For years I thought I was eating “enough” protein.
Like most people, I trained, tried to eat reasonably well, and assumed that would take care of it. But when I actually tracked my intake properly, I realised I was nowhere near optimal.
When I started aiming for around 2 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight, things changed.
Why 2g per kg?
Longevity physician Peter Attia often talks about higher protein intake for preserving muscle mass, metabolic health, and long-term function. The general research range for active adults sits somewhere between 1.6–2.2g per kg of bodyweight per day for maintaining and building lean mass, especially during calorie deficits.
When dieting, protein becomes even more important. Studies consistently show that higher protein intake helps preserve muscle while losing fat.
For me, targeting ~2g/kg was simple and clear. It gave structure.
And it worked.
What changed?
As my protein intake increased:
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I felt fuller.
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My cravings dropped.
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My body composition improved.
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I lost weight without feeling like I was starving.
Protein isn’t magic. But it’s powerful.
Food first. Always.
This isn’t an argument for living on shakes. Protein should come from a balanced diet: Eggs, Meat, Fish, Dairy, Legumes etc.
Real food matters. Micronutrients matter. Fibre matters.
But, in a modern lifestyle, hitting 2g/kg consistently through food alone can be difficult. It often means eating a lot of animal protein, and not everyone wants that. It can also become expensive and impractical.
That’s where protein powder becomes useful.
If you’re using it daily, it has to be clean
A scoop once in a while? Fine.
But if you’re using protein every day — sometimes twice a day — what’s in that scoop matters.
Many powders are packed with Sweeteners, Gums, Stabilisers, Flavour systems.
That might be fine occasionally. But for something you consume daily, I believe it should be simple. Protein powder should support your diet — not introduce a list of ingredients you wouldn’t recognise.
That’s why I became increasingly focused on keeping it simple. If it’s something you use every day, it needs to be clean enough to trust without hesitation.
And that’s how the idea of Plain Protein Co. came about — but that’s a subject for another post!