The Protein Handbook
How much protein you really need, the best sources, and how to actually hit your target every day — vegetarian or not.
What you get
- A simple, personalised daily protein target
- The best protein sources — animal, vegetarian, and vegan
- How to spread protein across your meals for best results
- A complete section for vegetarians and vegans
- The biggest protein myths, cleared up
- An honest take on whether you need protein powder
The Protein Handbook
BASSAM MALLICK · FREE GUIDE
The Protein Handbook
How much protein you really need, the best sources, and how to actually hit your target every day — vegetarian or not.
Why protein is the most important macro
If I could fix one thing about how most people eat, it would be this: they do not get enough protein, and they do not spread it across the day. That single gap holds back more results than anything else.
This handbook fixes it. Read it, apply it, and you will have handled the most important nutrition habit there is.
If you get only one thing right about your diet, make it protein. It does the most work for the least downside.
Your body runs happily on fat and does not truly need dietary carbohydrate at all. Protein is the exception — it is the raw material your body uses to build and repair muscle, skin, hair, enzymes, and hormones, and it cannot be improvised from anything else.
For anyone trying to change their body, protein earns its place three times over: it builds muscle when you train, it protects muscle when you diet, and it keeps you fuller than carbs or fat — so it quietly makes a calorie deficit easier to hold.
Your body burns more energy digesting protein than it does digesting carbs or fat. Calorie for calorie, a high-protein diet costs you more to process — a small, free advantage during fat loss.
How much protein do you actually need?
Aim for roughly 1.6–2.2 g of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. Most people eat far less.
The official minimum — around 0.8 g per kg — is the amount needed to avoid deficiency in a sedentary person. It is a floor, not a target. If you train and want to build or keep muscle, the useful range is roughly 1.6 to 2.2 g per kg of body weight.
| Your goal | Protein per kg | Example — 70 kg person |
|---|---|---|
| General health | 1.2–1.6 g | 85–112 g per day |
| Build muscle | 1.6–2.0 g | 112–140 g per day |
| Fat loss (keep muscle) | 1.8–2.2 g | 126–154 g per day |
Protein needs go up, not down, when you are dieting — a higher intake is what protects your muscle while you are eating fewer total calories. If you are significantly overweight, base the calculation on a realistic goal weight rather than your current weight.
Do not agonise over the exact number. Landing anywhere in your goal range, consistently, beats hitting a precise figure once and missing for the rest of the week.
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