Hello! I’m wondering if the amount of protein I should take in should change with the amount of training volume. I know there are typical recommended ranges for protein (1-2g/kg of bodyweight), but does it ever make sense to go above or below that range? I know some protein intake recommendations say to have 10-30% of your calories come from protein. If someone is training a lot and needs to eat ~4,000 calories in a day, this could mean upwards 200g of protein if you’re eating at the higher range of the 10-30% range. Is there a point where no matter how much you’re training, eating more protein won’t provide any nutritional benefit; and therefore it would be more beneficial to fill those calories with carbs and fat?
Any advice or thoughts would be appreciated!
Good question - the way I structure my macros is that I aim for a range of 0.8-1.0 grams of protein per pound - so for me I’m around 148-160 ish - If I happen to go above that then so be it, but in general that’s a good range for me. My maintenance calories are around 2500 kcal/day - so the rest goes to carbs and my fats usually end up at around 55-70 grams which leaves 250+ grams of carbs. So for me, it’s usually my carbs that fluctuate the most as my protein is steady and I don’t purposely add in fat to my meals except for a little butter, nut butter and olive oil for cooking. And no, extra protein won’t benefit you to any measurable degree.
I base my protein on body weight and mix fats and carbs for fuel to make up additional calories. Depending upon your weight loss or gain goals I weight myself weekly on an empty stomach and make adjustments accordingly. The only time I change protein intake is possibly when my focus is more an increase in strength. Often that coincides with a decrease in cycling volume and therefore not much of a change in total calories but the ratios may change a bit.
I aim for 50% carbs, 30% protein and 20% fats.
March 2018 I weighed 205 (5’10") and i was pissed off. My wife set me up with a myfitnesspal account. After a few days I realized i was eating about 80% carbs 10-15% fats. Once i got it adjusted the weight dropped quickly. On July 1, 2018 I was down to 170 and have held there ever since.
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