2024 was the year of you need more protein. Everywhere all the time suddenly it was eat more protein. The internet laughed that it felt like a full time job getting so much protein. But how much protein do YOU need? And how can you easily meet your protein goals?
Why Should You Consume More Protein?
Short answer: longevity is a hot topic now, and quite simply, protein increases your life span. Eating enough protein gives you optimal energy, immunity, satiety, hormonal balance, and more, but it’s also one of the most essential macronutrients for longevity. Why? Protein is a building block of muscles, and we know that maintaining muscle mass is critical for longevity. Muscle mass begins to decline rapidly with age. If you want to live a long, healthy life, you need to focus on adequate protein.
Aside from building muscle, protein plays a role in building bones, cartilage, skin, and virtually every body part and tissue. That’s why it’s so important for health. Protein breaks down into amino acids that build muscle and are crucial for tissue repair, and amino acids are also a building block of neurotransmitters, your feel-good brain chemicals. So, protein is important for brain health also.
How Much Protein Do You Need?
The old school RDA (recommended dietary allowance) for the average (mostly sedentary) adult is 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight per day. So that’s roughly 60 grams of protein for a person weighing 165 pounds. This number is actually the minimum estimate and not ideal for those seeking optimal health, especially if you’re active, older, or perimenopausal. You lose muscle mass as you age, so your protein needs increase with age.
Protein experts disagree with this RDA. They say that for optimal health, the baseline is 100 grams of protein per day across the board. (source) This varies of course based on your bodyweight and activity level, but it’s the general recommendation for longevity. If you’re an athlete or lift heavy weights, you may need 1.4 – 2 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight.
The average American consumes about 70-80g protein per day. As a nation, our metabolic health is poor across the board, and our life expectancy isn’t good either. We consume too many carbs (many refined) and not enough protein. That contributes metabolic syndrome: insulin resistance, obesity, high blood pressure.
My general rec for women (my target demo) who want to lose weight and/or build muscle has been 30% of your daily calories from protein, 30% from fat, and 40% from carbs. This is considered “the zone.” On a 2000 calories per day diet, that would equal 150 grams of protein which seems like a lot because it is. I usually have people start with half their bodyweight in ounces of protein and gradually move up from there to find their sweet spot. I do agree with the 100 grams per day as a general rule guideline.
Signs you’re not getting enough protein = slow-healing injury, getting sick frequently, feeling more fatigued than normal, losing muscle mass, or seeing problems with your hair, nails, and skin.
Ways to Meet Your Protein Goals
To keep it simple, aim for 30 grams of protein per meal. Ideally get a protein-rich snack in the longer stretch between lunch and dinner. That should put you at or even above your 100g per day goal. Just as an easy reference point, a palm size of animal protein is about 20-30 grams. This equals about 3-4 ounces of chicken, red meat, or fish.
Here’s a list of 13 foods that will give you roughly 30 grams of protein:
- chicken: 30 grams per 4 ounces, which is about a breast or 1 thigh. Deck of cards size or palm of hand.
- salmon: 5 ounces or 100g = 30g protein. This is about standard filet size.
- a can of tuna is about 25g. I recommend Wild Planet which is low mercury.
- beef: 30 grams is a chunk that’s roughly the size of a deck of cards.
- ground beef patty (about 4 oz or palm size) is about 30 grams
- turkey: 4 ounces, palm size or deck of cards
- eggs: a single egg has about 7 grams of protein. So you’d need 5 eggs to get to 30 grams. (see below on ways to beef up egg breakfasts to meet protein goals)
- Greek yogurt: ~1.5 cups or about 10 oz
- Cottage cheese: one cup of cottage cheese is about 30g protein. A great way to boost protein if you can tolerate the dairy!
- lentils: 1.5 cups is 30 grams. also a great source of fiber at about 16g per cup. Try my lentil sausage stew!
- tofu: 1 cup.
- pork: 4 oz of a chop or a palm size
- protein smoothie: use a bone broth protein powder and add collagen and/or greek yogurt. Here’s my post on how to build the best smoothie.
via Dr Jolene Brighten
Here are tips to meet your daily protein goals:
Build meals and snacks around protein. Examples include adding ground meat to a bean-based chili recipe; adding shredded chicken or chopped chicken sausage to a butternut squash soup (which is what I do when I make my butternut soup recipe you can find here) or any soup; add sausage to lentil chard stew (recipe here).
I recommend a snack between lunch and dinner to ward off cravings and keep blood sugar stable. My favorite protein snacks include hard boiled eggs or egg cups; protein bars; salmon jerky; a Chomps meat stick; smoked salmon over cucumber; a lighter-than-breakfast protein smoothie; Greek yogurt with walnuts or almonds; a little egg salad; cottage cheese and berries. Sip a mug of bone broth in the afternoons. I also add collagen to my morning electrolyte drink. These snacks will provide you with about 10 grams of protein.
Eggs alone in the amount most people consume are not an adequate protein. A two egg scramble only gives you 14 grams of protein. To beef up your egg dishes, add extra egg whites; add a chicken sausage; make a 3 egg scramble and add some smoked salmon; add high protein bread; eat a couple hard boiled eggs with a smoothie.
Increase portion sizes of high protein foods. These are going to be your animal proteins mainly, but tofu, tempeh, wild rice, lentils and other beans are great vegetarian choices.
Protein smoothies to which you can add almond butter, collagen, Greek yogurt or Siggi’s plant-based along with a protein powder (click here for my fave and here for a plant-based option) will put you at or above 30 grams.
Simple Protein Rich Meal Ideas
These meals will give you roughly 30 grams of protein. Many are breakfast ideas since that’s what most people have trouble with. Research has found that eating a higher protein breakfast has the following benefits:
- Improve blood sugar control
- Reduce cravings, especially for carbohydrates
- Support digestive health
- Keep you feeling full longer
- Reduce caloric consumption at the following meal
My basic lunch and dinner template for 30g of protein is a palm size of chicken, pork, lamb, fish with a low carb veggie (think leafy greens, cruciferous) and starch like rice (wild rice has 24 g protein per cup!) or a root veggie. I really like ground meat like turkey, lamb, chicken, beef, bison, so I’ll often do a lettuce wrapped burger or meatballs with salad and Banza chick pea pasta which is higher protein & fiber.
My lunch and dinner go-tos are salmon with kale and sweet potato; roasted chicken thighs with rice and sauteed spinach; steak with salad; lentil stew; Banza chick pea pasta with my meat sauce. I’ll have the leftovers for lunch. I’ll often have the leftover chicken thighs or sliced leftover steak over a salad (I buy the salad kits for easy prep) or put smoked salmon over the salad with chick peas or hard boiled egg to get the needle to 30 grams.
High protein breakfast ideas:
- My top billing goes to a protein smoothie because it’s a fast and easy to meet protein goals. A smoothie with this bone broth protein + 1 scoop collagen gets you 27 grams. Get it up with 30 by adding almond butter or even more with Greek yogurt.
- Greek yogurt parfait layered with walnuts, berries, flax, chia. Sadly, dairy free yogurts are woefully lacking in protein. Siggi’s plant based yogurt has about 10 grams, and I’ll add that to smoothies sometimes.
- Smoked salmon avocado toast on gluten free bread topped with poached egg.
- Tofu scramble with black beans wrapped in tortilla. I like Siete grain free tortillas. Add avocado and salsa.
- Egg scramble: 2 eggs with a chicken sausage + veggies of choice. Eat with high protein keto or gluten free toast.
- Salmon wrap: smoked salmon with 2 scrambled eggs and spinach wrapped in a Siete tortilla (or without).
- Egg muffin cups are a popular recipe I give my clients. Get the recipe here! Easy grab and go option. Two has 20 grams of protein.
A word on vegetarian: Not all protein is created equal. Different sources are composed of different types of amino acids. Protein from animal sources contains all the essential amino acids that humans need to build and maintain muscle. Plant proteins often don’t, and are therefore labeled incomplete proteins.
Animal proteins are also more bioavailable, meaning easier to absorb, than plant protein. However, vegetarians can meet protein needs with plant-based protein smoothies, eggs, Greek yogurt, beans, tofu, high protein grains like wild rice and quinoa. Just make sure your proteins are complete with all amino acids. You can achieve this by mixing high protein grains with legumes. Eggs and tofu are complete proteins also.
I do not recommend vegan diets long term for anyone.
Concerns about Protein
There are concerns about kidney health when increasing protein intake. The idea that a high protein diet damages kidneys is generally considered a myth, supported by scientific evidence. People with kidney disease need to be aware of protein intake, but studies have shown no significant change in kidney function when healthy individuals consume high protein diets.
Conclusion
Protein intake is associated with longevity, and our needs increase as we age. Protein intake is individual and depends on several factors, including your age, weight, activity level, and goals, but a good rule of thumb is to shoot for 100 grams daily or 30 grams per meal + a protein snack. This is the ideal amount of protein for optimal health. Keep in mind RDA guidelines are for general health, not optimal. Your protein requirements will also change throughout your life and health status.
It’s easy to beef up your protein throughout the day. I am not a huge meat lover, so I meet my goals with egg scrambles, protein smoothies, and lighter proteins like poultry and seafood. I also love tofu, lentils, and wild rice as vegan/veg options. The key when playing around with protein intake is how do you feel? When you hit the right protein goal, you should notice ideal energy, satiety (you’re not hungry between meals), reduction in cravings, increased stamina, better workouts.
