Hitting the protein threshold: how much per meal and when
September 29, 2026 · 30 min read
Gabrielle Lyon's leucine meal threshold, Layne Norton's protein distribution data and Stacy Sims's protein-first breakfast agree that most adults, especially older ones, benefit from more protein spread across meals. It is one of the simplest changes to protect muscle with age.
The rules, numbers and steps worth keeping in front of you.
- Daily target: about 1.6 grams per kilogram, or one gram per pound of ideal body weight.
- Per meal: at least 30 grams, up to 50 with age or for mixed and plant meals.
- Thirty grams is roughly a four-ounce steak, six eggs or a 25-gram whey shake.
- Gabrielle Lyon: leucine triggers muscle building, and the effect lasts two to three hours.
- Lyon: the first meal matters most from your 60s; first and last meals count most.
- Lyon: the official allowance is a minimum, not a goal.
- Layne Norton: total daily protein is the big lever; distribution adds 5 to 10 percent.
- Norton: muscle building shuts off within about three hours, so space meals, do not graze.
- Stacy Sims: women should get 30 grams first thing and eat before morning training.
- Mary Claire Haver: many women eat 50 to 60 grams and need 80 to 120.
- Move protein from dinner to breakfast and lunch; long fasting windows make targets hard.
- Choose leucine-rich sources; plant eaters need more, and collagen does not count.
- Pair protein with resistance training; it does not replace it.
- Kidney disease or other conditions: check with a doctor or dietitian first.
This is the short form. The full insight has every expert's reasoning, their own words and the sources.