I'm really feeling great right now. The holiday didn't put me out of whack - I made conscious choices and stuck to those choices so I feel really good about that. I didn't gain any weight plus I've made adjustments to my fish oil which I hope will help change more of my blood work numbers. My challenge right now is to continue to learn more about the intricacies of my food choices and apply what I learn. I feel like I'm up for the challenge.

I hope everyone has a great week!

Awesome Christie!!! I'm SO happy for you -- and you're an inspiration for me to stay on track, so that I feel as good as you do right now !

Laurie

I have faith in you, Laurie - there are just too many reasons to remember that this is a marathon, not a sprint.

Thanks Christie !

Both of you are very inspiring! Keep up the good work!

Hi everyone,

I thought I would post my good news too. I donated blood yesterday and my cholesterol level was at 221. This is a big improvement for me. I went from 241 to 221 in over a year. I thought I would post it for people who are struggling like me. I switched to the liquid fish oil which I am sure has helped but that I feel helped more with decreasing my appetite. I take cholestrol support tablets but I have only been taking one a day. The recommended dose is 2 a day so I am going to up it to the 2 a day. I was hesitant to take this but felt it would be better than Lipitor or something like that. I take the Sea Health plus and weight support supplements. I wish my weight would drop but maybe the key is in what many of you say until the other numbers are good the weight will not come off. I have a doctors' appointment in February so any suggestions are welcomed.

Margaret,

That is good news!  I don't know if they gave you a breakdown on your numbers, but if you can, try to get your Triglycerides and your HDL levels.  I know it is a struggle sometimes, but you are persistent and you will get there!

That’s very good Margaret, very good.   

Since you’re already taking Omega Rx and Sea Health Plus, further tweaking your diet to achieve the best insulin control and eliminating of as much Omega 6 and AA as you possibly can are the best ways to lower your cholesterol, further improve you lab results and lose the excess stored fat.  Also, be sure you’re taking the appropriate dose of Omega RX.  Since you’re beginning the Zone diet again, that would be at least 5 grams of EPA plus DHA daily (2 teaspoons f 8 capsules).  I don't remember if you were around here in the forums when I had my annual physical last summer, but due to cutting way back on the AA in my diet my cholesterol levels dropped by over 30 points to a total of 183, and the lowest LDL reading I'd ever had (LDL = 110, down 26 points).  No cholesterol meds were involved.  My primary care doctor was very surprised I had accomplished this with only dietary changes.  He asked if another doctor had given me cholesterol lowering med, telling me he had never seen a person make this kind of change with diet alone.  I did it by eating ZoneFast 1-2-3 foods, which contain no AA, but you can also eliminate more AA simply by being very careful with protein and fat choices.  I'd already been practicing strict adherence to the Zone diet for many years, but eliminating most of the small amount of AA I was still ingesting made all the difference.  

You can read more about my results here:

http://www.zonediet.com/Community/F...fault.aspx

Good luck Margaret! 

____________________________________________

sue
Consultant of Zone Labs
Certified Zone Affiliate

Lost 100 lbs 15 yrs ago, off BP meds, thanks to the Zone diet and Zone fish oil.   ZoneFast 1-2-3 is the best!

View my Zone Fast 1-2-3 meal photos here:
http://s531.photobucket.com/albums/dd352/SueK24/My%20ZoneFast%201-2-3%20Meals/

View my classic Zone meal photos here:
http://s531.photobucket.com/albums/dd352/SueK24/?start=0

Margaret - GREAT NEWS! I'm so proud of you and your efforts. It feels good doesn't it to see the progress?! Keep up the good work. This is a journey so we will continue to tweak and improve as we move down the road. You're on the right track so keep on plugging!

Hi all -- just a reminder to jump over to this week's "Daily Challenges and Solutions - Week of 12/6/10" ...

Im am transitioning to the Zone Diet from Atkins. I feel this will work better for me now and for life. I also bought the book formula 40-30-30 by Gene Doust. What Zone book(s) do you recommend. For me to succeed I really need to UNDERSTAND the hows and whys!!! Thanks so much!

Toxic Fat  gives the most up-to-date over all picture of the Zone, all the "how's and why's" you're looking for. 

____________________________________________

sue
Consultant of Zone Labs
Certified Zone Affiliate

Lost 100 lbs 16 yrs ago, off BP meds, thanks to the Zone diet and Zone fish oil.   ZoneFast 1-2-3 is the best!

View my Zone Fast 1-2-3 meal photos here:
http://s531.photobucket.com/albums/...3%20Meals/

View my classic Zone meal photos here:
http://s531.photobucket.com/albums/...4/?start=0

My favorite is MASTERING THE ZONE. It is an older book, but it is much more comprehensive in explaining the basics.

I also like another older book - "The Omega RX Zone".
This does explain, but it includes a lot of science.

Steffanie here is some information you may find helpful if you wanted to get started in the mean time...

1. Go to the Zone Diet Body Fat Calculator on this site, enter your numbers and it will tell you how many protein blocks you need to eat per day. here's the link... http://www.zonediet.com/Tools/Calcu...fault.aspx

2. Go to the Quick Start Guide and read the Basic Zone Rules tab: http://www.zonediet.com/Tools/Quick...fault.aspx">http://www.zonediet.com/Tools/Quick...fault.aspx

3. Check out the Men's or Women's Meal Planner for some meal and snack examples: http://www.zonediet.com/EATING/7Day...fault.aspx

4. Check out the Zone Food Blocks tab of the Quick Start Guide for foods that you can substitute into the meal and snack examples if you don't like or have the foods on hand:
http://www.zonediet.com/Tools/Quick...fault.aspx">http://www.zonediet.com/Tools/Quick...fault.aspx

5. Use the "Search" feature in the upper right corner of the website to type in keywords for your questions -- it's amazing how much you can learn from that! For example, I typed in "hunger adjustments" and got a ton of info on how to adjust my foods and blocks to extend the periods between hunger.