What this tool does
The calculator multiplies body weight by a goal-specific gram-per-kilogram band and reports the midpoint plus the range. Health is near the dietary-reference neighborhood; active, muscle, and deficit step into sports-nutrition territory used for people who lift or cut.
How it works
Health uses 0.8–1.2 g/kg, active 1.2–1.6, muscle 1.6–2.2, deficit 1.8–2.4. Those bands sit beside ISSN’s broader 1.4–2.0 g/kg exercising range and the common practice of pushing protein up when calories come down. Plant-heavy patterns may want the high end because digestibility and leucine density vary.
Formula and methodology
Protein g = body weight (kg) × g/kg for the selected goal (health 0.8–1.2, active 1.2–1.6, muscle 1.6–2.2, deficit 1.8–2.4). Headline value is the midpoint. ISSN (2017) discusses 1.4–2.0 g/kg for building and maintaining muscle; higher intakes in a deficit are a practical hedge, not a medical prescription.
How to interpret the result
Hit the range most days with food first. Powder is optional convenience. Spreading 3–5 protein-containing meals is useful if you train; an extra 40 g at 11 p.m. does not rescue three empty meals. Kidney disease and some clinical diets need individualized medical targets this tool will not invent.
Example
An 80 kg lifter on “muscle” gets about 128–176 g (midpoint 152 g). The same person in a deficit lands about 144–192 g. A 65 kg recreational trainee on “active” is about 78–104 g — not 200 g because a podcast said “a gram per pound.”
Common mistakes
- Using pounds in a grams-per-kilogram rule without converting.
- Counting only chicken breast and ignoring dairy, eggs, legumes, and fish.
- Dropping protein on rest days.
- Chasing 3 g/kg because more sounded serious.
When this estimate may be off
- Body weight is mostly extra fat and you would rather dose to lean mass — this form uses scale weight.
- You have been told to restrict protein for a medical reason.
- Almost all protein is low-digestibility and you refuse the high end of the range.
- The goal dropdown does not match what you are actually doing this month.