What I would like to know for any one who can answer me is ???? In the book it says that you should only do 45 min of walking for the 333 system for women. Well what if I want to do more then walking. I have a whole garage of cardio machines. Dr Sears says that you will stop burning fat and start burning muscle???How and why. I dont understand this concept.I am having a time with the 333 system and the amounts of food. I eat alot of cottage cheese and fruit. I cant cope with all the other foods in portions wise. What do I do. How do I know if I am burning muscle?????This is very confusing me. Hope some one can answer me. :? :? :? Thanks Bonbon35

[quote:6cd12e7081="bonbon35"]What I would like to know for any one who can answer me is ???? In the book it says that you should only do 45 min of walking for the 333 system for women. Well what if I want to do more then walking. I have a whole garage of cardio machines. Dr Sears says that you will stop burning fat and start burning muscle???How and why. I dont understand this concept.I am having a time with the 333 system and the amounts of food. I eat alot of cottage cheese and fruit. I cant cope with all the other foods in portions wise. What do I do. How do I know if I am burning muscle?????This is very confusing me. Hope some one can answer me. :? :? :? Thanks Bonbon35[/quote:6cd12e7081] [color=darkred:6cd12e7081]Hi, As I posted to you before, you may do any type of exercise you wish. Walking need not be limited to 45 min. Re read the Zone book you are using . I think you may be misunderstanding it. You might have read that after 45 min of strenuous exercise , crtisol levels raise. Cortisol levels are not a big concern (IMO) when walking. In the Zone, you'll be buring fat as long as you're eating the proper number of daily blocks to support your LBM and activity level. The only way you would begin to "burn muscle" is if you 're not eating enough protein to meet your daily needs. Use the Body Fat Calculator on this site to determine your daily protein requirement (daily block requirements) and you will not lose muscle. To answer your question , if you see your LBM decreasing (check it every few weeks using the Body Fat Calculator), you'll know you're losing (burning) muscle. I'm assuming you're having touble with the volume of carbs you're choosing to eat. Look at the Food Block Guide on this and choose favorable veggies with small volumes per block (ie, salsa 1/2 cup per block, tomato sauce (spaghetti sauce) 1/2 cup, chick peas 1/4 cup, black beans,1/2 cup, etc). This will make meals more manageable in size . Here's an example of a meal: 3 oz skinless boneless chicken breast baked with 1 cup spaghetti sauce and 1 teaspoon olive oil, 1/2 cup blueberries for dessert (3P,3C,3F). another example would be a salad with 3 oz tuna, 1/4 cup chick peas (add a few slices of cucumber or tomato, if desired), dressing made of one teaspoon olive oil mixed with vinegar to taste, and an orange (or apple) for dessert (3P,3C,3F). It's that simple! The salad doesn't have to be huge. In fact, it would still be 3 C even without the lettuce, tomato, and cucumber, since they contain very little carb. A delicious easy breakfast is one cup cooked oatmeal, one scoop vanilla flavored protein powder (containing approx. 21g protein), and slivered almonds. Eating a lot of fruit may not allow you to stay in the Zone. The goal of the Zone diet is to lower insulin. Eating favorable veggies and fruits will result in lower insulin levels than earing mostly fruit. If you have questions, I'll be glad to help.[/color:6cd12e7081]

Ok so lets say that I only would like to work out do some good cardio three days a week. Can I increese the portions for that day and then go back to 333 the next day or is that not a good thing. What is bothering me right now is I know this must sound bad but I have no other way to say it. I know I have least lost 10 pounds now . All my weight is in my stomach and with loosing the inches in my stomach it has dropped some so now I have the feeling of my stomach is resting on my legs alot. I know it will take time to get this but I would feel better If I felt like I am actually working out and not jest walking. I have plenty of cardio machines I have atreadmill , Air Strider, 2 Bikes.Stepper. I am used to doing alot of that a few times a week. Iam also scared that if I increase the food blocks then I will start ganing and not loosing and that scares me alot. I have been doing real good here I havnt been doing any cheating. I have stuck to the plan I dont want any thing to discourage me from doing this. Hope this isnt too much for you. I have no other to discuss this with. My hubby is ok but he doesnt know whats it like he hasnt had any excess weight his whole life. I see you have lost alot of weight I know you must know what I feel. Sorry slknorr didnt mean to take it all out on you. Thanks for helping I will go in and read that section right now. Nothing better to do at the moment.

[quote:822284cc91="bonbon35"]Ok so lets say that I only would like to work out do some good cardio three days a week. Can I increese the portions for that day and then go back to 333 the next day or is that not a good thing. What is bothering me right now is I know this must sound bad but I have no other way to say it. I know I have least lost 10 pounds now . All my weight is in my stomach and with loosing the inches in my stomach it has dropped some so now I have the feeling of my stomach is resting on my legs alot. I know it will take time to get this but I would feel better If I felt like I am actually working out and not jest walking. I have plenty of cardio machines I have atreadmill , Air Strider, 2 Bikes.Stepper. I am used to doing alot of that a few times a week. Iam also scared that if I increase the food blocks then I will start ganing and not loosing and that scares me alot. I have been doing real good here I havnt been doing any cheating. I have stuck to the plan I dont want any thing to discourage me from doing this. Hope this isnt too much for you. I have no other to discuss this with. My hubby is ok but he doesnt know whats it like he hasnt had any excess weight his whole life. I see you have lost alot of weight I know you must know what I feel. Sorry slknorr didnt mean to take it all out on you. Thanks for helping I will go in and read that section right now. Nothing better to do at the moment.[/quote:822284cc91] [color=darkred:822284cc91]Hi, What exactly is yoru LBM and how many mins. per week do you spend on what type of exercise? Also, when you say "333" do you mean you are only eating 9 blocks per day, or are you also eating two one block snacks for a total of 11 bolcks per day? If you can provide this info I can answer your questions. I would [b:822284cc91]not[/b:822284cc91] suggest eating less on days you don't workout. [/color:822284cc91]

No I call it my 333 because I eat 3protein 3 carb 3fat at breakfat ,lunch,dinner then I have three snacks a day at 1protein,1carb and 1fat blocks a day. according to the calcluator my LBM is 66.

When I first started on the Zone, I lost weight very quickly. I was doing a wide range of exercise, but I was worried that I was losing muscle. I am a volunteer in a diet study and as part of the study, my % body fat was measured at various times using DEXA, which is a full body scan using low energy X-rays. After 2 weeks I had lost 10 lbs. After the first 7 weeks I had lost 20 lbs, but according to the measurement I hadn't lost any muscle. Over time, the weight loss has slowed as I approach a good weight for me. I have lost 45 lbs (over 7 months) and have another 5 lbs to go. Try not to drop below your base level of blocks. Don't skip your snacks if you don't work out. If you exercise a lot more than usual, don't be afraid to add an extra block.

Thanks animal that is good advice I will take it in place.