Why You Need Protein When You Diet

When most people cut calories to lose weight, they focus on eating less. But what you cut matters just as much as how much. Slash your protein along with everything else, and you set yourself up to lose the one thing you want to keep: muscle.

Protein protects your muscle

During a calorie deficit your body looks for fuel wherever it can find it — including your own lean tissue. Adequate protein signals your body to hold on to muscle and burn fat instead. Lose muscle and your metabolism slows, which is exactly why so many diets stall.

How much you actually need

A useful target while dieting is roughly 1.6 to 2.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, spread across the day. Anchor each meal with a real source — eggs, fish, poultry, Greek yogurt, tofu or legumes — and you will feel fuller, snack less, and preserve the muscle that keeps you strong and lean.

Eating enough protein is not about bodybuilding. In middle age it is about staying capable, energetic and independent — and it makes losing fat far easier.