How Much Protein Do You Actually Need? Here's the Honest Answer.

Everyone's talking about protein. It's on food packaging, in gym conversations, all over social media.

Eat more protein.

Hit your protein.

Protein first.

And yet when you actually ask most people how much they need and whether they're hitting it, the answer is usually some version of "I think I'm doing alright."

You probably aren't. Most people aren't. And the gap between what you're eating and what you actually need is where a lot of training results go missing.

Let's sort this out properly.

The old recommendation you might have heard was 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight per day. That number came from research designed to establish the minimum required to avoid deficiency in a sedentary population. It was never intended as a target for people who train, age actively, or have any meaningful body composition goals. It is a floor, not a ceiling.

The 2025-2030 US Dietary Guidelines, updated in January 2026, shifted the recommended range for adults to 1.2 to 1.6 grams per kilogram of bodyweight per day. At last!! We've only been saying it for the last 15 years!

For active adults, the evidence-based sports nutrition consensus sits higher still, at 1.6 to 2.2 grams per kilogram. If you are strength training regularly, managing your weight, or over 40, you should be working towards the upper end of that range, not the lower.

To put that in plain numbers. If you weigh 75 kilograms and you train three or more times per week, you need somewhere between 120 and 165 grams of protein daily. Not occasionally.

Every day.

That is a consistent nutritional commitment that most people, without a plan, simply do not hit.

Why does it matter this much?

Because protein is the raw material your body uses to build and repair muscle tissue. Without adequate protein, the training stimulus you create in the gym produces less adaptation. You are doing the work and leaving the results on the table.

Protein also has a significant satiety advantage over carbohydrates and fats. It takes more energy to digest, keeps you fuller for longer, and is far less likely to be stored as body fat when consumed in the quantities needed to support training. For anyone managing their weight alongside a training programme, getting protein right is the single most impactful nutritional adjustment available.

After age 30, the importance of adequate protein intake increases further. Don't get us started on after 40!! Muscle loss accelerates from roughly this point onwards in a process called sarcopenia. Research consistently shows that higher protein intake helps offset this decline, preserve strength, and support metabolic function.

The 0.8 grams per kilogram recommendation that many older adults still follow is genuinely inadequate for protecting muscle mass through the decades that matter most.

So how do you actually hit your numbers in practice?

The most practical framework is to build protein into every meal rather than trying to catch up at dinner.

Research suggests that two to three meals each containing 25 to 40 grams of high-quality protein is more effective for muscle protein synthesis than one large protein bolus later in the day. Spreading it out matters.

Your best sources in practical terms: chicken breast, turkey, eggs, Greek yoghurt, cottage cheese, white fish, salmon, beef, and quality protein powder when whole food sources are not practical.

For plant-based options, soya products, lentils, chickpeas, tofu, and edamame are your highest-yield choices, though the amino acid profile of plant proteins generally requires a higher total intake to achieve the same muscle-building stimulus.

The question of whether you need protein shakes is a simpler one than the supplement industry would have you believe. You do not need them. But if the gap between your current protein intake and your target is significant, a quality whey or plant-based protein powder is a convenient and cost-effective way to bridge it. Food first, always. Supplementation where practical.

If you are serious about your training, your body composition, and your long-term health, protein is the nutritional variable most worth getting right. Not by obsessing over every gram forever, but by building enough awareness of your intake to know whether you are consistently in the right range.

At P6, nutrition education is built into how we coach.

We do not sell diet plans or prescribe meal plans. We help people understand the principles that produce long-term results and build sustainable habits around them. Protein is where that conversation almost always starts.

If you want to understand what your targets should look like and how to hit them consistently, come in for a No Sweat Intro. Free. Thirty minutes. No agenda. Just practical advice and coaching!

Book at https://www.priority6.co.uk/contact-priority-6-in-abingdon-uk

Priority Six | Abingdon's longest-standing CrossFit gym | Strength, Performance, Longevity www.priority6.co.uk | @priority6 | ollie@priority6.co.uk

‍