Okay, so I thought I would do a quick refresher due to some frequently asked questions:
First, when you eat a 2-block meal, that means 2-blocks of EACH of the three food types: protein, fat, and carbs. You are not eating the Zone if you eat 2-blocks of fat, 1-block of carbs, and 3-blocks of protein. Each meal MUST be in ratio (2-2-2 or 3-3-3 or 4-4-4).
Secondly, the unfavorable carbs are to be avoided whenever possible (with the exception of sweet potatoes which should be used sparingly and hopefully after a workout). If you see "toast" coming up on your journal pretty much every day, try to get away from that and eat some yogurt or eggs with fruit and veggies. Your carbohydrate intake should come almost exclusively, if not exclusively, from fruits and vegetables. Also, please remember to avoid "fake" sugars like diet drinks.
Finally, if you have the nutrition label for a food, you can use that to determine how many blocks it is worth rather than relying on the "cheat sheet". This can make a big difference as it did when I ate 1/3 of the Laughing Cow Cheese that I should have eaten (resulting in me being even hungrier than normal). Read over page one of your packet for more info on how to figure things based on nutrition labels. It basically says this:
7 grams of protein=1 block
9 grams of carbs= 1 block
1.5 grams of fat = 1 block
Don't get all worried about counting one food as three different things (obviously cheese has protein and fat). If your cheat sheet says cheese is a protein (which it does), just look at the protein portion of the nutrition label. In the case of Laughing Cow Cheese, it says that one triangle has 2g of protein, thus three triangles would be 6g of protein (closest to 1-block). Again, you are welcome to use the cheat sheet alone but its nice to know that sometimes the label can be used.
Let me know if you guys have more questions!
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Hey Ladies! I hope your dieting is going better than mine! Katherine, thanks for starting this blog and the tips you've given so far have been helpful.
ReplyDeleteI'm still having trouble with the measuring part...probably b/c I don't have a scale yet. I'm at least eating the foods on the list, but probably not in the right proportion! For example, peanut butter? What is up with 1/2 teaspoon is 1 block!! You might as well not even eat it! Which is very hard for me! Any tips for that?
Also, I'm guessing sweet potato fries bad? :) They're my favorite!! Another thing is, I'm starving!! I may need to up the blocks...or just learn to measure correctly. :)
Sorry to sound like a downer, I really am liking the challenge and hope that this continues as a lifestyle change for me!! My goal after this 30 days is up, is to do it 80% of the time. Basically not care what I eat on the weekends, but follow it strictly during the week.
Hey everyone! Just now learning how to post a comment. I had the worst breakfast experiment this morning--oatmeal, ricotta, and raspberries. I had to throw it out and start with something else. Yuk! Also, is it bad to always save 1 block of fat for 1/2 oz. of a chocolate bar? I did it tonight and boy, did that chocolate taste like heaven! I know it is an unworthy or whatever kind of carb but it sure helped me after dinner. My energy level today has totally bottomed out. I assume I'm in detox or something. Other than that, I am still feeling more optimistic than yesterday. Breakfast is really hard for me b/c I am a breakfast-a-holic and all of my faves are blacklisted now. Bummer! Oh, well, maybe I will have to be creative. Good luck to you all!
ReplyDeleteHey Guys,
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting! Kristin, I totally hear you on the hunger! I am DYING! If you come to class tomorrow, talk to me or Russell about your diet and how its going (bring your journal if you have been keeping up with food). After three days, it may be time to change things up if you are still starving. I am thinking of trying one more day at 10 blocks and then perhaps going up to 12. I think I did pretty well at my workout tonight (speed wise) but I wonder if I could have gone heavier (at prescribed weight of 95# rather than 85#) if I weren't so damn light-headed! I wake up hungry (stomach growling) and pretty much stay hungry all day long. Grrrr....
Angela,
Thanks for commenting! As for your question about saving for chocolate blocks...I am going to have to say that you should probably save that for once the challenge is over. Once you are in what Kristin mentioned as the 80-20 time period, chocolate would totally be okay. In the first three days, it might set you up for failures down the road. In addition, I would stay away from ANYTHING on the unfavorable side until you are more comfortable with the diet. That being said, if you absolutely have to have some chocolate, or some wine, and you are on a minimal block amount, do it. Just try to make a habit out of it. We want this to work for you guys and you know what will be best for you.
Breakfast ideas:
3 block meal:
black coffee, 2eggs, 3 tbs avocado, 1 oz cheese...with 3/4 cup diced tomatoes and 1 plum and 1/2 cup grapes (pretty yummy)
2 block meal:
1/2 cup plain yogurt blended with 6 almonds and 1/2 cup bluuberries (put in freezer); hardboiled egg
4 oz meal:
2 oz turkey, 1oz cheese, 1 oz bacon wrap with 20 black olives, 1 1/3 cup cooked spinach, 3/4 cup tomato, amd 1/2 cup blackberries along with 1/4 cup cantalope.
2 block meal on the go:
Latte (4 oz milk) with an egg and 1/2 appple, 6 almonds
Well, I am with most of you guys on the hungry part. We got a scale, and it is shocking how little 4 ounces of steak is. We did have burgers without the bun last night for dinner (you get 1 1/2 ounces of ground beef in a block) and put some avocado and provolone cheese on it.. YUM!! The hardest part for me is the carbs. I packed my lunch for tomorrow and have 4 oz steak, a WHOLE cucumber, an ENITRE tomato and some blackberries. I will still be eating when it is time to run the 10K. See you all tomorrow for a wet run.
ReplyDeleteAndrea
Ok, I'm trying my BEST to translate blocks to labels, so in the event that I have to read a label when I don't have a measuring cup or scale, I can.
ReplyDeleteBut, as I look at a '1 block' of carbs of some of the fruits listed, they are FAR more than what 'a block' of the zone says.
Example: 1/2c pineapple (canned)= 16g of carbs instead of 9, like the 'equation' states. Same goes for grapefruit. I'm worried that if I follow block measurements of at least fruits (1/4,1/2,1c), that I may totally overdo it compared to what the label says the same measurement's total carbs are.......
Today was an atypical day (busy-wise), but at the end of the day, my numbers were out of balance, so I'm going to work on that and make sure, even if it's only time for a 1 block snack, that I make it the same across the board.
13 on protein (right on), 10.5 on carbs, an 11 for fats.
*Oh, and Katherine, my little cheeses ended up being 6g protein, so I'm ALMOST right on with that.
Tonight: 2/3 turkey burger (cooked in 1 tsp of olive oil for fats-and according to label, not weight), 1 cucumber, 1/4 cantaloupe, and 1/2c pineapple. At the moment, I'm pretty stuffed, but I imagine in another hour I'll be hungry, so I'll just stick my head under a pillow and go to bed..Here's to Hump Day!
No WAY....Are you kidding me? The 10K already? Since I've started, we've done two 5ks and now two 10Ks....Looks like from here on out, the odds will be against me. Thanks for giving me nightmares Andrea!
ReplyDeleteCorrection w/ the grapefruit-It's actually 8g carbs per 1/2c...., and 16 per 1 cup....so it'd be roughly 2 blocks for 1 cup....First screw up in reading labels-let's hope that's over and done with! :)
ReplyDeleteOk. This summer has been crazy with the kids at home all day and I've also been taking care of my grandmother. I had originally planned to get back into crossfit when school started,and I had more time for myself. But my kids are out of town right now with Daniel's parents so I thought it would be a good time to go ahead and start this Zone diet and get back into Crossfit. I spent the day at Barnes and Noble reading about the Zone. I spent most of the night printing out recipes so I could go shopping in the morning. I'll keep you posted on how it goes. P.S. I'm making Daniel do it with me.
ReplyDeleteHey Krista,
ReplyDeleteGlad you are joining us! If you have any questions, just give me a call! The Zone book can be a bit confusing because CrossFit follows a Paleo-Zone diet whereas you can technically eat Snickers Bars all day on the Zone (as long as its in the right ratio :)
Hope to see you back in class soon!
Thanks,
Katherine (I am accidentally signed in as Russell and if I sign out it will erase this)