Crazy numbers

Men's Fitness, Sept, 2003

Currently I weigh 195 pounds and want to gain a bit more muscle. I was told by a muscular guy that I could reach my goals by eating 20 grams of protein per day per pound of body weight.

--RON, VIA MENSFITNESS.COM

Either a) you heard the muscle guy incorrectly, b) he was pulling your leg, or c) he's a total lunkhead. Let's look at the numbers from a few different perspectives. If you followed his formula, you'd have to eat 3,900 grams of protein per day, which is equivalent to roughly 140 chicken breasts a day! Or try this math: Each gram of protein contains four calories, which means that for your body weight you'd have to ingest more than 15,000 calories of protein a day. Remember, we're not even counting carbs and fats yet.

Here's the best rule of thumb to follow: If you train moderately, eat 1.5 grams of protein (that's 1,170 calories)for each pound of body weight. If you train hard every day, eat two grams of protein (that's 1,560 calories) per pound of body weight.