Protein needs, how to work out your own number and spread it across your meals
Most adults need about 0.75g of protein for each kg of body weight a day, a little more if you train hard or are over 65, and spreading it across 3 meals works better than packing it into one. Protein contributes to the maintenance of muscle mass, which is worth protecting when you are eating a little less. You do not need special products to get enough.
Work out your protein needs
Your device does the sums. Nothing is stored or sent. Adults only.
Also take a look at the BMI calculator, the waist size calculator and every other calculator from the club.
How this sum is worked out
Adults in the UK are advised 0.75 g of protein per day for each kg of body weight.
Example. With a weight of 70, you would need about 53 g a day, which comes to roughly 18 g per meal over 3 meals.
A coach at the club looks closely at where you stand and offers the best guidance.
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Your number in 1 step
Multiply your weight in kg by 0.75. Someone weighing 70kg, about 11 stone, needs around 53g a day. The British Heart Foundation has a clear guide on how much protein you need and where to find it, with higher figures for very active people and for people over 65, often around 1g to 1.2g per kg.
What 20g looks like
Aiming for about 20g at each main meal is a practical rule. Each of these gives roughly that amount.
- 3 eggs.
- A 150g pot of plain Greek yoghurt with a handful of seeds.
- A small tin of tuna.
- A chicken breast the size of your palm, which gives more.
- Half a tin of baked beans on 1 slice of wholemeal toast with a little grated cheese.
- 150g of firm tofu.
The gap most people have
Lunch and the evening meal are usually fine. Breakfast is where protein goes missing, toast and jam or cereal with a splash of milk give very little. Adding eggs, yoghurt or milk at breakfast often closes the gap without any other change. Our page on building a breakfast to lose weight gives ideas.
Without meat
Beans, lentils, chickpeas, tofu, nuts, seeds, eggs and dairy all provide protein. The British Dietetic Association fact sheet on vegetarian, vegan and plant-based diets explains how to cover your needs, and mixing different plant sources across the day is the simple way to do it.
Is more better?
Not really. Above your needs, extra protein is just extra kcal. Very high intakes from processed meat bring salt and saturated fat too. Aim for your number and focus on variety. If you are building strength or have reached your 60s, our page on why muscle matters explains why the upper end may suit you.
A sample day for 70kg
- Breakfast, porridge made with milk and a spoon of seeds, about 15g.
- Lunch, a wholemeal wrap with chicken and salad, about 25g.
- Snack, a pot of plain yoghurt, about 6g.
- Evening meal, salmon, potatoes and broccoli, about 25g.
That reaches around 70g without any effort or special food.
Breakfast with the coaches in Willerby
At Willerby Nutrition members have breakfast at the club with Phillipa, Pete and the rest of the coaching team, and the daily follow-up makes it easy to see whether the morning meal covers your needs. A free assessment is how you begin.
This page is general information and does not replace advice from your GP, especially if you have a kidney condition.
Your own weight loss curve
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At the middle pace, 8 kg comes off in about 11 weeks. At the gentlest pace you are looking at about 4 months.
The usual guide for weight loss that lasts is between 500 g and 1 kg per week, which forms the best band on the chart. Keep exceeding 1 kg per week and the body burns muscle nearly as much as fat. That is the striped band.
A rough projection only. Everyone follows their own path and results differ. Your device does the sums and nothing is stored or sent. At 65 or older, see your doctor first.
The way this curve is worked out
The zone tops out at 500 g every week, the gentlest pace, and bottoms out at 1 kg every week, the level where the risk starts.
Early weeks go quicker, largely because of water, and then things level off. After 40, the typical curve flattens gradually as metabolism slows. For similar effort, men tend to shed weight slightly sooner than women.
The journey curve includes flat spells lasting several days and slight regains, just like everyday life. It cannot tell you how yours will go.
These tips are general ones. They do not stand in for medical advice.
Further reading
For help from day to day, take a look at the healthy eating programme.