Protein is the macro most sensitive to your goal. The number that holds you steady at maintenance is not the number that protects muscle during fat loss or supports muscle gain. This page picks the right band for muscle gain, gives you a daily target plus a sensible range, and shows you the per-meal split needed to hit it without forcing yourself.
During muscle gain, muscle protein synthesis competes with the metabolic environment you have created. Cutting calories raises the cost of holding lean mass, so the target moves up. Building calories opens room for growth, so the target stays high but other macros expand around it.
The calculator translates that into concrete grams. Hit the centre of the band on training days and you give your training and muscle gain the substrate it actually needs — no guessing, no padding.
Research on protein and muscle gain converges around higher per-kilo intakes than maintenance: roughly 1.8–2.2 g/kg for hard training, 1.4–1.8 g/kg for moderate training, and the lower end of that window for lighter activity. Pick activity honestly and the band lands where studies actually show benefit.
Going much above the top of the band is rarely the limiting factor. Going below it during muscle gain is the most common avoidable mistake — you leave lean mass on the table and recovery suffers.
Four meals of roughly equal size is the easiest pattern. Each meal lands a 0.3–0.4 g/kg dose that maximally stimulates muscle protein synthesis, and the day adds up without one giant meal carrying the total.
If your schedule only fits three meals, raise the per-meal dose and add a protein-forward snack. The calculator's per-meal hint is your floor, not a cap.
Inside AJYX, the protein target sits inside a full macro plan tuned to muscle gain: the right calorie position, carbs around your training, fats sufficient for hormones. As your weight and training load change, the numbers adjust — you do not refresh the calculator weekly.
Use this page for the standalone read. Move into the app once you want muscle gain run by a coach instead of a spreadsheet.
The 1.4–2.2 g/kg band covers almost every adult pursuing muscle gain. The exact spot inside that band depends on training load and your starting body composition — the calculator picks a sensible default; you can move within the range based on appetite and adherence.
Usually yes. muscle gain either creates a deficit (which raises the cost of holding lean mass) or supports new tissue (which needs substrate). Either way the band sits higher than the sedentary RDA.
You will likely still progress, but lean-mass retention or growth suffers and recovery slows. The first thing to check whenever muscle gain stalls is whether your daily protein actually averaged within the band over the past 2–3 weeks.
Going 10–20% over is fine and often helps adherence. Pushing far above the top of the band crowds out carbs and fats that muscle gain also needs — better to hold near target and let the other macros do their job.