Welcome to the Offices of
Dr. David Brown DC

In Chiropractic Practice since 1985

3633 Camino del Rio South, Suite 102
San Diego, CA  92108
619-260-8086

 

MAILBAG

 

Thanks for the letters, hope you don't mind me using them for this FAQ

I'm already familiar with Enter The Zone and have been practicing for 2 months now, with great results. I'm on the zone mailing list and watch several newsgroups for the zone discussions there. Your zone support group is the first in-person zone support group I've heard of. Do you know of others? or how to find out about such groups if they exist?

Our Low Carb group is small these days but boy is it fun! We were 5 of us last night; 2 of us have been zoning for 6 months, 2 are reading the book and 1 guy got dragged along with his girlfriend so he could help her plan meals. There are about 10 active members, some show up less than others. I have been asking for $5 or what ever to cover costs. Usually folks are more than happy to cough that up.

We talked for the first hour about general concerns and I guided the talk as much as possible into the concepts...GI index, health reasons and block size, etc. Then we created a bar recipe on the spot and cooked them in the microwave and ate them! The newbies made faces because they weren't sweet enough for their carbo-tastes but the zoners found them delicious! Pretty wild to see that sweet tooth demonstration.

There are no other live Zone groups that I know of. (Some Environ distributors run "Introductory Lectures" but many times they are simply a guise to sell bars.) There is ALOT of interest in zone support groups judging by other eMail I've received. I suggest that your create one in your area. You are as qualified as anyone to do it, it's just a way to eat.

In a way, this group is a "weight group" or "diet support group" anyway because that is the main reason people are interested in coming. That has been a little hard for me to accept but I think that is my problem, what I have started to do now is lecture more on the health reasons and deal with the fat loss as a side benefit. We'll see if that helps.

Maybe I'll hang a page on my site re starting groups and see if there is interest. I have thought of a zone chat using IRC...what do you think?

Yours from the Zone,

David

> i believe sear called one fat block = 1.5 grams, yet the info in this website states 3 grams fat per block. what's the scoop?

thanks

According to the FAQ there is 1 block of hidden fat in each protein block. When you read the nutrition info on food packages does it include this in the fat reported?

Sears was trying to make things simple and just confused people. A block of fat is 3gms. There is a 1/2 a block of fat "buried" inside fatty meat or fish. That's all.

The hidden fat is considered to be 1.5gms per block of meat protein. That is, if you're are eating meat or oily fish, consider that there is an extra 1.5gms of fat/oil buried inside the food and so don't add more than 1.5gms of extra oils per block of protein.

I know that's confusing but think of it like this, if you eat all prepared foods and add up everything on the labels, you will know EXACTLY how much fat you are getting...there is nothing hidden from the FDA's labels. So you always figure in 3grs of fat per block of food. BUT, if you are eating meat or fish, there are no labels on them. If there were, you would see something like this...

Serving Size: 1oz.

Protein: 7gms.
Carbohydrate: 0gms.
Fat: 1.5gms

So you would compensate by reducing extra fat by 1.5gms per block.

Just one thought, remember that fat is not the problem here....Carbohydrates are. Concentrate on the C:P ratio and don't worry so much of the fat level. I know that's hard to do, we've been successfully brain washed to avoid fat in our diet.

If you eat a little more fat (1.5gms), the worse that will happen is that you will not lose body fat during that 5 hour period. You will have enough calories from the extra fat that you will not need to dip into your stored fat.

If your C:P ratio is correct, however, you will be in the Zone and able to fend off the ill effects of high fat in your diet. In fact, the high levels of glucagon and low levels of insulin in the presence of excess fat will favor the production of good eicosanoids! (Carbs effect Insulin production, Protein effects Glucagon production and Fat effects Eicosanoid production.)

Good luck! And keep on Zoning!

David

I am trying to follow this diet to control my hypoglycemia. There are items on the diet that concern me (such as bread). Is there specific information for someone who has severe hypoglycemia?

As you know, hypoglycemia involves periods of very low blood sugar. It's usually caused by swings in your insulin level coupled with insulin resistance that is in turn the result of years of out of control insulin levels due most likely to excessive carbohydrate intake. (Whew!).

Zoning is the perfect diet for you. You may need to eat smaller meals more frequently than suggested in the plan until you feel your insulin reactions are under control, then you can play with eating larger meals and spread them further apart until you are eating like "normal". The zone effect will eventually stabilize your insulin response and soon you will be able to eat bread without a large swing.

To start, avoid the high glycymic index foods like bread and pasta and rice. If you have a web browser you can search for the Diabetic page at http://www.cruzio.com/~mendosa/gi.html
for lists of favorable foods.

Yours, David

Hi David: I discovered the Zone stuff via the WWW yesterday and I am quite excited about it. I have been a vegetarian all my life. Although I have never had any weight problems, I had discovered a few years ago that eating carbohydrate-rich meals made me very sleepy. I modified my diet to a zone type diet (although with a lower percentage of protein) after some experimentation. I was very excited to learn about the Zone diet after reading the stuff on the web, since it seems to make a lot of sense to me (thanks to my empirical study of myself). I cooked a set of Zone type meals for today but the only means of getting the protein high enough seems to be to add soy protein powder to my meals (consisting of a lot of beans and legumes). Do you have any vegetarian specific recommendation list or pointers to related information ? Thanks.

Dear K

I have enjoyed being a vegetarian (O-L) for many years and one of my biggest peeves about zoning is that I have been tempted into eating more animal flesh now. But my true desire is non-meat sources. In our zone group there have been several harder-core vegies and so I have searched the land over for these sources both for them and my self and family.

Setian comes in tubs like tofu and in powdered form to mix with other stuff or by itself. We like to stir fry it in olive oil and ginger and then stir fry a bunch of fresh veges and serve with a little rice if you must. It is a wheat protein that has had the starch washed out. Quite good.

Of course, TVP (texturized Vegi protein) is around and quite cheap too. Just add to your beans and watch the protein content soar. Tofu and other soy based items, got to go to a health-type food store to find them.

There are some vegetarian web sites you can search for, no problem. However, they are not zone related and so I have found their info to be less helpful than you may think at first. They are still eating at the bottom of the "food pyramid". (zoners are one step higher--fruits and veges and very few grains).

Being vegi in the zone takes a lot of work and it is a little boring I'm afraid, but if you can add dairy, cheese and eggs you can do it in style. I eat NF mozzarella cheese (Precious brand even melts!), and soy cheeses, and I'm not afraid of an egg a day if I want to since zoning is so healthy for you you can do a few "bad" things and get away with it.

Maybe I'll tack on a new page on my site re: vegetarians. Thanks for the question, keep me posted if you come up with any brainstorms.

Yours in health,

David

Are there any nutritionists in the Los Angeles/Santa monica area who are really familiar with the Zone diet, who could help me until I get better at it?

I doubt it, but you could post your inquiry on the zone@tgv.com list and see if there is a bold nutritionist out there who is progressive. Most of them have bought the food pyramid model lock, stock and barrel.

Would it be a good idea to be in the Zone and be on the fen/fen regimen at the same time?

Well, if you must do fen/phen I think zoning at the same time would be a great idea. Doing the drugs works but what happens to people after the 3 months? They go back to old eating habits. If you zone, you will change your eating habits FOR LIFE and that is the real answer. We must give up ore carbohydrate binge! Basta to Pasta! (How about cheating for a day once in a while....I do it, just get right back on the plan asap)

I have read on the internet that having fibromyalgia interferes somehow with the blood sugar regulation in the body.

(revised answer) I'd like to see the URL on that info, please send it to me. FM appears to respond to the lo-carb approach most likely because of the beneficial hormonal effects of low and steady insulin. For many years FM was considered to be an immune system related disorder but research recently has shown there are biochemical, pathophysiological and immunological changes in the brain and other body tissues.

In the past I had suggested that people with FM push their metabolism into tilt by aerobic activity and current literature suggests this is helpful. My belief was that by changing the blood chemistry balance, the body would be "shocked" back into homeostasis. This was just my own idea and for folks who would not exercise I had suggested sometimes to use fasting as a method to induce some ketosis for that end. I find no mention of fasting as a method of treatment in the literature so I don't suggest that approach anymore however I now encourage lo-carb eating instead. I believe that what I wanted to accomplish by fasting is co-incidentally caused by the effect that fasting has on insulin levels and not due to changing the blood pH levels.

Perhaps this is what your internet information is alluding to also. FM may not "cause" carb metabolism problems but the reverse may be more true.

There is a newsletter support group FM sufferers can subscribe to and lots of Internet support too.

Yours, David

After reading the book in some depth, the one main obstacle I encounter is in trying to "migrate" to the correct balance in everything I eat. I need t get an idea on some tradeoffs if the balance is not "ideal". For instance, is it better to skip the fat component if the only fat available is mostly saturated ?

I'd say no. Omitting or lowering fat in the plan will cause problems for a few reasons. First, your body is very sensitive to fat level in foods. When it is unusually low, you shift into starvation mode where fat is conserved. You hear this referred to as "lowering one's metabolism" and fat loss in hard to do.

Secondly, you need fat to keep burning fat. It's seen as a pilot light that starts the bat burner. I know that's dumb sounding but "excess" fat in the diet will encourage the body to burn fat as fuel.

Now, about saturated vs. unsaturated. You need some saturated fat to live. If you do not eat it, the body will just go ahead and make it for itself. So Sears says that if you are zoning, your body is metabolizing fat efficiently and can deal with a lot of extra toxins and extra saturated fat too. Think of it as "unfavorable" fat and you

will make up for it at the next meal with "better" monosaturated fat.

How long of a time period do I have to ingest all the correct portions of CPF ?

If you are a normal person, you can figure you have a one hour window to do the right combinations. I have come home from a party or restaurant and gone right to the protein powder sometimes. Weird but it works for me. Some folks say that eating too many carbos first throws them out faster than they can correct in 30 minutes, but too much protein first probably is OK to do.

Also, I have an slightly elevated cholesterol level ( last checked 6/95 @ 230 ) In referring to my first questions, I almost feel like staying away from the fat component unless it consists of mostly unsaturated fats.

I wouldn't tinker with success if I were you. Stay on the plan for a few months and then get tested again. If cholesterol is still high then worry some more. Eating foods high in cholesterol is usually not the problem with elevated blood cholest., the body manufactures MORE cholest. than the food component. I have a college that claims elevated cholesterol is due to slow transit time in the colon. Eat more fiber and water and the food passes fasted and the colon doesn't have enough time to re-adsorb the stuff. Who knows for sure. Sears seems to think it is an internal problem and not from food. I agree.

David

I'm unsure of the activity factor to multiple by my lean body mass (83.03 lbs). In an average week, I do three, one-and-a-half hour combined aerobic and weight training sessions. I also do an additonal 40 minute aerobic session. As well, I'm a stay at home mother of a 4 year old so I regularly bike, walk, mow the lawn etc. On top of this, I would like to gain muscle mass. I understand this may mean I should add an additional protein block immediately. I tried Dr. Sears' 800 phone number but I live in New Brunswick, Canada and the phone number is not accessible here.

Eades' explains it well. page 157 in Protein Power:

"4. Very Active. If you engage in vigorous physical activity lasting an hour or more five or more times per week, your lean mass requires 0.8 gram per pound."

You may even need 8.5 after all your running around. The group says don't under-estimate your activity rate.

Secondly, my friends are having an on-going argument regarding peanuts. In the book, Dr. Sears describes one block of fat as 6 peanuts. Is this 6 shelled peanuts (therefore making 12 individual peanuts) or 6 unshelled nuts? We're just a little confused over this.

My guess is 6 full peanuts that come 2 per shell. (you could eat the shells for more fiber...just kidding ;-> ) The following is from the list server re peanuts...no help here either.

When Sears refers in the book to 6 peanuts making up a block of fat, is he talking about peanut shells or the actual little nuts? (i.e. are the contents of six peanut shells = 1 fat block OR six joined halves = 1 fat block(3 typical shells = 1 block)) It makes a big difference in the amount of peanuts you eat obviously...

My husband and I had this very discussion last night. My argument is that if he had meant shells, he would have said shells. When someone asks you if you'd like a peanut, you most likely don't conjure up an image of a peanut shell, but rather the peanut itself.

A peanut shell contains peanuts, usually two of them.

A peanut consists of 2 half shells, which together make ....what do you say class?!!!....one peanut. Yeaaaa!

Hi David, You mention Eades Protein Power as a suggestion to help me metabolize fat better. Do you know off hand what the protein source is? I have a very frustrating problem whereby I am food sensitive to Soy & really need to stay away from any product containing such. It's really ashame since all of the Zone bars on the market use Soy for their protein source. I would really like to have the option of using them for ease & convenience.

Eades' is a low carbohydrate diet for limited time so you will run into the same problems getting your non-soy based protein as on the zone. Protein quantities are exactly the same for both plans, Lean Body Mass times activity rate (usually .8). The difference is carbo level...only 30 grams per day!! until you reach fat% goal plus 20% then you go to 55gms per day until goal, then you just zone. It is quite radical but it is a limited period. Now, mind you, I haven't tried it yet so all I can give you is information, no personal reports.

If you eat meat and fish products and cheese I don't see why you are having problems finding protein sources. (you must eat them because if you don't eat soy, there's nothing left!!) Protein powers are made with milk-egg sources. You may just have to make your own snack bars with these powders and such. A friend and I are exploring these recipes if you are interested, I'll share our research with you.

I was doing really great trying to follow the Zone there for a few weeks. But, because of my hectic lifestyle, got stuck on eating primarily fast food egg mcmuffins for breakfast, chicken sandwiches for lunch & dinner, and 1% milk for snacks there in between. Oh yeah, I did vary some of the meals with cottage cheese & fruit. Needless to say, I got extremely burned out from lack of diversity ... and, wasn't benefiting from any macronutrients. I have since fallen back to old eating habits & need to get myself motivated back to the Zone.

Well, a lot of folks do eat the same stuff alot, I do too but I think of my food sometimes as my "medicine" and take it anyway. Maybe I'm easier the please with food esteticly (sp) than you because I repeat meals alot, especially breakfast and lunch. Dinner is usually more creative.

Egg McMuffins may be zoneful if you leave off one of the buns, I fold over a hamburger after taking off the top bun.

>biggest problem (perhaps) is that I havn't taken the time to really >read Dr. Sears' book, nor learn enough about the principles/mechanics >of living this lifestyle. Being organized and planning ahead are also >difficult for me, but, I'm sure that if I'm going to make this work, I >had better get this figured out as well! >

Well, the book does cost like $20 and it will help you get motivated because he explains the health benefits in a way that you can understand them. Eades' do too, and maybe even better but wow, talk about deprivational! You really need motivation for that one.

Good luck and keep me posted!

David

I have hypoglycemia and am supposed to eat every 2 hrs. How does this effect my zone diet when I'm only supposed to eat 5 times a day? Should I should take the entire day's supply of meals and divide it between the number of meals I'm supposed to eat? Please advise. >

have figured this out by now but here goes:

An IV drip would be the best...low dose, zone balanced food, would keep insulin at bay. It really doesn't matter how many meals you eat in a day, but perhaps keep them to one block minimum and at least one hour apart. The more frequently you eat the smoother your insulin response.

David

>

How do you tell if you are eating too much protein? Thanks.

Steve,

Too much protein and you will be pushed out of the zone effect. You will probably just get hungry before 4 hours since the excess protein will inhibit your fat metabolism.

You know what the ratios are, divide protein by carbos. .6 is the lowest you should go and 1.0 is the highest. If you err, err to the high side, that is more protein. I believe that there is more wiggle room on the high side, I feel I can go up slightly above 1.0 if I want but I never stray down into the .5 range. I know that's courting disaster. But the closer I get to .75 the better things go, I continue to drop excess fat and feel no hunger.

I hope that answers your question, if you need a more biochemical oriented explanation, I'll get them for you if you ask.

Yours, David

Bill wrote: David - what do you think of the Zone bars in combination with or in lieu of the Zone diet? My trainer has recommended them (he also sells them). Thanks Bill

--

I use the bars occasionally at work when I haven't planned my day right and don't have "real food" for my 4pm snack. I LOVE them and I could get very hooked on them if I wasn't so cheap. Actually I like to eat regular food better for snacks and like to be like a chemist combining carbo foods and protein foods and a dab of fat here and there to get it right. Maybe I'm the exception in that regard.

I sell the bars at my office. Just have a bunch of boxes open and sell them 2 for 5$ for anyone who wants to try them. I talk to everyone who wants to about the diet. One of the folks who sublets from us bought a box last week, he's not overweight but finds the bars give him a steady energy that he can't get from normal snacks. He used to go to the deli across the street and get a candy bar or soda so he really is excited about the bars and now we chat a lot about zone combination since he has felt the effect with the bars.

It really depends upon your lifestyle if the bars work for you. My sister uses them daily as does my mother for those times when you just cant eat or get stuck somewhere without zone food. Most people just can't afford them.

I believe that they are so perfectly balanced and Barry has honed the ingrediances so well over the years that if you want the maximum effect on the diet you probably should use them, especially for pre-workouts. I do a slight carbo load before my aerobics class but I'm still experimenting with the bars in this regard.

You might try asking Russel Swan about the bars, I think he works out a lot too. His URL is:

http://www.cs.umass.edu/~swan/zone.html

David

Hi. I'm confused...
I understand that I should eat a zone favorable snack before and after my workouts. But I need to eat so many food blocks a day, let's say 4 blocks, 3 times a day and two 1 block snacks. So how do I figure those workout snacks into this equation? Do I sutract from lunch or dinner, or does my workout need these two snacks for energy and recovery?
Thanks in advance.
Ron

Dear Ron,
You are correct to eat a zone snack before and after a good workout. The fact that you are working out at a higher level should push up your activity factor and automatically adjust for the larger number of blocks of food. For example, me. I’m 182lbs @.85lbm%=154.7lbm. At an activity factor of .7 I need 15.4 blocks per day. If I workout everyday, my activity factor goes up to .8 which increases my blocks needed to 17.6! Just the two I need before and after my workouts. Voila!

If you find that you are losing more than 1.5 lbs of fat per week, that is too fast and probably you are losing LBM too. You would need to increase the number of total blocks in that case.

If you care “hitting the wall” during your workouts, you may also need more food before, or even add some extra carbs too. Consider also drinking your pre/post snacks so the nutrients are more easily assimilable.

Take a look at Jerry Connelly’s www sites at The Training Room...

http://home.earthlink.net/~connsys/

Good luck and keep on Zoning!

David

Hi David,
First, let me thank you for the wonderful site on the zone diet. I am a vegetarian (milk is fine, no eggs) and was wondering if anyone has successfully followed the zone diet. Or is there any good recipies which adhere to the Zone diet principles which should also be vegan.

thanks,
anantha

Thanks so much for the note.

Since starting the zone I do eat some chicken but to tell the truth, I would rather eat vegetarian. We eat ALOT of soy products. (Have you seen the Green Giant Garden Burgers yet in the frozen section?). I also live on cottage cheese and mozzarella. We eat fish too but avoid red meat. It is not easy but we do it.

I don’t have any real novel ideas for you, I’m sorry to say. But we do it and you can too. It depends how strict a vegi you are. If you do not eat anything with a face, you have to avoid fish and that is a great source of protein.

We discovered Setian, a wheat gluten product that can be stir fried with vegies. Also TVP (texturized vegetable protein) is a terrific food item to add to beans and rice or any soup. Mix in some cheese and you’re there! I also use a protein drink every morning.

The Vegetarian Web page is geared for Non-Zoners and I was disappointed with it. But check it out. I think I have a link to it on my zone page.

The zone program is very new. Low carbo diets are not very well accepted in the “real-fat world” so this is why there is not much data out there. YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!!! You can create a web page for vegetarian zoners!!! There is a great need. Then let me and others know you did it and cyberspace will be a better place because of you!!! I will promote your web site. Let me know! In fact, if you want, you can do some research, compose the page like you want it and send it to me and I'll hang it on my site with your name on it. (I think I'll eventually put one on the site anyway but you know how it goes, who has all that time???)

Keep Zoning!!! David

Please send a reference, if you can, for software that helps with menu planning on the Zone diet. Thanks.

Dear Vivian (?),

Here are a smattering of software info that I pulled together for you from the zone list. If you use Netscape to view it, you will get clickable web sites.

Nutrigenie:
A freeware teaser program and a $40 full database version:
http://pages.prodigy.com/CA/nutrigenie/ngcc41.html
ftp://ftp.aimnet.com/pub/users/food/ngzdmp44.zip
http://users.aimnet.com/~food/
http://users.aol.com/nutrigenie/
http://pages.prodigy.com/nutrigenie/
The price is $39. There is no printed manual. The registered version functions the same as the shareware version except for a larger food database. If you don't think the shareware version is any good, you should not pay for the registered version because you will be disappointed.
You can download it from http://users.aol.com/nutrigenie/ or ftp://ftp.coast.net/SimTel/win3/food/ngzdmp44.zip . Instead of occasionally finding a Zone-favorable dish/recipe, you can use the program to identify which foods in the large database are zf, and which combinations are zf. Definitely worth a look.

Ted has a GREAT zone block calculator and textlists to help pick foods but it isn't a menu planner like nutrigenie. eMail him at:
Ted Wendler for more info. $40 I think.

Zone Buddy: a spreadsheet program, free
http://www.indirect.com/www/genesis/zonedown.htm

NutriSoft, which has a Zone Diet meal
planning software. Don't know the URL, try to search for it.

A good nutritional software program (The Food Processor by ESHA Research) Can analyze not only macronutrients but micronutrients and essential fatty acids. No URL.

MasterCook does nutritional analysis. You can look up information for an ingredient or a recipe. You can add information for additional ingredients. No URL

Cooking Light version at Costco for $29.99. No URL

"Lifeform" program from Fitnesoft(WWW site with Demo available. The retail version comes with 11,000 foods in the database and you can add your own from the nutritional labels. This program is the best I've seen and is as easy to use as any program. I read where someone referred to as the quicken of nutritional software. The lowest cost I found was on the internet for around $40. No URL.

david, A friend and I are new to the Zone plan this week. So far we are very pleased with the way we feel and how satisfied we are after we eat our meals, which sometimes at first glance look small.
I would like to know more about you. You said you have been zoning (?) for 6 months. you also said that you have a support group who started onthe plan primarily to lose weight. Have they been successful? Is there anythin that makes you an expert on the Zone other than having done it and read the book?

Please write back. We feel a little lost here although we are keeping the faith. Also write if you know of other support groups in NY or NJ.
thanks,
Andrea

Andrea and family,

Welcome to the Zone. Well, I have been a Chiropractor for 16 years and have read a lot about nutrition and biochemistry is a favorite of mine.

I like to eat healthily but I still have fun too. The Zone has been one of the best things that has happened to me. I will eat like this for the rest of my life, thank you very much. I have almost reached the 170’s. This means I have lost almost 35lbs of fat since November!

I just had my blood drawn this morning to see if my cholesterol has lowered from 269 where it was a few years ago. I can’t wait to see my doctor’s face.

I am in the writing stage of a lecture I will give in a few weeks to a local massage school here in San Diego so I am firming up my knowledge of the effects of insulin on fat metabolism which is the heart of the Zone. If that marks me as an expert than I am but I do not have studies in chemistry above the organic chem. level and a few post graduate courses in biochemistry.

You said that you feel that your meals look small. The question is “how do you feel”. It’s real important that you never feel deprived on this diet. For example, usually when I eat a meal, I could keep on eating until I burst. I don’t know when to stop. So I have to let my higher consciousness tell me that I probably have eaten my 4 or 5 blocks of food and should stop. I usually put on my plate what appears to be 3 blocks of food so that I can have a second helping of 1 or 2 depending upon how good it tasted. Then I wait for a half an hour. If my tummy does not feel full (and I mean a little uncomfortably full) then I figure that I didn’t eat enough. The next check in time is 4 hours later. If I feel hungry, I hit the ridge for a snack. If I’m not hungry, then I wait until my appastate goes off. If I can go 5 hours before feeling hunger, I know I ate IN THE ZONE at the last meal and probably just the right amount of food. Don't skimp ON FAT!!!

Does that sound crazy to you? Well maybe it does to someone who has just started and is a little skeptical but I think it beats the way I was eating before: slug down a bunch of pasta or rice and a few vegetables with a little cheese melted on top, watch TV for a while and then take a nap. What I like about this form of eating is that I have some focus and control over how I feel.

After your second week of zoning you will find that the portions are much larger than you thought they were at the start. You will find you can eat less at a sitting if you want because you know that you can always snack whenever you get hungry. That fear that “oh know, this is all I can eat until my next meal” goes away. Just eat if you’re hungry. But eat zonefully.

Yesterday I created a zone snack that I love. 1 cup low fat ricotta cheese, 1 cup Dannon vanilla yogurt lite, 2 cups water, 2 packages no fat Jello instant fudge pudding. This is zoneful (.66 - a little on the low side) and delicious! I had some ricotta left over so I tried something else: equal parts ricotta and the yogurt and I crumbled in a few graham crackers. It makes a zoneful cheese cake-like filling.

I run a zone/diet support group at my office every other week on Monday night. Most of the folks (10-12 in all right now who float in and out) want to lose weight and some are into the health benefits. We are exploring Eades’ Protein Power for a few of them who are extremely insulin resistant. PP is a true DIET. I tried it a few days and went right back to the zone. It’s all protein and vegetables, only 30 grams of carbos per day. I just don't want to subject myself to that torture.

Zone groups are fun. Most of the members are our friends, some are my patients and some co-workers. We have two children zoning too. What I suggest is that you start your own group. Just invite the people who you know who are interested and you will be surprised how quick everyone becomes an expert. We make zone snacks almost every time and swap ideas and recipes. It really helps. Just about everyone who has followed the plan has lost fat or dress sizes. My mother hasn’t lost weight but she is very happy zoning because she never is hungry anymore. Yesterday she said that she’s ready to cut down her blocks so she can lose some fat.

Sorry for the long letter, please let me know how you are doing as you go along. I will answer any question you have if I can.

Yours from the Zone,

David

Dave, What is the time frame for fat loss. Would it be safe to say that I should be looking long term and not instant loss. Do you have any secrects to this diet. Gary

Dear Gary,
Glucagon causes water loss in the body so at the start of the diet your insulin is under control for the first time in a long while and there is usually a water loss and rapid weight drop of 5 lbs or so. After about 10 days the system settles down and you begin to see real fat loss.

The loss, if you are normal, is steady thereafter at about 1-2 lbs per week. My loss was linear for the first 5 months and began to slow down when I reached ideal weight.

Secrets!!! Cool question. I think the secrets depend on what you are trying to accomplish but I’ll guess you want fat loss so.. I think one secret is, when you start and are highly motivated, go ahead and let yourself feel a little hunger now and then. It will speed up the fat loss even though it is said that you shouldn’t ever feel hunger. I did it as long as I could stand it and secretly enjoyed the knowledge that I know I was burning extra fat during that time period (hours). (I’m weird)

Now I look for slow weight loss with no hunger and long periods between eating. I found that I had to get away from my fear of eating fat to do this. I eat alot more fat now and find I can go sometimes 5 hours between hunger pangs.

The secret is to eat smaller, frequent meals to iron out the insulin response.

The secret (for me) is to drink soy protein drinks in the morning and when I come home from a carbo binge at a restaurant or party.

The secret is after I have snacked on triscuits, I eat a mozzarella stick.

The secret is, exercise 2 days a week and sweat.

The secret is, beer is bad, white wine and hard stuff is ok.

The secret is, carbohydrates are bad, protein is good.

The secret is, don’t eat sweets- you will begin to crave them again.

The secret is to forgive yourself when you screw up.

The secret is positive thoughts, believe in yourself when detractors say stupid things like “you look emaciated, I think you should have more meat on your bones.” They are not used to seeing people at ideal fat percentages.

The secret is, you can loss fat and keep it off forever if you want, it all you choice in the foods you eat every day, every time the dinner bell sounds.

Good luck and PLEASE write back in a few weeks,

Yours David

thanks again for all your help and concern. If their are any publications I could be referring to besides Sears' book please let me know. Andrea

Eades Protein Power is a good read and explains the low carb approach very well. You can skim it too. I wouldn't suggest trying to follow the plan, it is very restrictive and I found that I had cravings and felt deprived.

There are several low-carb newsgroups on the net too you could check out. Kinda interesting to read what people say who have been doing this for a while.

Good luck,

David

I see very little mention in the Zone info of the problems inherent to combining food sources..... That is - carbos break down best in an alkaline environment (intestines) and fat/protein are best digested in an acid environment(stomach). Combining carbos with fats/protein during a meal as seen in many Zone recipes can cause problems with absorption of nutrients from either, as the digestive environments actually combat each other. Has there been any Zone research done on recipes that better separate food sources to limit digestion/absorption problems? Thx, Sarah

Food combining kind of goes out the window in the zone. One of the requirements is to eat carbos and protein and fat at the same meal so that the mass of food slows down the rapid carbo uptake thus blunting the insulin rise.

I do not see why one couldn't simply eat the proteins and fats first, wait a short period of time for the stomach acid to begin it's job and then eat the carbo foods. Actually I think that sequence has been suggested for years, if I recall correctly. I do this as much as I can because I beleive that eating the carbs first and waiting too long is courting disaster and so I don't chance it. I don't like waiting more than 15minutes before adding protein and fat. That happens quite rarely. For example, I usually drink a protein drink in the AM when I'm blurry eyed and in a few minutes eat my oatmeal. It works for me.

No research that I'm aware of regarding the zone effect but you could contact Sears directly by phone and ask.

Good Zoning, David

Dr. Brown, I recently started eating in The Zone and your page has been very helpful. However, I don't feel I've quite reached The Zone. I have been calculating my portions very carefully, but still seem to get hungry within a couple of hours after a meal. Where do I go from here? Do I add more fat, lessen carbs, add carbs, add protein or what? My main goal (along with more energy) is fat loss and I am afraid of adding too much fat even if it is monounsaturated. I'd appreciate some suggestions on how to figure out what my body needs to reach The Zone and eliminate this constant hunger. I read some suggestions by Sears on this matter, but it mostly confused me. Thanks so much. Carol P.S. Also, I thought that alot of fat-free products had extra sugar in them which I would think would enter the bloodstream too fast thus causing that awful cycle...in a handout from Sears he recommends some fat-free dressing on a salad. What do you think? Are fat-free dressings and other similiar products ok or is it better to go with the low-fat or regular version?

Dear Carol, Thanks. I’m glad you have found my pages helpful, now let’s see if I can help you here. The answer is most likely that you are still “fat phobic”. You simply MUST give that up, it just is not true that eating fat makes you fat. The fat is the secret to lasting more than a few hours before feeling hungry.

Are you feeling tired or sleepy after 2 hours post eating? If so, you may be eating too may carbos at your last meal. You missed the zone and spiked insulin, dropped blood sugar in two hours and zonked.

If you are just hungry, it is probably just not enough fat. Fat does not spike insulin, only incorrect carb/protein ratios. (low pro-high carb.).

If you are perfectly balanced, try adding an extra block of food at your meal, even if you go over your total daily allotment. As you ease into the diet and the dust settles you can start cutting back. Be good to yourself. Remember, as long as you are eating the correct balance of food, you can eat up to 5 blocks at one meal. That’s alot of food and it will last you a long time. Just forget about fat loss for now and concentrate on correct hormone balance (which is the REAL reason to Zone, fat loss is a by-poroduct).

Fat loss will come but you must get in the zone first. If you are way overweight, you are probably very insulin resistant and it will take a few weeks for your cells to get used to normal insulin stimulation. They will eventually calm down, begin to react normally, and start converting fat into glucose.

Start mild exercise to stimulate your circulation. Drink lots of water to help the process. Maybe eat closer to the .9 side of the ratio, that is, try higher protein levels and smaller carbs. (7gms pro for every 8 grms Carb) but stay at 3 grams of fat.

It will work, David

My family is vegetarian. we were wondering about protein sources. which are the best? protein powders, spirulina, etc. we have all gained weight since becoming vegan. we need to loose weight because there are diabetics on both sides of the family. thanks, sheryl

When I was a vegi I ate tofu a lot but I ate eggs and milk products too so protein is not too problematical. Have you tried seitan or TVP? These can be added to any meal in various ways. Boy, if you can see your way to eating fish, you would have it made. But I know, they have a face.

All protein powders are great in my book (all are equal in their effect too). Some folks hate them because they make them feel like they are on a diet but I really enjoy the big "hit" they provide. I look at this diet as providing a constant series of choices for me. I decide just how I am going to "spend" my carbohydrate allotment at each meal. Of course the protein level sets this for me too so I like PP since it is so concentrated that I can always get enough carbos to satisfy me.

I think I have read that there are added benifits when eating soy products so maybe soy protein is better for you than egg or milk type. I don't think you can eat enough spirulina to make a meal out of it but if you like that stuff, try it. It is very good for you, full of enzymes.

You are doing the right thing if you are pre-diabetic following the Zone. It is a sensible diet, one you can stay with for life. My triglycerides dropped from 238 in 1994 to 63 last week! Cholest/hdl from 7.0 to 3.6!!! This diet works, no doubt.

Stay with it and drop me a note if you are having any trouble. David

I had read that protein drinks (so easy! I like chocolate whey......) are not recommended because of the large surface area they have in the stomach, being liquid. This makes absorption less reliably slow maybe.......and that solid proteins are better....... But in the AM I just can't manage anything too solid and my whey shake is always the preferred choice for breakfast. Have you heard anything about protein drinks to tha effect?

Sarah,

I'm sure that digestion is enhanced with liquids due to increased surface area but don't forget you always eat carbo foods and fats with the drinks so those foods will slow down the stomach emptying time too. PP drinks are very successful for me and most people so I don't think the small nuance of slightly increased uptake will effect the zone.

Of course the insulin spike is what you are trying to control by combining foods properly. Protein has very little effect on insulin anyway so if it did get up taken rapidly, not much would happen anyway. It is the carbohydrate in the presence of very little protein that causes the most insulin release. Eades' book Protein Power has a very good explanation of all this stuff if Sears' book wasn't clear to you.

I drink them all and use them anytime I'm in trouble; I have rushed home after a high carbo meal at a restaurant and gobbled up a Pro drink. I know it may be a little late but I also know that my stomach is still full of food from the dinner so at least I can zone the contents of my stomach. Pretty weird thinking, huh?

Yours, David

ps. The following is from zone listserver...

Does not the amount of chewing rather than the degree to which the food is processed determine its surface area, so if foods with the same fiber content are all chewed to the same liquid consistancy, would they not end up being absorbed at the same rate regardless of their state prior to consumption?
Answer: Great observation. Chewing has been recomended since grandma's apple pie was on the stove cooking. Chewing does help break the foods apart and expose more active sites for breakdown in the stomach and more importantly in the small intestine where all the absorption goes on. But likewise, the chewing breaks down the food much like a canonball beaks down a brick building: eventhough the building is down and bricks everywhere, the bricks, in many cases, are still bricks and therefore suseptible to the same digestive processes. It isn't until the bricks become grains of sand that the real efficiency comes in.

Some questions: (all these are from Cindy) How serious are you about avoiding the "bad foods" - like whole grain breads, pasta, rice etc.? I think if I could have those things it would make this a reasonable diet. I love pasta with pesto, and homemade pizza once a week. I have a bread machine - which I have weaned myself from already except on rare occasions. I do beleive that bread is a real downer for me and many people. But is it reasonable to think you could have one slice per day? If so, then should you not have pasta in that day?

I now think in these terms: Instead of eating cooked vegetables on top of my rice or pasta, I eat pasta or rice on top of my vegetables. A Simple Twist of Food. I have found Vogel Bread which has only 6 gms of C per slice. I now have a sandwich whenever I want to. Just be sure you have protein and fat with your bread and that it doesn’t exceed 5 blocks per meal.

You mention protein drinks in the morning. Could you tell me what exactly you have in the morning with your protein drink and what kind of drink is it?

I use two kinds of PP. One is high protein and nocarb (24P, 1c) and the other is like 17P with 9C. I mix them like 2:1 so until the P:C ratio gives me about 4 blocks of P and 1 B of C. This lets me eat up to 3 blocks of carb foods and fat to get to zone. I con’t give you actual scoops because yours will be different. You just have to sit down and do some figuring and then write it on your can and refer to it until you just “know it”.

I like soy protein because I read that it is the best for your body, but any PP is OK. It’s all protein.

Is there a source of vegetarian/vegan recipes for the Zone diet? I am usually very creative, but would love to see some to get me started.

I am working with vegetarian in my group to add a kitchen on my web site. Look for it on the menus page. It’s Cooking with Karen.

Do you take any supplements? I currently take Evening Primrose Oil capsules - 135 mg GLA per day. According to Sears, I should take 50 - 100 times more EPA in supplement form, if I am taking GLA supplements. I bought some fish body oil caps at GNC, but can't tell if they are of the distilled variety.

If they say “Cholesterol Free” they are distilled. I take an EPA tablet per day and some Super Blue Green Algae because it is a good source of GLA and eat oatmeal. I take a multi min and vit from Bronson. I take stuff for my prostate when I remember. I drink 1 oz of liquid mineral toddy from Soaring Eagle. I gobble a few calcium tabs and chew vit C during the day.

What do you think of total body detoxification programs that include a few days of fasting beginning with easy to digest fruits and veggies - raw and juices etc. I was about to begin such a program before I read the Zone book. I am now really perplexed as to whether to follow this 3 week detoxification program or not. It certainly does not come close to meeting the Zone requirements. Three weeks is a long time. It just sounded wonderful - to totally rid your system of all toxins. Maybe it would be a good starting point and them launch into the Zone???????

By all means, fast. But fasting is not zoning. they have to be done separately.

One thing that makes me wonder about Sears is that he does not seem to be concerned with where the macronutrients come from - organic produce - organic sources for meat and protein etc. He dosen't mention quality of the food. I also am shocked that he advocates fast food as if it were just as acceptable as health food. He only lightly indicates that it is for emergencies etc. I would really wonder how healthy a person is that is eating the "typical American diet" of fast food even though they were staying in the Zone????

I think Sears is trying to be as realistic as possible to meat the needs of “average Americans”. If you told a typical red blooded American male that he can’t ever have a Big Mac again, he’d burn the book and forget the plan. The more you do this diet, the healthier choices you will make. You will start buying organic instead of commercial fresh foods. You will buy hormone free meats. Because you are eating less you are spending less and can afford to pay a little more for the food you eat.

There is another thing. Your body is more efficient on the diet. You use the food you eat more effectively, like a well tuned carburetor. You are making better hormones and so you can deal better with toxins in the diet than before.

I have a nutrition program that calculates everything (Eat Smart, Think Smart - which btw is a philosophy itself that I have followed for years). Would it be acceptable to just count my grams of CPFs in each meal and forget about those blocks - as long as I divide my requirements up between 3 meals and 2 snacks?

Yes

You mention letting yourself get hungry - why do you do this when Sears says that you should eat only when you are not hungry. I thought I understood that letting yourself get hungry throws you out of the Zone?????

(I understand that feeling hunger means you are out of the zone but)I like to experience my stomach growling occasionally just to remind myself what real hunger feels like. When I mentioned that in my FAQ I said “don’t let anyone know this but...” I was just joking a little. But a small amount of hunger is OK before a meal.