I'm starting my third week of zoning, and I am feeling very good but I haven't dropped a single pound yet. Am I just impatient? According to the way of figuring in Enter the Zone, my LBM is 107 lbs. but my current weight is 220. I don't exercise much but I do try to walk for 30 minutes most every day. I have been eating 12 blocks a day (I think). Here's what I ate yesterday, probably a pretty typical day. Breakfast: an omelet with 1/2 c. of egg substitute and 1 ounce of fat free cheese, as many chopped onions and green peppers as I could put in and still call it an omelet. Steel cut oatmeal with chopped almonds --I put them in before cooking it and made a big pot, so I'm not sure how much per serving -- maybe 1 tsp or so? -- Big pot, 8 1/2 c. servings. 1/2 c. blueberries on top with a little skim milk. Breakfast was at 6, so at 10 I had a snack -- I actually have 3 snacks a day. 2 hard boiled eggs without the yolks and 1/2 an apple. 12:30 Lunch was 3 oz. grilled chicken kebabs with green peppers, onions, mushrooms and tomatoes. I made an extra skewer with just the veggies, but I did not measure them so I'm not sure about whether I had enough or not. It was very filling. 4:30 1/2 an apple with peanut butter. I sliced the apple into 3 parts and put about 1/2 tsp. of peanut butter on each part. 6:00 Borscht cabbage soup made with cabbage, beets, beef stock, onions, seasoning),with yogurt ,about 2 Tbsp., 3 oz. grilled extra lean beef patty, 2 cups of mixed vegetables that included broccoli, cauliflower, carrots & summer squash. Topped them with some parmesan cheese. 8:30 Blueberries, about1/2 c. again, with milk and cinnamon and chopped almonds again, probably about 1 tsp. I drink at least 2 quarts of water a day (this is not easy!) and several cups of herbal tea. I also have some green tea in the mornings, not decaffeinated. Also, I really like the steel cut oatmeal and have been having it every morning and I am thinking that I read some people should only have a couple of servings a week, but I can't find it again and I can't remember why. Could this be a problem? I feel full, satisfied, like the food and meals --I like to cook! -- and have much more energy than before, but no change on the scales. Any ideas? Eve

Hello Eve- After just glancing through your typical menu it appears as though your are VERY short on fats -at every meal. Fats play an important role in the Zone. You will not be successful if you try to skimp out on the fats. Also, when just starting out on the Zone it is important, in my opinion, to measure everything. It is easy to "eyeball" very innacurately, even for a seasoned pro :) . I suggest that you start [b:b4ff856031]right away [/b:b4ff856031]measuring everything. This will ensure that your carb/protein ratio is accurate and that you are including the right amount of fat, at every meal. If you want to use one of your recipes, but are not sure how to Zone it, post it and ask for help, or don't use it at all---avoid trying to guess-timate. I think that is the reason you haven't seen any results, other than feeling better. You are close to the Zone, but not close enough. I hope this helps. Good luck. -Michelle

Hi, I agree with Michelle. You have barely any fat in your meals. Fat is very inportant to controlling bloodsugar. Without the fat, you 're not lowering your insulin enough to be in the Zone. This will prevent loss of stored fat. I suggest you reread the Zone principles and pay very close attention to balancing the P, C and F in your meals. If you focus on insulin and do all you can to control insulin levels, you'll shed the stored fat easily. If I've confused you please don't hesitate to ask more questions. I'd be glad to help. :D Sue

Thank you Michelle and Sue. Yes, I am a little confused, but I think I'm figureing it out. I WILL get it! Maybe I was thinking I needed to cut way way down on my fats because it's like 1 tsp. of olive oil per meal, or 1 1/2 tsp. of peanut butter, right? So I thought it should just be a really minimal amount. And, yes, I can measure things, you're right, I tend not to do that -- just eyeball it. Another question about the fat -- I take two teaspoons of fish oil every morning right before breakfast and count that as my breakfast fat -- should I add more fat to my meal then too? Many thanks for your help. I want to be a healthy and happy zoner too and I really want to finally lose some weightk, something I've pretty much given up on. Eve

Hello Eve- Please remember that there are 3 grams of fat per block. In some places it is stated that 1.5 grams of fat is one block, but that is mis-leading. If you are having a low-fat protein, it is assumed that there is about 1.5 grams of fat "hidden" in that protein. That is why you add only an additional 1.5 gram separate fat block (to equal 3 grams total.) If you are having non-fat protein, like turkey, you must be sure to have [u:eb8c2666cc][b:eb8c2666cc]3[/b:eb8c2666cc][/u:eb8c2666cc] gram fat blocks since there is no "hidden" fat. I prefer to just use nutrition labels instead of blocks. Although, no way is the wrong way. Just be sure that your balanced blocks include 7 grams of protein, 9 grams of carbs, and 3 grams of fat. Any way you need to get it :) 1 full block of fat for olive oil would then be 2/3 tsp, and for peanut butter would be 1 tsp. If you are having 3 block meals, it would be 3 times those amounts. Speaking from experience, going a little over those amounts does not effect weight loss, however, not getting enough fat [b:eb8c2666cc]DOES[/b:eb8c2666cc]! That doesn't seem right, does it ?! But it is true!! I started adding FO to my diet on Oct 7th after losing 50 lbs since Feb 6th on the Zone. I started out at 4 capsules per day but found that my face began to break out. I backed down to 2 per day and have found that to be a good dose. I do not count it towards my daily fat intake and have continued to loose weight at a steady rate. I have heard and read, though, that some people do count it as fat. Since having a little extra fat throughout the day doesn't effect weight loss, but not enough [u:eb8c2666cc][b:eb8c2666cc]does[/b:eb8c2666cc][/u:eb8c2666cc], I would suggest that you not count it and see how you do. You WILL lose weight! Trust me and everyone else. It will happen for you :D Don't give up!! I tried every diet, and every diet failed me. This is NOT a diet, it is a nutritional lifestyle for optimal health! AND it works! Ask as many questions as you need!! Everyone is here for support! ~Michelle

Hi, It's not necessary to count fish oil in your fat intake unless you're consuming very high doses (over a tablespoon you may want to begin counting some of it.) At 2 teaspoons a day, don't bother to count it. The reason a little more fat will be beneficial to your weight loss efforts is that it will slow down digestion, which will in turn give better control over blood sugar levels, resulting in lower insulin levels. The Zone represents a level of insulin (between 5 and 10 on the fasting insulin blood test). When you acheive these insulin levels, you will be burning your stored fat for energy. Sue

Thanks Sue and Michelle for the answers and explanations. They really helped and yes, it is hard to think that I need to add more fat to my diet!!!!!! So I'm not counting my two tsps. of fish oil, and I see that because I am eating mostly low fat and many no fat proteins, that many times I need the 3 gram portion of fat instead of the 1 1/2, so that turns out to be twice as much fat as I thought I should have. So I'm also measuring my portions as was suggested to me and trying for now to choose only favorable carbs. I am really done with diets, a long time ago, because I could tell they were just making me crazy and fatter, but I have been trying for several years to improve the way I eat so I eat almost no processed foods. I like to cook anyhway, so that's not a problem for me. I don't eat sweets anymore at all. But still I haven't had any weight loss and started following the zone with a little fear about not getting enough food, but I really haven't felt that way, I'm full after I eat and ready to stop. I'll keep you posted on the weight. I want mostly to do this for my health but it is really exciting to think that I could actually finally lose weight! Eve

Hi, You're welcome! You will lose excess stored fat if you pay careful attention to balancing P,C and F according to Zone principles. Please let us know if you still need help fine tuning things. Sue :D

Sue and Michelle, I just wanted you to know that I took your suggestions and I lost 1 lb. this week! The changes I made were to be sure I was getting the right amount of good fat, from too little, to measuring things instead of eyeballing. I was probably a little high on protein and a little low on carbs, and quite low on fats. I tried to go with all favorable carbs but found it was difficult to do that, so I have substituted one unfavorable for a favorable at most meals and I still lost the pound. I try not to 'squander' my unfavorable -- I had some sliced baked sweet potatoes last night with dinner and a serving of carrots for lunch, plus the other things I need of course. I am in this mostly for good health and don't care if I don't have sweets or breads, I have actually given those up a long time ago. But I also need to lose weight and this plan has given me hope, as have those of you who post here. So if the scales don't continue to drop, I still have the 'improvement' in my diet of dropping out the unfavorable carb and replacing with favorable again for a while. I'm already noticing, in addition to feeling good, that I am waking up earlier in the morning. There's so much publicity out there about how important adequate sleep is to good health that it makes me a little nervous, but I am taking it as an indication that I am now IN the Zone! I'm psyched! Thanks! Eve

Hi, Great news Eve! :D Keep us posted regarding your progress. Sue

Hi Eve- YEAHHH!! Keep it up! You will notice more and more positive changes!! Michelle