Most healthy adults need about 0.38 g of protein per pound of body weight. That is the allowance from the Indian Council of Medical Research's National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR-NIN), converted from kilograms.1 For a 150 lb person, it works out to about 57 g a day. You can reach it with food, and a protein powder is only one way to fill a gap.
Converting ICMR-NIN's figure to pounds
ICMR-NIN sets the adult allowance at 0.83 g per kg of body weight.1 A kilogram is about 2.2 pounds. Dividing 0.83 by 2.2 gives about 0.38, so each pound of body weight calls for a little under 0.4 g of protein.
To find how many grams of protein per day you need, multiply your weight in pounds by 0.38. The table doubles as a protein calculator in pounds, showing how many grams of protein are needed per day at common weights. It rounds the kilograms to the nearest whole number.
|
Body weight in pounds |
In kilograms |
Protein a day |
|
110 lb |
50 kg |
About 42 g |
|
130 lb |
59 kg |
About 49 g |
|
150 lb |
68 kg |
About 57 g |
|
170 lb |
77 kg |
About 65 g |
|
190 lb |
86 kg |
About 72 g |
|
210 lb |
95 kg |
About 80 g |
Gender makes no difference to the figure, and ICMR-NIN applies it whatever your activity level. If you know your weight only in kilograms, the original 0.83 g per kg works just as well.
A worked example in pounds
Say you weigh 165 lb and want to know how many grams of protein are required per day. Multiplying 165 by 0.38 gives about 63 g. You can check it the other way too. 165 lb is about 75 kg, and 75 multiplied by 0.83 gives about 62 g, so the two methods agree to within a gram.
Rounding up to 0.4 g per pound is fine for a quick estimate. At 165 lb, that gives 66 g, a little above the exact figure and an easy target to remember. Either number works for planning meals.
Where the one gram per pound figure comes from
Gym advice often quotes 1 g of protein per pound. That equals about 2.2 g per kg, more than two and a half times ICMR-NIN's figure.
Sports nutrition research uses a lower range for people who train. The International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) gives a range of 1.4 to 2.0 g per kg a day for most exercisers.2 Converted, that is about 0.64 to 0.91 g per pound. ICMR-NIN's own reading of the evidence is that muscle gains from resistance training, such as lifting weights, level off above about 1.6 g per kg.1 That is roughly 0.73 g per pound.
For most people, even those who train, 1 g per pound is more than either source suggests. It is easier to set a figure within these ranges and meet it steadily than to aim for one that needs much more food.
Turning your figure into food
Take a 150 lb adult aiming for about 57 g. Their day might include two katoris of dal, a bowl of curd, a glass of milk and a portion of paneer, eggs or chicken. The Indian Food Composition Tables give about 7.3 g of protein for 30 g of raw masoor dal, and about 21.8 g for 100 g of raw skinless chicken breast.3
Spread over three meals, 57 g is 19 g each. A meal with a pulse and a dairy food, plus the protein from rotis or rice, comes close to that.
Horlicks Protein in a per-pound plan
With 24 g of protein per sachet, made with 200 ml of cold water or milk, Horlicks Protein can cover part of the day. For a 170 lb adult aiming for about 65 g, one sachet supplies a little over a third. As the brand advises a single daily serving, the rest still comes from meals. The 240 ml milkshake, with 20 g of ultra-filtered milk protein, fits the same way.
Summing this up, ICMR-NIN's 0.83 g per kg converts to about 0.38 g per pound, or roughly 57 g a day at 150 lb. The popular 1 g per pound is well above that, and above the ISSN's range of about 0.64 to 0.91 g per pound for regular exercisers. Use the table to find your figure, and meet it with dal, curd, milk, paneer and other protein foods. If you use Horlicks Protein, count its serving once a day.
Sources
1. ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition. Dietary Guidelines for Indians, 2024. https://nin.res.in/dietaryguidelines/pdfjs/locale/DGI_2024.pdf
2. Jäger R, et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition Position Stand: protein and exercise. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 2017. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5477153/
3. ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition. Indian Food Composition Tables, 2017. https://www.nin.res.in/ebooks/IFCT2017.pdf