Hello to all you Zoners,

Need someone to check behind me on this lunch I put together:

4 cups baby greens - organic raw
1 cup cooked peppers and onions
2 Tablspoons Guacamole
3.5 oz grilled chicken thigh - no skin
1 cup chopped raw cabbage

dessert: 1 cup of strawberries


WOW - that's alot to eat! Am I on the right track? Seems like I full all the time.

Please advise what you think - any changes?

Thank you - Kim

Should have included this previously- sorry

Still feeling full from breakfast:

4 egg whites
1 oz reduced fat pepper jack cheese
4 cups baby spinach
2 tablespoons guacamole
1/2 cup no salt added diced canned tomatoes

dessert: 1 cup blackberries

Wow - i am still feeling full at lunch time

Am I on the right track w breakfast?

Oh and drinking water - seems like I am more thirsty on the zone than I was not using the zone eating plan.

Please advise! Thanks- Kim

[quote]
Posted By Kim on 22 Aug 2012 12:41 PM
Hello to all you Zoners,

Need someone to check behind me on this lunch I put together:

4 cups baby greens - organic raw
1 cup cooked peppers and onions
2 Tablspoons Guacamole
3.5 oz grilled chicken thigh - no skin
1 cup chopped raw cabbage

dessert: 1 cup of strawberries


WOW - that's alot to eat! Am I on the right track? Seems like I full all the time.

Please advise what you think - any changes?

Thank you - Kim
[/quote]

It looks pretty well balanced. To improve on it you could switch the thighs out for skinless breast meat and add another tablespoon of guacamole. It could also use a little more carbohydrate, but that will really depend on depends on how you feel 4 hours after the meal.

Kim, the breakfast could use a little more carbohydrate, too, unless you had 4 cups of cooked spinach. Since you were still full at lunch time, you're probably are on the more sensitive side when it comes to carbohydrates.

You should be drinking plenty of water. When your follow the Zone diet correctly, your body burns fat to produce its energy, which requires more water than burning carbohydrate to produce energy.

Sue,

Thank you for your prompt responses.

The spinach was raw.

1. I feel very very full - so is that a good thing?

2. Am I correct - that is alot of food.

3. Help me out a little - please explain what being more on the sensitive side to carbs means, and what I need to adjust.

I have just began - ( again) adding exercise into my day. I try to do approx 15-20 min of the mini tramp in the mornings to my fav tunes- get a good heart rate going. Then when I get home after work - add in some interval training w strenght. I am trying to keep my muscle mass up, since I understand that that is very important - especially being mid 50's, female.

I am going to the library tonight to p/u some of the other books by Dr. Sears. Toxic fat and Anti Inflammatory to name a few.

Thank you again for helping me out and i see you are a Zone Labs Consultant - what do you do and what does that mean?- if you don;t mind me asking.

I am expecting to receive my FO and Polyphenols today or tomorrow - will need direction on taking them - all at once or one at a time w my meals.

Thanks - kim

You're welcome, Kim!

1. Yes, this is good. It's a sign your insulin is being controlled at lower levels, which is a major goal of the Zone diet.

2. "A lot" is a subjective term. :) You're eating an appropriate amount for the Zone diet.

3. People have varying responses to dietary carbohydrate. To see if you need more or less carbohydrate in your meal, judge how you feel four hours after eating a Zone balanced meal. If you're not hungry your balance is fine and you would not need to adjust. If you're hungry at the four hour mark, judge whether your hunger is focused or unfocused. With focused hunger you have significant hunger but you are mentally focused and have plenty of energy. This means you didn't eat quite enough carbohydrate in relation to protein for your needs. With unfocused hunger (referred to as "loopy" in the earlier Zone books) you have significant hunger, you lack concentration, and you may lack energy or also feel jittery sleepy, spacey, etc. Unfocused hunger means that you ate too much carbohydrate in relation to protein for your needs. When hunger is focused you would add an additional carbohydrate block to every meal. When hunger is unfocused you would drop one carbohydrate block from every meal. The person with unfocused hunger 4 hours after a balanced Zone meal containing equal blocks of protein carbohydrate and fat would be said to be more sensitive to the carbohydrate they eat.


Exercise, excellent! If you haven't been exercising for a while, start slow to build strength and endurance wile preventing injuries.

Books, very good. I have all Zone books and use them over and over as handbooks for healthy living.

Consultant of Zone Labs, I don't mind you asking. :) Think of that as full disclosure. It's simply a phrase I'm required to include after all my posts here in the Forums because I work for Zone Labs in various capacities. You may have seen some of my stories published in the Zone Living monthly e-zines and newsletters (look for one in the box with your order). Posting in the forums is not part of my work. I've been enjoying posting here for about 12 years, long before I began working for Zone Labs.

Take the fish oil and polyphenols at the same time. There's a beneficial synergistic effect of taking the two together. Take 1 serving size of polyphenols (serving sizes are described on every bottle) for every 4 capsules of Omega Rx. No need to split the fish oil dose. Take it all at once with a meal. It can be a deterrent night time when taken with evening meal (read more about this in "Toxic Fat"). I take Omega Rx, Sea Health Plus and a capsule of Polyphenols XT with breakfast, and extra Sea Health Plus throughout the day.

re: It can be a deterrent night time when taken with evening meal

I meant to say: It can be a deterrent to might time snacking when taken...

Sue,

Great feedback - thank you. I will "tune in" to my hunger sensation and make note of it. Your help has REALLY helped me to understand and embrace the Zone plan. Thank you for taking the time.

I have read in other posts that you have a facbook page - correct? how do i find you on facebook?

Thanks again - talk to you soon.

Kim

Thanks so much, Kim. I'm happy to know my info is helping. Yes, I'm on Facebook. Just go to FB and search Sue Knorr. My current profile photo is me holding my 2 little grandsons.

Kim, check out my food photo albums on FB to see my meals. The baked goods and pastas you see there are the Zone bakery foods. :)