Nutrition

How much protein do you need for body recomposition?

By Jill McCracken, ISSA-certified personal trainer · · Updated · 3 min read

Body recomposition means losing fat and building muscle at the same time, so the number on the scale matters less than what it’s made of. Protein is what makes that possible, and it’s the part of the plan most women underestimate.

Jill drinking a protein shake from a shaker bottle at the gym
Protein after lifting.

The rule: 1 gram per pound of your goal weight

In coaching, the protein target is simple: eat about 1 gram of protein for every pound of your goal weight, every day. If your goal is 140 pounds, aim for about 140 grams.

Goal weightProtein a dayPer meal (4 meals)
120 lb120 gabout 30 g
130 lb130 gabout 33 g
140 lb140 gabout 35 g
150 lb150 gabout 38 g
160 lb160 gabout 40 g
Free tool · 10 seconds Find your protein number

Enter where you are and where you’re headed. Get your daily number, then tap once to see a full day of real meals that hits it.

  1. 1Set your starting and goal weight
  2. 2Get your daily protein target and timeline
  3. 3Plan my day: meals, a snack and a shake, built for you
Open the calculator Vegetarian and on-the-go options included

New to the idea? The body recomposition guide lays out the whole method, including a workout plan.

Should protein be based on goal weight or current weight?

Muscle is what you’re feeding. Basing the number on your goal weight keeps the target realistic if you’re carrying extra body fat, and it points your eating at the body you’re building rather than the one you’re leaving.

Why do you need this much protein for body recomposition?

To lose fat you eat a little less; to build muscle you lift and eat enough protein. Doing both at once is where protein earns its keep:

So 1 gram per pound of goal weight sits at the top of the research on purpose. When you’re eating a little less to lose fat, more protein protects the muscle you’re working to build.

How fast should you increase your protein?

If you eat 60 grams a day now, 140 tomorrow will feel like a lot of food. Add one protein-rich serving at a time, starting with breakfast, and let your total climb over a few weeks.

Should you spread protein across the day?

Your body uses protein best in moderate doses spread through the day. Stanford suggests about 30 grams per meal for adults over 50, and the ISSN points to 20 to 40 grams per serving. Four meals of 35 grams gets you to 140 far more comfortably than one huge dinner.

Try thisAim for 30 to 40 grams at each meal, not 15, 15 and 70.

How much protein should breakfast have?

Toast, cereal, a pastry or coffee on the way out the door usually lands well short of 30 grams, and the rest of the day never quite catches up. Breakfast is the easiest meal to fix and the one almost nobody fixes.

Try thisEggs, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese or a shake. Pick one and repeat it every morning until it’s automatic.

What does 30 grams of protein look like?

Plant proteins count too. Tofu, tempeh, beans and lentils all work, though you’ll often combine two to reach 30 grams.

Does protein help with fat loss?

Protein tends to be the most filling thing on your plate. When you’re eating a little less, hitting your protein target makes that far easier to live with, and cravings often quiet down without a single rule about sugar.

Try thisEat the protein first at every meal. The rest of the plate tends to sort itself out.

Do you need expensive protein powder?

Whey, chicken, eggs, dairy, beans, tofu, lentils: protein is protein. The powder in the fancy tub isn’t doing anything special. Buy the cheapest one you’ll actually eat. (The one supplement that does have evidence for women over 40 is creatine; here’s what it does and doesn’t do.)

The one supplement with real evidence for strength in women our age is creatine, and it is cheap too: creatine for women over 40.

Your plan in numbersPut your goal weight into the protein calculator: it splits the day into meals, snacks and shakes, and answers the common questions about protein for body recomposition.

If you have kidney disease or have been told to limit protein, talk to your doctor before raising how much you eat.

You don’t have to do this alone.

Knowing what to do is the easy part; sticking with it is where most women stall. Jill coaches women over 40 online with a plan built around you, weekly check-ins and video form checks, so you have a real person in your corner. It starts with a free 30-minute consult call.

It’s not just an app. It’s an app with accountability.

  • Your workouts and meals in your own private app
  • Every set you log goes to Jill
  • A real person checking in with you every week
Request your free consult →See inside the app →

Sources

  1. Jäger et al., International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: protein and exercise (2017) PubMed. About 0.65–0.9 g of protein per pound of body weight a day suits most people who exercise. When exercise is combined with eating less, higher intakes (two to three times the RDA, roughly 0.7–1.1 g per pound) promote greater fat loss and better body composition. About 20–40 g per serving.
  2. Morton et al., British Journal of Sports Medicine (2018): protein and resistance training meta-analysis PubMed. 49 trials, 1,863 people: the extra muscle gained from protein leveled off at about 0.73 g per pound of body weight a day, with the upper estimate reaching about 1 g per pound.
  3. Stanford Lifestyle Medicine: Protein needs for adults 50+. For adults over 50: about 0.54–0.72 g of protein per pound of body weight a day (1.2–1.6 g per kg) as a baseline, and about 0.4 g per kg per meal (roughly 30 g), spread across the day.
  4. Office on Women’s Health (HHS): Sarcopenia. “Typically, sarcopenia begins around age 30, when the body naturally loses about 3–5% of its muscle mass per decade.”

Keep reading

Start here

Your first 30 days of lifting weights after 40, week by week

A simple first month for beginners and returners: three short sessions a week, five moves.

2 min readThe method

The five pillars of getting stronger after 40

The whole method in five habits. No detox, no fasted cardio, no supplement stack.

2 min read

This guide is general fitness and nutrition education, not medical advice. Talk with your doctor before starting a new exercise or nutrition program, especially if you have a health condition, an injury, or take medication.