Here's a run down of my day today in the SuperZone.

B: 3 bl, toasted multigrain bagel, with 2 tsp. peanut butter and a tiny bit of butter; ½ package granola

1 hour yoga class

S: 1 bl, 1 M&M cookie

20 min of vestibular PT exercises

Lunch: 2 bl, pizza

S: 2 bl, choc chunk cookies

Dinner: 2 bl, balsamic roasted veggies with orzo
This is one of my favorites, and it takes only about 10 min start to finish. That's including both prep and cooking time if you use frozen veggies (see the recipe in the Tools section of the SuperZone tab at the top of this page).

10 min of vestibular PT exercises

My evening snack, to be eating while watch the first episode of the new BIGGEST LOSER season, will be 2 bl, a toasted onion bagel with a little light cream cheese and smoked salmon


This is about a 12 block day. I also had lots of water, both plain tap and carbonated flavored Poland Springs water, some ginger tea, fish oil and supplements, including a couple servings of Sea Health Plus. I'm still utterly amazed by how easy the SuperZone plan is, how fantastic I feel, how great the results are (better than the original Zone in my case) and how convenient and delicious the meals and snacks are.

Sue, can you look at my question under superfood protein/fat questions and post? Thanks!

Here are my meals and snacks, and exercise activity, from yesterday in the SuperZone. I've included approximate block amounts for those interested in figuring out the blocks

B: 2.5 BL cinnamon bread French toast; it's great topped with berries!

Lunch: 2 BL plain bagel chips with roasted red pepper hummus for dip

.5 BL nibbled on a little granola through the afternoon (< ½ package)

balance training and stretching for 30 minutes, followed by 1 hour of yoga

S: 2 BL multi grain bagel with light garden veggie cream cheese and a very generous topping of thin sliced tomatoes

Dinner: 2 BL Orzo with squash recipe (ate ½ of a full recipe)

S: 2 milk chocolate chunk cookies (my favorite, especially when warmed in the microwave)

Total 11 BL (counting the granola)

This might be a better place than on the accountability thread to discuss fiber. Don't want to ruin the mood over there!

Anyway, we had discussed fiber content on another thread, and I was observing your meals today, and I was thinking that it didn't really look like there is a lot of fiber in the superzone. Or am I wrong?

Love the New pic Sue!

Thanks Chris! What happened to yours? (lol!) It was taken around Thanksgiving. Actually, I think it makes me look fat, lol. The pants were getting too big...and I'm wearing those in 2 sizes smaller now (luckily they still had some)...love the SuperZone! :-)

Ha Ha Just put Sophia there! My God Daughter.

Aww....I love looking at her photos. What a little sweetie pie!

I'm coming back slowly, lol. Class ends Friday! I am expecting a Super Zone order Tues (baking Monday)

Tues, like tomorrow? Yummy! Class ends, YEAH!

Looks like this post got buried pretty quickly and unnoticed, so copy/pasting up here...

This might be a better place than on the accountability thread to discuss fiber. Don't want to ruin the mood over there!

Anyway, we had discussed fiber content on another thread, and I was observing your meals today, and I was thinking that it didn't really look like there is a lot of fiber in the superzone. Or am I wrong?

Well, remember last week when we were discussing it and I didn't have a sample meal plan to work off of?

If this is the meal plan given to you by zone labs, then this should give us an idea of how much fiber is in a typical superzone day. I have listed the estimated amount of fiber for each of your entries:
-------------------------------------------------------
B: 2.5 BL cinnamon bread French toast; it's great topped with berries!
fiber-1g, will assume 1 block of blueberries, that is 2g fiber

Lunch: 2 BL plain bagel chips with roasted red pepper hummus for dip
fiber-1g, will assume 3-4g fiber in the hummus

.5 BL nibbled on a little granola through the afternoon (< ½ package)
fiber-will give you 1g for this

balance training and stretching for 30 minutes, followed by 1 hour of yoga

S: 2 BL multi grain bagel with light garden veggie cream cheese and a very generous topping of thin sliced tomatoes
fiber-1g, will give you 2-3g fiber for the tomato

Dinner: 2 BL Orzo with squash recipe (ate ½ of a full recipe)
fiber-1-2g in the orzo, I don't know what the recipe was, but if it is mainly a summer squash or zucchini, then I would probably give you 3-5g for that.

S: 2 milk chocolate chunk cookies (my favorite, especially when warmed in the microwave)
No fiber listed.
--------------------------------------------------------
OK, so that comes up to 20 grams of fiber.
The daily recommendations for the intake of fiber is 20-35 grams.

In the Superzone, you are barely making the minimum. As opposed to the traditional zone, you would easily make the minimum and quite possibly consume up to 35 grams of fiber in a day.

I think that is quite impressive.

Hi SuperZoners!

Let us know what you've been eating. It's always great to get meal ideas from other Zoners


Here's my food and exercise diary from yesterday:


B: cinnamon bun

stretching and balance exercise session

S: granola with a dash of soy milk

Lunch: Tomato, mushroom and grated parmesan pizza

S: peanut butter chip cookies, warmed in the microwave

Strength training followed by another stretching session

Dinner: 1/2 a recipe of Orzo with Squash (so good!)

S: sesame pretzel, warmed in the microwave

Today's menu and exercise:

B: multigrain bagel with peanut butter

1 hour yoga class

S: M&M cookies

Lunch: had a veggie sandwich... a multigrain sandwich roll, light garden veggie cream cheese, a handful of baby spinach leaves, fresh cut strips of bell peppers(red, yellow and orange) and sliced tomato

S: Progresso Light Zesty Southwestern-Style soup and plain croutons

Balance PT exercises, and stretching

Dinner: Mediterranean Dip and plain bagel chips. I love this meal! The recipe's in my SuperZone recipe thread in this forum.

My evening snack, while watching THE BIGGEST LOSER, will be a pretzel or cinnamon bun, or maybe a package of granola.

re "Well, remember last week when we were discussing it and I didn't have a sample meal plan to work off of?

If this is the meal plan given to you by zone labs, then this should give us an idea of how much fiber is in a typical superzone day. I have listed the estimated amount of fiber for each of your entries...


Thanks for taking the time to analyze my meals and to confirm that they are within the range you are looking for, and are impressive to you. BTW, your estimates were much more conservative than the reality. I had 1 cup of raspberries which contains about 8.5 g fiber (not the blueberries, as you had guessed), and in my portion of the orzo recipe I had a considerable amount freshly chopped onion, containing about 3 g fiber, which was not included in your analysis. This brings my total, according to the other amounts in your analysis, to over 30g fiber for that day. Looks just fine to me.

Okay, I am trying to stay in the zone with the superzone foods. I am having a hard time with the yogurt/granola meal. I just can't seem to stay in the zone for longer than 1 1/2 - 2 hours. I tried adding one egg white and I am going to try adding two today to see if that is the problem. So far, the bagels have been the best for keeping me in the zone. The bagel chips/hummus meal will also keep me in the Zone for just about 4 hours.

In reference to low carb breads/wraps that another poster mentioned. I have tried them and since I am super carb sensitive, they don't do a thing for keeping me in the zone. I am not rich and I was just thinking about how much this would cost me if I ate at least two superzone food meals a day and how I was going to afford it. But, if the foods continue to help, then I am going to figure it out and buy them.

kimberly, instead of with yogurt and fruit, try eating the granola with 1/2 cup of WestSoy Unsweetened Soy Milk (it comes in 4 flavors; the insulin stimulating carb in it is almost nil).

Sounds good. I will try that. I wasn't even using fruit and I was using the o% greek yogurt and was surprised that it didn't hold me. Have you tried just eating the granola and if so, how long did it hold you for?

You're welcome!

My analysis was based on the limited amount of information that I had available. Thank you for clarifying.

BTW, your post from 1/12/10 does also appear severely low in fiber content. Without knowing exactly what you are eating, it is difficult for me to "guess" correctly.

I will also be taking a look at the meal plans when I get my shipment. My guess is that the meal plans will be much lower in fiber than what you are currently doing. That is a huge concern for those who are following this plan more closely.

Without knowing exactly what you are eating, it is difficult for me to "guess" correctly."

exactly.





I am following it closely, doing it just as it has been explained (you know me, the strictest adherence...). It's flattering that you have such concern about my fiber intake, but, IMHO, your concern is misplaced. To allay you concern, the plan includes unlimited amounts of veggies.

Incidentally, the meal plan that accompanies the products is the same one shown under the heading "Grocery Additions" here, except it says you can add up to one oz to any meal if desired. The two week menu is simply a sample (the word SAMPLE is superimposed across the entire page). It simply gives an idea of how one could eat a variety of the foods spread over a week.

The "sample" meal plan is what I am looking for. I want to know EXACTLY what the Zone has in mind for people to eat when they utilize these products.

IMHO, your "strict adherence" is based on the "guidelines" which allows you to eat unlimited quantities of veggies; although, you have also stated that many people are quite satisfied with the products as they are, without adding anything much. So, there could be a HUGE difference between the amount of fiber YOU get vs. what someone else may be getting, depending upon what he/she chooses to eat.

However, under the standard zone, I think it is much more straightforward what one is eating, and the recommended foods are generally fairly high in fiber.

I am not necessarily concerned about YOUR fiber intake (LOL), but that was the only meal plan example that I had to work from. Unless you are willing to send me the sample meal plan from the flier?

If you click on the SuperZone Food" tab, look real close underneath it, there is a smaller "sub" tab labeled "Grocery Additions". Click on it. I think what Sue is saying is that these are the additional items, and I believe she is saying that this is the "Sample" meal plan.

Sounds like a difference in semantics, to me.

But, if you really think about it, under the superzone, there is a huge opportunity to miss out on one's fiber intake, which is a big factor with regard to insulin control (one that I don't really hear too much emphasis on). If one can have "all the veggies desired", that certainly can vary greatly from one to another.

However, under the traditional zone, it is much more clear that veggies are the carb of choice, and LOTS of them. Sue says she got 30g of fiber from a day in the superzone, but only a small fraction of that came from the superzone products. And, no offense to anyone out there, but I would be inclined to think that most zoners are going to use these products as the staple of the meal, and not add a whole lot more to it.

LOL, this is funny to me...
Sue posted earlier that if people are not eating a lot of extra veggies, that it would be a good idea to supplement with Sea Health Plus. Well, may I add that those people also keep the benefiber handy? LOL!

Hi John, there's an actual sample 2 week menu called "2-WEEK MEAL PLANNER" containing a variety of SuperZone foods/recipes (the ones on this site); one side of the page contains a 2 week plan for men, and on the other side, a 2 week plan for women. It's like a jumping off point, to get you started. It encourages you to "mix and match any way you wish using the suggestions in the Zone's Easy as 1-2-3 pamphlet" (that's the one I mentioned that is basically almost exactly the same as the Grocery Additions page here). The 2 week planner is meant to give you an idea of how to eat a variety of foods these foods and recipes over two weeks time. It is simple and to the point, not extremely detailed. For example, here are some of the entries...Cookies, Fusilli with Broccoli, Granola, Turkey Sandwich, Tomato and Cheese Pizza, and so on.

Yes, that is the 2 week sample menu that I was referring to, that Laurie offered to scan it and send to me via email.

That is the sample meal plan that I suspect most beginning zoners are going to follow, until they are accustomed to making their own choices. I am going to sit down and break this one down for fiber content, and how variable the blocks are--as I am confused as to how food is actually combined together with this system. For instance, some meals call for an added protein, while others call for added carb. But, it doesn't seem to be consistent.

Hi Zoners,

I followed the women's 2-Week Planner for my first 2 weeks in the SuperZone and I loved it. It was a big help because after following the Zone diet for some many years I was a newbie to eating bread and cookies. That put me at a loss to know what to eat in the SuperZone, lol! :-) I added an extra 1/2 to 1 package of SuperZone food to the woman's planner each day, as a snack, because I have a higher LBM than the average woman, and I have a demanding exercise program. The suggestions in the planner were easy and delicious, it helped to get me used to the SuperZone plan, and I felt great! And the big plus, my body fat % dropped, too! I still take a quick look at it now and then, when deciding what to eat.

Does the 2 week planner include recipes for some of the meal ideas?

I got my Superzone foods today, and I won't be trying them until tomorrow. The bagels are huge, and look delicious. The thing I am not impressed with is that the 2 week meal planner includes Superzone foods in each and every meal, but I am taking the menu planner with a grain of salt, and will create my own meals as usual and simply sub the Superzone products when time is an issue or I am too tired to cook - or just craving something different.

Here is a very brief rundown of meals. Breakfast is either a bagel, toast, or granola with either milk, butter, peanut butter,, or cream cheese - no additional protein or fruit is listed. Lunch is bread of some form (Superzone) and some cheese,, hummus, 1 oz lunch meat, tomato and cheese pizza - other than that, not much fiber, again no mention of fruit or veggies on the meal planner, but it does have a planner and grocery list with fruits and veggies listed, with veggies being 8 servings per day, and fruit 2 servings. Snack is either cookie, brownie, pretzel, bagel chips, or granola. That's it! Dinner is Superzone pasta, with veggie variation each day. This is the only meal that vegetables are mentioned in the sample meal planner. The grocery list says that the Superzone foods supply all of the protein that you will need, however you may add 1oz of lean meat or 2 egg whites to any meal. My guess is that if you add any more than that, that it will result in too many calories and will thus result in a weight gain. It doesn't take much for me to gain, so I have to be careful. I also didn't notice any form of combination diet, so I will just create my own to include a few meals and occasional snack with the Superzone foods, and the rest "healthy" foods. Since fruit is allowed twice a day, and the 8 servings ofveggies, I do think it is possible to get the RDA of fiber. I am not vegetarian, so I do like my meat each day for dinner, and it does say only one ounce if you eat a Superzone food, so I don't think I would use Superzone products for dinner. I am assuming, since it doesn't state it anyplace, that we can mix and match the Superzone foods with our regular "healthy" Zone diet. Again, for pizza lovers, it does say only one ounce of protein. And, for sandwiches, it says to only add one ounce, or approx. 2 slices of;pw fat deli meat, with the rest being veggies or condiments. BTY, if you eat Superzone for the whole day, it says only 1 serving of dairy per day. Women should be concerned about this. Too many women are deficient anyway, and should be gettng the RDA of calcium.

Again, I am looking forward to the Superzone foods as a nice addition to my diet, but not to replace anything healthy. I still think that whole natural foods are best by all means. Anxious to try my bagel in the morning with a cup of skim milk and a little cream cheese.

Interesting, thanks for sharing that, Mari!

I think I am getting some good info, although the exchange between the protein and the fat still does not make sense to me. But, if the meal is basically 2 blocks of the product, then I guess the additional fat or protein is actually what makes the meals work. Fat and protein help with meal satiety, so it kind of makes sense that either of these would be added to make a meal last longer. However, in addition to the fiber issue that I brought up on another thread, I also don't see how one is going to meet their protein requirements, if not getting a rounded 3 blocks of protein at each meal (or more for men).

But, as you said, a simple bagel with some cream cheese is quite possibly something to look forward to for an "occasional" breakfast.

Hi Everyone!

Here's my day in the SuperZone today.

B: layered these in a cereal bowl: fresh apricot slices, granola and a mixture of yogurt protein powder and alcohol free vanilla flavoring (I really enjoyed this breakfast!)

Balance PT exercises and stretching

S: a little leftover Progresso light veggie soup with a package of herb crotons on the side.

Lunch: Roasted Veggies and Orzo (3/4 the usual recipe)

Took a walk

ate several almonds and peanuts at a friends house after the funeral I attended

S: ½ package granola

Dinner: the remaining ¼ recipe of orzo and veggies from lunchmised into the rest of the leftover Progresso soup, (It made a very nice bowl of veggie “rice” soup!), and ½ a multigrain bagel with a little bit of light cream cheese

Strength training and stretching

S: cookies

Sue, how long after a meal do you eat a snack? Today, I had half a multigrain pizza with hummus and yellow squash sticks rolled in it for lunch. 1 /12 hours later and I am hungry!! So, I ate a bag of bagel chips. Should I have been eating that so soon after lunch? So far, the only consistency I have seen with the superfoods and keeping me full is the bagel and most times the hummus/bagel chips combo. Sorry, to hear about your friend.

Thanks kimberly. :-)

Eating the bagel chips 1 1/2 hours after that meal was fine.

And today...



B: whole grain bagel with 2T light cream cheese and TJ’s salmon

Yoga class

Went for a walk

S: 1/2 package granola

Lunch: lemon hummus, avocado and tomato sandwich

S: toasted garlic bagel with 1T light cream cheese and roasted red peppers

Balance exercises and stretching exercises

Dinner: ½ package fusilli, with shrimp, roasted mushrooms and spinach

S: brownie, from Medwell 1-2-3, same as Superzone...(My mom bought some and gave me a few. She eats SuperZone too)

Here's my SuperZone food and my exercise activity for today.


B: yogurt peanut butter and Medwell 1-2-3 Peanut Butter Granola (Same as SuperZone; My mom bought some and gave me a few packages. She eats in the SuperZone too)

Lunch: Mediterranean Dip with plain bagel chips (see my SuperZone recipe thread)

walk

S: cinnamon bun warmed in the microwave, with a tiny bit of butter melted on top

Strength Training

Vestibular PT and stretching

Dinner: 1/2 pizza crust with tomato sauce, mushrooms and a sprinkle of parmesan (no other cheese)

Vestibular PT and stretching

S: ½ package peanut butter granola

S: garlic bagel with a little light cream cheese

Hi Everyone!

Today was a busy Saturday on the run, beginning at 6am, and an exercise rest day for me, except for my vestibular PT exercises. The highlight of my day was a deep tissue massage late this afternoon.

Here’s my food and exercise diary for today, in the SuperZone...

B: cinnamon bun with a tiny bit of butter melted on top

Vestibular PT exercises

S: Medwell 1-2-3 frozen brownie ( I like to eat them frozen, lol!)

Lunch: Multigrain Flatbread pizza with tomato sauce, mushrooms and a little bit of grated parmesan

Deep tissue massage (love these!)

Dinner: cinnamon bagel chips with a little light cream cheese

S: 3/4 package granola

S: My evening snack, a couple hours from now, will be 1/2toasted multigrain bagel, and for dipping, a little olive oil sprinkled with parmesan (This is delicious comfort food!), with a small serving of fusilli veggie and shrimp salad.

Hi Everyone!


Yesterday I was traveling in the car a good part of the day, arriving home mid to late afternoon. Before leaving in the morning, we packed a couple containers of Mediterranean Dip on ice in a lunch bag, and popped a few more SuperZone food packets and some Poland Spring raspberry lime flavored sparkling water into a small lunch tote from Whole Foods. My husband and I had plenty to eat and both felt great all day.



Here's my food and exercise diary from yesterday in the SuperZone.


B: French toast (Super Zone white bread)

S: ½ package granola

walk

Lunch: Mediterranean Dip with plain bagel chips (the recipe's in my SuperZone recipe thread here)

Vestibular PT exercises and stretching

S: plain bagel with 1.5 T light cream cheese and a little smoked salmon

S: ½ package herb croutons

Dinner: 1/2 package of orzo tossed with a lot of roasted broccoli, seasoned with golden balsamic vinegar onion and garlic powder and a little Zone extra virgin olive oil

S: 2 cookies warmed in the microwave (one peanut butter chip and 1 chocolate chip)

Sue, when the menu says a turkey sandwich, am I adding 1 oz of turkey or can I add more? I have been having trouble staying in the Zone with the superfoods these past few days! So, I had a pretzel and 3oz of chicken but figured that I was only supposed to add one oz. I haven't really changed anything with my eating. I am trying to eat the same thing while I test these produts so that I don't have to worry about carbing out of the zone but I am finding myself hungry within 2 hours these past few days.

Today I had my bagel and p.butter which I usually eat and within a few hours was hungry and had some almonds. For lunch, I ate half a pizza bread with 3tbls of hummus and yellow squash sticks and was hungry within 2 hours. I ate granola for snack and will have another snack later. Had the pretzel for dinner with chicken. The hunger seems to be the pattern yesterday and today. Very frustrating! The only good thing is that these foods are so low in calories that if I eat something else at the end of the day, I am still under my calorie count if I was counting calories. Can I add another superfood snack if I am hungry since the calories are low? I am supposed to get 12 blocks/day. I workout 6 days a week for 1- 1 1/2 hrs. Hopefully,tomorrow is a better day. Thanks!

Hi kimberly!

"Sue, when the menu says a turkey sandwich, am I adding 1 oz of turkey or can I add more?"

I would not suggest adding more turkey. It will take the meal too far out of Zone balance (don't forget 1-2-3) and result in more hunger (too much P to C is one cause of hunger).



"Can I add another superfood snack if I am hungry since the calories are low?"

Because you mentioned you require 12 blocks daily, yes, you should be able to add another snack, at least a block, maybe 2 blocks (that’s ½ or 1 whole package). You’ll be better off if you forget about the calories. The Zone is inherently a calorie restricted eating plan whether you eat 10, 12, or even 14 blocks daily. Simply adding calories is not necessarily going to resolve hunger. Additional food should be added following the Super Zone guidelines, to complement the 1-2-3 balance, not to attain any particular calorie amount.



My take is that you might not currently be eating enough to support your LBM and activity level. Check out my SuperZone menus in this thread. I have a 12 or 13 P block requirement, so I'm eating more like the men's planner (for those readers here who don't know, you can check your requirements with Zone Block & Body Fat Calculator, link at right).

Specifically, I've been eating meals and snacks (3 meals and 3 snacks) spread throughout the day which range from 2 to 2.5 blocks each, occasionally 3 blocks. Sometimes I'll even eat 4 snacks in one day. by eating only half a package of SuperZone food at one snack and eating another half a package later the same day (plus my 2 other 2-block snacks). It's working very well for me this way and I'm not getting hungry.

A tip, as I mentioned, don't look at the calories. It may be a comfort to you to know the calorie count, but having that info is not going to help improve your current concern.


Last but not least, I missed your question of a few posts back, about how yogurt and granola work for me. I've eating it with granola with regular yogurt a few times, usually about 1/4 to 1/3 cup yogurt at a time, and each time but one, I had fruit with it, either berries or fresh apricots. The time I did hve fruit, I mixed peanut butter and a little vanilla flavor with the yogurt. I haven't had any problems with hunger when I’ve eaten granola and yogurt together. Be sure to use 2% yogurt as recommended (to help with the 1-2-3 balance). If your yogurt is fat free, add a little more fat to the meal along with it.

Today in the SuperZone:


B: cinnamon bun with a slight touch of butter

Vestibular PT exercises and stretching

S: cinnamon bun

Lunch: Picadillo sandwich on a sandwich roll (recipe is in my SuperZone recipe thread in these forums)

walk

S: cinnamon toast bagel chips

Dinner: Trader Joe’s fresh gazpacho with 1/2 package plain croutons, a few shrimp (about 1/2 ounce), a sprinkle of pink salt and a drizzle of Zone Extra Virgin Olive Oil. For dessert, 1 M&M cookie warmed in the microwave. This took only 5 minutes to make (because it took 5 min or the frozen cooked shrimp to thaw in cool water) and was a very delicious meal!

Vestibular PT exercises and stretching

Upper body strangth training

Yoga

S: Pasta salad: fusilli and roasted mushrooms with a little Trader Joe’s Tzatziki for dressing and 2 teaspooons crumbled fat free feta sprinkled on top

I'm having so much fun with SuperZone foods!!!



Here's today's entry in my continuing SuperZone food and exercise diary.


B: toasted garlic bagel with light cream cheese

Vestibular PT exercises and stretches

S: 1/2 white pizza crust, sliced open like a pocket bread, freshened in the microwave and filled with sliced Trader Joe’s fat free marinated mushrooms and 2 or 3 T of Trader Joe’s Tzatziki (delicious!)

Lunch: a delicious Trader Joe’s Rosemary and light Swiss cheese sandwich on toasted multigrain bread with a yogurt, light cream cheese and Dijon mustard spread (like a mustard mayo), 2 bean salad and Cole slaw dressed with yogurt, lemon juice and a pinch of fructose

Walk

S: ½ frozen brownie ( I love them frozen!)

Vestibular PT exercises

Dinner: Pasta salad: fusilli and roasted mushrooms with a little Trader Joe’s Tzatziki for dressing; ½ frozen brownie

Core and lower body strength training.

Yoga

S: 2 milk chocolate chunk cookies heated in the microwave

UGH! Hate those web-blockers! I typed up my question, then the k-9 web protection booted me right off, and the post is gone!!! Gotta have it, though. Kids...

Anyway...

Questions about the grocery additions:

Did this change? 2 things that I thought were different when I looked at it last week, veggies were unlimited and now they are 8 "servings" per day. Fruits are 2 servings per day, and last week I saw only one serving per day. Don't know???

Also, related to the servings per day, are these "suggested" number of servings per day, or "required", or "no more than"? Seems ambiguous, the condiments make sense because it specifies "no more than 3", but the rest of them don't say that. However, then when you look at the meal plan, it does not reflect 11 additional servings of this/that per day. Again, confusion sets in here!

Servings are not the same as blocks, so will have to keep this in mind. Seems that this point could be confusing, why would you have separate food lists?

And, the meal planner reflects 4 meal/snacks for a woman. If I eat 4 meal/snacks and then have my dairy at some point, that is not going to help me meet my protein requirement of 77 grams per day. Instructions say that all of my protein needs are met by following this plan, but I checked the math, and it doesn't add up.

Anyone out there that can help?

Sue, how long is it you have been doing superzone--8wks or so? I love reading your posts..you are always so positive and enthusiastic.It is an upper to read your posts...by the way, you may think it is silly,but when I am in certain situations where I am wobbly,I ask myself "what would Sue do" heh heh Simply b/c you never seem to make excuses or try to find ways to defeat the system. When you do something, you go whole-hog or shall we say whole-superzone.CoCo

Hey, CoCo!

You posted some inspiring words the other day, and I felt as if this whole superzone thing was coming together a bit more after I had read your post. Well, got my shipment and I am again not working this out. I want to make this a positive experience, I want to do it right so that I give it a fair shot. Do you have any answers to the questions that I posted earlier?

Thanks!

Hi Coco!

I'm beginning my 12th week in a few days (this coming Saturday). :-)

Thank you so very much for the kind words. I'm at a loss for what to say. I'm glad to know my postings can be so inspiring. I'm a very self motivated and proactive person, or at least I like to think so. I see the cup half full, and then try to figure out if there is a way to improve upon it. I try to see the possibilities in most every situation. Never say never, you know? :-) (And no, it's not silly! Glad it works for you.)

How are you doing?

BTW, I love all the blues in your book shelf photo.

Thanks again.

Hi Cranberry...

It was fun to read about your cross-country skiing..it must be such good exercise! Cute pics of kids too...

I can relate to your angst..what I did was to look at the superzone packages.You will see that most are a perfect 2 block meal..such as the granola, cookies, flatbread.The pizza is 4 blocks as are the orzo and fusilli (Sue correct me if I am wrong). Now you know you need 77 grams of protein or 11 blocks. What I basically did was to decide the night before was to pick out 5 pkgs..each with 2 blocks. Then decide when you want to eat them. Remember when we eat on traditional zone you could eat gazillions of salad without having it really count even a half block... What I do is add some salad and veggies to lunch and dinner, basically the "free" ones. Then on the other meals I just stick pretty closely to the actual product.If I want to add a whole block of berries say to a cinnamon roll, I do so but will eat a stick of cheese to balance it out. I am still in the balancing mode heh heh. Don't worry about being perfect..just try and see how you feel eating the product.Make it work for you..best wishes!! Deb

Hi Sue...I'm doing great! Thanks for asking...I love the color blue can you tell ha...

I didn't mean to render you speechless..I just think sometimes I need to say what I'm thinking..we don't know sometimes that we help others, and it would be nice to know it<img src='desktopmodules/ntforums/images/emoticons/smile.gif' height='20' width='20' border='0' title='Smile' align='absmiddle'>

In your early weeks you said you lost about 2 lbs a week...did that slow down and have you had to start adding extra fat?

Glad to hear your good Dr report!! May you have many more happy, healthy years! CoCo

CoCo (or Deb), thanks again.

I think it makes more sense, the way you describe it, in terms of balancing.

What gets me confused is when I read the literature. It only suggests 4 meals/snacks for a female, which is only going to give me 56 grams of protein. I could add an additional item, but the literature does not suggest that for a female, so I was unsure if I should do that or not.

Then, of course, the issue of adding protein, the directions say NO, but obviously I am not going to meet my needs if I follow the guide. So, based on your recommendation, I would meet protein by eating 5 meal/snacks, and one dairy selection. Or, I could eat 4 meal/snacks and add in my own protein.

The other confusing part is that the sample meal plan does not incorporate all of those extra servings of veggies and such. So, am I REQUIRED to eat those additional servings?

This is important for me to do it "right". I feel like I am getting anal about it, but if this doesn't work, I don't want to be critcized by others for doing it wrong.

Anyway, thanks again for your help, and I really think that the balancing makes more sense. That is the Zone way.

Hey Cran...Where you may be missing is that on the dinner meal when they mention fusilli or orzo or a pizza, these are 4 blk meals if you ate the whole package, so it would be 3-2 block meals =6 plus a dinner of 4=10 blocks leaving room for 1 extra block of your choice. I never eat a 4 block meal at one time, so I just mix and match as I please. Don't worry about being anal about it...a lot of us are like that and until we get it figured out in our own mind we are not comfortable...so just keep playing like with a bunch of tinker-toys heh and it will make sense! CoCo

Thanks, again CoCo.

It makes more sense doing it as you said, so maybe I will just throw away the meal planner and venture out on my own, just use the "grocery additions". Do you go by the "suggested" servings? I had thought that the veggies were unlimited, but now I see that it says "8 servings", only one serving of legume, 2 servings of fruit, and the condiments are limited to 3 per day (ugh). I think I will add 1-2 of these additions to each meal, and divide it up fairly equally.

Hi CoCo,

Thanks again. :-)

Re "In your early weeks you said you lost about 2 lbs a week...did that slow down and have you had to start adding extra fat?

It's now more like 1 pound a week, sometimes 1.5, and, no, I haven't yet added extra fat to maintain. I had 10-12 days with no change a few weeks ago, when I was taking a round of antibiotics for a minor infection. Since then it's picked up again, (down another 2.5 pounds of body fat since Jan 4). I've lost close to 15 pounds of fat since early November. I'm at 23% body fat now. I need to lose more body fat than the average woman amount in order to show a 1% decrease in body fat %, because my pounds of LBM are greater than the average woman's.

Hi Zoners,


>>>A note to CoCo, I've been trying to submit this posting all morning, but I'm having difficulty using this site today. I just finally managed to submit it only to see you've already addressed the same issues. :-)


The suggested SuperZone diet for a woman provides a little over 70 grams of protein daily, before any grocery additions. That’s SuperZone foods alone. Each SuperZone breakfast, lunch or snack item contains 2 completely balanced blocks, that’s 2P, 2C and 2F in the 1-2-3 Zone balance. Each SuperZone dinner item contains 4 balanced blocks of P, C and F in the 1-2-3 Zone balance.

Here's the protein and block breakdown of the suggested day for a woman in the SuperZone, when no other foods are added:

Breakfast: 14 grams protein, 2P, 2C, 2F

Lunch: 14 grams protein, 2P, 2C, 2F

Snack: 14 grams protein, 2P, 2C, 2F

Dinner: 30 grams of protein, 4P, 4C, 4F


It's not necessary to count blocks with the SuperZone. That's part of the ease of the plan. Simply following the easy instructions is all that's needed. Following the simple directions allows you to stay in the Zone without paying any attention to blocks and counting. Its’ brilliant and very easy!

Just as with the original Zone, there is no one single right way to eat in the Super Zone. There's room for tweaking the plan to your preferences and needs. I've been in the Zone for 15 years. I lost 100 pounds of fat my first 2 years in the Zone, getting down to down to my ideal weight. Since then I’ve been maintaining it, staying between 22% and 26% body fat. I started the SuperZone a couple months ago, expecting to keep the status quo. To my surprise, I began dropping body fat with each passing week, and I’ve gained a little over a pound of LBM since November. Yeah! :-)

I’ve been following the plan as it’s presented in the SuperZone literature and in the SuperZone tab here. I have not been counting blocks or grams or trying to maintain a P, C and F balance. Simply following the SuperZone instructions assures you will maintain the Zone 1-2-3 balance needed to stay in the Zone. The design of the plan has already taken the balancing into account, so you don‘t have to think about it.

Here are some more details, for those who might be struggling with tweaking their SuperZone plan. My protein requirement has always been 12 or 13 blocks, a little more than the average woman, a little less than average man’s. To tailor the SuperZone to my unique needs, I’ve been adding 1 snack daily. Also, I usually eat ½ package of the pasta or pizza at a time (keep in mind each package of pasta and pizza contains twice as much as the other SuperZone food selection), and then I eat another 2 block size selection for an evening snack. Most of my grocery additions are carb and fat selections rather than protein, because SuperZone foods provide all the protein you need. When I add any significant protein to a meal (keeping it no more than 1 oz, per the directions), I usually eat only ½ a SuperZone selection for one of my snacks that day. It amounts to eating the equivalent of 3 2-block meals and 3 2-block snacks on most days, with 3 block meals with 1 block snacks once in a while. It’s working great!

Well, who knew that dinner was 28 grams of protein? I don't see that listed anywhere! I guess this would only be, assuming that one would choose to eat a pasta dinner (which I have not chosen to do). There is no information on the literature that suggests that I MUST eat a pasta dinner, and so therefore this is another example of how misinformed I am about this eating plan.

Had I not been so anal about it, I would have likely totally missed this little fact.

I disagree about Sue's point on balancing. You DO have to count, you DO have to balance. Whether one does it via blocks or via 1-2-3, it is still counting and balancing (by the way, I have not seen any info in my shipment regarding 1-2-3). You HAVE to make sure you are getting your 8 servings of veggies, 1 serving of legumes, 2 servings of fruit, and a dairy serving (there's one of the missing protein blocks).

I called Zone Labs and I talked with Dave Shreck and sorted this whole thing out. I told him that I have worked with blocks for years, just so that he would know my perspective.

I discussed with him about my concerns about the meal plan, he didn't make any indication of how dinner was a 4 block meal, and that was where my missing protein was hiding, either, but that is fine. I told him what products I had purchased so that he would know what I was working with. I discussed my protein concern, and he told me that he saw my concern of only 56 grams of protein, and said that I could add in extra protein if I felt like, or do 5 meals/snacks and the dairy to get the adequate protein count.

I also discussed the meal plan, many days on there just don't add up in terms of how many servings of veggies and other grocery add-ins. He agreed with my concern and said that they would be taking a look at that, and that they were planning on making some adjustments to the literature.

WOW! And just think if I had gone into this without any knowledge at all? I would be missing out on gobs of protein, and not getting my veggies!

(I have had problems posting today, too--think they are working on web upgrades)

Hi Zoners,

There's no counting needed to achieve 1-2-3 balance in the SuperZone because it's inherent in the plan. Just as the Zone is inherently a calorie restricted eating plan and you don't need to count calories, the SuperZone inherently has a 1-2-3 balance and you don't need to focus on counting blocks or grams.

Hi! I am doing better now that I have added another snack but I must say that over the last few days, I am eating every couple of hours because I am hungry. I guess my body doesn't want to be full for 4 hours at a time!! Thanks for your help once again! Do you think the carbs in the Hummus could be making me hungry after I eat it with a Superzone food? I hope not because I love my Hummus! I can't believe how carb sensitive I am. What makes us this way? I hate it. Is there something we can do or take (vitamin) that would reduce the sensitivity?

For those waiting for their order, it takes days to get my order and I have no idea why. Also, I wish they would send us confirmation emails to let us know when they ship etc. Be careful if you have an auto order. They messed mine up three times and I hope they get it right the next time.

Quote from Sue: "Also, it's not my understanding one has to eat all those additions every day."

Sue, maybe you can do some investigating on that . I was specifically told to make those additions. You can look at the grocery additions online (if you can get to it) or look at the document that comes with the shipment.

Non-starchy Vegetables: 8 servings
Legumes: 1 serving
Fruit: 2 servings
Dairy: 1 serving (optional)
Condiments: no more than 3 servings per day

I asked Dave Shreck about this, and specifically asked if it was ok if I only had 4 veggie servings one day, or is it recommended to have 8 full servings? He specifically told me that it was recommended to have 8 servings, not less.

So, I also imagine that if I choose to have less veggies and more legumes, that probably wouldn't be a good idea (as legumes are more dense than veggies).

No, I don't agree that achieving balance is inherent in the plan. With the loose guidelines that they have given, anyone could come along and eat a veggie, legume, and a fruit all in one meal (along with their SZ food) and be totally whacked out of the Zone, because it is not clearly stated to NOT do that.

Sue, I am really trying to "have fun with it", but I find it difficult to do that when there are more questions than answers, and the questions are not being answered consistently from one person to the next. I want this to be a good food trial, and I want to be able to state an honest opinion based on personal experience.


Kimberly, take a peek at my Food Trial thread, I am not having the best of days on this, either. But, I will keep trying, to see if there is an adjustment.

I will check that thread out. I really want to see how others are doing with these foods.

I was also under the impression that we can add those other foods but it was not necessary. I haven't been adding too many of the foods listed such as the veggies etc. I worry about adding them with the super foods because I am so carb sensitive, I am worried that it will throw me off the zone. If I ate the blueberries for example with a bagel and peanut butter, I can almost bet my life that I will be out of the zone. Cranberrycat, it is very confusing and at times frustrating but I will continue to try to fine tune it. I had a hard time staying in the zone with regular foods. With the superfoods, it is a bit easier but I am not where I would like to be yet.

Kimberly, I hear you, girl!

I am carb sensitive, too. I hear your concern about adding to the foods, and I was feeling the same way about it. Hang in there, we will get this all worked out, hopefully with Sue's help, as I hope that she can clarify the added foods issue.

Hi kimberly,

You're welcome. :-)

Re your hummus qn, keeping a food dairy, including in it how you feel a few hours after the meal, and any exercise activity, can be a big help in figuring out if certain foods don't work as well for you.

Re "I can't believe how carb sensitive I am. What makes us this way? I hate it. Is there something we can do or take (vitamin) that would reduce the sensitivity?"

It's in your genes kimberly. Eating in the Zone isn't going to make you less carb sensitive, but it's the way to prevent the yucky stuff that results form carb sensitivy and stay healthy.

Keep at it and you'll get there. Some of us just need to do a little more detective work with the foods we eat.

kimberly, more hummus info...

In my daily food diary here you’ll note that I use hummus and fruit sparingly and infrequently. I do that specifically because of my increased carb sensitivity. In almost 12 weeks of doing the SuperZone I've only had one meal that didn't work very well for me, and it was 1/2 package of fusilli with 1/4 cup of Trader Joe's Bean Salad (in a can). I'm assuming it was simply too much carb (too many legumes) for my needs. And, believe me I won’t be eating that combination again! :-)

You might like to try my Mediterranean Dip recipe and see how it works for you. It contains hummus (2 Tbsp), and I do very well with it. You can find it here: http://www.zonediet.com/Community/F...fault.aspx

Sue, that is interesting info regarding your questions previously.

I wonder if another email might be in order. I could send it to Dave, get it in writing and post here. Seems as if the zone chat function is missing today, so I guess I can't use that anymore. I will put in the email what he told me today, along with what you had learned previously. Hopefully we can get this cleared up.

Truthfully, with my first day, I think I did better on meals that had additions, opposed to the ones that did not. You can check out my thread for the details (as soon as I finish the post-lol!).

Cranberrycat, please leave me out of your emails. I do not need further clarification. Thank you.

Hi Zoners!

My day today in the SuperZone...


B: Medwell 1-2-3 Peanut Butter Granola, yogurt and peanut butter sundae
Vestibular PT exercises

S: 1 M&M cookie

Lunch: 1/2 white pizza crust, sliced open like a pocket bread, freshened in the microwave and filled with lots of Trader Joe’s fat free marinated mushrooms, sliced, and 2 or 3 T of Trader Joe’s Tzatziki

S: Medwell 1-2-3 brownie, frozen

Took a walk on the trails...50 minutes

Dinner: ½ serving of Cashew “Rice”. The recipe’s in my SuperZone recipe thread here: http://www.zonediet.com/Community/F...aspx#52448

Vestibular PT exercises, session 2

50 minutes of yoga

S: toasted multigrain bagel with garden veggie light cream cheese

Posted by Sue:
"Cranberrycat, please leave me out of your emials. I do not need further clarification. Thank you.:

In the interest of clarifying this for ALL zoners, I will be sending an email to Zone Labs regarding the conflicting information that has been offered by the literature, as well as public discussions that have occurred here on this forum. I will respect the authors of the posts and leave the names off of the content; however, I do feel that it is important to point out that conflicting information is being passed on to customers when we have questions about how to use these products.

Whether or not Sue is interested in knowing what is the recommended way to do this, I think others may feel differently. No offense, Sue. Whatever you are doing, it seems to be working for you. But, the literature does not say "suggested" number of servings. It specifically says "8". I may be displaying a bit too much "perfectionism" and being "anal" about this, but I want it to work right for me. If there is a different Zone than what I have experienced in the past, I would like for these products to put me there.

I have copied the email and will share it with you all here:
(the copy/paste did not pick up this email in a clean format, sorry if it is difficult to read this way)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I wasn't sure who to address this to, and you have all been helpful to me in the past, and so I am emailing this to hopefully get some clarification on how to properly use the Superzone products.



I participate frequently in the Zone forums, and have participated in many discussions. When I finally considered trialing the products, I wanted to learn more about how to incorporate these foods into my meals. I started to look for a sample meal plan, but I did not find one on the website. I did, however, find the grocery additions page. Not really looking at it that closely, I was told via the forums that I could add unlimited amounts of veggies if I wanted to, but that I was not required to add anything to the meals, as the foods themselves provide for all of my needs (again, this was advice from the forums, not from the zone literature or you).



When I got the shipment, I was able to take a look at the meal planner that was included in the shipment. I compared the meal planner to the grocery additions list, and then the confusion again set in because I felt that the 2 tools did not mesh together.



Here are some of my concerns, hopefully you can address and clarify:



The grocery list, with the list of foods, has "servings per day" listed behind each category. Nonstarchy vegetables (8 servings per day); Legumes (1 serving per day); Fruits (2 servings per day); Dairy (1 serving per day, optional); Condiments (no more than 3 servings per day); proteins--these foods supply all your protein needs, however you may add 1 oz. of lean meat or 2 egg whites (no yolks) to any meal. My concern with this is that I am not sure if the servings per day are optional or recommended? For example, is it recommended to eat only 2 or 3 servings of veggies on one day and maybe a bit more the next? Or should we aim for achieving 8 servings every day? Basically, same question with legumes or fruits, but those are much easier to obtain. I put in a phone call to Dave today and he said that I should aim for 8 servings of veggies per day (we did not talk at all about whether or not I take Sea Health Plus. However, a post from the forums offers a different take on it: "I was informed the fruits and veggies provide polyphenols for those who are not supplementing with polyphenols. Polyphenols are one of the three important parts of the SuperZone. The three important parts are 1. SuperZone Foods, 2. Omega RX, and 3. Polyphenols. For more info about this, refer to the SuperZone box at the upper right of the HOME page of this site). They went on to say if you are supplementing with Sea Health Plus, technically there's no need for the added fruits and veggies, and you can simply eat SuperZone foods by themselves. I have been consuming Sea Health Plus daily for many years. As you can see from my daily food diary here, I add the grocery additions here and there, for my enjoyment. So, as you can see, I am still not clear regarding how to handle the additional servings.

Again, with the grocery list, it is stated that no additional protein is necessary. But, it does also suggest that additional protein can be added, but there are no guidelines given to decide when protein is necessary. If I go by the directions, I could actually be adding 4 additional "blocks" of protein, which may or may not be appropriate. In addition, today I found through a forum discussion that the serving size for pasta is doubled, so there are essentially 30 grams of protein. I did not choose the pasta in my shipment, so if I did not, and was not aware of the protein differences, how would I know if I was getting enough or even getting too much protein? I don't want to wait until I start losing lean body mass to discover that I didn't get enough protein.

The 2 week meal planner does not go along with the grocery list. On any given day, there are not up to 11 additional veggies/legumes/fruit servings. This leads to confusion regarding how to best follow the program and incorporate these foods.


I think that basically covers my questions/concerns. I would appreciate hearing your thoughts on it, and give me some more guidance. I tried the foods today, and to be honest, I didn't feel that well using these foods. I felt just fine right up until today. So, I could really use some straightforward advice.

All of the suggested dinner items (pasta, pizza crusts) contain 30g of protein. These are essentially double the size (or approximately) of all the other items

Mike

Here's yesterday's entry from my SuperZone food and exercise diary.


B: Cinnamon bun, warmed in the microwave with a touch of butter melted on top

S: Cinnamon bun

Vestibular PT exercises

walk

Strength training (core and upper body)

Lunch: ½ serving of Cashew “Rice”, two bean salad (green beans, a few chick peas and a dressing of oil and vinegar and seasonings). The “rice” recipe’s in my SuperZone recipe thread here: http://www.zonediet.com/Community/F...aspx#52448

Vestibular PT exercises

S: Medwell 1-2-3 Chocolate Brownie, frozen (my favorite way to eat these)

Yoga

Dinner: Orzo with asparagus and seasonings

Vestibular PT exercises (UGH...this is not a fun thing to do...)

S: 2 milk chocolate chunk cookies