Healthy- The Zone Diet How Does it Work?

If you decide to go on the Zone Diet, one thing you can probably be sure of is that you wont be hungry.

Unlike diets that restrict calories or fat, this diet allows both and encourages you to eat regular snacks to keep your insulin level consistent and to keep hunger at bay.

The basic premise of the diet requires that you eat proteins, carbohydrates and fats in a 40:30:30 ratio. If you eat this way, says Dr. Barry Sears, a biochemist who created the diet, you will control your insulin levels, have more energy, feel full and best of all lose weight.

To control insulin levels, the diet requires that you eat at regular intervals. You are to eat within an hour of getting up in the morning and consume regular snacks. A meal should keep you in the zone for 4-5 hours, while regular snacks are good for about 2 to 2 hours. Snacks are essential, Sears argues, because they keep your insulin levels regular, which helps to control hunger. You are to eat snacks even when you dont feel hungry.

So what exactly do you eat on the Zone diet? Its important to know that when you begin the diet, youll figure out how much of each nutrient you need; for example, men usually require 4 blocks of protein a day while women need 3. But we can still get an idea of the plan by considering this sample menu:

Breakfast 6 egg whites scrambled with 1 ounce Canadian bacon (protein); add 1 slice whole-grain bread, c. strawberries and a small wedge of melon (carbohydrate); finish with cup slivered toasted almonds (fat).

Lunch Chicken salad: Mix 4 ounces cooked chicken breast with 1 c. grapes, 1 slice tomato, unlimited lettuce and celery and add a piece of whole-grain bread (carbohydrate); blend it all with 4 teas. light mayonnaise (fat).

Snack 1 ounce of deli turkey breast (protein), 1 c. strawberries (carbohydrate) and 6-8 peanuts (fat).

Dinner 6 ounces of deli turkey or chicken meat (protein); 1 c. boiled onions, 1 to 2 c. steamed broccoli and cup fresh cranberries (carbohydrate); 4 teas. slivered toasted almonds (fat).

Snack 1 ounce of cheese (protein); sliced apple (carbohydrate).

As you can see, all of the meals should have this 40:30:30 mix. Men can have the same protein/carb/fat combo at all snacks as well, while women should cut out one of the fats from snacks each day.

Sugar is not an item thats OK on the Zone diet, but many dieters save their fruit item from their meal to eat as a dessert. Some will add artificial sweetener to their berries, for example, to create more of a dessert feel.

So there you go.

Although it can be a fair amount of work (you must plan meals so you dont go too far off track), the Zone diet is a successful diet plan that many people find gives them not only the benefit of weight loss but also increased energy and vitality.

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