Make it a double! Eating two times the recommended daily amount of protein can help you hold on to muscle when you diet, according to the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine.
For a period of 31 days, scientists kept volunteers in an energy deficit, so that they burned more calories than they consumed. One group ate the recommended daily amount of protein—56 grams (g) for males and 46 g for females, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)—while a second group consumed twice as much, and a third set of participants tripled protein intake.
Researchers found both the second and third groups lost more fat and preserved more muscle in this dieting state than those who ate the recommended daily amount of protein. There was no difference between doubling and tripling intake.
“Generally speaking, for most people, doubling the recommended daily amount is a good baseline to follow if you have weight-loss or muscle-gain goals,” says Alan Aragon, M.S.,Men’s Health’s nutrition advisor. “But,” he says, “it cannot be definitive. There is evidence suggesting that lean subjects might need even more protein."
Aragon also adds that those in the study used low intensity cycling as their form of exercise. Adding in resistance training might increase the body’s need for protein even beyond doubling the daily dose.
What this means: If you’re trying to lose weight or gain muscle, the CDC’s recommended daily amount isn’t enough to keep your body from burning its own muscle for fuel. Supplementing that amount by doubling it helps preserve precious lean mass, allowing your body to burn fat instead.
For a period of 31 days, scientists kept volunteers in an energy deficit, so that they burned more calories than they consumed. One group ate the recommended daily amount of protein—56 grams (g) for males and 46 g for females, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)—while a second group consumed twice as much, and a third set of participants tripled protein intake.
Researchers found both the second and third groups lost more fat and preserved more muscle in this dieting state than those who ate the recommended daily amount of protein. There was no difference between doubling and tripling intake.
“Generally speaking, for most people, doubling the recommended daily amount is a good baseline to follow if you have weight-loss or muscle-gain goals,” says Alan Aragon, M.S.,Men’s Health’s nutrition advisor. “But,” he says, “it cannot be definitive. There is evidence suggesting that lean subjects might need even more protein."
Aragon also adds that those in the study used low intensity cycling as their form of exercise. Adding in resistance training might increase the body’s need for protein even beyond doubling the daily dose.
What this means: If you’re trying to lose weight or gain muscle, the CDC’s recommended daily amount isn’t enough to keep your body from burning its own muscle for fuel. Supplementing that amount by doubling it helps preserve precious lean mass, allowing your body to burn fat instead.
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