Research
Macro partitioning
Higher dietary protein intake (1.2-1.6 g/kg/d) during energy restriction preserves lean mass and promotes fat loss more effectively than lower protein intakes.
When cutting calories to lose fat, aim for 1.2 to 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight daily. This helps you keep your muscle while losing fat, making your weight loss healthier and more sustainable.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
higher-protein diets on the order of 1.2–1.6 g/kg/d have repeatedly been associated with greater weight loss, adipose loss, and lean mass preservation
Why this rating
The paper states this is 'repeatedly associated' and cites multiple controlled studies, indicating strong consensus.
Source
Exploring Opportunities to Better Characterize the Effects of Dietary Protein on Health across the Lifespan
John W. Carbone et al. · Advances in Nutrition · 2024
DOI 10.1016/j.advnut.2024.100347
narrative_reviewCited 7×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Higher dietary protein intake (25-30% of daily kcal) improves cardiometabolic health markers, including insulin sensitivity and blood pressure, particularly when combined with energy restriction or specific protein sources like milk protein isolate.Moderate
- High dietary protein intake is not detrimental to bone health and may support bone microarchitecture and strength, particularly from animal and dairy sources.Moderate
Related findings · Macro partitioning
- Total daily protein intake of 1.6 g/kg/day is sufficient for maximizing resistance training-induced muscle gains, with an upper confidence interval of 2.2 g/kg/day.Strong
- Resistance exercise training combined with sufficient dietary protein intake acts synergistically to maximize skeletal muscle hypertrophy, with protein intake saturating around 1.6 g/kg/day for general populations and potentially requiring 2.0-2.2 g/kg/day for resistance-trained individuals.Strong
- Trans fats should be completely eliminated from the diet, as they increase LDL cholesterol, decrease HDL cholesterol, and are directly associated with increased coronary risk.Strong
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