Find a suggested daily protein target.
Your body weight is multiplied by a target protein intake per kilogram, which varies by activity level.
Protein: Weight (kg) × grams per kg target
The protein intake calculator suggests how many grams of protein to eat each day from your body weight and activity level. For a sedentary adult it uses the ICMR-NIN 2020 recommended dietary allowance of 0.83 g per kg. For regularly active people it uses 1.4 g per kg, and for strength training 1.9 g per kg, the midpoints of commonly cited sports-nutrition ranges.
Protein builds and repairs muscle, skin, enzymes and many other tissues, and surveys often find that Indian diets, particularly vegetarian ones built around cereals, fall short. Knowing your target in grams helps you plan meals with dal, paneer, curd, eggs, soy, fish or chicken. Gym-goers, older adults trying to keep muscle, and people losing weight who want to protect muscle all benefit from a clear number.
1. Weigh yourself in kilograms.
2. Pick the rate that matches your routine: 0.83 g/kg sedentary, about 1.4 g/kg regularly active, about 1.9 g/kg strength training.
3. Daily protein = Body weight × Rate.
4. Divide the total across three or four meals.
5. Check protein content of your usual foods on labels or in food composition tables.
6. Adjust towards the lower or upper end of your range based on goals and appetite.
A recommended dietary allowance is set so that it covers the needs of nearly all healthy people in a group, usually by taking the average requirement and adding a margin for individual variation. The ICMR-NIN 2020 value of 0.83 g per kg for Indian adults was worked out this way, from studies of the protein needed to stay in nitrogen balance. It is therefore generous for most sedentary adults, not a bare minimum, but it assumes a reasonably varied diet.
Exercise, especially resistance training, damages muscle fibres slightly and the body rebuilds them stronger, which requires amino acids. Endurance exercise also uses some protein for energy. Sports-nutrition bodies therefore suggest higher intakes for active people, with ranges around 1.2 to 1.6 g per kg for regular exercise and 1.6 to 2.2 g per kg for strength training. The calculator uses the midpoint of each range, and many people do well anywhere within it.
Proteins differ in their mix of essential amino acids. Cereals such as rice and wheat are relatively low in lysine, while pulses are low in methionine. Eaten together, as in dal-chawal, rajma-roti or idli-sambar, they complement each other and give a more complete profile. Milk, curd, paneer, eggs, fish and meat are complete proteins on their own. People with kidney disease should follow medical advice on protein rather than these general targets.
Karan weighs 72 kg and lifts weights four times a week at a gym in Indore, and wants a daily protein target to plan his meals around.
Answer: Suggested daily protein 137 g; Rate used 1.9 g per kg body weight
Counting the weight of a food, such as 100 g of dal, as 100 g of protein.
Eating most of the day's protein in one meal instead of spreading it out.
Relying on cereals alone and not including pulses, dairy or other protein-rich foods.
Using a very high target for a sedentary lifestyle, which adds calories without benefit.
Following sports targets with existing kidney disease instead of a doctor's advice.
Planning meals for strength training or sport.
Checking whether a vegetarian diet provides enough protein.
Protecting muscle during weight loss.
Supporting protein intake in older adults to help maintain strength.
How much protein do I need if I strength train?
Commonly used ranges are 1.6-2.2 g/kg for people who do regular strength training — higher than the roughly 0.8 g/kg baseline for adults who are not very active.