Calculating your protein requirements
f you have not yet calculated your BMR please go to the numbers to lose by page and determine the daily caloric intake that matches your goal.
So the other half of the argument goes like this if it is only a matter of calories in vs. calories out then I can just simply figure out how many cookies equals the amount of calories I need in a day to lose weight and just eat that right?
The answer is no because it does not account for all the different things your body needs from your diet: fiber, minerals, vitamins, and…protein. In this article we will be determining how many grams of protein you will need on a given day to support your muscles. This is of critical importance to understand as the most significant fighter you have in the battle to be lean is your muscle tissue.
The reason why is that muscle is metabolically active. It is the one part of your body that requires fuel. The more you have the higher your metabolism and the more efficient you will be at burning fat. And burning fat is absolutely the name of the game.
If you want to max out your fat burning potential you must lift weights to stimulate muscle fiber to stick around and then you must provide those muscle with the building blocks they need in order to rebuild from weight training.
In order to determine the amount of protein you will need in a given day you must first determine your body fat percentage. Why?
Think of it this way…If one person is 35% body fat and weighs the same as you do but your bodyfat % is only 20% should you use their total body weight or their lean weight to figure out how much protein they need? If you both weigh the same who needs more protein?
Simple. Lean weight. Your daily protein requirements are based on your lean body weight. Or the amount of muscle you have. Two people who weigh the same but have different levels of body fat have different amounts of muscle.
Here’s another way to think about it…Your muscles need muscles in order to repair (this is one reason why you need sleep) and the best way to get this material inside your body is to eat muscles.
When you eat a steak or chicken breast you are eating the muscles of that animal and it will provide your body with the materials it needs to rebuild and repair. So let’s take a moment to determine the amount of protein required to sustain our muscles.
Step 1:
Take your body weight in pounds (we’ll use mine)
Example: 135 lbs
Step 2:
Find your body fat % Trainer Direct Trainers perform this measurement as part of any of our training programs
Example: 10.5% (which is .105 for the step below)
Step 3:
Take your body weight in pounds and subtract the % body fat
Example: 135 lbs