The Mind-Boggling Amount Of Protein Arnold Schwarzenegger Ate In His Prime

Arnold Schwarzenegger won his first Mr. Universe bodybuilding title in 1967. He went on to win several more Mr. Universe titles and claimed the Mr. Olympia crown seven times. In his prime, he was bench pressing 525 pounds and deadlifting 710. Over the course of his bodybuilding career, he put on nearly 100 pounds of muscle. In order to maintain his physique, he had to consume an incredible amount of calories, including up to 250 grams of protein per day.

According to Schwarzenegger, during competition, he followed a diet recommending 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. At 250 pounds, that meant he needed 250 grams of protein every day, which is too much protein for most people. New guidelines for protein intake in the United States in 2026 recommend up to 1.6 grams per kilogram. That is about 0.73 grams per pound. That works out to about 130 grams for a 180‑pound person, or 183 grams for a 250‑pound person like Schwarzenegger.

Consuming that much protein took effort. Breakfast protein consisted of three scrambled eggs. Later, he had a snack of mixed nuts, followed by a skinless chicken breast at lunch. Another snack included cheese, followed by a post‑workout protein drink with 25 grams each of milk and egg protein mixed with low‑fat milk. Dinner included 8 ounces of lean beef. He consumed plenty of carbs in the form of bread and fruit, and he drank a lot of milk. By the end of a typical day, he'd consumed over 2,700 calories, including 256 grams of protein. Keep in mind, he was weight training for five hours per day.

Bodybuilders and elite athletes are no strangers to high-calorie, high-protein diets. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson has detailed diets he follows during training. These may include up to 425 grams of protein per day. Strongman Eddie Hall once followed a carnivore diet that reached almost 900 grams of protein per day. You'd need to eat about 9 pounds of chicken breast to consume that much protein.

Those extreme diets are outliers, usually short-term plans that athletes use to achieve a specific goal. They are also the result of a refinement process. For instance, Arnold didn't always eat the same way. He once ate half a cherry pie shortly before a competition. In his early days, he was known for eating a whole chicken with a pitcher of beer. A whole chicken, depending on size, could provide 170 grams of protein, which fits well within his diet. Also, a pitcher of beer equals about four or five regular beers. Many non-light beers have between 1.5 grams and 2 grams of protein per 12-ounce serving, so Arnold could have squeezed in another 10 grams or so.

Schwarzenegger's diet was more manageable than some of the newer, higher-protein diets other athletes use. Part of Schwarzenegger's problem was that he was not a big eater. He used protein shakes to help reach his daily intake because he'd get full too easily when eating. These days, Schwarzenegger prefers a lot of plant-based protein and fruit. But he still enjoys a German radler now and then.