| |
|
Headlines:
|
 |
Back to Nutrition Center
The Zone diet plan
|
|
|
|
The Zone is a "metabolic state in which the body works at peak
efficiency," and that state is created by eating a set ratio of
carbohydrates, protein, and fat. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
What is "The Zone"? It is when your body is operating at optimal
levels for weight loss, or weight maintenance. Entering "The Zone" is
achieved by eating controlled food portions, with the 40-30-30 percent balance
of carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Put simply, the Zone is a
"metabolic state in which the body works at peak efficiency," and that
state is created by eating a set ratio of carbohydrates, protein, and
fat.
"The Zone Diet" is a great low carb diet, for those people who
require a lot of diet support. Since Dr Barry Sear's first published
"Enter The Zone" in 1995, he has also introduced the public to many
diet products, support web sites, and more Zone diet books.
The In The Zone Diet Book series includes: "Master The Zone", "The
Soy Zone", "A Week In The Zone", "Zone Blocks", "Anti-Aging Zone", "Top
100 Zone Foods" and "Zone Recipes". All of these books promote a low carbohydrate
diet where your food portions must have a ratio of 40% carbohydrates,
30% protein and 30% fat.
This portion control assists with your body's insulin production, which
allows for effective fat burning. Portions in this low carb diet are managed
through a "block method". One block of carbohydrate is 9 grams, one protein
block is 7 grams, and a fat block is between 1.5 and 3 grams.
The Zone contends that you can expect to turn back encroaching
heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes. Another much-touted
advantage is better athletic performance.
How The Zone diet works
The Zone's eating plan is a combination of a small amount of low-fat
protein at every meal, fats, and carbohydrates in the form of fiber-rich
vegetables and fruits. The plan establishes a ratio for which Sears
contends the body is genetically programmed (that 40-30-30 figure). And
yes, we'll be thinner to boot.
Sears claims that the diet is based on his 15 years of research in bio
nutrition. Although the book is full of success stories, including those
of elite athletes, research that validates his specific claims isn't
there. That doesn't mean that Sears' theories are wrong; it's just that
no scientific evidence has proven that his program works.
Sears bases his theory on using diet to control the body's production of
the hormone insulin. Among insulin's many roles, it helps regulate
storage of excess energy as fat. The goal is to keep a balance between
fat-storing insulin and the hormone glucagon, insulin's opposite, whose
job it is to release the stored glucose from the liver when it is
needed. Maintaining the correct balance between the two is accomplished
by watching the size and specific content of your meals. In other words,
you must be mindful of what you put on your plate. Sears suggests that
we think of food not as "a source of calories but as a control system
for hormones."
|
|
|
|
Are you a doctor or a nurse?
Do you want to join the Doctors Lounge online medical community?
Participate in editorial activities (publish, peer review, edit) and
give a helping hand to the largest online community of patients.
Click on the link below to see the requirements:
Doctors Lounge Membership
Application |
|
The Zone plan details
Low carbohydrate diets may seem restricting, but The Zone diet has
a lot of variety and recommendations as to what you can eat. With no induction
phases, the selection of foods is constant. The Zone low carb diet is
not just a weight loss program, it's a lifestyle choice.
The Zone does not recommend that you eat fewer calories than you're
currently consuming, just different ones. Although the book has a more
complicated and exacting measurement of what to eat, it can be
simplified as:
- A small amount of protein at every meal (approximately the size of
your palm or one small chicken breast) and at every snack (one in the
late afternoon, one in the late evening)
- "Favorable" carbohydrates twice the size of the protein portion --
these include most vegetables and lentils, beans, whole grains, and
most fruits
- A smaller amount of carbohydrates if you have chosen "unfavorable"
ones -- these include brown rice, pasta, papaya, mango, banana, dry
breakfast cereal, bread, bagel, tortilla, carrots, and all fruit
juices.
The diet keeps saturated fats to a minimum but includes olive,
canola, macadamia nuts, and avocados. Certain unfavorable carbohydrates
are restricted because they release glucose quickly: grains, breads,
pasta, rice, and other similar starches, a deviation from conventional
definitions of a good diet. Overall, the diet is higher in protein and
fat than traditional diets, which would have us eat nearly
three-quarters of all calories as carbohydrates.
|
The
Zone
at a glance! |
|
| |
|
|
- A low carb diet where your food
portions must have a ratio of 40-30-30 (40%
carbohydrates, 30% protein and 30% fat).
- Sets few limits on the amount of food
you eat.
- Sets few limits on the amount of
calories you eat.
|
|
|
Happily for those of us who would be depressed at the thought of
forgoing deserts for the rest of our lives, his list of allowable foods
includes, among others, high-fat ice cream. Why high-fat? Because the
fat retards the rate of absorption of carbohydrate into the body,
according to Sears.
Food For Thought
The 40-30-30 ratio applies to all meals all the time, and a broad range
of foods are allowed, so there are no confusing schedules or conditions
that need to be memorized. Though dieters should find it easy to follow,
nutritionists give the diet mixed reviews.
Some nutritionists find fault with some of The Zone's food
recommendations, such as that high-fat ice cream. Sears says it's OK,
because it won't raise your blood sugar precipitously, but it's not OK
for other reasons, such as the fact that the cream in the ice cream is
saturated fat, which isn't good for your overall cholesterol. (To be
fair to the diet, Sears only allows a half-cup and certainly doesn't
suggest you make it a habit.)
Other nutritional experts, including some of Sears' former colleagues,
are critical of his conclusions from the scientific evidence, contending
that he has distorted or exaggerated the meaning of much of the basic
research. They point out that no direct studies to verify his
conclusions have been performed.
|
|
send
to a friend
printer
friendly version
