How Much Protein Should I Eat in a Day?
By Holley Samuel MEd, RD, CSSD, CPT
This blog post contains affiliate links.
If there is one nutrient that seems to get highlighted in the fitness and wellness spaces as the beacon of health, the answer to all your problems, the king of nutrients, it’s protein. But are we placing too much pressure on the benefits protein can provide in the diet? As runners, do we really need to be consuming as much protein as bodybuilders do? Let’s dive into what the research says regarding protein needs for endurance athletes and how to meet your needs.
What does protein do?
Protein is one of the four macronutrients that provides calories for the body. While protein provides calories, which is a unit of energy for the body to use, protein is actually not one of the main energy sources used by the body. Carbohydrates and fat are other macronutrients that act as the two main fuel sources for the body whereas protein acts as more of a building block. Protein also digests relatively slowly, so incorporating adequate protein at meals and snacks helps with satiety and blood sugar control. The building blocks of protein are amino acids, which all provide different contributions to the body allowing protein to do its job. There are 13 essential amino acids that we must get from adequate protein in the diet and 7 that our bodies can synthesize.
Protein builds everything from muscle tissue to stomach acid to the lining of the GI tract to hair, skin, and nails. If we consume too much protein this can be problematic for the kidneys, though it is incredibly unrealistic and difficult for most healthy people to consume protein to the point of developing acute kidney issues. If we consume too little protein we won’t recover as well from workouts, we may lack muscle mass, run into digestive issues, get sick more often, and have trouble staying full after meals. There is a happy medium for protein consumption for all people, and more specific recommendations for endurance athletes of all levels.
How Much Protein?
Historically, it was always thought that runners needed less protein than any other type of athlete. More recent research has debunked this previous claim, stating runners need just as much protein as many other athletes, and even more if they’re also implementing strength training. The recommendation range for endurance athletes is between 1.2-2.0g protein/ kg of bodyweight per day. For a 150lb runner this would be about 81-136g protein per day. Protein and overall energy needs are even higher for endurance athletes who are pregnant and/or breastfeeding.
Total daily protein intake is important, but there are also other key components we want to keep in mind when incorporating protein into our diet: protein dose at meals and protein timing post training sessions. Research shows that a dose of protein between 20-40g every 3-5 hours tends to be most beneficial for the body to use at a time though some studies suggest people with higher protein needs can also benefit from even higher doses. Getting in 20-40g protein post workout is beneficial to kickstart the recovery process and muscle protein synthesis alongside adequate carbohydrate consumption.
What Does 20g Protein Look Like?
Common Mistakes
Mistakes I see all the time in practice as a sports dietitian when it comes to protein can keep athletes from achieving their performance goals and also feeling their best. Most common mistakes include:
You’re not eating enough protein as an athlete. The RDA for protein in the US of 0.8g/kg bodyweight per day is way too low for most athletes (and I’d also argue most people, but that’s another whole blog post!).
You’re eating way too much protein and it’s displacing the carbohydrates and fat necessary to meet your needs as an endurance athlete because protein keeps us very full. IE you’re essentially too full to eat enough of the other key macronutrients.
You’re not getting in protein soon enough post workout. Research shows that getting at least 20g protein within 1 hour post workout is key to kick starting the recovery process. We know that protein dosing and timing is very important for muscle recovery and many athletes miss this window because they aren’t hungry enough to eat this soon post workout or get too busy after they finish their run.
You’re not getting enough variety in your protein sources. We don’t want to just get protein from chicken or only get protein from supplements, for example. We will benefit from a variety in protein sources because this allows the body to have access to a variety of amino acids and other vitamins and minerals, which are key to allowing protein to do its job best. This is especially important for plant based athletes consuming plant based sources of protein, which tend to be incomplete in their amino acid profile.
You’re not increasing your protein intake as a master’s athlete over 40 years old. Yes, once we hit our 40s our protein needs increase, especially if we want to keep recovering from training efficiently and don’t want to lose muscle mass at a rapid rate each decade of life!
We don’t plan out our protein components at meals and snacks so we don’t get enough. Protein tends to be the most time and energy intensive to prepare at meals and snacks so I’ve found in my work with hundreds of runners that it tends to be tricky for people.
Here’s some easy ways to include more protein into your weekly meal prep lineup:
Batch cook and prep animal proteins ahead of time so they’re ready to go during busy mealtimes
Use high quality third party tested protein supplements. My favorite is Momentous Protein (use code HOLLEY for 15% off at checkout + free shipping) because it is rigorously tested by third parties including being both NSF Sport and Informed Sport certified. Supplements are not regulated by the FDA in the US, so choosing products and brands that are third party tested by highly reputable third parties is extremely important. Momentous Whey Protein Isolate is annually tested for heavy metals, label claim potency, microbial, pesticides and other contaminants, which sets it aside from other protein powders that are not. It is made using whey isolate from grass fed cows sourced from the European Union making it extremely high in quality. Because this whey protein isolate is cold processed and incorporates Prohydrolase enzyme, this helps it retain its amino acid profile well to stimulate muscle protein synthesis and also be well tolerated and digestible.
I love incorporating this protein powder post run or lift when my appetite isn’t always the best to get in a good dose of easily digestible high quality protein quickly without having to even think about it. Bonus points if you mix into a fruit smoothie to get in more carbohydrates and vitamins or shake in a blender bottle with milk or a non dairy alternative to boost calcium and vitamin D intake too
Buy at least 2 protein rich snacks to incorporate throughout the week to make getting protein on the go convenient like jerky, dry roasted edamame or chickpeas, nuts and seeds, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, organic nitrate free cold cuts, cheese sticks, protein bars, tuna packets etc.
Use convenient ready to go high protein foods for meals like protein pasta, canned salmon, rotisserie chicken, organic nitrate free cold cuts, hard boiled eggs, tofu and tempeh, rinsed canned beans, and pre cooked meatballs.
Meeting your protein needs can feel daunting, but making some simple swaps and planning ahead can go a long way!
Sources:
Hudson JL, Wang Y, Bergia Iii RE, Campbell WW. Protein Intake Greater than the RDA Differentially Influences Whole-Body Lean Mass Responses to Purposeful Catabolic and Anabolic Stressors: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Adv Nutr. 2020 May 1;11(3):548-558. doi: 10.1093/advances/nmz106. PMID: 31794597; PMCID: PMC7231581.
Karpinski, C., & Rosenbloom, C. (Eds.). (2017). Sports Nutrition Care Manual (6th ed.).
Vitale K, Getzin A. Nutrition and Supplement Update for the Endurance Athlete: Review and Recommendations. Nutrients. 2019 Jun 7;11(6):1289. doi: 10.3390/nu11061289. PMID: 31181616; PMCID: PMC6628334.
Yang Y, Breen L, Burd NA, Hector AJ, Churchward-Venne TA, Josse AR, Tarnopolsky MA, Phillips SM. Resistance exercise enhances myofibrillar protein synthesis with graded intakes of whey protein in older men. Br J Nutr. 2012 Nov 28;108(10):1780-8. doi: 10.1017/S0007114511007422. Epub 2012 Feb 7. PMID: 22313809.