How much protein per day do you need for muscle gain?

Calculate your protein target from body weight

Use this formula: body weight in kilograms × 1.6 to 2.2. It gives you a range, not a requirement to reach the highest number every day.

A meta-analysis of 49 resistance-training studies found that extra protein supported gains in strength and fat-free mass, while the average additional lean-mass benefit levelled off at roughly 1.62 g/kg/day. The upper confidence interval reached about 2.20 g/kg/day, which helps explain the practical 1.6–2.2 range. Morton et al., 2018

Round the result to a target you can actually use. A difference of a few grams is not meaningful enough to justify weighing every bite with perfect precision.

• 60 kg: about 96 to 132 g of protein per day.
• 70 kg: about 112 to 154 g per day.
• 80 kg: about 128 to 176 g per day.
• 90 kg: about 144 to 198 g per day.

Choose a point in the range according to your goal

Protein is only one level of the nutrition hierarchy. Your energy balance determines whether body weight tends to rise, fall, or remain stable; protein then helps support muscle within that context.

At maintenance or in a small muscle-gain surplus, roughly 1.6 to 1.8 g/kg/day is a strong starting point for many lifters. If you enjoy more protein and it fits your calories, eating closer to 2.2 g/kg is possible, but it is not automatically more anabolic.

During a cut, moving towards roughly 1.8 to 2.2 g/kg/day can be practical because less energy is available and protein-rich foods may help with satiety. The size of the calorie deficit still matters: a very aggressive deficit can compromise lean-mass progress even when protein intake is high. Murphy and Koehler, 2022

• Maintenance or recomposition: begin around 1.6 to 1.8 g/kg/day.
• Small muscle-gain surplus: begin around 1.6 to 1.8 g/kg/day.
• Fat-loss phase: consider roughly 1.8 to 2.2 g/kg/day.
• Choose the lowest target that supports your plan and remains easy to repeat.

Men and women use the same relative starting range

Sex alone does not justify giving every man a higher protein target than every woman. Body weight, training, total calories, age, current body composition, and the goal of the phase are more useful for choosing a starting intake.

For example, a 60 kg man and a 60 kg woman following comparable resistance-training plans can both start with the same 96–132 g range, then choose a practical point inside it. Their absolute targets may differ from those of an 85 kg lifter because body weight differs, not simply because sex differs.

Pregnancy, breastfeeding, illness, and individual clinical situations require separate guidance and should not be calculated from this bodybuilding range.

Spread protein across three to five meals

Once your daily target is covered, distributing protein can provide a small additional optimisation. Aim for roughly 0.3 to 0.5 g/kg at each of three to five meals when that schedule fits your day.

A review proposed about 0.4 g/kg per meal across at least four meals to reach 1.6 g/kg/day, with a higher per-meal target when aiming for 2.2 g/kg/day. This is a practical distribution strategy, not a strict absorption limit: a larger protein serving is not simply “wasted”. Schoenfeld and Aragon, 2018

For a 70 kg lifter, 0.3 to 0.5 g/kg is about 21 to 35 g per meal. Four meals containing roughly 28 to 38 g make a daily target of 112 to 154 g much easier to reach than trying to repair the whole day at dinner.

Position statements also place total daily intake ahead of a perfectly timed shake. Protein and carbohydrates near training can be convenient and may support comfort or performance, but the so-called anabolic window is not limited to the first thirty minutes after your final set. ISSN position stand, 2017

Build the target with foods you can keep eating

You do not need a flawless bodybuilding menu. Choose protein sources you like, that fit your budget and digestion, and that make regular meals easy to repeat.

Useful options include eggs, dairy products, fish, lean meat, soy foods, tofu, tempeh, seitan, beans, lentils, and protein-enriched staples. A varied diet also supplies fibre, vitamins, minerals, and energy that isolated protein alone cannot provide.

Animal proteins generally provide all essential amino acids in favourable proportions, but a varied vegetarian diet can also cover protein needs. Plant proteins do not have to be meticulously combined within the same meal when the overall diet is varied across the day. ANSES — Protein

Whey or another protein powder is optional. It is a convenient food when a normal meal is impractical, not a special requirement for building muscle. If you already reach your target with foods you enjoy, a shake adds convenience rather than a new physiological advantage.

• Breakfast: Greek-style yoghurt or soy yoghurt, oats, and fruit.
• Lunch: chicken, fish, tofu, or legumes with starch and vegetables.
• Snack: cottage cheese, yoghurt, soy dessert, or an optional shake.
• Dinner: another substantial protein source with foods you enjoy.

Do not let protein crowd out fats and carbohydrates

More protein is not always a better diet. After setting protein, keep enough dietary fat—often at least about 0.5 to 0.8 g/kg/day—and use the remaining calories largely according to preference, with carbohydrates particularly useful for productive training.

If forcing 2.2 g/kg leaves you with very little carbohydrate, poor sessions, or meals you dislike, a lower point inside the range may produce better results because you can train harder and follow it for longer.

Protein also cannot replace progressive resistance training. Muscle gain still requires challenging, recoverable training and enough total energy; a high-protein intake on its own does not give the body a reason to build a visibly more muscular physique.

Test your target with a 14-day protocol

On day 0, choose one protein target inside the range, set calories for your current goal, record your body weight, and note your main training numbers and average daily steps. Keep the plan reasonably stable for the next fourteen days.

During those two weeks, record protein and total calories each day, body weight under similar conditions, completed workouts, and steps. Look at average weight rather than reacting to a single high or low reading.

After fourteen days, make one decision. If you regularly miss protein, simplify meals or lower an unnecessarily ambitious target while staying in the useful range. If protein is consistent but weight moves in the wrong direction, adjust total calories rather than adding still more protein. If weight, performance, hunger, and recovery fit the goal, keep the plan unchanged.

• Pick one daily target rather than chasing a different number each day.
• Use three to five repeatable protein servings.
• Track calories, weight trend, steps, and training alongside protein.
• Review the full fourteen days before changing one lever.

Is a very high protein intake always safe?

The 1.6–2.2 g/kg range is intended as general information for healthy adults who resistance train. It should not be applied blindly to someone with kidney disease, liver disease, a medically prescribed diet, pregnancy, or another condition that changes nutritional needs.

A 2026 systematic review of randomised trials in adults without chronic kidney disease found no consistent biochemical sign of kidney injury from higher-protein diets, although kidney filtration could increase. Most trials were short and often relied on creatinine-based estimates, so the authors still considered long-term implications uncertain. Systematic review and meta-analysis, 2026

That evidence is reassuring for healthy adults within a sensible diet, but it is not permission to chase the highest possible dose. If you have known kidney or liver disease, abnormal blood tests, relevant medication, or clinical concerns, ask a qualified healthcare professional for an individual target.

Key takeaways

A useful protein target is high enough to support training and low enough to leave room for a balanced, enjoyable diet. Precision matters less than consistently applying a sensible plan.

• Start with 1.6 to 2.2 g/kg/day.
• Use the lower half at maintenance or in a small surplus when it is sufficient.
• Consider the upper half during a well-managed calorie deficit.
• Spread the total across three to five meals when practical.
• Keep enough dietary fat and carbohydrates for health and performance.
• Track the plan for fourteen days before making one justified adjustment.