This is it! The last word in the ‘How Much Protein To Build Muscle‘ debate.

I’m going to give it to you straight with the scientific consensus. Please share this post with your friends on social media to put a nail in the coffin of this issue once and for all!

Check out my new video below where I break it all down and see the summary notes below. (direct link to youtube video here)

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0.82g PER POUND BODYWEIGHT

The best meta-analysis (Phillips and Van Loon 2011) puts the UPPER LIMIT of protein consumption for optimal gains at 0.82g per pound bodyweight.

So a 200lb man needs 164g protein, for example. Eating any more protein will not result in additional gains. This is where it tops off. (You can make reaching your protein requirements delicious with my BUFF BAKING recipes – ice cream, cookie dough and more!).

NOTE: Please ensure that you are actually stimulating growth in the gym in the first place. All the protein in the world will not build any muscle if your workout is not intense enough. Use a high-intensity, growth stimulating workout like my free THT training – click here to download it.

I STILL RECOMMEND 1g PER POUND

But I still stick to recommending 1g per pound. And that’s for 5 reasons:

(1) REMEMBER: It’s easy to remember. Weigh 180? Eat 180g protein.

(2) OUTLIER: You could be an “outlier”. In statistics there are always outliers. You personally might be able to use 0.94g protein and build more muscle. You might as well try.

(3) GLYCOGEN: Eating more won’t hurt. Any excess will end up converted and stored as glycogen in the muscle – needed for optimal gym performance. Excess protein will not make you fat – proof here.

(4) CERTAINTY: You have certainty. Eating 1g/lb gives you the mental certainty and peace of mind that you will build all the muscle you are capable of building.

(5) NO MUSCLE LOSS: Eating more protein helps guarantee that you won’t lose muscle when on a shredding diet to get six-pack abs (in a calorie deficit).

By the way, if you want me to personally set up a customized powerful shredding diet for you, go to my coaching page and see the ‘GET ME SHREDDED’ section. I’ll have your full plan done within a few days. I’ll get you ripped fast!

NOTE: For my US readers I recommend Optimum Nutrition Whey and for all my European readers I highly recommend Impact Whey from MyProtein.

BY THE WAY…not all sources of protein are equally as good. Some have very low bio-availability i.e. your body just can’t use the protein to build muscle. Some proteins are incomplete i.e. they don’t contain all the amino acids. So I have put together a list of the 5 very best whole food protein sources for building muscle. Enter your details below for immediate access – don’t worry, I operate a completely zero-spam policy.

Thanks! Click here for the best whole food protein sources: THE BEST PROTEIN SOURCES

click & enjoy 🙂

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If you have questions about protein intake, comment below and I’ll get back to you. ~Mark McManus 🙂

Mark McManus

P.S. I know that putting together a diet for mass gains or getting shredded abs can be a pain in the butt, especially if you are new to this – that’s why I offer a service where I will do all the tough ground work for you.
You probably don’t know how many calories you need, or how many grams of protein, carbs or fat you need (based on your personal stats)…BUT I DO. Then I can take these numbers and create an exact meal plan for you to hit those numbers spot on! You’ll know what foods to eat and even when to eat them. All you have to do…is do it. No thinking involved. If you’d like me to take care of this for you, see the Get Me Shredded option on my Coaching Page here.