How much protein, and when

The joint advisory from four professional societies proposes 1.2–1.6 g of protein per kilogram of body weight per day for people on GLP-1 therapy. It proposes it — it does not mandate it — and that distinction is worth keeping.

Your own target is calculated in the app, because the right basis is not always your actual body weight, and the result is held between about 80 g and 120 g a day for most people. This lesson cannot compute it for you: it does not know your weight, and it should not.

You are eating less, and protein is the macronutrient people cut first when appetite falls — it is the one that feels heaviest. So the target goes up as a proportion of your intake at exactly the point total intake goes down.

Practically, this means protein has to be deliberate rather than incidental. Most people who hit the target do it by anchoring it to meals rather than tracking every gram.

• Put protein first in the meal, while appetite is highest. What gets eaten is what is eaten first.
• Spread it across the day rather than loading dinner. Muscle protein synthesis responds better to repeated doses than to one large one.
• Have two options that need no cooking. Appetite loss and preparation effort compound, and the fix for both is something you can eat without deciding anything.

• Mozaffarian D, et al. Nutritional priorities to support GLP-1 therapy for obesity: A joint Advisory from ACLM, ASN, OMA, and TOS. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2025;33(8):1475-1503. PMID 40445127.

• Not all weight lost is fat
• How much protein, and when
• Strength training, at the dose that works