Hi there fellow zoners!

I have been reading through other posts to see if anyone is going through the same situation as me and unfortunately not so I'm here for some advice. I'll start with some background - sorry if this is a bit long winded!

I'm in the Australian Navy and currently on operational deployment overseas. In my job, I watchkeep which is basically shift working. I work for 5 hours, get 5 hours off, then work for 7 hours, get 7 hours off. This is the same every day, for weeks on end. Naturally, my body has adjusted to only getting max 4 hours sleep at any one time, so you can understand my leptin/gherlin levels will be all out of whack. My job is also quite sedentary, I spend my working hours at a computer and being on a ship, really only walk about 30 metres at any one time. So at the moment I get up early in my 7 hours off and work out for about an hour and a half - Cardio then some Crossfit. Its hard for me to decide what activity level that puts me in, when I do work out its quite high intensity and I am rather fit, however the other 10 hours of my day are pretty low level activity. I should also mention that I am doing Paleo Zone, so grains, dairy etc is out for me.. I am rather limited in the foods I have available to eat, as they are all provided for me. I have prepared myself pretty well with pre-packed tuna and some healthy organic fruit and nut snacks (no added sugars/preservatives, just purely dehydrated fruit). For instance tonight, much against my Paleo lifestyle, I had to have corn and peas (!!!) for dinner as there were no other alternatives.. I had a pear as well just to keep my carbs up..


I'm after any suggestions of how to separate my blocks. I'm aiming for a 10 to 11 block day, based on activity level. At the moment, I get up and train. I then have a 2 bl breakfast, 1 bl snack, 2-3 bl lunch. Its hard to be precise due to the meals available to me on board. This is during my 5 hour shift. I then go to bed for 4 hours, get up for my 7 hour shift, and have a 3 block dinner and about 4 hours later, a 2 block snack. I sometimes feel hungry in my morning shift which is why I have the 1 block snack, but its hard to say if that is a result of a hard work out or just generally being bored and feeling the need to snack.. If anyone has any other suggestions it would be much appreciated!


Also, rather than having a few seperate posts I figure i'll just put it all here.. What suggestions do you have for recovering from an out of zone experience? It doesnt happen often, but if I succumb to an urge to have something naughty for example chocolate, I spend the next hour or two hating on myself for eating it and rush to the next protein source in an effort to try and zone whatever I may have eaten, then punish myself on the treadmill the following day.. I find it hard to relax and just let it go..

Thanks for reading and I look forward to any suggestions anyone may have!

1. You should be at 11 blocks minimum.
And if you are working out at high intensity and CrossFit every day, despite sitting at a computer for work, you should figure that into your block count and re-figure using the Calculator on this site.
.
2.) I you find yourself with a snack/meal not balanced and out-of Zone - then don't sweat it. Just balance the next meal snack, no biggie.
The Zone allows for our humanity and Dr. sears even suggests a possible cheat meal now and then.

I agree with John's advice, definitely go with a minimum of 11 blocks. If you are having additional hunger, it could be that you are just not getting enough blocks for your needs. Remember, if you are doing intense daily cardio and crossfit, you are working pretty hard, and even when you are resting, your muscles are repairing. So, feed them!

As for how you are mixing up and dividing your blocks, just do it the way that it works out best for you, your schedule, and your meal schedule. You do have a unique situation, there. But, just keep the zone rules in mind as far as meal timing, and you should be fine.

Just a note about going OOZ--don't punish yourself. Just get back on the wagon and don't look back. One thing that drove me literally "crazy" in my earlier days in the Zone was that I wanted to do this "perfectly", and even had others critiquing my daily journal entries. Well, it got to be quite intense when every little thing was hen-pecked, to the point that one does not even know what caused what. In any case, this did not really work out well for me because each time I "screwed up", the other person always said "I guess you're gonna be starting over again". I felt like a failure. I had to break away from this pattern. I had to change the behavior and the mentality. So, now I look at it NOT as starting over, but just as a "jumping back" in. Perhaps "starting fresh" or "this is a new day" is a better way of looking at it. So, bottom line, just stay positive. I am not a perfect Zone Angel, and I am fine with my level of "compliance" to the Zone. If I want to have a OOZ meal or an OOZ day, I will just enjoy the day that I had and then "jump back in" when I am ready. Don't let perfection get in the way of succeeding in the tough situation that you are in.

Thanks John and CC! Sorry for the late reply, have had some troubles getting online.

I think in reality I am definately getting 11 blocks, possibly even 12.. That is my next hurdle, portion control! I think my eyes are waaaayy bigger than say, the palm of my hand! I do love my protein.. I fill up on it! I do add lots of veggies, good ones as much as possible, but as we know extra calories are still going to be stored as fat. Once I can get in my own kitchen hopefully I will be able to have more control of it, rather than having a whole tray in front of me to just take what I want.

Im trialling a new approach for the next week or so, I feel I might be carb sensitive, especially to fruits. At the start I was feeling quite lean but of late due to lack of availability on the ship of fresh veggies, I have been turning a lot to my dried fruit snacks. Although unprocessed, completely organic with no additives etc, they are all made of non favourable carbs, like dates, figs and sultanas. I'm starting to feel a lot less leaner than I did at the start. I took some measurements a few days ago so will measure again in a week and see if there is any significant change. So for this next week I'm cutting all those foods out during the day except for early morning/post workout where they will have limited effect on my insulin (or so I have read - that post workout if you eat higher GI carbs they have lesser of an impact - please please correct me if i'm wrong! I have moved around my whole vegetable eating schedule based on thi
s fact, that this is the best time to eat fruit!)

And thanks CC for your words of advice regarding OOZ experiences - they have been more frequent of late but have had a bit of stress lately - doing my best to get through it with minimal consumption of dark chocolate.. Speaking of, I have a delicious Zone friendly recipe for a flourless dark chocolate cake (just dark chocolate and eggs - nothing else!) I will post in the recipes section It is so easy to zone as well because you know EXACTLY what the macronutrients are!

Thanks again

Sarah, you're very welcome!

Just FYI, that post-workout "window" that has been talked about is not Zone philosophy, but it will be interesting to see how it goes for you.
And, PLEASE share that recipe!


Sounds like you have a plan, keep us posted.

Thanks CC I will keep you posted i'm still working steadily through my OOZ experiences - a big test ahead of me, a port visit with lots of fresh fruit and juices and delicious middle eastern snacks to be had.. lucky grilled veggies and hommous is on the agenda! i must not give in to bread temptations! i must not give in to bread temptations!!!!!

as promised, cake recipe has been shared in the recipes section - i apologise if it doesnt make a whole load of sense! ENJOY

YES, those dried fruits can be horribly high in Sugars!
My wife and I buy dried, Organic Prunes from Trader Joes.
And only two are 9 grams carbs.
.
Why are dried apples called dried apples, but dried grapes called raisins?
And dried plums called prunes?
All my life I thought prunes were nasty, and for old people.
Until age 55 (or am I an OLD person, now, too?),
when my wife picked some up a while back because they were a great source of a mineral her doctor told her she should get more of ...
If I had known they were dried plums, I would have had them, before now ... lol ...
.
Great in a pinch or as part of a trail lunch/snack - but not a regular.
Or when fresh, organic fruit is not in season or would not travel well in our longer hikes/bike rides/paddling outings.
Pre-peeled clementines work well, but not always in season.
And fresh berries, just do not travel well - even in a plastic container, even with ice packs,
though if it is a shorter trip, and we know they will stay cool enough not to become mush in the hot sun ...