Hi! I am writing on behalf of my computerless daughter who is struggling with wieght issues and fueling her body for dance. From what we understand she should have 19 blocks of protein a day. She has a huge muscle mass, but too much fat too- She is 5'6", 145- she is very muscular even for a dancer- she figures she should be 115-125. but she just wants to look good for performing she doesnt care what she wieghts. The standard ways of measuring BMI dont really apply to her situation. She hasn't ever been on a high carb diet- always pretty balanced, but she just started concentrating on making sure she has enough protien- she was eating tons more fat before- she doesnt eat sugar and only sprouted grain bread. SHe takes fish oil, vitamins- I just shipped her calcium but she wasnt taking that before then. She finds herself basically wanting to eat all the time once she gets home (and she can EAT), and she is really tired when she gets home (understandibly!) She felt this way before the zone and frankly, I dont think she has ever done the zone all the way, because she is too hungry to wait for her snack or what ever. Her schedule varies but is basically this: morning: Cardio treadmill 45 min stretch 1 hour warm up: 1 hour ballet class: 1.5 hours rehearsal: 2-4 hours ballet class:1.5 hours rehearsal:2-4 hours Sometimes it is more rehearsal and less class, and sometimes I think she has three classes a day and less rehearsal. She does this five days a week, and on the weekend she usually has a bunch of rehearsal- with hour warm up. There is alot of conflicting ideas about dancers and what they should be eating- stuff about ballet class being "anaerobic" and stuff- but essentially, her day is sort of a gymnast's day. (except no one helps dancers with diet the way they do gymnasts) So- she has odd eating times (like 15 min between rehersal and class or whatever), hates the feeling of being "weak" in class- wants to eat when ever she gets a chance and sleep when ever she can- AND she REALLY wants to loose weight- but not be hungry and not yo-yo. She is confused about the "fine tuning" and doesn't understand what the "loopy" feeling is. But I do know she seems very emotional- she is going through alot artistically also. If anyone has anything to offer she would be greatful- Ask more questions and I can ask her (she lives away from home) then then post the answers. Feel free to offer anything you think of- even if I didn't ask it (bet you are wondering what she *did* ask!) THanks so much, Bronwen

[color=darkred:86214e5dd5]Hi, First and foremost, your daughter must find her accurate block recommendation. 19 blocks are too many. To require 19 blocks she would have to have an LBM of 133 pounds. I highly doubt this is the case for the following reason. At a weight of 145 pounds and LBM of 133 lbs she would have 8% body fat. This would put her in an extremely unhealthy state for a female and I doubt she would even have any energy for dance. In addition, she would most likely be bordering on looking emaciated. This doesn't sound to be the case from your description. For the pruposes of calculating blocks I would classify her activity level to be similar to that of a professional athlete. To get a good idea of her LBM and block needs use the Body Fat Calculator on this site. Once she has her daily block requirement, she would eat that number of balanced blocks. If her recommended number of blocks doesn't meet her energy needs she would then add extra blocks of monounsaturated fat to meals. This is the method Dr. Sears has used with professional athletes. The additional fat being monounsaturated, it supplies the extra calories she needs for energy, without negatively impacting her cardiovascular system. She would add fat only, as opposed to fully balanced blocks, because she doesn't need the additional protein. That would only add further strain on her body to process and excrete the excess protein intake. Also, sticking with mostly favorable carbs to prevent spiking her blood sugar will keep her feeling at her best while the protein and fat addresss her other needs. You mentioned that she wants to weigh 115 to 125. It would be best to determine a goal weight based on her actual LBM. It is highly unlikely that 115 would be in the realm of an apropriate weight for her. My guess is that her LBM is actually around 115 or a bit more. so a total weight of 115 would leave erh with absolutely not fat at all. Determining LBM and block requirements should be your starting place. I'd be glad to help with any questions you have.[/color:86214e5dd5]

HI! THanks SO much for writing. I am concerned about using the typical BMI things because I read that they are not accurate for dancers- there was this thing they said was accurate but it involved using a fat calibrator and measuring the fat above the right hip and other obscure places... Her butt is SO muscular, I am worried it would come up with her having lower bmi than she does- then lower blocks. HOWever- I will try it- I have to have to measure herself. I think we came up with the 19 blocks because we figured 119 as her BMI and for elite athalete multip. by 1. (as per in Mastering the Zone- maybe I didn't read that right- do I multiply by a different number?). So- extra fat blocks - for extra energy. no extra carbs or protien. But first find the protien requirement. THANKS so much!! I know she can figure this out. Bronwen

When I read the post I just made-I think what we did was divide 119 by 7 and got 17- so she has 17 blocks a day- 5 blocks at each meal and two 1 block snacks. yeah that is what we figured. Bronwen

[quote:9d8f5b63aa="Bronwen"]HI! THanks SO much for writing. I am concerned about using the typical BMI things because I read that they are not accurate for dancers- there was this thing they said was accurate but it involved using a fat calibrator and measuring the fat above the right hip and other obscure places... Her butt is SO muscular, I am worried it would come up with her having lower bmi than she does- then lower blocks. HOWever- I will try it- I have to have to measure herself. I think we came up with the 19 blocks because we figured 119 as her BMI and for elite athalete multip. by 1. (as per in Mastering the Zone- maybe I didn't read that right- do I multiply by a different number?). So- extra fat blocks - for extra energy. no extra carbs or protien. But first find the protien requirement. THANKS so much!! I know she can figure this out. Bronwen[/quote:9d8f5b63aa] [color=darkred:9d8f5b63aa]You're welcome. :D BMI and LBM are two different things. I think you're meaning to say LBM when you refer to 119. LBM is in pounds an represents the weight of everythign in the body which is not fat. BMI is not a measure of pounds. Her BMI (at 66 inches and 145 lb) is 23.5. The Body Fat Calculator would still probably give a better idea than a guess. If you are assuming 119 LBM, the block requirement for an elite athlete at that LBM would be exactly 17 blocks. This is arrived at by multiplying 119 by 1 (elite athlete activity factor) to give a daily protein requitement of 119 grams. Then divide that by 7 to get the correct number of blocks, which is 17 (7 grams of protien equal 1 block). I still suggest putting her stats in the Body Fat Calculator and seeing what that comes up with. If she wants to be measured with calipers she can have that done easily at a gym or by a trainer. She would then multiply that LBM times 1, and then divide by 7 to arrive at her daily protein block requirement. Yes, then from there add monounsaturated fat blocks for energy, not additional protien and carb. If she wishes to build more muscle, then she would add a block or two to her daily protein requirement (of course balanced with the appropriate carb and fat). From the sound of things she is not looking to build more muscle.[/color:9d8f5b63aa]

One more question- can she split up her meals so that she has more snacks and less blocks per meal? And should she have a snack before she does cardio in the morning?- could it look something like this? 1 block snack 4 block breakfast+ 1 fat block 1 block snack 4 block lunch+ 1 fat block 1 block snack 4 block dinner+ 1 fat block 1 block snack 1 block snack OR- should the snacks have the extra fat? Or should she keep the meals bigger? THanks for your time, Bronwen

[quote:8dfe78acc9="Bronwen"]One more question- can she split up her meals so that she has more snacks and less blocks per meal? And should she have a snack before she does cardio in the morning?- could it look something like this? 1 block snack 4 block breakfast+ 1 fat block 1 block snack 4 block lunch+ 1 fat block 1 block snack 4 block dinner+ 1 fat block 1 block snack 1 block snack OR- should the snacks have the extra fat? Or should she keep the meals bigger? THanks for your time, Bronwen[/quote:8dfe78acc9] [color=darkred:8dfe78acc9]Yes she can split them in that way that works for her as long as she follows the Zone the guidelines of eating a snack or meal within an hour of waking, not going mroe than 5 hours without eating , not eating more than 5 or 6 blocks at a time, and being sure to have a bedtime snack. Yes, she hould have the one block snack before her moring exercise. The extra fat would be added only if she finds she finds that her daily block requirement doesn't provide enough energy. First she'd probably want to try her block recommendation, after determining it based on her actual LBM, to see how she feels with the usual amount of fat. One extra block of fat would not make much of a difference. The first fat increase would usually be doubling the added fat blocks. Then she'd increase more if that's not enough. So if her meal is 4P, 4C, 4F, it would become 4P, 4C, 8F. Additional fat can be added to both meals and snacks. Remember to add mostly monounsaturated fats. You can read more about this in some of the Zone books in which Barry Sears writes about his work with professional athletes. Some need to consume as much as 50% and even more of all ther calories in a day from fat.[/color:8dfe78acc9]

Thank you so much! She has reported that she is feeling better. She and her company mate are going to try to work together to do this. I will keep you posted. Also she should be getting a computer soon! Thanks again, Bronwen

hello! ok! SO my daughter is home for a break and we are really tring to fine tune this. We did the LBM thing and came up with 105.7 for her LBM- which we feel is too low- as her "ass and thigh muscles are bigger than anyone I have ever seen". Our guess was 119 as LBM. Anyway.-she has been trying to do four block meals and five snacks like in the above post. She is trying to recover from a show and is resting alot, walking on the treadmill, taking yoga and streching. SO- she has yet to make it to four hours without getting hungry- her definition of hunger is that she feels weak and can't "pick up her arms". We are expecting that if she gets a meal "right"- she will not be "weak" and be comfortable until the next meal- that hasn't happened. She doubled the fat for meals all day today- and it is almost on the dot that at two hours later she "has" to eat- she doesnt feel right and would "feel better after I eat"- she doesnt get a cramp in her stomach. SO- do we keep adding fat? or do we somehow change the protien or carbs? HELP! she really wants to get this right. THank you so much, Bronwen

[color=darkred:3419db904e]Hi, Since her LBM may be a little lower than your initial guess of 119, and for now she's in "resting mode", my first suggestion would be to cut back to 13 or 14 blocks for now. When she resumes her normal dance schedule, 16 blocks may be more apropriate than 17, assuming her LBM is between 106 and 119. As for her hunger, it's a bit difficult to judge from her description, but my first instinct tells me she may need more fat. Secondary to that, she probqably also needs to have less carb. Is she feeling significant actual hunger along with the weakness she has, or is it simply that she begins to feel she's lacking energy? This will be key in determining what to try next. Before making any more suggestions, it would help if I could see an accurate sample of what she has recently been eating in her typical day on 17 blocks (specific foods eaten, actual amount of each food, and timing). [/color:3419db904e]

THANKS so much for your reply! [color=red:16b758206b]>Since her LBM may be a little lower than your initial guess of 119, and for now she's in "resting mode", my first suggestion would be to cut back to 13 or 14 blocks for now [/color:16b758206b]done. [color=red:16b758206b]>Is she feeling significant actual hunger along with the weakness she has, or is it simply that she begins to feel she's lacking energy?[/color:16b758206b] She feels a lack of energy- not "hunger" the way I think of it, like cramping in her stomach. She feels emotionally really -like she is going to cry, and she feels really heavy in her body, like she cant move it. SHe says if she were dancing, she would probably feel fine- which is really confusing to her (adrenaline?). It doesnt seem to be like when she "crashes" after eating sugar. SHe has felt this way for a long time- always wanting to eat every one or two hours, it is not just when she is trying the zone- but it does seem worse now and she has gained wieght. We have always tried to focus on protien in our family and never done low fat (well, since 1992- she was only 5)- more likely low-carb tipped. [color=red:16b758206b]>Before making any more suggestions, it would help if I could see an accurate sample of what she has recently been eating in her typical day on 17 blocks (specific foods eaten, actual amount of each food, and timing). [/color:16b758206b] 7:15 am- breakfast= 1 cup steal cut oats, 1/4 apple sauce, 4 egg whites, 2 oz low fat cheese, 1.5 tsp butter in oat meal, tsp olive oil in eggs. 9:00 am- snack= string cheese, mandarin orange, a macadamia nut 10 am- snack= 1/2 cup plain non-fat yogurt, TBL almond flour, stevia 12 am- lunch= 2 oz cheese, 2 oz canned chicken, 1/4 cup rice and beans, 2 cup lettuce, 1/2 cup mushrooms, 1/4 cup green pepper, 2 tbl low fat blue cheese dressing (2 fat blocks), olive oil 1 tsp., nine almonds. long walk (we walked to the store, shopped, pushed load back, she felt the standard lack of energy) 4 pm snack- 1/5 balance bar 5 pm snack- 1/4 cottage cheese, 1/4 apple sauce, two macadamia nuts 6:30 pm dinner- 4 oz. steak, 2 cups cabbage (cooked in bit of o.oil), 1/2 cup rice and black eyed peas, mandarin orange 8 pm snack- cheese stick, mandarin, nuts 10 pm snack- 1/2 cup plain yogurt , 2 macadamia nut crushed in it 10:30 sleep woke up feeling really "slow", "lethargic" not good - not really hungry in tummy. ate 8 am = 1 cup cottage cheese, 1 cup oatmeal, 2 macadamias and (she walked away and I don't remember what she said) ~ 9;15 snack (just now came back)= string cheese, 1/2 piece sprouted grain bread and 1 tsp butter.- feels the weak icky feeling right after this snack and feeling overwhelmed. She has to have a video for a competition ready by May, and she doesnt think she can "loose wieght as nothing seems to work" - meanwhile, her room mate just eats once or twice a day, smokes, coffee, and looses a ton in a short time and looks great for a show. We are up to right now- I am looking at this - do you think she could be sensitive or allergic to dairy (or something)? She was when she was little. Also, before each snack- she feels she "has" to eat or feel crappy like I have described, it is not like she is thinking "oh I cant forget my snack"- it is like "is it time for my snack, can I eat yet?" almost desperate it seems. She is very thankful for your time. -She is going to do 13 blocks today with added fat and await your reply. She is also 17 (I dont know if I mentioned that, but it might factor in, and she hasnt gotten her period for a while either -she mentioned yesterday- I would ask her exactly when but she is in the other room and the baby is asleep on me) SHe takes teen vitamins, fish oil, msm, and calcium when she remembers (I dont know how consistant she is- not in the room) Love, Bronwen, and Chloe.

[color=darkred:2e1e314ecf]Hi, You're welcome. :) I've taken a quick look at your post. To answer the allergy qn, people can be allergic to almost anything. If you think this is a factor, by all means eliminate the dairy products. The carbs Chloe eats are a big part her problem, possibly teh only real problem here. Fat choices and amounts need a little tweaking also. Chloe's insulin is not lowering into the Zone because she's eating too many dense carbs. This causes the symptoms she has a couple hours after eating, and also the weight gain. In addition she needs less saturated fat (cheese and butter) and more monounsaturated fat (almonds, macadamia nuts) in her menu. I'll go over your post more thoroughly and get back to you soon. In the meantime do the following: 1. Stop eating the bread, the rice and beans, and the rice and black eyed peas, substituting low density favorable veggies for all of these. 2. Cut down on fruit to no more than 2 blocks per day for the time being, using blueberies, raspberries and strawberries instead of applesauce and oranges. No fruit for now would be even better. 3. Replace the Balance bar with a Zone balanced snack of real food. 4. Don't eat more than 2 blocks (2/3 cups cooked) steel cut oats per day, and not even every day.[/color:2e1e314ecf]

oK!!! thank you!! She got in the ZONE baby! for the first time EVER. She had four blocks protien, four blocks carbs, and 12 blocks fat. This is what she ate for lunch: 2 cups romaine 1/4 tomato 1/4 celery 1/4 cucumber 2 cups cooked green beans 1/4 cup garbanzo beans almost six oz canned salmon (bit of cottage cheese to make up fourth block) 4 macadamia nuts 12 almonds tsp olive oil She wasnt really hungry, shaky, or loopy four hours later, but felt a bit hungry for her snack- but not frantic. A total first!! she had a snack just now of : 2 cups broccolli, 1 oz low fat cheese 1 tsp olive oil Feels great 1 hour later and usually would be wanting to eat and thinking about food- she was surprized to see how long it had been. NOW- She is tripling the fat- should she try it with less fat? She is afraid she won't loose wieght. She is going to stick to the "favorable veg" list in Mastering the Zone, like her lunch. Maybe with her dinner, she should just try doubling the fat? (I forgot why we went to 3x fat) and see if she is still in the zone? She is SO happy- she didn't think food could make her feel good I don't think. Thank you SO much for your time and quick responses, we appreciate it so much, what she loves to do in life really depends on this. Bronwen

[color=darkred:45326219d2]Hi, You're welcome. :) Great report! Surprising what a change in carbs can do, isn't it? For this week, when she's not on her active dance schedule, I think she should stick with 13 blocks daily. This would be 3 three block meals and 4 one block snacks, or an alternative woud be 1 four block meal, 2 three block meals dn 3 snacks, etc.(don't forget one of the snacks must be at bedtime). Tripling fat probably isn't necessary for her week off. Try tinkering with the fat amount going from the usual equal balance, to 1 1/2 times to double for this week, to see how she feels best. The extra fat is meant, in her case, to provide additional calories for the demanding activity level she performs at . She may find a couple blocks of additional fat keeps her in the Zone better all the time. This would be fine anytime and probably not cause a body fat gain, but tripling fat during the week that she's not training heavily would probably result in a gain in body fat. If seh starts feelgin hungry with 13 blocks (being sure to use favorable veggies and a bit of fruit), then go to 14 blocks. I will still get back to you soon with a more detailed analysis of her first menu, just to point out what was going on there. I think that might help her make more appropriate meal choices for herself in the future.[/color:45326219d2]

Ok- 8:30 am Breakfast: 4 block protien- 6 egg white 1 oz low fat cheese 4 block carb- 1 cup green beans, 2 cups red pepper- mushroom onion green pepper sauted, 1/4 cup garbanzo beans 10 block fat- 3 tsp olive oil, 1 macadamia nut 12:30 Lunch- felt "pretty" good- but feels she was a bit too hungry to have danced by four hours after breakfast 4 block p- 4 oz pork 4 block carb- 2 cups lettuce, 1 cup vegatables on salad (tomatoes, cucumber, mushroom, greenpepper), 1 cup green beans, 1/4 cup garbonzos (she just said that maybe she didnt get all 4 blocks of carbs). 5 blocks fat- 2 tbs low fat blue cheese dressing, 1 tsp olive oil NOW- at 3:00pm she feels like she is out of the zone and sort of crashing, and had to lay down at 1:30. She felt it was difficult to finish the salad for lunch as it was so much and so long eating. She is wondering how she can take so much time or put that much in her stomach for lunch while she is dancing- it was a huge mixing bowl of salad. right now - she is going to have a snack with double fat blocks to see if it lasts a couple hours (1 cucumber, 6 almonds, low fat mozzarella stick) SO- how much fat blocks for her next meal? and- any ideas for a smaller lunch? and any ideas in general. We are very excited to be making head way. Thanks again, Bronwen

[quote:4c923ddc68="Bronwen"]Ok- 8:30 am Breakfast: 4 block protien- 6 egg white 1 oz low fat cheese 4 block carb- 1 cup green beans, 2 cups red pepper- mushroom onion green pepper sauted, 1/4 cup garbanzo beans 10 block fat- 3 tsp olive oil, 1 macadamia nut[/quote:4c923ddc68] [color=darkred:4c923ddc68]First of all, with her week off, I really think 3 block meals would be better this week. (see our eariler exchange in this thread) This meal is not a balanced 4 block meal. You have 4P, 2 1/2 or a bit more C, and 6F (4 of those 10 blocks make up for the missing F in the 4 blocks of egg white, which is fat free).[/color:4c923ddc68] [quote:4c923ddc68="Bronwen"]12:30 Lunch- felt "pretty" good- but feels she was a bit too hungry to have danced by four hours after breakfast[/quote:4c923ddc68] [color=darkred:4c923ddc68]Not surprising because of lack of C in that meal, and because so far she hasn't gotten into the Zone yet. It will take her up to 4 days of Zone balanced eating at every meal and snack to lower her insulin solidly into the Zone.[/color:4c923ddc68] [quote:4c923ddc68="Bronwen"]4 block p- 4 oz pork 4 block carb- 2 cups lettuce, 1 cup vegatables on salad (tomatoes, cucumber, mushroom, greenpepper), 1 cup green beans, 1/4 cup garbonzos (she just said that maybe she didnt get all 4 blocks of carbs). 5 blocks fat- 2 tbs low fat blue cheese dressing, 1 tsp olive oil[/quote:4c923ddc68] [color=darkred:4c923ddc68]This meal has 4P, about 2C, and 5F, again too little C to keep her in the Zone. Up to this point today, she's been eating a high protein diet (too little C).[/color:4c923ddc68] [quote:4c923ddc68="Bronwen"]NOW- at 3:00pm she feels like she is out of the zone and sort of crashing, and had to lay down at 1:30. [/quote:4c923ddc68] [color=darkred:4c923ddc68]Again, not a surprise.[/color:4c923ddc68] [quote:4c923ddc68="Bronwen"]She felt it was difficult to finish the salad for lunch as it was so much and so long eating. She is wondering how she can take so much time or put that much in her stomach for lunch while she is dancing- it was a huge mixing bowl of salad.[/quote:4c923ddc68] [color=darkred:4c923ddc68]See my comment below regarding downsizing the volume of food in a meal.[/color:4c923ddc68] [quote:4c923ddc68="Bronwen"]right now - she is going to have a snack with double fat blocks to see if it lasts a couple hours (1 cucumber, 6 almonds, low fat mozzarella stick)[/quote:4c923ddc68] [color=darkred:4c923ddc68] This snack doesn't have enough C either. Take a closer look at block amounts here. http://www.drsears.com/foodblockgui...ddc68] [quote:4c923ddc68="Bronwen"]SO- how much fat blocks for her next meal? [/quote:4c923ddc68] [color=darkred:4c923ddc68]Depends on how many blocks of P and C she has in the meal. For a 3 block meal I'd start with 3 or 4 and see how that is. [/color:4c923ddc68] [quote:4c923ddc68="Bronwen"]and- any ideas for a smaller lunch?[/quote:4c923ddc68] [color=darkred:4c923ddc68] The combos are endless! To bring the volume of the meal to a manageable size incorporate foods like tomato sauce (spaghetti sauce on spaghetti squash is good), salsa, black beans, water chestnuts and other favorable veggies with low volumes per block.[/color:4c923ddc68] [quote:4c923ddc68="Bronwen"]and any ideas in general.[/quote:4c923ddc68] [color=darkred:4c923ddc68]Tons of ideas, but where to start? You'll have to be more specific. I suggest you begin reading some Zone books. [i:4c923ddc68]Top 100 Zone Foods[/i:4c923ddc68] and [i:4c923ddc68]Zone meals in Seconds[/i:4c923ddc68] would both be helpful in relation to info about specific foods and designing meals.[/color:4c923ddc68] [quote:4c923ddc68="Bronwen"]We are very excited to be making head way. Thanks again, Bronwen[/quote:4c923ddc68] [color=darkred:4c923ddc68] You're welcome. Stick with it. A food diary would be a good idea, so she can keep track of the specific foods and amounts she ate and how she felt.[/color:4c923ddc68]

[color=darkred:7795803ea7]Hi, I have second thoughts in regard to making a detailed analysis of the initial menu that you posted at the end of last week, since Chloe has moved past that menu now and gone on to a more Zone favorable one. Instead I will make several comments in regard to that menu. I've already made suggestions about most of the things I saw that were keeping her out of the Zone. Just to review a some important points, she had too many carbs from fruit and unfavorable carb sources. In the entire day, Chloe had less than 1 1/2 blocks of all her C from favorable veggies. This prevented her from lowering her insulin to Zone levels. Keep in mind that in the Zone most of one's carb should usually come from favorable veggies. Zone guidelines suggest not to have more than 25% of all the carb in any one meal from an unfavorable source. Some individuals find they can't stay in the Zone unless all their C is favorable. Another thing I noticed was an overabundance of cheese (6 blocks, not counting the cottage cheese). Cheese, even lowfat, is at best considered to be only a "fair" protien choice for the Zone . It contains saturated fat. You can read up on that and it's relationship to the Zone in Zone books. In addition, some meals weren't balanced quite as well as they could have been (refer to the link to the Food Block Guide that I posted yesterday). Also, if your'e not familiar with the concept of replacing the fat that's missing in fat free P sources (eggwhite, fat free dairy, protein powder, etc), then please read the FAQs about fat found on this site. I'll look forward to hearing about Chloe's progress. :) [/color:7795803ea7]

This is coming together! [color=red:9ab0bb1813]First of all, with her week off, I really think 3 block meals would be better this week. (see our eariler exchange in this thread)[/color:9ab0bb1813] ok- she was doing 14 blocks- 3, 4 block meals and 2, 1 block snacks- so do you want her to do less blocks, or more snacks and the same blocks? [color=red:9ab0bb1813]This meal is not a balanced 4 block meal. You have 4P, 2 1/2 or a bit more C, and 6F (4 of those 10 blocks make up for the missing F in the 4 blocks of egg white, which is fat free). [/color:9ab0bb1813] so - we know now that the block list in "Mastering the Zone" is not quite right and we should go with the list you gave us. We will buy the books you recommend, also. She has been keeping a diary- that is how I can write what she ate :-) It has been a big help. We read the FAQ and found the fat replacing thing- If we used one omega3 egg yolk in the omlet- they have 3g fat- would that be good? Also, we cant find black-eyed peas on any lists- I am assuming they have the same carb as black beans- ? If I find the carb content of something somewhere else, do I have to remove some carbs for fiber or something to figure out the blocks? Yes- too much cheese (cottage cheese ok?)- we have always had trouble with portable protien sources. We will do some research in books and internet to find alternate sources. We used to make beef jerky, very time consuming- we want something we can just go and buy and then pack, you know? ANway- I am calling book stores around here to find the books you recomended. We will keep you posted! Thanks so much, Bronwen

[color=darkred:4d5e94e038]Oops, sorry. I didn't realize you were putting the 14 blocks together as three 4 block meals and 2 snacks. I thought you maybe hadn't lowered the total blocks for the day. That's perfectly fine. Oh, now I see. You were using MTZ. Yes, better to use a more current list. The egg yolk would be ok once in a while but some nuts, rich in monounsaturated fat, on the side would be preferable. Remember that the yolk contains 1/2 block of P in addition to F. Yes, I know what you mean about quick protein for snacks. I like sardines for that (but not everyone likes them!). I eat a two block snack and a can is usually 2 P blocks. Plain yogurt is a good balanced snack with a tsp of almond butter or peanut butter and almond or vanilla extract. Use the glycerine based extracts for a better flavor. You're welcome. I'm glad to be able to help you and Chloe. :) [/color:4d5e94e038]

Hi, just wanted to add my two cents. Bill and I are Zoning too - it is Bill's first truly serious attempt to Zone. His mother died in January and I think it may have contributed to his decision to gradually move to a heathier diet. Anyway. You speak of the difficulty in finding portable snacks. For Bill and I, we have blueberry muffins, chocolate muffins, etc - cheaper and easy to make. Both of them are Zoned food. I just bulk-cooked 32 choc. muffins tonight, for example. Easy to do. Also. More portable snacks that we use: the ZoneSmart bars that you can find in Walmart and some other similar stores (in the pharmacy section, where all the protein and nutritional bars are). They cost 2 dollars each, or one dollar per block. (In other words, obviously, each bar is two blocks worth). They're very low-GI and specially designed by barry sears (inventor of this diet) to last longer than other protein bars. Bill has been eating these bars in place of junk food that he normally eat (Coke, potato chips, etc). He really enjoy them. I'm also looking at soy beans. I just bought some. I'm planning to boil them, or whatever works, then season them with spices and olive oil, then cook them in the oven. So that's another possible portable snack. I'd like to make jerky chicken, personally, but haven't had the time to experiment. However if you have a recipe.... Sandra

Thanks for the portable snacks ideas Sandy! I am going to try those! Did you get the recipie for muffins off of this site, or a book? We bought three books- and are going to read them over the next few days. ZONE meals in seconds" 100 zone foods- Anti-inflamitory Zone- and noticed that the carb blocks are different yet again! 4 cups cauliflower (in AIZ) instead of 3 cups like on this site- etc- what are we suposed to follow? She almost cried thinking she has to eat 4 cups of cauliflower... We are trying to avoid the fruit and unfavorable carbs- but it is difficult as the recipies dont do that- her very first diet we tried was taken right out of the MTZ, for elite athaletes- Is there a menu somewhere that she can just follow that doesnt have the fruit and other things you said she shouldn't eat? (maybe in the archives or something? I have been looking in the forums but havent found that) - I also am thinking she will eventually get to eat fruit, oatmeal again? when her insulin receptors calm down a bit? (or maybe not and she is just ultra sensitve?) ALSO- and this might sound stupid- but how do you measure the "cups" of things like broccoli and cabbage? I am figuring just put it in there and push it a bit, and dont worry about the spaces- and she is thinking if I could push it in to fill the spaces, I would have more- so her cups are bigger than my cups- ok- how much does 3 cups of lettuce wiegh? that would answer my question. Sheesh, I can't thank you enough, really. Brownen

oh! And she tried the yogurt with peanut butter plus tiny dash stevia- she really liked it! (it was non-fat yogurt, and she didnt add the extra fat so she crashed after, but she still liked it) And she loves sardines! so that is great! Bronwen

[color=darkred:d24f1aac9b]Hi Bronwen, I wouldn't advise Choe to try muffins dn various brands f bars until she has been solidly in theZons for a few weeks. Then she can better judge what they do to her when she eats them. She seems to be slightly carb sensitive, IMO, and if you add too much unfav C (from Zone muffins and most bars) at this point in time, she'll be right back where she started. I she must have a bar, the only one I would recommend is the Zone Labs OmegaRX bar. I'm carb sensitive and it is the only bar that keeps me in the Zone. I've heard the same from many other people. How full you pack the cups won't matter that much . Remember that the Zone is a range of insuln levels and you just need to get somewhere into that range. No need to be that specific. Being specific about the type of C and the type and amount of F are more important than how full you pack a measuring cup with veggies. Rather than recipes, keep it simpler by choosing meals from the Food Block Guide (the link I posted earlier). I wasn't suggesting no oats, just not more than a couple blocks a day, and not more than a few days a week for now. This is important at first to allow Chloe to lower her insulin into the Zone. Steel cut oats are a good source of GLA and depending upon Chloe's AA/EPA she could possible get too much GLA consuming steel cut oats daily (you can read about GLA on pgs 211-217 in your new book, The AIZ). We want to do all we can with Chloe's diet to keep her strong and to fuel her body to enable her to meet the physical and mental demands of her typical day, while at the same time allow her to lose soem of hre excess stored body fat. Great book choices![/color:d24f1aac9b]

[quote:62a5eb74f9="Bronwen"]oh! And she tried the yogurt with peanut butter plus tiny dash stevia- she really liked it! (it was non-fat yogurt, and she didnt add the extra fat so she crashed after, but she still liked it) And she loves sardines! so that is great! Bronwen[/quote:62a5eb74f9] [color=darkred:62a5eb74f9]Great, Chloe likes sardines! Fantastic! They're an excellent Zone P source and very portable. My lunch today: a can of sardines 4 half eggwhites stuffed with red pepper hummmus tomato wedges strawberries Macadamia nuts It's a delicious, easy, very portable, normal size meal. A good snack is sardines and blueberries.[/color:62a5eb74f9]

[color=darkred:7cdd807573]Hi, Hope all is going well with Chloe's Zone this week. Here's an average sized breakfast. It's my breakfast from today. To fit my specific Zone needs, my meal balance is 3P, 2C, 6F. Chloe can easily increase this breakfast to 3 C by increasing to a full block of both the beans and the tomato sauce. For this breakfast I used plain unseasoned tomato sauce from the can and added soy sauce and a pinch of chili powder for flavor. Once you remove the cooked eggs to a plate, simply put the sauce in the same pan for about a min (or less) to heat it. Breakfast: 1 whole egg, two egg whites, and 1/2 block black beans scrambled in 1 tsp. olive oil. topped with 1/2 block tmato sauce plus: one block of cooked steel cut oats mixed with one block of Jay Robb's vanilla flavored eggwhite protein powder, and cinamon to taste and then topped with 1T slivered almonds, and just a dab of soy milk I cook my oats in a small crock pot and then freeze them in one block servings. One cup oats to 4 cups water in a 1 1/2 quart pot makes abut 12 blocks. They reheat quickly and easily in the microwave. Stir a little water in when heating, to get the desired consistancy.[/color:7cdd807573]