How Much Protein And Calories Do We Really Need?

Let Your Body And Your Good Sense Be Your Guides

Savvy Vegetarian's Sample Menus show that you can get more than enough high quality protein on a plant based diet, by eating a wide variety of fresh whole foods every day. Each day’s menus combine complementary proteins to make complete protein – without effort or analysis.

But, these menus don’t necessarily represent what you should eat. They're based on a mythical average 40 yr old, 140 lb woman, who needs 2000 calories per day and 47 grams of protein. Or her 42 yr old husband, who weighs 160 lb and requires 59 grams of protein daily. Personally, I’ve never met this couple!

According to Western nutrition theories, we should consume 1/3 of our body weight or .36 grams of protein per lb of body weight. That doesn’t hold up on close examination. Theoretically, a 6’2” 250 lb man would need 80 grams of protein a day – unless he’s overweight and sedentary. An active rapidly growing seven year old could need more protein than a full size sedentary adult. And contrary to what we’ve been told, athletes don’t need a lot more protein than regular people. They do need more complex carbohydrates for energy to support all that physical activity.

Sometimes, it’s hard to say exactly how much protein and calories you need, because everyone has different nutritional needs at different times.

• For someone younger and more active, 2000 calories and 47 grams of protein might not be enough.
• A person who gains weight just looking at food might need far fewer calories.
• Someone recovering from illness, or chronically underweight, could need more of everything – fats, carbs, protein vitamins, minerals – and maybe calories.
• A child might eat mostly hummus one day, a ton of pasta the next, and then go on a broccoli or carrot binge, depending on the needs of their growing bodies.
• A pregnant woman has very different nutritional needs from a post menopausal woman, while a nursing mother can lose weight on a high protein high calorie diet.

Plus, our bodies tend to adapt to the food that’s available. In non-Western countries, like the third world, for most people the idea of consuming all those calories and that much protein is a joke. Two thirds that much food and half the variety is a luxury. Add the fact that 25% of Americans are obese, and you begin to sense that maybe we eat too much!

And here’s the Veggie Catch-22: According to popular nutritional theory, ideally we should get 10 – 15% of calories from protein, 15 - 30% from fat, and 55 – 70% from carbohydrates. For the menus below, the pie charts show that fat is on the high side, carbs and protein on the low side. If you reduce the fat in these meals, you reduce the calories, but also the good fats which your body needs. And if you increase or decrease the protein or carbs, you might get more or less of everything than you need.

The fact is that in a plant based diet, it’s impossible to compartmentalize fat, carbs and protein. Grains, legumes, and even veggies & fruit are a mixture of all three, plus vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids, and fiber.

Many factors determine how many calories and how much protein you really need: age, size, growth, activity level, digestion, metabolism, body type, genetics, culture, geography. The quality of your diet also matters. E.G. organic vs non-organic; fresh vs canned or frozen; home-made vs processed; just picked locally vs shipped from CA 2 weeks ago.

So, keep your eye on the big picture when it comes to nutrition. Don’t get hung up on calories and grams of protein - let your body and your good sense be your guides.

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