Hi Guys

I am wondering if any of you can advise me. My husband is very athletic (runs, bikes etc)...he has 17% BF and when I used the calculator he requires 17 blocks. My question is - would I really fix his meals with 5 blocks of P,C,F or is there another ratio when you become that fit. He is/has been resistant to ZONE because he says I make everything too hard and cant tell him what he should be eating. He's right - I am NEWBIE all over again although when I used the ZONE 2 years ago I lost weight fairly quickly. However, my bad..I gained it all back after giving in to all those carb urges and not being willing to do the work. I just started over and I am an 11 block female...so any advice would be helpful. He is only 38 yrs old (I know, I know...I am 54 - go figure!!!)but he had a full cardiac arrest 5 years ago and this resulted in him losing weight and beginning his exercise regime and he his very devoted to maintaining his way of life. Sorry for the length of this post...This is a great website by the way!

Not a full answer, here; but, a male should get no more than 4 blocks per meal (females no more than 3 blocks) because the excess protein can not be processed properly (as I understand it0 and is converted to fat instead.
A 17 block requirement might be 4 breakfast, 2 snack, 4 lunch, 2 snack, 4 dinner, 1 snack or whatever fits into his daily routine.

Thanks John - I passed this on to my hubby. Appreciate the quick response

Karen,

the guideline, as I'm informed, is not to eat more than 500 caloires (5 blocks) at any one time.

Some women with higher LBM than the average woman and higher activity levels consistently eat 4 block meals, and some men, 5 block meals.

sue

Well i read the Anti book last night. I had already scheduled a dr appt for ME to talk about getting the EPA/AA test as I suffered a nasty bout of shingles in July 2006 that I still have problems with. However..in reading Dr Sears suggested you could also use results of your most recent blood workup. I did and found my ratio to be 1.07 (TG=61 HDL=57). The REAL shocker came when I dug out my hubby's last blood work (5/2006) his ratio came out to 4.34!!! TG=209 HDL=48. I am very upset as he goes to 2 different doctors who NEVER indicated anything amiss at all! He is on Lipitor, Metroprol, and some other heart med that of course they indicate he will be taking the rest of his life... I freaked and he said lets FIRST get a new blood work up (as we have been taking OmegaRX for about 3 mos)..so he wants to see the impact and then go from there. I am thinking I need to DEFINITELY find a ZONE dr...heck here he is RUNNING 35+ miles a week, biking 20-25+ and not feeling good and putting it all down to soreness from working out, etc... Needless to say I am thinking HE needs to have the EPA/AA test - NOT ME Any thoughts? advice??

Hi Karen,

It would be good for both of you to do the AA/EPA after a month or so of FO dosing. Then go from there.

If your husband strictly follows the Zone Diet, eating appropriate amounts for his LBM and activity level, he'll probably see a favorable change in his lipid levels and ratios in a month or two. As you probably know, the Zone Diet was originally developed for individuals with his specific concerns.

Best wishes to you both! Keep in touch.

sue