Nutrition
How much protein do I need?
Direct answer
Probably less than some fitness advice would have you believe, but enough that it's worth paying attention to.
Explanation
If you're regularly strength training and want to build or maintain muscle, a useful general target is around 1.6–2.0 g of protein per kilogram of bodyweight per day.
You might also have heard the simpler rule of 1 gram per pound of bodyweight. There's nothing inherently wrong with eating that amount, and it can be an easy target to remember, but it isn't a minimum requirement for making progress.
Current bodyweight isn't always the most useful way to set a protein target either.
For someone carrying considerably more bodyweight who is working towards substantial weight loss, simply multiplying their current weight by a high protein target can leave them trying to eat an unnecessarily large amount of protein every day. In those situations, using goal bodyweight as part of the estimate can sometimes give us a more practical starting point.
Your total calorie intake, training, goals, food preferences and how realistically you can maintain the target all matter too.
How to apply this
Start by setting a realistic daily protein target and make consistently reaching it one of your nutritional priorities.
For many people, this is one of the first things I'd look at before asking them to track their entire calorie intake. It gives us something simple and useful to focus on while also encouraging meals to be built around good protein sources.
Look at how protein is distributed across your normal meals too. If you're struggling to reach your target, it can often be easier to increase the amount you're eating at breakfast or lunch rather than discovering at 9pm that you need another 80 grams.
You don't need to hit the exact number perfectly every day, but consistently getting reasonably close to your target matters more than occasionally hitting it exactly.