TallKyle13]

It's definitely more than recommended by other people in this thread, but I like 1.5 grams per pound of lean body mass. I have 200 pounds of lean body mass on a 250 pound frame, so I aim for 300 grams a day.

[JasonDB]

Dont bother answering how active you are. You should get anywhere from .80-1g per lb. Just to be safe 1g per lb is good to go with. This applies to cutting and bulking. You actually need more protein during a cut so dont start slashing it if you arent working on gaining muscle.

I agree with this for the bulking...

For cutting I've seen some data, by Eric Helms, suggesting that going a little higher might be benefical to lean athletes/bodybuilders for lbm preservation, however again we are talking about lean individuals (which no everyone is at the start of a cut) and it is only something like 2.4g per kg which is still only like 1.1g per lbs of bw so less than 20g more for a 180 lbs individual. I'm splitting hairs here as 18g of protein isn't going to make or break a cut mind you.

[rand18m]

Either way his protein macro should be the same though. A higher % of fat or carbs for someone very sedentary wouldnt be productive, and higher protein still wouldnt be necessary.

Np Hulkangry. Yes 180 is great.

Well we can certainly agree to disagree but I can't understand why someone who is sedentary would need to consume 1g/lb/bw.

Intakes that high are certainly beneficial for athletes or those who train, particularly those who train in high endurance endeavors. There would be no need for someone that is sedentary, or engages in moderate to light exercise, simply no extra benefit. Now can they do so without harm? I think so, and although there are physiologists that disagree, I know of no evidence that it would be harmful. If sedentary one wouldn't need the extra calories anyway so I don't understand why you would suggest that to someone who doesn't train.