Ask five lifters how much protein you need and you will get five numbers. The research is less mysterious than the noise: there is a well-established range, and hitting anywhere inside it covers nearly everyone who trains.
The short answer: 1.6–2.2 grams per kilo
If you train for strength or muscle, aim for roughly 1.6–2.2 g of protein per kilo of body weight per day (about 0.7–1 g per pound). For an 80 kg person that is 130–175 g daily. Within this range the research stops showing extra benefit for muscle; below it you leave gains on the table, and above it there is no known additional benefit — it mostly costs more money. If you do not train hard at all, the general health floor of around 0.8 g/kg is fine, though even casual lifters do better closer to 1.2.
Per meal: think 25–40 g, three to four times
Your body builds muscle in pulses, and each pulse responds best to a decent dose: roughly 0.4 g/kg per meal, or 25–40 g for most people. For that 80 kg lifter, four meals of about 35 g — eggs at breakfast, chicken at lunch, yogurt in the afternoon, fish at dinner — lands at 140 g without any counting. Spreading the total across three or four meals beats loading it all into dinner, because each meal re-triggers the building process. There is no magic cutoff per meal — a big steak counts too — but even spacing makes the total easier to reach and keeps you fuller through the day.
Hitting the number without spreadsheets
A few anchors make 130–175 g less abstract: a chicken breast (150 g) has about 45 g of protein; a 200 g tub of Greek yogurt about 20 g; three eggs about 18 g; a scoop of whey 20–25 g; a cup of lentils about 18 g. Build each meal around one of these anchors and the daily total takes care of itself. Plant-based? Tofu, tempeh, seitan, legumes and soy milk all count — just aim for the same total, since plant proteins carry a bit less leucine per gram.
Do you need protein timing or shakes?
No, with one small caveat. Total daily protein matters far more than the anabolic window — the old 30-minutes-after-training rule has not held up. A shake is simply a convenient anchor, useful at breakfast or after a session when solid food is unappealing. If you train fasted, having protein within a couple of hours afterwards is a sensible default, but nobody has ever lost gains because dinner was at 20:00 instead of 18:30.
FAQ
Is too much protein bad for your kidneys?
In healthy people, intakes up to 2.2 g/kg per day have been studied repeatedly without harm. If you have an existing kidney condition, protein needs are a medical question — check with your doctor rather than a blog.
Can I build muscle on less protein?
Yes, but slower and with less margin. Research consistently shows that intakes below about 1.2 g/kg produce worse muscle and strength gains in training adults. If you are far from the target, close half the gap first — consistency beats perfection here too.
Do I need protein right after training?
Not within 30 minutes, no. The anabolic window turns out to be hours wide, not minutes. What matters is your daily total and spreading it over 3–4 meals; if one of them follows your workout, great — the timing itself is not doing anything special.