In this guide
- Why protein matters, and why it is not magic
- The number: grams per kilo, explained simply
- The meta-analysis that found the plateau
- Protein per meal and timing
- Real food first: what 150 grams looks like on a plate
- Shakes: useful, not essential
- Creatine, the one supplement with real evidence
- What about the rest of the plate?
- Common protein mistakes
- My take
When people ask about the diet of a man in shape, they usually expect a secret. A special powder, a strange routine, a forbidden food list. The truth is boring: I eat enough protein, I eat real food most of the time, and I train consistently. Protein is the part men obsess over most, so let me give you the numbers that actually come from research.
I am not a dietitian, and this is not medical or nutrition advice. If you have kidney disease, diabetes or another medical condition, speak to your doctor or a registered dietitian before changing your diet. The facts below come from the International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN), the NHS and peer-reviewed research on PubMed. The opinions are mine.
Why protein matters, and why it is not magic
Muscle is made of protein. When you train with weights, you create small amounts of damage in muscle fibres. Your body repairs and adds to them using amino acids from protein. Eat too little protein and you limit that process. Eat enough and you give training the raw material it needs.
But protein does not build muscle by itself. Without a training stimulus, extra protein mostly ends up as energy. The order of importance, in my opinion, is training first, then total food intake and protein, then sleep, then everything else. Supplements sit at the very bottom.
The number: grams per kilo, explained simply
The ISSN published a position stand on protein and exercise in 2017, reviewing the research for people who train. Their main points (Jäger et al., PubMed):
- 1.4 to 2.0 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day is sufficient for most exercising people to build and maintain muscle.
- Higher intakes, around 2.3 to 3.1 g/kg, may help resistance-trained people keep muscle while they are dieting and losing fat.
- Protein is best spread over the day, with doses roughly every three to four hours.
To put it in real numbers: a man who weighs 80 kilos would aim for about 112 to 160 grams of protein a day. A man who weighs 70 kilos, about 98 to 140 grams.
For comparison, general population guidelines in the UK are based on a much lower reference intake of around 0.75 g/kg per day for adults. That level is meant to prevent deficiency in the average person, not to maximise muscle growth in someone lifting weights several times a week.
Protein is the bricks. Training is the builder. Without the builder, the bricks just sit there.
The meta-analysis that found the plateau
The most useful paper I know on this subject is a 2018 systematic review and meta-analysis in the British Journal of Sports Medicine by Morton and colleagues. They pooled 49 randomised trials with 1,863 participants who did resistance training, with or without extra protein.
Protein supplementation significantly increased gains in strength and fat-free mass. But the effect had a ceiling: beyond about 1.6 grams per kilo per day, extra protein gave no further measurable benefit on average (Morton et al., PubMed). The authors noted that the confidence interval stretched up to about 2.2 g/kg, so some people may benefit from a bit more.
That is why I tell men to stop chasing extreme numbers. Around 1.6 g/kg is a smart target. If you want a margin of safety, go to 2.0. Going to 3 or 4 grams per kilo is mostly expensive and unnecessary for most people outside special situations like aggressive dieting.
Protein per meal and timing
The ISSN also gives practical guidance on meals: about 20 to 40 grams of high-quality protein per meal, or roughly 0.25 g/kg, seems to be a good dose for stimulating muscle building. Spreading protein across three or four meals is more useful than eating it all at dinner.
What about the famous “anabolic window”, the idea that you must drink a shake within 30 minutes after training? The ISSN says that eating protein any time from right before to two hours after a session is a reasonable approach, but total daily intake matters more than exact timing. If your post-workout meal comes an hour later, you have not lost your gains.
Real food first: what 150 grams looks like on a plate
People think high protein means a strange diet. It does not. Here is an example of a day with roughly 150 grams of protein, using common foods. Amounts are approximate and vary by brand:
- Breakfast: three eggs and a pot of Greek yoghurt, about 35 grams.
- Lunch: a chicken breast with rice and vegetables, about 40 grams.
- Snack: a glass of milk and a handful of nuts, about 15 grams.
- Dinner: a portion of salmon or other fish with potatoes and salad, about 35 grams.
- Evening: cottage cheese or a protein shake, about 25 grams.
The NHS Eatwell Guide recommends including beans, pulses, fish, eggs and meat as protein sources, eating at least two portions of fish a week including one oily fish, and basing meals on starchy carbohydrates and plenty of fruit and vegetables (NHS: eating a balanced diet).
On meat, the NHS advises people who eat more than 90 grams of red or processed meat a day to cut down to 70 grams or less, because of the link with bowel cancer (NHS: meat in your diet). High protein does not have to mean steak twice a day. Chicken, fish, eggs, dairy, beans, lentils and tofu all count.
Shakes: useful, not essential
A protein shake is food in a convenient form. Whey and casein are milk proteins; there are also plant blends. They are useful when you are busy, travelling or struggling to reach your target with food alone.
But they do not build more muscle than the same amount of protein from a meal. The research I cited above is about total protein, and many trials used food, not powders. If you can eat your protein, eat it. If you cannot, a shake is a reasonable tool. Choose brands that test their products by independent third parties, because supplements are not regulated like medicines.
Creatine, the one supplement with real evidence
If I had to name one supplement with strong research behind it, it would be creatine monohydrate. The ISSN position stand describes it as the most effective ergogenic nutritional supplement currently available for increasing high-intensity exercise capacity and lean body mass during training, and says that short- and long-term use appears safe in healthy people at recommended doses (Kreider et al., PubMed).
A common approach is around 3 to 5 grams a day. Some people retain a bit of water at first, which shows up on the scale. If you have kidney problems or take regular medication, ask your doctor first.
What creatine is not: a steroid. And steroids are a different world with serious risks to your hormones and fertility, as I explained in exercise and erectile function.
What about the rest of the plate?
Protein gets the attention, but it is one part of a diet. Carbohydrates fuel hard training, especially intervals and long sessions. Fats support hormones and help you absorb certain vitamins. Fibre from fruit, vegetables, wholegrains and legumes supports gut and heart health.
Total energy matters too. To gain muscle, most people need a small calorie surplus. To lose fat while keeping muscle, a moderate deficit plus high protein and strength training is the most reliable approach. The NHS explains calories and energy balance clearly (NHS: understanding calories).
And a diet that is good for your muscles tends to be good for your erections as well: the same Mediterranean-style patterns that protect your heart protect blood flow. I covered that in diet for erectile health.
Common protein mistakes
Eating it all at night. A tiny breakfast, a sandwich at lunch, then a huge dinner. Spread it out.
Counting only shakes. People drink two shakes and think they are done, while their meals are low in protein.
Chasing extreme numbers. Four grams per kilo is not better than two for most people. It often means less room for carbs, fibre and vegetables.
Ignoring training quality. No amount of protein replaces progressive training. If you need a structure, start with my boxing-style workout.
Forgetting sleep. Muscle is built during recovery. Read how much sleep men really need.
My take
Protein is not a secret and it is not a religion. It is a number you can calculate in ten seconds: your weight in kilos times 1.6, and you have a solid daily target. Spread it over three or four meals, get most of it from real food, add creatine if you want one supplement with proper evidence, and spend the money you save on good food.
The men who look strong for decades are rarely the ones with the most complicated diets. They are the ones who train, eat sensibly and do it every week for years.
For the human side of this industry, the stories of the women behind the names, read my columns on House of Maximo. Follow my work at maximogarciaworld.com, and for the 18+ side, fuckingpornstars.net.
Sources
- Jäger R et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition Position Stand: protein and exercise. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 2017.
- Morton RW et al. 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, 2018.
- Kreider RB et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation in exercise, sport, and medicine. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 2017.
- NHS. Eating a balanced diet.
- NHS. Meat in your diet.
- NHS. Understanding calories.
