Hi Everyone,

Based on a convo on another thread, I decided to do some digging on the nutrional content of the blocks as described here and in the books. I started with protein as that was the main focus in the other thread.

According to all the charts I can find from most of the books, most meats are 1oz=1 block According to the books, it stated that the measurement is for uncooked food.

I went to 3 different sources for my information so that I could make sure what I was getting was accurate. USAD, Nutrition Data, and Fit Day. All agree with in pts of each other about the amount in a raw oz. Fit day has a nice option that will allow you to plug in the raw amount and give you what you get after you have cooked it. The answers are interesting.

I haven't had the time to go through all of the proteins yet, but here is one example

Chicken breast: 1 oz raw = 6.3 grams aver between the 3 sources. Once you cook that 1 oz, your yeild is only 5.8 gms of protein for that 1 oz of raw chicken.

Basically, all the the ones I checked gave similar results. Anywhere between 5 and 5.8 grams of protein, once it was in an edible fashion.

I checked what would happen if I measured the chicken after it was cooked that would give me 8.4 gms/oz

This explains why my protein counts were not equaling what they should for the number of blocks I was consuming.

According to the charts, I was not skimping on my protein. I was using the suggested amount, but the suggested amount was off.

I would have expected the raw amount to be more than 7gms, if you do any cooking you know that during the process you lose some.

I found this so interesting I thought I should check some of the carbs. I have a long way to go with both lists, but I just had to know.

I eat a lot of broccoli, so I decided to start there. Well, that was not the best choice. The quantities for broccoli are all over the place. ETZ has one measure MTZ has a different one and the one here on the site is majorly different from those two.

So, I decide I would just work with 1 cup of broccoli, cooked and raw.

Here are my findings: 1 cup of raw brocolli has just over 6 gms total carbs, with 2.4 gms of fiber. So if you sub out the fiber (and I'm not quite sure exactly which way Sears is saying to do it now) That gives you 3.6 gms/cup or 2.5 cups per block based on 9 net grams/block (a far cry from the 4 recommended cups here on the site)

For the cooked, 1 cup gives you a total of appox 11.2 gms total with 5.1 gms of fiber or a net of 6.1 or just under 1.5 c/block for a net 9 grm. (half of what is recommended on this site)

I tired black beans as an example of a denser carb. Based on the three sites, 1/4 cup gives you just under 9gms so that one checks out.

I haven't gotten to dairy yet or fish, my time on the computer is limited, so when I get more time I will post more items.

I just thought that this information was very interesting.

I think it is an interesting topic, sue!

I was not aware that protein actually disappeared during the cooking process, that is an eye-opener for me. So, perhaps we are not getting the protein that we should be getting?

Onions are weird, too. I think we just discussed that recently somewhere else. And, plain yogurt is all over the place, depending on the brand.

Well, after discovering the discrepancies, I'm going to do my measuring differently. I already use the nutrition label if the food has one, and I will continue to do that. However, for protein and carbs that don't have a nutrition label, I will weigh my food according to what is listed on Fit Day to come the closest to 7 grams and 9 grams, respectively. These discussions this past week have really opened my eyes. Very informative!

Karen and CC - I found this interesting and I'm am curious as to how Dr. Sears came up with his recommended portions to equal a block. Obviously there is some leeway as it seems to me if you go strictly by the amounts of protein listed in the books and on the site, you will mot be getting enough. Carb on the other hand could be too much. I'm hoping some others will jump in here with their impressions of these findings.

It seems to me that not many people are as interested in this as I was. Since this topic appears DOA, I will not be posting further discrepancies. If you really want to know if you are getting the correct amounts of things, I'd advise getting a good nutrition software and figuring out your portions based on that and not the blanket amounts posted here.

Oh, sue! I thought it was a good topic for discussion!

Here are a few examples of my findings:

A zone recipe posted on this site states that 1.5 cups of eggplant is a block. However, this is the "cooked" measurement (and a difficult measurement, when you are trying to fit slices of eggplant into a standard measuring cup).

I had to go to the USDA website to get the correct weight measurement for raw eggplant, so that I could have the correct carb block at the end of my cooking.

http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/

I came up with 14 oz as the raw measurement for eggplant.

Another example, I am updating onions. According to the website, 1 cup of onions sliced is about 115 grams, and this measurement is the equivalent of a carb block (unlike what the block list would suggest, at 1.5 cups, and no one knows why).

I am retooling my food block list and adding a "grams per block" column, so that when I am unsure of a specific measurement, I can just weigh it to get closer to the truth.

BTW, I am a terrible eye-baller, and I would not trust my instincts if I followed the plate method. My portions would just get larger and larger-LOL!

CC - thanks for the input on the eggplant and onion. No one hear likes it, so I don't generally cook it, but the onions I use a lot. Good plan to add gram measurements for helping to figure a block.

Well, I hear so much from those outside of the US, that they can't figure out how to measure because we measure in cups, and they are doing a weight measurement. IMO, much more accurate to go with the weight measure.

Weights are a lot more accurate. I saw a video on you tube once about the difference in a 1/2 cup of oatmeal measured then weighed. They weighed in grams, more accurate than oz, and the difference is astounding. They measured just slightly rounded or slightly indented and big difference in grams. Their point was calories, but if everything you measure over the course of a day is off by say 10-20 cals that can really add up.

Gotta share this one...

The first time I tried the Zone cereal, I recall the box promising 7 servings per container. I measured out my "cups" (can't remember what the size was, I think it has changed since then), and thought I was eating the right amount of cereal. Well, I only got about 3-4 servings out of it, turns out that my "cup" measurement was way off, compared with the actual weight of the serving. I was consuming twice as much cereal as what I should have been!

Hmmm, and to think I ate all of that extra protein! Wonder if I could have figured that out more quickly? Oh, guess will save that discussion for my protein requirement thread!

Sue can you tell me where you saw that video what the link or title was? That is super interesting to me. This is what I love, the research with factual answers. The measuring aspect is something I am really focusing on. AS I said in another thread, how can you measure some roung grapes by a 1/2 cup and be accurate? Or a half a cup of broccoli? chunky or all cut up? And then what is the count? It cannot scientifically be the same! Does anyone know if there are like flat type of measuring devices? or something other than they typical big cup or individual small cups? Has me thinking we would need to know exactly just in count how many grapes or thinks that are impossible to measure. Weighing works for grams, for meat but we are not weighing fats, fruits, vegs. You are so right on how that would add up. And that is the reason why some people say they didnt lose weight or they gained, etc..... because they may be filling up plates and going for it. Not to be anal about it, but this is precision isnt it? How big is the plate? Some plates are small and some are huge.

Sandra - these are some of the same questions we were asking on another thread, esp in light of using the plate (hand/eye) method of doing the zone.

I can't remember the title or the link for that youtube video, but I'd venture to guess if you typed in food measurement or something like that you could find it. I saw it posted on a different forum and I just clicked the link and watched it. Sorry.

Success in the Zone isn't really dependent on being accurate to the nth degree. But, I do understand the concerns regarding how to measure some things. Depends on how tightly one packs the measuring cup, too. Hand/eye doesn't always work for me, as my eyes get quite big.

So, I have been undertaking a project, trying to enter weight measurements into my spreadsheet for various blocks of food. I have some of the more common ones that I use, but I am not anywhere close to being finished with this!

Okay I will search that out. I dont feel comfortable with the plate method for me. because I too, have some healthy big vision when I am hungry and portion control will get out of control.
Thanks a bunch!

I agree CC. But for me I have to be measuring or I will not be doing it right. Or I must follow the proven recipes. If I am allowed to load up a plate, I will mess the whole thing up. The structured recipes are great but a pain in the A**. Lots and lots of ingredients and shopping and I like simple things. So some of the simple recipes I love. When I am in the mood, I will follow the more lengthy ones and try to make enough to put a serving or two away for another day. I read on one of the threads people making oatmeal and using sugar and all kinds of other things even I know put it so far out of the zone, it was over the fence! I know a small bit of oatmeal is okay but the sugar and jam, is not in the recipes or for this diet. This can be enlightening and even humorous sometimes.

Sandra, I measure everything, too. I don't trust my eyes!