Nutrition & Recipes
CrossFit Proper Zone Cheat Sheet | CrossFit Proper Zone Cheat Sheet – Unfavorable Carbs
Overview
The Zone Diet offers users more freedom in food choices by educating you on making smarter ones. The Diet does not restrict any particular food, but encourages you to eat the right foods on a consistent basis in order to become healthy for life.
History
The Zone Diet is based on a series of books written by Dr. Barry Sears, Ph.D. According to dietsinreview.com, this led to the establishment of Zone Labs Inc. in 2002. The company sells foods and a combination of natural and pharmaceutical products out of its headquarters in Danvers, Massachusetts. Zone Labs still consults with Dr. Sears for the latest health information to improve its products and dietary advice.
Function
The Zone Diet is marketed to help you lose weight, as well as to help you with a healthy lifestyle to improve your quality of life. Also, according to zonedietinfo.com, the Zone Diet is marketed to people with type 2 diabetes. It is thought that this diet can help alleviate diabetes by cutting down on insulin, since the program focuses on high protein and low-carbohydrate meals.
Process
Zonedietinfo.com reports that the Zone Diet is based on meals and snacks that are each comprised of 30 percent protein, 40 percent carbohydrates and 30 percent fat. Unlike other types of diets, protein and carbohydrates are not restricted, but rather proportioned so that you stay full longer and still have energy.
Restrictions
Although the Zone Diet seems more liberal in its food choices, there are restrictions to keep in mind so that you have long-term success. According to zonedietinfo.com, your snacks cannot exceed more than 100 calories, and your meals should be limited to 500 calories each. Therefore, you must watch portion sizes at every meal. Zonedietinfo.com recommends that your choice of carbohydrate does not exceed the size of your fist, protein should be the size of your palm, and fats should equate to the size of the top of your thumb.
Considerations
The Zone Diet allows you to eat a mix of protein, carbohydrates and fats. However, this does not mean that you should opt for red meat, potatoes and butter at every meal. Carbohydrates are found in a variety of fruits and green leafy vegetables. Opt for heart-healthy olive oil as opposed to butter. Choose lean proteins, like white meat chicken, turkey and fish. Limit your intake of alcohol, sugar and starchy foods.
A block is a unit of measure used to simplify the process of making balanced meals.
7 grams of protein = 1block of protein
9 grams of carbohydrate = 1 block of carbohydrate
1.5 grams of fat = 1 block of fat
(There is an assumption that there is about 1.5 grams of fat in each block of protein, so the total amount of fat needed per 1 block meal is 3 grams.)
When a meal is composed of equal blocks of protein, carbohydrate, and fat, it is 40 % carbohydrate, 30 % protein and 30% fat.
This “block chart” is a convenient tool
for making balanced meals. Simply
choose 1 item from the protein list, 1
item from the carbohydrate list, and 1
item from the fat list to compose a 1
block meal. Or choose 2 items from
each column to compose a 2 block meal, etc.
I will be providing you all with this “block chart” list of foods.
Here is a sample 4 block meal:
4 oz. chicken breast (Protein)
1 artichoke (Carb)
1 cup of steamed vegetables(Carb)
24 peanuts(Fat)
1 sliced apple (Carb
This meals contains 28 grams of protein,
36 grams of carbohydrate, and 12 grams
of fat. It is simpler, though, to think of
it as 4 blocks of protein, 4 blocks of
carbohydrate, and 4 blocks of fat.
Get started ASAP, purchase A Week In The Zone: http://www.amazon.com/Week-Zone-Ph-D-Barry-Sears/dp/006103083X
A wonderful blog and resource for recipes/ideas: http://feedmepaleo.blogspot.com/
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