Many people appear to be confused about
the amount of protein that is actually needed by the body,
and eat far more than their daily requirement.

Protein eaten beyond the amount needed by the body
triggers the process of gluconeogeneses,
which means one’s body turns that extra protein into glucose.
This glucose triggers insulin release and the body handles that glucose
the same way it handles the glucose generated from eating carbohydrates.

 So how much protein do we really need?

To find out the body’s protein requirement,
first we need to fix upon a number that we call our ideal weight
because our extra weight from fat doesn’t create a need for additional protein.

The simple formula for an active person is to take one’s
Ideal Weight number and divide it by 2.2 (lbs to kilos).
Next, take that resulting sum and multiply it by 1.2.
This result is the approximate amount of protein grams required.
If one is Sedentary, the multiplication number is 1 instead of 1.2.

Using this simple formula, and setting my ideal weight as 115 lbs,
with my activity status as Sedentary, results in a protein requirement
of about 52 grams daily. Increasing this to active results in a protein
requirement of 62. This shows my ideal daily protein intake
to be between 52-62 grams daily.

Protein has a role in everyone's nutrition plan,
and is an essential nutrient that is important for building and repairing muscles.

For the purpose of building muscle mass many respected bodybuilding experts think the goal should be a general recommendation of 70-120 grams of protein per day, and this should be an average intake. As long as one averages around 70-120 grams per day (number depending on individual ideal weight) one could be lower on some days and slightly higher on others, but muscle growth will still occur.

Even if one isn’t interested in bodybuilding. It probably makes sense to try and consume SLIGHTLY ABOVE the recommended amounts, with the general population aiming for around 70-120 grams of protein per day, depending on one’s body weight and current calorie intake. Women to aim for the lower end of this scale, and bigger men to aim for the upper end of this scale.

Below are some detailed formulas:

One of these detailed formulas is:

A standard method used by nutritionists to estimate our minimum daily protein requirement is to multiply the ideal body weight in kilograms by .8, or weight in pounds by .37. This is the number of grams of protein that should be the daily minimum. According to this method, a person weighing 150 lbs. should eat 55 grams of protein per day, a 200-pound person should get 74 grams, and a 250-pound person, 92 grams.

Another detailed formula is as follows:
Step 1  One way is to find out what percentage of your body weight is fat. 
The rest of it is lean body mass.

So if you weigh 122 lbs, and your body fat percentage is 19%, that is 23 lbs.
That means your lean body mass is 122 minus 23, which is 99 lbs.

Lean Body Weight Formula,

After determining lean body mass one can use Sears’ formula, in which the pounds
of lean body mass are to be multiplied by the following, depending on activity level,
to get the daily protein requirement in grams:

• Sedentary - multiply lbs of lean body mass by .5
• Light activity (e.g. walking) - multiply by .6
• Moderate (30 minutes of vigorous activity 3 days per week) .7
• Active (1 hour per day 5 days per week) - .8
• Very Active (10 hours of vigorous activity per week - .9
• Athlete - multiply by 1.0

OR we can use simply use

Woman's ideal body weight:
US measure: 100 pounds for 60 inches in height
+ 5 pounds for each additional inch over 60 inches
Metric: 45 kilograms for 150 centimeters in height
+ 0.85 kilograms for each additional centimeter in height

Men's ideal body weight:
US measure: 106 pounds for 60 inches in height
+ 6 pounds for each additional inch over 60 inches
Metric: 48 kilograms for 150 centimeters in height
+ 1 kilogram for each additional centimeter in height

Step 2 - Use your ideal weight to determine your daily protein requirement.

The World Health Organization established a daily protein requirement less than the
UK Department of Health and Social Security, and the United States RDA.
Using the high and low recommendations together provides an acceptable range
for daily protein requirement.

Men and women protein intake range based on ideal body weight:

Minimum Daily Protein Requirement: W.H.O. recommends 0.45 grams of protein
per kilogram of ideal body weight per day.

Maximum Daily Protein Requirement: US RDA recommends 0.8 grams of protein
per kilogram of ideal body weight per day. The UK Department of Health and Social
Security is approximately the same. 

  Applying the above formula on myself using:

Calculations for Ideal Weight :
US – 100 lbs + 5 lbs per inch,
Metric – 45 kilograms + 0.85 k per centimeter

Phyllis Collins : Female: 5 ft 0 in, or 152 centimeters 

Ideal Weight: 100 lbs (US) or 45 kilograms (Metric).
Protein Requirement (World Health Organization):
         weight 45 kilograms x 0.45 = 20 grams
Protein Requirement (United States RDA):
         weight 45 kilograms x 0.8 = 36 grams

Therefore based on this formula,
my Protein daily requirement is between 20 and 36 grams.

So, depending on what my ideal weight actually is,
all of these formulas place my daily protein requirement
between 20 grams and 62 grams. 

1 protein gram = 4 calories.
Therefore the calories of my body’s daily protein requirement is:
somewhere between 80 and 248 calories of pure protein.

Like the majority of people who look into this subject,
I am often am very surprised to see how little protein
that my body actually requires for ongoing good health.

Note, that there are only two other nutrients used by the body.
These are fat and carbohydrates, and major research studies show
that the only one of the three nutrients that are NOT ESSENTIAL
for the body’s health is carbohydrates, and.
this is one of the major reasons that the body processes
prioritize burning carbs for energy before using the other two nutrients.

Please don’t misunderstand me here.
I’m not saying we shouldn’t eat carbohydrates.
  I do eat them.
I’m saying they aren’t an essential requirement. 

                         
Here at DietHobby,
I like being able to establish my own Guidelines,
and I plan to keep them flexible for convenience.

It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words.
Today I’ve decided that sometimes I will allow
one of my Thinspiration Moment Videos
to stand alone as my initial daily post. 

The Thinspiration Moment video that I posted here today
best expresses my day's Thoughts.
  

I have a specific goal in my mind,
and I'm continually working toward it.

My goal is to maintain my weight-loss for the rest of my life.
That's my destination, and during my journey 
sometimes I take different routes.

Some diet plans work for me and some don't.
So far, I haven't found one specific diet that I feel I can follow forever,
and sometimes think that my own permanent Way of Eating
will be to continually experiment with new diets,
which I, personally, don't see as a bad thing.
I do believe the best diet plan is the one you can live with,
and I agree with the following quoted article:

"I really don’t care which diet plan you choose to follow.
Nor should I care which diet plan you choose to follow.

All I want is what’s best for you, and chances are,
what’s best for you is to lose some excess body fat (just guessing)
So if you find a comfortable way to accomplish this, who am I to judge?

Now, I have a big issue when it comes to false statements about a diet program
.. or false statements about physiology and health in general
(especially when these false statements are being sold for a profit)
But your personal choices? Those are none of my business.

Here’s an analogy (keep in mind, I’m known for really bad analogies)

4 employees drive into work.
One drives a 2001 Celica.

The other drives a leased Ford Escape.

The other drives a brand new Audi A6
that her daddy bought her for her 21st birthday.

The last employee drives a fully loaded Escalade
that he absolutely can not afford.

Now, regardless of the car they drive,
the important thing is that they all get to work on time.
That’s it.

Now, the Guy who drives the decade old Celica may think the guy driving
the Escalade is crazy for spending 2/3’s of his income on a car each month.

The person driving the Escape may spend every day
loathing the girl driving the Audi.

The person driving the Audi may be self conscious
of what people think of her car.

And the person driving the Escalade may
be perfectly happy with his financial decisions.

But again, none of this really matters if they all make it to work on time.

Focus on what’s important.
And what is important is what works for you,
in your current life situation.

In our car example, each person may have their own perfectly logical reasons
for the vehicle they drive. Or they may not. But in the end, it doesn’t matter.

Leaving our analogy and returning to diets, it’s all about the end goal.
The end goal is overall Health & happiness.
Being lean and muscular is the means to this end,
and your diet is just the process.

The process you choose can be super complicated or dead simple,
but no matter what any one else thinks,
if you are using a process that you enjoy
and that gets you results, then you are using the right process.

While everyone will have an opinion on how you decide to reach this goal,
remember it’s no more important then their opinion on what you drive
or what clothes you wear.

Besides, chances are their opinions are formed on anecdotes,
sleazy marketing and quickly made assumptions.

Do what works for you and remember the diet isn’t the end goal,
the health and weight loss is."

.   .    .  .January 2011 Article by Brad Pilon, author of Eat Stop Eat,

                    
Today I had the choice to either stay in bed
or get up and go about my daily activities.
I chose to get up.

Today I have the choice to either
eat small portions of foods that fit into my diet,
or eat as much as I like of whatever appeals to me.
I am choosing to eat small portions of “healthy” foods.

Today I have the choice to make better choices or not to.
I AM CHOOSING....... BETTER CHOICES.

Every day, every hour, every minute, we can use our "Power of Choice".
I am choosing to do the things that will cause me to maintain my weight-loss.
Yes I sometimes have slip ups, but that happens to the best of us.
I’m not going to let that get in the way of good things happening to me,

 Have a wonderful day, and CHOOSE WISELY.