Two grams of protein per lb of body weight rule? What to eat or take for 230lbs?

SouthernIron

SouthernIron

New member
I'm just curious of who follows the 2g of protein per lb of bodyweight rule, and what do you eat or take to help match that? I assume for most it is a combination of foods and supps, but I'm really curious about the supps. What all are you taking.... amino's, protein shakes, etc?

I eat really clean and currently on a low carb diet trying to cut down some BF% but concerned about how to get that amount of grams. For me, that would be 460g of protein a day ( that is a lot of cans of chicken lol).

I'm looking at taking amino's and I don't want to do a weight gainer protein shake so I'm wanting lean protein.

I'm an old school lifter for years and did some rounds of PH's 2004ish pre-ban and got good results. I just haven't had the finances(kids, wife, etc) to support the needed diet for a long time and now trying to get back in the game with all the new supplements and what-nots of nutrition and sups.

I do a lot of reading but not much posting.

Thanks in advance.
 
I've read up on these:
Optimum Nutrition | Pro BCAA
Optimum Nutrition | Amino Energy
USPLabs | ModernBCAA - (nice deal on their 79.99 special)

Any AM vendor recommendations would be great too.
TIA
 
Are you currently on gear, if not 2g is quite high for natty and expensive. I generally stick to ~1.5g
 
Not on gear yet, looking to in the near future though. I wanted to get my base muscle back before doing it and have been working on it over the last two years. I'm trying to figure out how to even get 230g in during a day.
 
230 is quite easy tbh I get ~250 and am current doing 16:8 IF

Meal 1 - 4 eggs and 2 chicken sausages - 45g

Meal 2 - 200g cooked chicken - 50g

Meal 3 - 150g 0% Greek Yoghurt, 10g protein powder (added to porridge) - 30g

Meal 4 - 170-200g cooked chicken - 40-50g

Meal 5 - 400g 0% Greek Yoghurt - 40g

That's just over 200g from protein sources plus any protein from all the other foods
 
No need for bcaa on a bulk so save your money
1g a lb of lean body mass is perfectly fine and no need to hit 2g
I try my best to get most of mine from Whole Foods but usually rely on a scoop or 2 of protein powder a day
 
From what I can count, I take in at least 100g per day from the cans of chicken\beef I eat. On the weekends I eat a huge egg/sausage breakfast so I know I'm getting more there. I don't really know what the cooked food amount for dinner would be so that is why I was looking to supplement more protein or aminos.

I'm really trying to low carb/no sugar to drop this extra office chair 30lb weight so I'm trying to eat much cleaner. I'll start counting my grams more and will probably surprise myself.

Thanks!
 
1.25 -1.5 when training intensity. When not training as hard protein can come down some. On cycle its probably a good idea to take in a bit more protein since protein synthesis is increased.
 
I generally take protein shakes that have about 70-80 grams and drink it over an hour or so period. Do this twice per day. And then try to get the rest from food. Chicken is cheap and doesn’t seem to cause the same bloating that a lot of red meat might cause.

Unfortunately I can’t eat eggs but they are a great easy convenient source.

I’d say go for 1-1.25 g/lb on no workout days and 1.5 g/lb on workout days. On anabolics these numbers are honestly probably still good. But could simply add .25 g/lb on top of the above numbers.

I don’t see a point to go up to 2g/lb unless you are on a very low carb diet and trying to lose body fat and maintain muscle mass. If you are bulking and eating sufficient carbs and fat your protein intake won’t be used as an energy source as readily as if you were cutting. So that fact alone lets you eat less protein on a bulk.
 
bigdavid said:
I generally take protein shakes that have about 70-80 grams and drink it over an hour or so period. Do this twice per day. And then try to get the rest from food. Chicken is cheap and doesn’t seem to cause the same bloating that a lot of red meat might cause.

Unfortunately I can’t eat eggs but they are a great easy convenient source.

I’d say go for 1-1.25 g/lb on no workout days and 1.5 g/lb on workout days. On anabolics these numbers are honestly probably still good. But could simply add .25 g/lb on top of the above numbers.

I don’t see a point to go up to 2g/lb unless you are on a very low carb diet and trying to lose body fat and maintain muscle mass. If you are bulking and eating sufficient carbs and fat your protein intake won’t be used as an energy source as readily as if you were cutting. So that fact alone lets you eat less protein on a bulk.
Click to expand...

I agree on getting up to 2 grams per pound only if carbs and fats are very,very low. back in 2012 getting ready for my second contest, I went down to 100 carbs a day and 25 fat. I lost strength and yes was on cycle, I was 210-215 at the time and very lean, I upped my protein to 450 protein(50 of that were bcaa's) and strength went up again.
 
Also I feel that people tend to take their total body weight and use that as a reference for protein intake. This is ok if you have ~11-12% bf or less, but if you are 15% or higher it is probably a better idea to calculate your lean body mass and use that for protein intake.

So if someone is 200lb 20% bf. They would have 160 lb lean mass and then the 1.5 g/lb doesn’t seem so hard to achieve.
 
bigdavid said:
Also I feel that people tend to take their total body weight and use that as a reference for protein intake. This is ok if you have ~11-12% bf or less, but if you are 15% or higher it is probably a better idea to calculate your lean body mass and use that for protein intake.

So if someone is 200lb 20% bf. They would have 160 lb lean mass and then the 1.5 g/lb doesn’t seem so hard to achieve.
Click to expand...

Oh, that's a good point, I didn't think about LBM calculation. I was just going off the scale. I think my BF% is pretty high IMHO although to look at me most wouldn't ever guess it. That's why I'm trying low carb, high fats, vegs and lean meats. I know I put this in the bulking group and it probably should have been in the other, but I just don't ever think of it as cutting. I pretty much try to eat right and lift insanely a few times a week and cardio the other nights playing with my kids or coaching youth sports.

I am just worried that I'm not putting enough protein in my diet for the amount of activity that I do.

I also do agree about shifting protein amounts during different times and needs. That's a great point ya'll made.
 
bigdavid said:
I generally take protein shakes that have about 70-80 grams and drink it over an hour or so period. Do this twice per day. And then try to get the rest from food. Chicken is cheap and doesn’t seem to cause the same bloating that a lot of red meat might cause.

Unfortunately I can’t eat eggs but they are a great easy convenient source.

I’d say go for 1-1.25 g/lb on no workout days and 1.5 g/lb on workout days. On anabolics these numbers are honestly probably still good. But could simply add .25 g/lb on top of the above numbers.

I don’t see a point to go up to 2g/lb unless you are on a very low carb diet and trying to lose body fat and maintain muscle mass. If you are bulking and eating sufficient carbs and fat your protein intake won’t be used as an energy source as readily as if you were cutting. So that fact alone lets you eat less protein on a bulk.
Click to expand...

My opinion too. 2gr/lb does make turds bigger -not muscles.
 
SouthernIron said:
I'm just curious of who follows the 2g of protein per lb of bodyweight rule, and what do you eat or take to help match that? I assume for most it is a combination of foods and supps, but I'm really curious about the supps. What all are you taking.... amino's, protein shakes, etc?

I eat really clean and currently on a low carb diet trying to cut down some BF% but concerned about how to get that amount of grams. For me, that would be 460g of protein a day ( that is a lot of cans of chicken lol).

I'm looking at taking amino's and I don't want to do a weight gainer protein shake so I'm wanting lean protein.

I'm an old school lifter for years and did some rounds of PH's 2004ish pre-ban and got good results. I just haven't had the finances(kids, wife, etc) to support the needed diet for a long time and now trying to get back in the game with all the new supplements and what-nots of nutrition and sups.

I do a lot of reading but not much posting.

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

2 grams of protein per pound is extremely high, even for someone on gear, let alone a natty. There have been studies done that people can gain lean mass on just .82 grams of protein per pound. I would opt to keep protein higher when cutting and when bulking, it does not to be as high. I wouldn't go higher than 1.5 grams per pound and then, some will tell you that is high.

To help you great your protein intake, you want to rely mostly on whole foods. I don't see a problem with shakes, but I would try to limit yourself to one, maybe two, per day. And I mean one or two servings. Whole foods will provide your body with vitamins and minerals. Don't be scared about not having the leanest options. Chicken breast, turkey, white fish are all good lean options, but don't fear 85-90% ground meat, salmon, chicken thighs, etc. Just fit those foods into your fat macros for the day, Also, there is nothing wrong with a mass gainer, but I would opt to make your own so you can keep at low carb, low fat, etc. whatever fits your needs. You say you're following a low carb diet, so do some veggies, some fruits, almond milk, peanut butter and a scoop of protein. Do not think that protein options slighly higher in fat will lead to fat gain, they won't. Eating excessive calories will lead to fat gain.

Amino acids are good if you're not hitting your daily protein intake, but not needed if you are. PowerMax XT is an ergogenic aid that will help with performance, recovery, and create lean mass. It has a full dose of creatine betanine, WPH (which has BCAA and EAA) which is better than straight BCAA.
 
AntM1564 said:
2 grams of protein per pound is extremely high, even for someone on gear, let alone a natty. There have been studies done that people can gain lean mass on just .82 grams of protein per pound. I would opt to keep protein higher when cutting and when bulking, it does not to be as high. I wouldn't go higher than 1.5 grams per pound and then, some will tell you that is high.

To help you great your protein intake, you want to rely mostly on whole foods. I don't see a problem with shakes, but I would try to limit yourself to one, maybe two, per day. And I mean one or two servings. Whole foods will provide your body with vitamins and minerals. Don't be scared about not having the leanest options. Chicken breast, turkey, white fish are all good lean options, but don't fear 85-90% ground meat, salmon, chicken thighs, etc. Just fit those foods into your fat macros for the day, Also, there is nothing wrong with a mass gainer, but I would opt to make your own so you can keep at low carb, low fat, etc. whatever fits your needs. You say you're following a low carb diet, so do some veggies, some fruits, almond milk, peanut butter and a scoop of protein. Do not think that protein options slighly higher in fat will lead to fat gain, they won't. Eating excessive calories will lead to fat gain.

Amino acids are good if you're not hitting your daily protein intake, but not needed if you are. PowerMax XT is an ergogenic aid that will help with performance, recovery, and create lean mass. It has a full dose of creatine betanine, WPH (which has BCAA and EAA) which is better than straight BCAA.
Click to expand...

Great points. I'll look into the PowerMaxXT. Who makes it? I would probably only do the shake post workout.
 
Ok, found the PowerMax XT writeup. It looks like a good mix. Just need to find a seller. Nutraplanet didn't have it listed but Predator overseas did.
 
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