A daily protein target in grams, set from your bodyweight or your lean mass, adjusted for whether you are cutting, maintaining or gaining.
Daily protein target
2.2 g per kg of bodyweight — the top of the range, because a deficit is when protein matters most
Sensible range144–176 g
Across 4 meals44 g × 4
Calories from protein704 kcal
Target by goal
Goal
g per kg
Daily target
Note
Cutting
1.8–2.2
144–176
Upper end. Protein preserves lean mass in a deficit.
Maintaining
1.6–2.0
128–160
Anywhere in range is fine.
Gaining
1.6–2.0
128–160
No advantage to going higher when calories are plentiful.
Anchors: 100 g of cooked chicken breast is about 31 g of protein, a large egg 6 g, 200 g of Greek yoghurt 20 g, a whey scoop 24 g.
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Worked example: 80 kg, resistance training, cutting
Goal
g per kg bodyweight
Daily target
Cutting
1.8 – 2.2
144 – 176 g
Maintaining
1.6 – 2.0
128 – 160 g
Gaining
1.6 – 2.0
128 – 160 g
On a cut we default to the top of the range: 176 g/day. That is 704 kcal of the day's total, which for someone eating 2,259 while cutting is roughly 31% of intake — a large share, and deliberately so, because a deficit is the situation in which protein is doing the most work.
Bodyweight or lean mass?
Both are defensible and they diverge as body fat rises. At 18% body fat this person's lean mass is 65.6 kg, so a target of 2.2 g/kg lean mass is 144 g rather than 176 g. At 35% body fat the gap becomes large enough that basing the target on total bodyweight over-shoots meaningfully — fat tissue has essentially no protein requirement.
Rule of thumb: below about 25% body fat use total bodyweight, above it use lean mass. If you do not have a body-fat measurement, use bodyweight and accept that you may be aiming a little high, which is a cheap error to make.
Where the range comes from, and where it plateaus
The commonly cited range for people doing resistance training is roughly 1.6 to 2.2 g per kg of bodyweight per day. The lower bound is where measurable benefit for muscle retention and growth appears; the upper bound is where the evidence stops showing further benefit. Intakes above about 2.2 g/kg have not reliably out-performed intakes at it in the literature. Higher is not harmful for most people; it is just no longer doing anything except occupying calories that could be carbohydrate or fat.
Note that this is well above the general dietary reference figure of around 0.8 g/kg, which is a minimum to avoid deficiency in a sedentary person, not a target for someone training.
Methodology
Target = basis weight × a coefficient set by goal and training status. Bodyweight basis uses 1.6–2.2 g/kg; lean-mass basis uses the equivalent applied to fat-free mass. Cutting defaults to the top of the range, maintaining and gaining to the middle. Protein is counted at 4 kcal per gram when the figure is expressed as a share of intake.
Limitations, stated plainly
These are population ranges. Individual requirement varies with training volume, age, total energy intake and how much lean mass you are carrying, and no calculator can resolve that from three inputs. The ranges are drawn from research on people doing resistance training; endurance athletes, older adults and people not training at all sit outside that population and the numbers are less applicable.
Hitting the target roughly — within 15 g or so — captures essentially all of the benefit. Precision here is not the lever people think it is; consistency over weeks is.
This is a fitness estimate, not medical advice, and not a substitute for a professional who can actually see you. If you have any condition affecting how your body handles protein, that conversation belongs with a doctor or dietitian.
Common questions
How much protein do I need per day?
If you are doing resistance training, roughly 1.6 to 2.2 g per kilogram of bodyweight — for an 80 kg person, 128 to 176 g a day. Aim at the upper end while cutting and anywhere in the range otherwise. The general dietary reference figure of about 0.8 g/kg is a minimum for a sedentary person, not a target for someone lifting.
Is there any point going above 2.2 g per kg?
Not for muscle growth or retention, on the current evidence — that is roughly where the benefit curve flattens. It is not harmful for most people, but every extra gram is 4 kcal that has to come out of carbohydrate or fat, and both of those are doing useful work too. If you enjoy eating that way, no harm done; if you are forcing it, stop.
Should I use bodyweight or lean body mass?
Below about 25% body fat the two produce similar targets and it does not matter. Above that, lean mass is the better basis, because fat tissue has essentially no protein requirement and a bodyweight-based target starts over-shooting noticeably. Use the lean body mass calculator if you want to switch the basis.
Does protein timing matter?
Far less than the daily total. Spreading intake across three or four meals is a sensible default and there is some evidence it edges out one enormous serving, but the size of that effect is small next to simply hitting the total consistently. The “anabolic window” framing that had people drinking shakes in the changing room has not held up well.
Do I need more protein while cutting?
Yes, relatively speaking — a deficit is when protein is doing the most work, because it is the main dietary lever for holding onto lean mass while total energy is short. That is why this calculator pushes towards the top of the range when you select cutting. Continuing to lift with meaningful loads is the other half of that.
How much protein is in a normal meal?
Useful anchors: 100 g of cooked chicken breast is about 31 g, a large egg about 6 g, 200 g of Greek yoghurt about 20 g, a standard whey scoop about 24 g, 100 g of cooked lentils about 9 g. Getting to 176 g means roughly four substantial protein servings a day, which is a planning problem rather than a supplement problem.