Nutrition Challenge 10/1/12
For those of you that are interested in the nutrition challenge, or would like more information regarding the Paleo Diet or the Zone, I will be holding a discussion tonight at 7PM. I don’t have ALL of the answers, but I can discuss the principles behind both diets. We can also figure out which diet is best for you.
Yesterday, I discussed the basic principles of the Paleo diet. Today, I am going to speak a bit about the Zone diet.
In a nutshell, the Zone diet was created by Dr. Barry Sears as a means of controlling the intake of food to control “silent” inflammation. This is easily understood at controlling not just the quantity of food (calories in vs. calories out), but rather by controlling the macro-nutrients (Protein, Carbs, and Fat). The ratios to be within the “Zone” are known as 40-30-30.
How do I determine how much I am supposed to eat?
By reading any number of Dr. Sears books about the Zone he has outlined several easy ways to determine how much you are support to eat per day. There are many factors that play a role into what your daily consumption should be. Factors such as height, weight, bone size, and activity level will dictate total caloric intake. To make the process easy, the ratios are broken down in “blocks”.
Each Zone block is equal to 40% carbohydrates, 30% protein, 30% fat. This is the ideal Zone Ratio to eliminate bodyfat while improving silent inflammation.
To better understand this golden ratio of 40-30-30 we have to break down protein, carbs and fat into blocks.
1 Zone Block = 7 Grams of Protein, 9 Grams of Carbohydrates, and 1.5 Grams of Fat (or 3 grams assuming you get some fat from meat)
it breaks down to:
7g of protein = 1 Block Protein
9g of carbohydrates = 1 Block Carbohydrates
1.5g of fat = 1 Block of Carbohydrates
An easy guide is found here: http://library.crossfit.com/free/pdf/cfjissue21_May04.pdf
How does a day in the “Zone” look like:
Let’s take myself as an example. Based on my activity levels and size, I should be around 17-20 blocks per day. Let’s say I am going to choose 17 blocks to eat.
I have to eat 17 blocks throughout the day:
Morning: 4 Blocks
Snack: 2
Lunch: 4 Blocks
Pre-Workout: 2 Blocks
Post-Workout: 1 Block
Dinner: 4 Blocks
Additional information:
The Zone works best when the quality of foods you eat are higher quality. According to it’s author, it is possible to be in this golden ratio, and lose fat while eating poor food. If the majority of your diet consisted of meats, veggies and fruits, you will find that fulfilling your block requirement will be a lot of food. If you eat a diet rich in grains, you will find yourself eating a small amount of food to achieve your block requirements.
