Short answer: if you lift and want muscle or strength, eat 1.6-2.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. For an 80 kg person that is 130-175 grams. The official Finnish recommendation is lower, about 1.1-1.4 g/kg, and the gap is not a mistake but a different question: the recommendation tells you what is enough for a healthy population, the research tells you where the benefit for muscle growth stops increasing. Below you get both numbers with reasons, a table by body weight, a meal split, and something nobody else can tell you: how much protein Finnish gym-goers actually eat on training and rest days, based on 2,891 logged food days.
Short answer: 1.6-2.2 g per kilogram
The largest meta-analysis on the topic (Morton et al. 2018, British Journal of Sports Medicine, 49 studies and 1,863 participants) found that adding protein increased the muscle mass and strength gained from resistance training, but the benefit plateaued at around 1.6 g/kg. The upper bound of the confidence interval was 2.2 g/kg, which is where the common 1.6-2.2 guideline comes from. Below 1.6 you are probably leaving gains on the table. Above 2.2 does not build more muscle according to the research, but it is not harmful for a healthy person either.
Within that range, the choice depends on your situation:
- 1.6 g/kg is enough for most people who train 2-4 times a week and eat at maintenance or a small surplus.
- 2.0 g/kg is the safe choice when the goal is muscle growth and you want to make sure protein is never the bottleneck.
- 2.2 g/kg or slightly more makes sense in a calorie deficit, because high protein protects muscle while dieting and keeps hunger in check.
If you would rather not do the maths, the protein calculator does it from your weight and goal.
Always count grams per kilogram of body weight, not as a percentage of calories. In a calorie deficit the percentage fails you: 25 percent of 1,600 calories is only 100 g, which for an 85 kg person is too little exactly when protein matters most.
Why is the official recommendation lower?
The Finnish nutrition recommendations (National Nutrition Council and the Finnish Food Authority) give adults a protein intake of about 1.1-1.4 g/kg and 10-20 percent of daily energy. That does not contradict the research. The recommendation is written for the whole population, whose goal is to stay healthy, not to maximise muscle growth alongside hard resistance training. It is also deliberately conservative: it is enough for almost everyone, but it does not say what is optimal for someone who lifts.
The other way the recommendation is expressed is as a share of energy: 10-20 percent. On a 2,500 calorie day, 20 percent is 125 g of protein, about 1.6 g/kg for an 80 kg person. So the top of the recommendation and the bottom of the research range sit almost at the same point. The difference is which end of the range you aim for, and someone who lifts should aim for the top.
In practice: if you do not train, 1.1-1.4 g/kg is a good level. If you lift regularly, raise it to 1.6 or above. For older adults the recommendation itself already sits at the top of the range, because ageing muscle responds less to protein and needs a bigger dose for the same effect.
Protein needs by body weight: table
The table shows daily protein grams at three levels. Use your current weight. If you are clearly overweight, calculate from your goal weight or lean mass, otherwise the number runs unnecessarily high.
Daily protein by body weight and target level
| Body weight | 1.6 g/kg | 2.0 g/kg | 2.2 g/kg |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 kg | 80 g | 100 g | 110 g |
| 60 kg | 96 g | 120 g | 132 g |
| 70 kg | 112 g | 140 g | 154 g |
| 80 kg | 128 g | 160 g | 176 g |
| 90 kg | 144 g | 180 g | 198 g |
| 100 kg | 160 g | 200 g | 220 g |
| 110 kg | 176 g | 220 g | 242 g |
For scale: 100 g of chicken breast has about 22 g of protein, 200 g of quark about 20 g, one egg about 7 g and 100 g of cooked lentils about 9 g. 160 grams a day does not happen by accident, it has to be planned. If you also want carbs and fat in the right place, the macro calculator splits your daily calories three ways.
What 2,891 food days show: protein intake of Finnish lifters
SisuLift's food diary calculates protein from the Finnish Fineli food database. We looked, anonymised, at every day on which a user logged at least 1,000 kcal (incomplete days excluded) and had a logged body weight. Data imported from other apps was left out. Dataset: 257 users, 2,891 food days, as of 2 September 2026.
- Median intake was 1.59 g/kg. Half of the days fell below that, half above.
- On training days the median was 1.72 g/kg (139 g), on rest days 1.49 g/kg (120 g). The difference is about 20 grams, which is roughly one protein meal more on a training day.
- 49 percent of days reached the 1.6 g/kg threshold. On a quarter of days intake was below 1.2 g/kg and on 19 percent below 1.1 g/kg, which is under even the official recommendation.
- Protein's share of energy was a median 26 percent, well above the recommended 10-20 percent. Lifters clearly prioritise protein, yet the absolute amount still misses the research threshold on half of all days.
One caveat: people who keep a food diary are more careful eaters than average, and the median of 1,900 kcal suggests some days are logged incompletely. Real intake is probably a little higher than what was logged. That does not change the main message: the rest day is the day protein most easily falls short, and muscle grows on rest days too.
Meal split: 3-5 servings, about 0.4 g/kg per meal
Total amount matters most, distribution second. Schoenfeld and Aragon (2018) concluded in their review that a sensible dose for muscle protein synthesis is about 0.4 g/kg per meal, and that daily protein should be spread over at least four meals. For an 80 kg person that is about 32 g four times a day.
Example meal split at 1.6 g/kg, about 0.4 g/kg per meal
| Meal | 70 kg | 85 kg | 100 kg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Breakfast | 28 g | 34 g | 40 g |
| Lunch | 28 g | 34 g | 40 g |
| Snack or post-workout | 28 g | 34 g | 40 g |
| Dinner | 28 g | 34 g | 40 g |
| Total | 112 g | 136 g | 160 g |
The post-workout anabolic window is exaggerated: if you ate protein a couple of hours before training, the next meal within a couple of hours after is enough. What matters more is that no meal ends up at zero. The typical Finnish mistake is a protein-free breakfast (oat porridge and coffee, about 6 g) with the whole day's protein in the evening.
Where 160 grams comes from: an example day
The numbers in the table feel big until you split them into real food. Below is a day for an 80 kg lifter that lands at about 1.7 g/kg without protein powder. Amounts follow the Fineli database and are rounded:
- Breakfast: 250 g quark with berries and 40 g oats, about 30 g of protein.
- Lunch: 150 g chicken breast, rice and vegetables, about 35 g.
- Snack: two eggs and rye bread with cheese, about 20 g.
- Dinner: 150 g salmon or minced meat, potatoes and salad, about 30 g.
- Evening snack: 200 g quark or a glass of milk and bread, about 20 g.
Total about 135 g, or 1.7 g/kg. If you want 2.0 g/kg, add 200 g of quark or 30 g of protein powder somewhere in between. Notice that the protein comes from five places, not one. That is the whole point of the meal split: you do not need to eat 300 grams of chicken in the evening when breakfast and snacks cover half.
Plant protein: a bit more, and mix your sources
Plant proteins digest slightly less well and their amino acid profile is less complete than animal proteins, particularly in leucine. A vegetarian needs two adjustments: aim for the top of the range (about 2.0 g/kg) and combine sources across the day (legumes with grains, soy, tofu, seitan, pea or soy protein powder). Soy and pea are the highest quality plant sources. A supplement is not mandatory, but assembling 160 grams from lentils alone is hard work when 100 g of cooked lentils contains about 9 g of protein.
Special cases: dieting, age and rest days
- In a calorie deficit, raise to 2.2-2.4 g/kg. Protein protects muscle, controls hunger and costs the most energy to digest. You can size the deficit with the calorie calculator.
- Over 60, keep at least 1.6 g/kg and spread it evenly: ageing muscle needs a bigger dose per meal to respond.
- On rest days, eat the same amount as on training days. The data above shows the rest day is exactly where intake drops, and that is when muscle repairs itself.
- For someone with healthy kidneys, 2 g/kg is not harmful according to the research. If you have a diagnosed kidney condition, ask your doctor before raising protein.
Protein is only one of three basics. The other two are enough training, which we cover in How often should you go to the gym, and making sure the weights actually go up, which is progressive overload.
Sources
- Morton RW et al. (2018). A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of the effect of protein supplementation on resistance training-induced gains in muscle mass and strength in healthy adults. British Journal of Sports Medicine 52:376-384.
- Schoenfeld BJ & Aragon AA (2018). How much protein can the body use in a single meal for muscle-building? Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition 15:10.
- National Nutrition Council & Finnish Food Authority: Finnish nutrition recommendations (in Finnish).
- Phillips SM & Van Loon LJC (2011). Dietary protein for athletes: from requirements to optimum adaptation. Journal of Sports Sciences 29(S1):S29-S38.
→ Read also: Workout log guide | Protein calculator