Expert Answer
How much protein should a woman over 50 eat per day?
Quick Answer
About 1.6 g per kilogram of body weight per day, which is roughly 104 g for a 65 kg woman. Attia says the number should move higher with age because of anabolic resistance, and Patrick puts older adults at 1.6 g/kg or more. Most women over 50 eat well under this. Resistance training is what makes it count.
Strong Consensus
on Protein overall
What Researchers Say
Sets the floor and says it should rise with age. Anabolic resistance means an older body extracts less muscle-building signal from the same protein, so the intake has to go up to hold the same ground.
“you probably want at least 1.6 G uh of protein per per kilogram of body weight and as you get older you should start to move that number higher and higher because of what's called anabolic resistance”
Peter Attia, on the record @ 00:52
Names older adults and anyone trying to lose fat while keeping lean mass as the two groups who need the higher number, which describes most women over 50.
“older adults athletes and people who want to lose weight while sustaining lean body mass should consume 1.6 gram per kilogram per day or more”
Rhonda Patrick, on the record @ 36:27
Uses the pound-based version of the same target, anchored to lean or desired body weight rather than current weight, which matters for anyone carrying extra fat mass.
“I am of the belief that most people who are seeking muscle protein synthesis, recovery from exercise, and general health would do well to ingest approximately, I'm not super neurotic about these things, approximately 1 gram of quality, protein per pound of lean body weight or desired body weight”
Andrew Huberman, on the record @ 10:08
Argues the same direction for women specifically, with Gabrielle Lyon and Cynthia Thurlow, framing low protein plus lost muscle as the driver of decline after menopause rather than a consequence of it.
No coverage of protein needs specific to women over 50 in the analyzed videos.
Detailed Answer
The short version
Around 1.6 g per kilogram per day, spread across meals, with resistance training. For a 65 kg woman that is about 104 g. Most women over 50 are eating half of it.
Why the number goes up, not down
The instinct after 50 is to eat less of everything. Protein is where that instinct costs the most.
Peter Attia's reason is anabolic resistance: an aging body gets less muscle-building signal out of the same gram of protein, so holding muscle requires more input, not less. Rhonda Patrick names older adults and people losing weight as the two groups who need 1.6 g/kg or more, which covers most women in this decade.
The menopause overlay
Falling estrogen accelerates both muscle and bone loss, and it lands in the same years when most women are eating less and lifting nothing. Mark Hyman, with Gabrielle Lyon and Cynthia Thurlow, argues that low protein and lost muscle drive the decline rather than following it.
Nobody on the panel gives women a different multiplier. What changes is that the consequences of missing the target arrive faster.
Working out your own number
Take your body weight in kilograms and multiply by 1.6. At 60 kg that is 96 g, at 70 kg it is 112 g. Andrew Huberman's version anchors to lean or desired body weight rather than current weight, which gives a lower and more realistic number for anyone carrying significant fat mass.
Spread it across meals rather than loading dinner. Aging muscle responds better to a meaningful dose at each meal than to one large one.
Protein without training does very little
Every expert on the panel attaches resistance training to the protein number. Protein supplies the material; the training supplies the signal that tells the body to use it for muscle instead of energy.
Two sessions a week that actually load the muscle will do more than any adjustment to the grams.
Related Questions
Is 100 g of protein a day enough for a woman over 50?
It is close to the target for a woman around 62 kg, using the panel's 1.6 g/kg figure. Heavier women need more, and Attia argues the number should keep rising with age because of anabolic resistance.
Do women need less protein than men?
Not per kilogram. The panel gives the same 1.6 g/kg target regardless of sex. Women often end up eating less in absolute terms because they weigh less and eat less overall.
Does protein cause weight gain after 50?
Protein is the most satiating of the three macronutrients and the one that protects lean mass during weight loss. Patrick names weight loss with lean-mass retention as a specific reason to hit 1.6 g/kg or more.
When should a woman over 50 eat protein?
Spread across meals rather than concentrated at dinner. Aging muscle responds better to a meaningful dose at each meal, which is a practical consequence of anabolic resistance.
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