I had eliminated all of them prior and wasn't seeing any progress.

Hi Jessica,

I'm also a Zone Certified Practitioner of Anti-Inflammatory Nutrition and I've been successfully living in the Zone for over 16 years. During that time I've helped many people achieve successful results with the Zone diet and lifestyle.

During those 4 months when the scale stayed the same but you lost inches, you were losing stored body fat and gaining muscle mass. The weight of the stored fat you lost was offset by the weight of the muscle you gained, which is the reason the scale didn’t move. This is very good and it demonstrates the Zone was working well for you then. Lowering inflammation is at the basis of the Zone. The more successful you are at lowering inflammation, the better your overall Zone results will be (loss of stored body fat, increased mental focus, increased energy, etc.). Judge your Zone success by lack of hunger 4 hours after a meal, increased mental clarity and the LBM and body fat % using the Zone Body Fat Calculator on this site. Your LBM should remain the same or increase while your body fat % decreases until you get close to ideal body fat. The closer you get to ideal body fat % (22%) the slower you may lose the last few pounds, maybe even at the rate of only 1 pound a month.
I agree with Bozena’s suggestion to replace those unfavorable carbohydrates with veggies and berries. Keep the amount of fruit to no more than 1 or 2 blocks daily. You should eat the number of blocks recommended for you by the calculator. If you eat less than you require, the result can be a halt to the loss of stored fat, and eventual loss of LBM due to loss of muscle as your body cannibalizes your muscle tissue to get the protein it requires. If you find you have hunger prior to or at 4 hours after meals (you mentioned the shakes don’t work as well for you) and you feel unfocused or lacking energy, try dropping 1 C block from each meal. If you find you’re hungry 4 hours after meals and feel fine in regard to energy and mental clarity, you would add an extra C block to each meal.
The recommendation is to eat a cheat meal once a month. By eating a “cheat” meal once a week, your body may very well be spending half the week getting back into the Zone again, which only leaves you with a few days in the Zone each week before you repeat this cycle with the next “cheat” meal.

Your stomach may seem to be gaining due to fluid retention caused by the insulin stimulation resulting from the unfavorable carbohydrate you’re eating (the bread, rice cake and juice). Also, bodies tend to lose weight in the same order as they lost it. If you tend to gain first in the tummy area, it will probably be the last place you lose the final pounds of excess stored fat.

Good luck!

Hi Sue,

Thank you very much for your response. I will certainly take your recommendations into consideration. I do have a question on how to properly determine the amount of blocks I need per day. My Doctor said no less than 13 because of my weight training and exercise routine. Its very interesting to hear different opinions on these topics as my Doctor also recommended a cheat day once per week and that I eat more fruits than veggies. I will try to switch it up a bit and cut out some of the unfavorable carbs. Any other recommendations are greatly appreciated

Jessica,
You can check out how many blocks you need per day by using the block calculator on this site. Just enter your current stats and activity level and it will give you a recommendation.

I would personally disagree with your doctor on eating more fruit than veggies, as fruit has a higher glycemic load than veggies. The Zone Diet is specifically designed to control insulin, and with your doctor's recommendation, you will not be able to control insulin levels very well by eating a ton of fruit.

I would agree with what Bozena said about eating mostly favorable veggies, limiting fruit to 1-2 blocks per day, and cut out most of the unfavorables.

(in fact, I had typed you a response yesterday, but as I hit the send button, we lost power and my message did not get sent)

Hi Jessica,

The protein requirement, which is the amount of protien needed daily to maintain your current muscle mass, is based on both your LBM and activity level. You can determine it easily using the info in the Body Fat Calculator (http://www.zonediet.com/tools/body-...lculator). I'm not able to recommend a protein requirement for you without knowing your stats (the specific info you're asked to enter into the calculator). The goal of the Zone is to lower inflammation and alter gene expression by means of life long hormonal control. The best hormonal control will be had by eating more veggies, less fruit and very infrequent "cheat meals". Dr. Sears' writes in his books to eat one high carbohydrate meal, or "cheat meal", per month, just to reinforce how bad it makes you feel you feel.

Hi Sue,

I tried to use the calculator, but i'm not sure I'm doing it correctly. My stats are as follows. 5'5...150 lbs...26/F...very active....moderate to heavy weight lifting/plyometrics workouts 6 times a week. Any other stats you might need to know to help give me a better idea of the amount of blocks I should be eating per day, just let me know. Thanks!

Jessica, I would need your hip and ab measurements too, accordign to directions in the calulator [1.Measure your hips (for women) at the widest point and keep the tape level. 2.Measure your waist at the belly button, not the narrowest part.]

A couple qn, does the weight training basically consist of heavy lifting each of those 6 days or are you alternating lifting sessions with the P90X on different days? People tend to overestimate their calculator activity level, and doing so can work against you by resulting in too high a block recommendation. In your case the amount of actual heavy lifting will determine whether you use "Actice or Very Active".

Thanks. :)

Does "26/F" mean age 26/femals, or 26% body fat? IF the latter, then I would not need your measurements.

Hi Sue

When you type a post do you have an automatic spell checker? If I type an incorrect spelling a red line appears under the word. You can right click and it gives options. Just wondering, as you said you had trouble with posting things a few weeks back.

No, the auto is only with some of my devices. I apologize for my typos.

Hi Sue

No need to apologise!! I just thought it might have something to do with your log-on (not that I am an IT person!). Here in Australia we spell apologise with a "s". Just in case you thought my spellchecker wasnt working - ha ha .... it did come up with a red line underneath.

Ok, now I'm confused. Do you mean this site has auto sp ck? I thought you meant your phone's or computer's sp ck. If it does (this site) I've never seem it. :(

Yes. When you click on Reply and start typing a red line appears under a word if it is spelt incorrectly.

Hi, red line definitely not happening for me. :)

Hi Sue,

Sorry its taken me so long to write back. My hips in inches is about a 38 and my waist in inches is about a 28. As far as my activity level goes...I alternate days between P90X and listing/plyometrics at the gym. I get about a 45 minute workout each day, where my heart rate is up and I am sweating. Muscle fatigue sets in so I know where I am at activity wise. I am a certified personal trainer, and have been working out for many years so I feel confident in my estimations. Let me know what you think.

Hi Jessica,

Thanks for the additional info. I would stick with 13 blocks and I agree that you should not go below 13 blocks of protein daily.

OK I am back, just to recap what I have been doing,

I started the zone with 18p 18f 15c lost about 9.5 lbs in 28 days, for the next three weeks o weight loss. Felt great
I than went to a 19p 31f 15c I did this for two weeks and put on 2 lbs. Felt very slugish.
I than went to a 17p 17f 14c I did this for three weeks, and lost the 2lbs I put on and thatis it. weight loss has stopped again, not slugish.

When I calculate what I should be on its 19p 19f 19c. The problem I have with this plan is if I eat all the carbs that the plan calls for,
I am staffed, I have a hard time eating all the food. I have removed most of the fruits from the plan and replaced them with vegetables.

I am starting to think that it is because of my age that I am having such a hard time getting rid of the last 20 lbs.

Bob

Clearly, you did not need the additional fat, since you felt sluggish with that adjustment (speaking of the 19p-31f-15c). You mention that you feel better and was able to lose what you gained on the 17p-17f-14c, but no more. And, the stats suggest 19p is needed.

My advice at this point is to suggest that you go back to doing what made you feel the best. The point at which you were feeling the best is where you zone is. Sometimes weight/fat loss is a bit discriminatory, and you may find that there are other factors that affect your weight loss besides just fat burning. Give it more time, and your plateau is likely to break. Make sure you are focusing on insulin control, following appropriate meal timing, getting enough sleep, other stress reduction efforts, etc. As we age, we become more sensitive to stress on the inside, and your hormonal control may go right out the window even if you are doing everything perfectly with regards to eating.

Robert, go with the 19 the calculator recommends and use a mix of carbohydrate densities to lower the volume of your meals. You could also try a Zone shake for one of your meals or snacks. Drinking a glass of milk it soy milk is another way to lessen the volume of meals.

I hahe been looking for the correct amount of Vitamins that I should have every day. I have found as many diff. inputs
as web pages I went to. Is there a correct data base for vitamins?

Thanks
Bob

you should not need any such supplements if you are eating veggies and low-fat proteins recommended by Zone. Vitamin supplements, in my opinion, are a waste of money. Unless for some reason you are unable to eat properly.

I agree with you, I just would like to know what is the correct amount of each type of vitamin a person should have each
day. When you look at different web pages you get a hole batch of answers all different. I just would like to know what
the correct amounts are.

Bob

Robert, need can be very individualized. A good basic overall supplementation plan is 2.5 to 5 g Omega RX, a polyphenol supplement, a multivitimin and mineral that contains extra anti-oxidants and 2000 IU of vitamin D3.

When I reach my goals of lean body mass how do you calculate the correct carb, far, protein blocks so I don't keep having weight loss

Bob

Bob,

To maintain body fat, without gaining or losing, you increase your added fat blocks slightly so your body doesn't tap into its stored fat.