How many grams of protein can you ingest

Stang281 · 21-Jun-07, 01:06 PM

In one sitting without wasting it?

Like I know you cant probably eat 100g of protein in the morning and 100g at night and say you got 200g

So for someone whos 6' 240lbs whats a safe #? 30-40g per meal? Anything over is a waste?

F_Mac · 21-Jun-07, 01:42 PM

It's a difficult, if not impossible question to answer.

Metabolism and protein synthesis rates will vary widely from person to person.

Your best bet is just to pick your daily target for protein and divide it up equally throughout the day. You are correct however that getting it all in 1 or 2 large servings is not the best way to go.

**Lady C** · 21-Jun-07, 01:43 PM

There is no formula. It depends on your body and how it processes protein and other stuff.

250 grams total per day / 6 meals per day = 42 grams per meal. So 40 grams per meal is not unreasonable. Will some go to fat? Who knows.

Stang281 · 21-Jun-07, 01:47 PM

Thanks mac and lady that helps alot

:

Merrida · 13-Oct-07, 09:27 PM

I'm with Lady on this. 35-40 grams.

What bugs me is when the guys at the gym (the ones missing their necks, an important part of your anatomy if you want the brain to get messages out),...uninformed, telling guys to consume 300-500 grams of protein/day! I want to bitch slap them for making such a suggestion not realizing what they're potentially telling these people to do and what'll happen to them, their kidneys, their wallet,....what a waste.

General rule of thumb is around the guidelines Lady pointed out. Digesting 35-40 (even if you weigh 200lbs) is still about right if you don't want to break off the nitrogen molecule and tax your kidneys.

bodyshop20 · 14-Oct-07, 10:08 AM

I understand 40g is a good intake as the body will only assimilate about 25g every 2 hours.
So when trying for muscle gain i eat 45g every 2 hours.
Now all you have to do is work out how much prot you need to grow which as a ball park figure is about 1.5g per body pound

F_Mac · 14-Oct-07, 11:18 AM

Merrida,

Are you suggesting that high protein diets in the range you suggest (300-500g) are unneccesary? Can you provide some evidence that it actually causes kidney problems? I have not found any evidence whatsoever that high protein causes kidney problems in healthy adults.

Currently I take in about 400g per day and it works extremely well for me. I also know of many others who consume a similar amount and do very well on it.

**.V.** · 14-Oct-07, 12:42 PM

It's simple, if you get gout...you're eating too much protein. Myself, I've found that if 35% of my calories come from protein, whether cutting or bulking it's about right. How many grams each day that works out to will be varied based on my current goals, activity level, and caloric intake.

I've got two very simple formulas that I use and they work pretty well, they have to be tweaked for individual response though.

Calories 16-20/lb, Carbs 45%, protein 35%, fat 20% is good for lean gains for many people. Dorp the calories to between 10 and 15/lb and you've got a nice cutting diet.

If one is like me and gets fat too easly from carbs that aren't centered around a workout...
Calories 16-20/lb, fat 60%, protein 35%, and carbs 5% all week long with a 24-36 hour carb load thrown into the week somewhere. Again, drop the calories to 10-15/lb and you've got yourself an effective cutting diet.

If I want to get all veiny, striated, and grotesque looking for the beach or lake or whatever other acivity requires speedos and no shirt...I'll take option 2 @ 10 calories/lb for 8 weeks with no cheats at all. Voila, instant gross guy that the chicas seem to like. Who BTW feels like crap with a body fat percentage that low.

If you want to find a balance between the two...then you can simply keep protein approximately the same and do TCD/CCD by having three protein/carb meals around your workout and then switch to protein/fat meals about 3 hours post workout. On your off days - stick to the high fat/low carb thing to prevent fat gains.

If I were to be doing this and was willing to have a bulk belly (which BTW is very sexy

), Here's what I'd eat.

skim milk, whey, banana x3
Steak and green veggies x3.

This would be for lifting/cardio days.

Off days would be just meat, eggs, green stuff.

Merrida · 14-Oct-07, 05:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by F-Mac

Merrida,

Are you suggesting that high protein diets in the range you suggest (300-500g) are unneccesary? Can you provide some evidence that it actually causes kidney problems? I have not found any evidence whatsoever that high protein causes kidney problems in healthy adults.

Currently I take in about 400g per day and it works extremely well for me. I also know of many others who consume a similar amount and do very well on it.

I'm saying a lot of things. One, there are people taking massive and unnecessary amounts of protein, and based on random people they approach in the gym who know nothing of their health history.

If you understand biology you'll understand what happens when you consume excessive amounts of protein, your kidneys are taxed severely and need water to break those protein molecules down. Regardless of how much you drink, your kidneys are on a rushed state to break off that little nitrogen molecule and to do that it will recruit water from your organs first, your muscle tissue second.

You may do "just fine" but for how long. I'm not suggesting taking 500mg of protein and you'll be on dialysis after a month. I am suggesting that besides pissing out a lot of money you are quite likely consuming excessive amounts of protein that is not necessary. Whatever the source, you also have calories to consider: Just because it's protein does not mean it goes to muscle.

I'm speaking on a micro-level of what you're doing to your body, and I'm also of the belief that you will get just as good results and do "just fine" taking half of that.

Where do you get this idea you need 500 grams of protein? Science cannot be denied with regards to how much protein the body can process at one time. You can't store an extra 50 grams of protein (let's say you just dumped 100 grams in) without those 50 extra grams doing 2 things: Taxing your kidneys & organs, and going to fat. There's no where else for it to go, you don't have a holding tank.

Merrida · 14-Oct-07, 06:02 PM

V -- I thought gout was the result of too much fat? Historically only the wealthy got gout because they could afford the fatty foods where-as the peasants were "stuck" eating grains and other complex carbs, grown veggies, and whatever they could occasionally slaughter that had to feed an entire family.

And isn't there a uric acid trigger in here somewhere?

Correct me please if I'm mistaken.

Merrida · 14-Oct-07, 06:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bodyshop20

I understand 40g is a good intake as the body will only assimilate about 25g every 2 hours.
So when trying for muscle gain i eat 45g every 2 hours.
Now all you have to do is work out how much prot you need to grow which as a ball park figure is about 1.5g per body pound

I think the formula usually is per kg of bw.

**.V.** · 14-Oct-07, 10:42 PM

Sorry, my bad. Gout comes from ingestion of too many purines, which actually come from nucleic acid. As in DNA/RNA... mostly found in meats, especially red meats. It is more likely to be found in abundance in the protein and fat rich foods. It's also found in low fat, protein rich foods. But you are correct ma'am, it does not come from the protein it's self.

Merrida · 14-Oct-07, 11:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by .V.

But you are correct ma'am, it does not come from the protein it's self.

Do I win anything?

**Firehawk** · 15-Oct-07, 06:16 AM

THis is quite an interesting conversation. F-mac, your rebuttal please sir?

My opinion on the matter is that if you are a natural lifter, there's no way your body needs 400+g of protein a day. No natural lifter will hvae anywhere near the amount of lean mass required to need that much protein a day. There are all of the other processes per day, but again, no where near 400g of protein is needed to complete those processes. LOok at the average person who doesn't lift and eats whatever. How much protein do they take in? They don't fall over and die becuase they only take in 50-100g of protein in a day by pure chance of their food selections (and 100g is high for the average guy that doesn't lift and doesn't watch what he eats).

Most people that aren't wilting away from some disease and are average survive fine on that amount of protein. I think those that do well taking 4-500g of protein in a day are:

1. Not natural lifters
2. Not eating enough fat or carbs so their body takes the protein and converts it to glucose for energy
3. Along with number 2, basically they were not eating enough calories before, so when they increased their protein intake, it added the necessary calorie intake to be met to grow, which means basically they could have taken in more carbs or fat instead and done just fine. And it would have been cheaper.

F-mac, if you hvae any good studies on that high of protein intake for natural lifters being necessary for growth, please post them. I would love to read.

F_Mac · 15-Oct-07, 10:37 AM

I almost didn't reply to this..........mainly since most people seem intent on basing their opinions of this on studies or "feeling" rather than on experience.

I could post up some studies of how high protein diets are beneficial, then someone else would post up a study of how they're not...........and around we go.

All I can say is that aside from newbie gains I did not see as dramatic an increase in strength as when I upped my protein from 1g/lb to 1.5-2g/lb of bodyweight. I will at this point say that I did not increase my overall calories (basically dropped carbs and increased protein) nor did I change my training as I was as skeptical as most of you on how well it would work or if it was even necessary. So now I know what works FOR ME.

I'm sure there are many people who can get by with the standard 1g/lb of bodyweight (or LBM if you are really overweight) and do really well on it. Other people may need more to see optimal results and if you go over to IA's board there are tons of guys eating a lot more protein than I am who are doing just fine and haven't crapped out a kidney yet.

I recently had a bunch of bloodwork and urinalysis done and everything was within acceptable ranges (creatine, urea, albumin)....no renal issues whatsoever. I've also yet to see a study or hear of any healthy athlete on a high protein diet having any kidney problems whatsoever.

So take it for what you will, i know it works for me, i know it's not causing me any health concerns, and I know that it's not "going to waste" so I will continue to do it.