Dear Protein,

.....at least I hope not. Don't eat eggs like Rocky either.

What's the deal with everyone thinking they need more protein? Okay, I get it, you lift weights and think you look cool while you drink your protein shake... but do you really need that protein shake? Maybe, but not necessarily. Here's a little math problem for you to figure out how much protein you need daily. Find where you fit in on the graph then calculate your weight in pounds or kilograms. If you choose to do kilograms all you have to do is divide your weight in pounds by 2.2!

		gm/lb		gm/kg
Sedentary adult		0.4		0.8
Recreational exerciser, adult		0.5-0.7		1.1-1.6
Endurance athlete, adult		0.6-0.7		1.3-1.6
Growing teen athlete		0.7-0.9		1.6-2.0
Adult building muscle mass		0.7-0.8		1.6-1.8
Athlete restricting calories		0.8-0.9		1.8-2.0
Est. upper requirement for adult		0.9		2.0

Multiply Kg x _______(number from chart gm/kg column) 

OR

Multiply lbs x_______(number from chart gm/lb column)

The number you come up with will be your daily protein need!

Is the number you came up with smaller than you thought it would be? I'd bet it is! You should be able to reach your daily protein need each day just by eating meals throughout the day that contain protein. Here's a little exchange chart to help you realize where you can find protein at in your food.

Food	Portion Size	Grams of Protein
Milk or yogurt	8oz	8 grams
Cheese	1 oz	7 grams
Meat	1oz (JUST 1)	7 grams
Egg	1	6 grams
Cooked Legumes	1/2 cup	6-8 grams
Peanut butter	1 Tbsp.	4 grams
Bread	1 slice or equivalent	3 grams
Pasta	1/2 cup cooked	3 grams
Vegetables	1/2 cup cooked	1-2 grams

Plan your diet accordingly! Try to get around 30-40 grams of protein for each meal/snack. REMEMBER: Protein isn't everything! You need to make sure you're getting enough carbs and fat as well as protein in your diet. There are carb exchange lists as well! If  you'd like to see a more detailed exchange list I've linked it HERE. Now you can tell all of your "meathead", protein-loving, weight-lifting friends the truth about protein!