I have been eating paleo zone since Monday and so far, I love it! I still think I over think it sometimes but I am getting the hang of it.

Primarily, I am trying to lose weight and build endurance.

Based on my body fat, it has me eating 13 blocks a day. After plugging in the calories on myfitnesspal.com, they were relatively low. Especially after I worked out, which I usually burn 300-500 calories. More on days I do crossfit. I'm also feeling a little bit more hungrier. My question is should I up my blocks to 14 or 15 a day? Especially on the days I work out?

Thanks!

If you are doing CrossFit your Activity level should be very high.
I would first double-check the calculator.
Then if it still comes out at 13 blocks, check your focus when you get hungry.
If you are getting hungry at less than 3-4 hours after eating, then a couple of things:
Fist check you meals and ensure they are within the Zone parameters.
Are you eating more fruit or vegetables?
Some folks are more sensitive to fruits, and should eat less, minimize.
If you are sure your meals are truly Zoned,
then are you able to focus concentrate when you get hungry?
If so, then add a block of Crabs to your meals and see how you do.
There is actually a range of protein to Carbs - a 1:1 ( 7 grams P to 9 grams C) is just a starting point.
In reliity the range is .6 to 1.
Next, if you are unable to focus when you get hungry, then try dropping a block of carbs at you meals.
.
If you want, you can post a meal that you get hngry after, here, and we'd be happy to look at it.....
Hope this helps.

I only do Crossfit once a week though.

I feel hungry right now but I just ate lunch an hour and a half ago. I ate 4 blocks.
I had 2.5oz chicken breast and 1.5oz turkey
1 apple, 1 cup green beans, 1.25 cups broccoli
6 almonds

Sometimes when I stand up, I get light headed. I noticed that before when I was restricting my calories too much. But I am not doing it on purpose, I am eating my blocks.

Okay- I redid the math since I have lost some weight/inches since I first did my measurements. Now it says 14 blocks. I'll give that a try and see how it goes!

[quote] Posted By Kara on 31 Aug 2012 01:38 PM
I feel hungry right now but I just ate lunch an hour and a half ago. I ate 4 blocks.
I had 2.5oz chicken breast and 1.5oz turkey
1 apple, 1 cup green beans, 1.25 cups broccoli
6 almonds
Sometimes when I stand up, I get light headed. I noticed that before when I was restricting my calories too much. But I am not doing it on purpose, I am eating my blocks. [/quote]
.
Chicken, Breast, 2.5 oz = about 2.5 to 3 blocks P
(Was that 2.5 oz cooked or pre-cooked?)
Turkey Breast? (Cooked? precooked? deli?)
1.5 to 2.0 blocks P
.
1 medium apple about 2 blocks C
1 cup pre-cooked) green beans 1 block C
1.25 cups (pre-cooked) Broccoli 0.8 blocks C
.
6 almonds 3 grams F
Chicken & Turkey has some Fat 2.5 g + 0.3 g (assuming Breasts for both)
Equals ~ 6 grams Fat total.
You are low on Fat.
At the very least, for a 4 block meal you want at least 12 grams fat Total.
.
Possibly, because you were low on fat, and Fat helps slow down rate of Carbs (esp. the Apple with a higher Glycemic Load then berries, and vegetables), into sugars, hence helps slow down the insulin response.
So, you might have had a higher than desired insulin response to lower the blood sugar levels.
Then, instead of being more gradual and steady, once the insulin took care of the blood sugars,
then your blood sugar levels dropped, and you became hungry, again.
.
The apple is still a favorable Carb, though two apples for a 4 block meal would be pushing it!
But, your Fats were low. Do NOT be afraid of healthy fats. They are your friend.
(Unless, like everything else, you over do them...)
Try getting your total fats up to 12 grams for a 4 block meal.
.
In fact, once you hit maintenance mode, you'll want to double your fats.
See Sue's response to Sarah/Alexy in another thread.
.

Kara, you didn't eat enough fat in that meal. 3 almonds (1 F block) to 1 ounce of meat 1 P block if meat was weighed raw), a minimum of 12 almonds for a 4 block meal. If that was deli-style meat, then then the meal contained only 3P. I suggest using the most current Zone Food Block Guide (http://drsears.com/ArticlePreview/t...ult.aspx). By the looks of your carbohydrate quantities (smaller the usual) you're using on of the older food block lists which have since been revised. Next time you eat that meal also try switching all or half of the apple to the equivalent block amount of non-starchy vegetables. Both of those suggestions will help to eliminate your hunger.

I was guestimating on fat for the meat in the meal so I went down on the fat just in case I went over. Eating more fat is not a problem! I love my almonds. And both of the meat was cooked.

Also- I am a very picky vegetable eater. Most of the vegetables I do like are unfavorable. =\

And Sue, your link doesn't work.

NVM Sue, I already have that printed out. I was using this spreadsheet that you put in how many blocks you want to eat and it tells you how much to eat of that food. But I see you're right, comparing the two, the spreadsheet is outdated. I will start using the updated food list.

Okay so blocks calculator on this site says 12 blocks. On another site it says 14 blocks. Which one should I go by?

[quote]
Posted By Kara on 31 Aug 2012 04:06 PM
Okay so blocks calculator on this site says 12 blocks. On another site it says 14 blocks. Which one should I go by?
[/quote]

When I do the calculations myself according to the book, I get 14.

Kara;
Realize that when Protein is listed in the charts/lists - it is pre-cooked weight!
Meat loses moisture (thereby weight) when cooked.
4.0 oz pre-cooked ~ 3.0 oz cooked.
So your Protein was also a little high, though, as I stated not a biggie.
The Zone is a range.
Your Fat being low was the problem with that meal.
And a LITTLE additional fat is OK, too.
As you now know, it is better to err on the side of more fat when guesstimating.
(No problem, Sue ... figured as much when I saw afterwards that here was a whole whopping 8 minutes between the posts. lol)

If you want to e-mail me, i can send you a Food Brick Guide a former poster put together some time ago.
It is based on Dr. Sears on-line guide, but lists the foods in grams (weight),
making it easier if you use weight instead of volume.
Occasionally, I refer to it if (when ...) my portion sizes start to grow a bit larger by sight over time.
(jaydpiii at yahoo dot com)

http://drsears.com/ArticlePreview/t...fault.aspx

If this link still doesn't work click on DrSears.com in the blue bar above, then choose Resources on the left, then click on the Food Block Guide key at lower right.

As Dr. Sears says, it's better to err on the side of a little too much monounsaturated fat in your meal than not enough. The fat in a meal controls the rate of entry of the carbohydrates into the blood stream. Without enough fat in the meal it'll be next impossible to control insulin levels within the range of the Zone.

Here's the deal with cooked meat. If it's purchased deli-meat than you'll usually need 1.5 oz to make a block because broth and liquids are added to these meats making them weigh more. If it's meat you cooked yourself and you are weighing it after cooking it will take less than 1 oz (about 2/3 -3/4 oz.) for 1 P block because liquid evaporates from the meat during cooking.

An easier way to stay in the Zone would be to use Zone At-a Glance. There's no weighing or measuring involved. http://www.zonediet.com/tools/zone-classic
For 14 blocks you can simply use this method and eat 4 or 5 snacks a day, or eat two double sized snacks plus one regular sized snack or use protein a bit larger than the size of your palm to give yo larger meals (stay with the usual 2 snacks if yo do this). I used At-a-Glance to lose 100 pounds in the Zone about 18 years ago, never counting a single block. The most successful zoners I know all use this method rather than weighing and measuring.

Kara;
sent.

Kara, I'd go with the recommendation from this site. If you decide to switch to 12 blocks, you could do At-a-Glance the usual way and simply add another third snack your day.

Zone books and this site should be giving you the same block amount. If you're still trying to figure out how many blocks to eat, try rechecking to see if you used different activity level factors or might have inadvertantly changes or transposed a number somewhere.