I have every book, lol, and I can't find where that's mentioned. Is there also focused hunger?

Second question: Is a scoop of protein powder (10gm protein) in 8 ounces of soy milk (3.5 gm fat, 10 carbs) in the zone for a snack? I can't be bothered with making little mini snacks all the time and I really do enjoy my chocolate "milk" break.

I'm doing better today, not half as hungry as yesterday, btw. Paying closer attention to the amounts. Thanks for all your help, Sue and everyone.

Hi Lilly!

That's great that you have all the books because there's a whole chapter about it in MASTERING THE ZONE. Read Chapter 7, “Adjusting Your Hormonal Carburetor". Pages 44-47 explain all about how to adjust for hunger. Note in the flow chart illustration on page 47 the categories of "Poor Mental Focus (aka unfocused hunger) and "Good Mental Focus" (aka focused hunger).

QN 1. Typically when a person has focused hunger, their only symptom is that they are hungry. They feel great in all other ways, have good concentration and have plenty of energy.

A person with unfocused hunger will feel hungry and also will usually feel any one or more of the following: headache, tired, sleepy, inability to concentrate, jittery, shaky, spacey, faint, lacking energy, the feeling like they need to eat something right away to keep going, irritable, upset, anxious, etc.

QN 2. Soy milk contains protein and carbs (recheck your soy milk label). It is usually a snack in itself without any added protein. Some unsweetened varieties of soy milk need carb added to be in Zone balance. For cautions about liquid carbs, refer to page 290 in MASTERING THE ZONE, specifically Q&A labeled "Will a liquid meal in the correct ratio get me to the Zone? If not, why not?" This applies to both snacks and meals.

Sue... I don't have the Mastering the Zone book yet but plan to get my hands on it. Is it a pun... Mastering the Hormonal Carburator of does this mean some adjustments need to be made to either the amount of carbs or types of carbs.

I have been trying the zone for the past week to 10 days or so along with my wife and really believe it is the right thing. The problem is that I've never eaten so many vegetables in my life. I enjoy the fruits but wonder whether or not I'm sensitive to them. I have always eaten a high protein and probably high fat diet and then whatever fruits and veggies I can find I throw them in if I'm not too lazy. Right now I seem to be eating and then hungry again (unfocused) in two hours or so after what I believe to be a zone balanced diet.

Thanks.

Hi Brian,

No pun. :-) Not all people are exactly the same. There are specific adjustments to carbohydrates depending on the type of symptoms you experience. You can find them here: http://www.drsears.com/ZoneResource...fault.aspx
Click on "Hormonal Adjustment Diagnostic Chart" appearing at the bottom right of the page.

Based on the info in your post, you'd adjust by dropping 1 C block from each meal. In addition, it will help you to get most of your carbohydrates from favorable vegetables (sounds like you probably are already) and keep fruit and other carbohydrates to a minimum. The best fruits to eat would be berries.

Thanks so much, Sue... I'll check out that link. I've gotten pretty good at reading the cues in my body and something just doesn't feel right when I go that high on the carbs. I've been dealing with a chronic illness for over a couple years now seriously but getting healthier with natural methods along with getting the bad stuff out of my body and putting good stuff in. Really buy into the science behind The Zone. My doctor who specializes in complementary and alternative medicine suggested I give it a try. I'll also stick with the berries. That won't be a problem.

One other suggestion I received from my doctor was to increase the amount of fat but I tend to think it is best to just change one thing at at time. I think it makes sense to drop the carbs one block and see how that works.

I'll let you know how it goes. Thanks for your quick response, Sue. Take care and God Bless.

You're welcome! Your doctor is correct that additional monounsaturated fat in a meal can help to prevent hunger, but the first adjustment would be to get your carbohydrate more in line with your needs.

The Zone will be an excellent addition to your doctor's good advice. The honest truth, the Zone has changed my entire life. I've had my share of medical challanges and the Zone has helped me immensely. I am also fortunate that a couple of my doctors combine complementary alternative treatmentmedicine with traditional medicine in their respective practices. I'm glad you are able to benefit from the same.

Yes, please keep us updated. :-)

There are open minded doctors out there but you just have to look for them. I looked through about a dozen medical professionals of various types, etc. before finding some help. It's frustrating but rewarding when you find them and start to get help. Start to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Hi, All... I'm back with an update. Have ordered the book Mastering the Zone but haven't received it yet. Looking forward to reading it.

I've been tracking my food better to provide better information (and, of course, receive better feedback).

I switched to an egg omelette yesterday morning per Sue's suggestion.
Here's what I had at 8:15 am.

3/4 Egg Substitute - 3 P
Combo of green pepper, onion, mushrooms, salsa - 2C
9 almonds - 3 F


I dropped a C per your suggestion, Sue.

Felt unfocused hunger based on earlier definition in thread. Felt bad enough that had a 6 oz glass of non-fat milk and 3 almonds and this cut the hunger.

Lunch was at 11:30 am

3 ozs Tuna - 3 P
Pickles - 1C; 1 cup Strawberries 1C
1 tsp mayo - 3F

Was more focused but still hungry.

Snack at 3:30pm
2 Pcs CoJack cheese - 2P
1/3 cup OJ - 1C
6 Almonds - 2F

Dinner at 6 pm.
A Kinnickinnick Gluten Free pizza crust w/4 g protein; 41 g carbohydrates; and 7g fat. also had 1 to 1.5 oz co jack shredded cheese; 9 pepperoni slices; 1/2 oz of ground beef; and GF pizza sauce.

With this non-zone meal I actually felt best afterward but started getting hungry again in less than four hours.

Snack at 9:45 pm.
1 cup lf cottage cheese - 2P
1/2 cup blueberries - 1C
1 tsp almond butter - 2F

Slept horribly and woke up hungry in middle of night.

This morning I went out of the Zone and had a protein shake.

7:45 am
22 g protein
2 g fat
4 g carbs
plus 6 oz non-fat milk
2/3 cup rasperries.
Forgot to have any fat.

Felt miserable this morning. Unfocused hunger and a ton of stomach "rumbles". I didn't eat anything because I wanted to see what would happen. Finally, the hunger subsided a bit around 11 am and I was able to focus and concentrate on work. I also wanted to compare to how I would feel eating a zone friendly meal for lunch.

Lunch at 12:15
Taco Salad
3 oz Ground Beef - 2P
1 oz mozz cheese - 1P
2 cups raw spinach
just under 1/2 cup tomato
1/8 cup onion
1/4 cup tortilla chips
1/4 cup salsa
I calculate a total of 2C
1/2 Tbsp Sour Cream and 6 Almonds - 3F

It's only 1:30 but seem to be pretty focused right now. Welcome any comments or suggestions. Fascinating how food can affect the way I feel. I used to take it for granted and now I try to respect everything I eat.

Hi Brian,

It's really eye opening, isn't it? I highly recommend reading TOXIC FAT, the newest Zone book by Barry Sears. It explains the entire diet, and much more, including how to use diet and lifestyle to change the expression of your genes to enable you to live a longer and healthier life.


The carbohydrate adjustment I referred to earlier in this thread is to drop 1 carbohydrate block from meals not from snacks. Keep snacks the same, or just slightly lower the carbohydrate in snacks if you want. When you drop 1 carbohydrate block from a 3 or 4 block meal you slightly change the P/C ratio of the meal. When you drop 1 carbohydrate block from a 1 or 2 block snack the change in P/C is more drastic and you take the P/C ratio out of the Zone (not eating enough carbohydrate will also cause hunger).

Yesterday and this morning your unfocused hunger and yucky feelings are most likely due to the lack of fat, to overall balance being off here and there, and to eating too many unfavorable carbohydrates (OJ and pizza crust). Half the fat needed for the Zone P, C and F balance are in the low fat protein source (about 1.5 grams fat to every 7 grams protein; 1 P block contains 7 g protein). The design of the block method takes this into account. With the block method, when you choose a fat free protein (or one very close to fat free) you should add at least one additional fat block for every block of fat free protein being eaten. Eggwhites and protein powder are both fat free proteins and tuna (you can check your can's nutritional label) may be close enough to fat free to throw off a carbohydrate sensitive individual (I always need extra fat with canned tuna).
There's no need to do math or even use blocks at all to be successful with the Zone. You'll find the plate dividing method to be much easier (aka eyeball method or hand-eye method). It's the way I lost 100 pounds in the Zone. You can read more about here in Quick Start Guide: http://www.zonediet.com/Tools/Quick...fault.aspx

An even easier way to do the Zone than the plate dividing method is ZoneFast 1-2-3 (it's explained in the WEIGHT LOSS tab above). I love it. It keeps me in the Zone even better than the classic Zone meals. There's no counting involved and you're never hunger. Best of all, the foods are delicious! It's the best for those with health concerns because the food contains no AA.

Have fun learning more about the Zone!

Thanks, Sue...

I get confused some times on the fat issue but what you said clears it up for me.

I just had another meal that at my folks house that I tried to keep zone friendly but have a nasty headache that started about two hours after eating. In addition just an overall yucky (good word!) feeling for sure.

Here's what I had. I'm confident it was too high in carbs.

4 oz pork wrapped in Bacon
Bananas in jello
about 12 asparagus spears; a teaspoon of butter
some cream cheese with a jelly sauce over it
about 10 fritos

Welcome your thoughts. Too many carbs and not enough fat?

Thanks, Sue. I appreciate it!

You're welcome Brian.

I hear you. I'd feel yucky after that meal too. The pork, bacon, butter and cream cheese, provided the meal with plenty of fat (though there's too much AA in that meat). The yucky feelings were most likely due to too much unfavorable carbohydrate (bananas, jello, jelly sauce and fritos).

Faced with those choices in a meal, I would take pork about the size and thickness of the palm of my hand and load the rest of my plate with asparagus. Since the pork includes bacon, there would be enough fat in the meal, even without the butter and cream cheese.

Hey, I'm no longer a newbie!

Last night for a snack had 2 oz ham, 3 almonds, 1/2 teaspon natural peanut butter and 1/2 cup natural applesauce. Went to bed at 11:30 pm and got out of bed at 7:30.

This morning had 3 oz ham, 1 1/2 teaspon natural peanut butter; 1/4 cup black beans and 3/4 cup veggie juice at 7:45 am. Went for a short walk. Now very sluggish at 9:30 am but not hungry. Difficulty focusing.

Any thoughts? Sorry for asking so many questions. I want so bad to feel good.

Brian,

"Any thoughts?"

1. Remember, you're not in the Zone yet. A few days of consecutively eating Zone meals that are balanced for you needs will get you there.

2. Black beans are one of the higher density favorable carbohydrates (not it takes much less to make a block then broccoli mushrooms or tomatoes) and veggie juice is unfavorable carbohydrate (liquid carbohydrate). Use with lower density veggies, and remember the Zone rule not to have more than 25% of all the carbohydrate in the meal form unfavorable carbohydrate.

3. If that is lean ham, it most likely doesn't contain enough fat for zone balance. Try adding at least 1 more monounsaturated fat block for each block of ham.

Have a good day!

Hi, Sue...

Things are going better overall. My wife and I continue to burn extra fat. You can lose weight even when you slip up but like the books say you're only one meal away from getting back to the Zone. BTW got my copy of Mastering The Zone today so I'm going to look how to adjust further. I think I'm very carb sensitive and have dropped down one carb block. I have a question though. Have you heard of anyone who needs to drop two carb blocks? Just curious. Not sure if I need to do this or not.

Also, I'm tending to err on the side of having extra fat as that controls the carb "intake" as I read it. let me know if you agree with that or not.

I would say we've been on the diet for about three weeks now and my wife has lost seven pounds and I've lost 8 to 9 since we started. I'm a little more sensitive due to other health reasons and possible blood type/heritage so I'm watching the carbs a little closer than she may be. She cooks the meals mostly though and is doing a great job.

Thanks for your help, Sue. Take care.

Hi Brian,

You're welcome, and congrats to you and your wife!

It wouldn't be wise to drop a second carbohydrate block. You would be out of the Zone from going too far beyond the Zone P/C range (the range is about .6 to 1; dropping 2 carbohydrate blocks takes it to more than 2.) As a result, you'd also become hungry too soon (focused hunger). Since you've dropped 1 carbohydrate block, use a little extra monounsaturated fat (as you mentioned, but not too much!), along with judicious carbohydrate choices, in order to stay in the Zone.

Have fun with it!

Sounds good, Sue... In reading parts of Mastering the Zone now I agree with you that makes more sense. Knowing the the fat is responsible for inhibiting the carbs to the bloodstream leads me to believe with more fat I will slow down the carb to bloodstream rate which sounds like what I need.

Down another couple pounds today but feeling overall pretty good. Gotta watch and make sure I take enough water though.

Getting more used to this diet all the time. It's not that hard and fun to do with my wife. She's losing weight and feeling better also.

The saying "Knowledge is power" is certainly true when it comes to the Zone. Consider TOXIC FAT for your next read. MASTERING THE ZONE provides one piece to the puzzle. TOXIC FAT takes it much farther by by explaining how to use diet and lifestyle to alter the expression of your genes.

Will do, Sue... thanks again.

Sue,

Earlier in the thread you mentioned the following:

"For cautions about liquid carbs, refer to page 290 in MASTERING THE ZONE, specifically Q&A labeled "Will a liquid meal in the correct ratio get me to the Zone? If not, why not?" This applies to both snacks and meals."

I don't currently have Mastering the Zone - I did just acquire Toxic Fat though, do you know if there is this same information about liquid meals in Toxic Fat...Or could you elaborate a little on what it says about Liquid Meals? Are these bad?

This thread is answering describing me so well. I appreciate all the information. Thank you.

Cheers
Cleo

This thread is answering describing me so well. I appreciate all the information. Thank you.

Cheers
Cleo

Hi Jennifer,

Here's the answer to the question as it appears in the book:

"A liquid meal has a much greater surface area than a solid food. As a result, the digestion and entry rate of macroniutrients into the bloodstream cannot be controlled well, and there is a corresponding decrease in the desired hormonal control. Liquid meals are more convenient, but they are not as hormonally desireable as solid food. They can be used occasionally if you just don't have the time to cook."

Thanks for that information Sue!

I do occasionally do the Zone Shakes in the morning sometimes, or in the afternoons.

Sometimes I will also occasionally have a shake along with some other things (because my non-zone shakes do not make up an entire meal)...

Now I'm wondering if I should be trying to eliminate the Shakes, including the Zone ones or not...I do usually feel fine though afterwards, I'm going to have to pay closer attention.

Many of us have been making our own Zoned smoothie in the morning for breakfast.
In fact, even Sue has (had?) a recipe posted for one.
The Zoned smoothie in the morning holds me longer than some breakfasts, I've created.
If you enjoy them, or find them more convenient at time, then I would not consider eliminating them altogether.
The key with zoning is hormonal control. If a 3 or 4 block zoned shake/smoothie holds you for 3-4 hours, then you are doing fine with it.