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Instructions on The Zone diet:
- A good diet, proper rest and exercise are three of the
most important
aspects of your well being, and the proper combination of the three is the
cornerstone to your health. When one of these components is absent or
lacking, it creates an imbalance in the body, which in turn affects your
mood, your ability to think clearly, etc. In other words, taking care of
your body inadvertently helps to take care of your mind. The 40/30/30
nutrition of The Zone Diet helps nourish both your body and mind.
- All meals are taken into the body at a 40/30/30 ratio.
The ratio is 40%
carbohydrates, 30% proteins, and 30% fats, and the amount is in
accordance with an individual’s body-fat percentage and activity level.
“The Zone Diet” is not only an effective way to lose weight and stay healthy
and alert, but it is also safe in its long-term usage, symmetrical in its structure
and practical in its application. First, carbohydrates are taken into the body
at a 40% ratio. The diet recommends “favorable carbohydrates”, which
means primarily fruits and vegetables. These favorable carbohydrates are
recommended because they have a low glycemic index, meaning that they
enter the blood stream slowly, which helps to keep your insulin levels low,
thus preventing the storage of body-fat. Insulin is a hormone that is
secreted by the pancreas and enters the bloodstream to maintain and
regulate proportionate blood-sugar levels. So, eating foods that contain a
high glycemic index will cause the sugars to enter the bloodstream quickly,
and cause the pancreas to react by secreting high amounts of insulin to
maintain these proper levels. When the insulin is secreted, the sugars are
then pulled out of the bloodstream and stored away as fat in the cells for
future use. Therefore, although sugar itself contains no fat, taking in too
much will cause the body to store it as fat and thus create one major cause
of weight gain. Think of insulin as your storage and locking hormone; when
its level rises in the body, the ensuing process prevents you from burning
fat that is stored in your cells.
- Sugars are also used by the brain for nourishment,
however when taken
in large amounts, the insulin pulls them right out of the bloodstream before
the brain can use them. This is why eating large amounts of sugar will cause
what is known as a “sugar high”, then subsequently cause a “crash”,
causing
the individual to feel fatigued, sluggish and possibly even light-headed.
Remember that when we are speaking about sugars, we are not only talking
about candy bars and soda. Starchy foods, such as breads, pastas, potatoes,
and rice are broken down by the body into sugars, and have a high glycemic
index, causing the sugars to enter the bloodstream quickly. Again, the
pancreas will secrete insulin into the bloodstream to maintain its proper
blood-sugar levels, and cause the sugars to be stored in the cells as fat for
future use. While breads, potatoes, etc. do contain vitamins and minerals
needed by the body and should not be eliminated from your daily diet,
“The Zone Diet” does recommend limiting their use and obtaining the
majority of your carbohydrate intake from fruits and vegetables.
- Following “The Zone Diet,” proteins are taken
into the body at a 30%
ratio with each meal. The most beneficial proteins, which we consider
“Zone-favorable,” are very low in saturated fat, namely chicken, fish,
turkey, egg whites, tofu and vegetable protein powder (for vegetarians).
Protein stimulates a hormone called glucagon, which has the opposite
physiological effect of insulin. Glucagon is a fat-mobilizing hormone and will
slow down the production of insulin, helping you to burn the fat you already
have. Our current eating practices often lead to the secretion of too much
insulin and too little glucagon. Glucagon directs the liver to start releasing
sugar (fuel) back into the bloodstream. So, by increasing glucagon’s
presence, we can tap into the stored energy in our cells for use as fuel by
the body. In fact, eating your protein portion first during a meal will actually
help you further burn the fat you already have, by slowing the production of
insulin (from the carbohydrate portion of the meal) and allowing your body
to use its fat as fuel.
- The “unfavorable” proteins are high in
saturated fats, namely egg yolks, red
meat, pork and other organ meats. Saturated fats tend to make cell
membranes more rigid, causing cells to no longer respond appropriately to
normal insulin levels. In other words, the body is less receptive to the effects
of insulin (a condition known as “insulin resistance”). The body keeps
pumping more insulin into the bloodstream in an attempt to maintain a normal
blood sugar range. This process raises insulin levels, and the result is the
storage of body fat.
- Finally, avoid the misconception about eliminating your
fat intake. On a
hormonal level, you need fat in order to get rid of fat. Without some intake
of fat, the body will go into a starvation mode and will store any fat that is
brought into the body as a result. Understand that it is not fat which makes
you fat, it is the high insulin production that causes fat to be stored in your
cells. Dietary fat has little effect on insulin secretion. That’s the reason fat is
not the villain in weight gain – carbohydrates are! So, limit your fat intake,
but do not eliminate it.
- Fats are actually a necessary component in your diet for
several reasons.
Fats help to protect the body’s organs, maintain the skin, and are an
important source of energy. Fats also act as a governor for the production
of insulin by actually slowing the entry of carbohydrates into the
bloodstream, and thusly slowing the production of insulin. Did you know that
fat free ice cream will actually raise insulin levels faster than regular ice cream?
This is because the fat in regular ice cream will slow the sugar from entering
the bloodstream and thus slow down insulin production. Most important, fat
stimulates a hormone called CCK, cholecystokinin, which makes you feel
satiated. This hormone signals the brain to send messages to the body to stop
eating. If you have ever been on a fat free “fad” diet and felt like you were
starving, you now know why. The stimulation of this hormone is the missing
ingredient to a carbohydrate craving. Taking fat into your body as 30% of
your meal will provide the physical benefits to your organs, slow the entry
of sugars into the bloodstream, and help you feel satiated. This ratio of fat
will not cause further weight gain; rather it will help you to eliminate the
excess fat from the cells by slowing insulin production. In addition, it will
help to maintain low fat storage since a regular fat intake will give the body
no reason to store these fats for future use.
- When foods are taken into the body in balanced 40/30/30
proportions
your body will lose excess fat at an average rate of one pound per week.
And by determining your body-fat percentage and activity level, the
nutritionists at “The Zone Diet” will be able to establish the quantity of your
protein requirements. This factor has the diet promote and maintain your
lean muscle mass. By providing you with proper protein intake, the body is
able build muscle mass at an average of one pound per month (with
anaerobic exercise). Once your protein requirement is determined, we can
help you to determine the proper quantity of carbohydrates and fats to
maintain the 40/30/30 ratio.Here are a few more tips to help you look and
feel your best! Remember that the first meal of the day is always the most
important. A nutritious breakfast will help to speed up your metabolism
(similar to aerobic exercise), and should be eaten within one hour of
awakening. Additionally, all meals should be eaten approximately two to
four hours apart from one another to allow the digestive system full
recovery from its previous meal, and to enable more efficient speed to the
metabolism. And to help your digestive process, drink about 8 ounces of
water, 30 minutes before each meal. Finally, eat a Zone-favorable snack
(40/30/30 ratio) just before bedtime to keep your body in “The Zone”
during your sleep cycle.
- Whether you are on “The Zone Diet” or not:
never limit your intake of
water. Throughout the day, and especially during a workout, drink plenty
of it! In fact, during a strenuous non-aerobic workout you should drink at
least 8 ounces of water every 15 minutes. Doing so actually helps you to
workout for longer periods of time by helping to flush the fatigue-causing
lactic acids, which build up during a workout, from the body. In addition to
helping your digestive system during a meal and your fatigue during a
workout, the innumerable benefits of drinking water also include helping to
keep your skin clear, regulate your body temperature, and protect your organs.
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