What Does a Day In the Zone Look Like?
A Zone meal is about 40% low-glycemic load carbohydrates, 30% low-fat protein, and 30% fat (primarily monounsaturated fat). It's the balance of protein to carbohydrate at each meal that determines the hormonal response which is why it’s important to focus on the balance of each macronutrient (carbohydrate, protein, fat) rather than on the calories themselves. Your brain needs about 130 grams of glucose per day, meaning your carbohydrate intake should be adequate enough to keep the brain happy with its preferred fuel which is glucose (not ketones) throughout the day. On the other hand, consuming too much carbohydrate at any meal will cause an over-secretion of insulin leading to a reduction in blood glucose levels within a few hours which causes hypoglycemia and increased hunger and mental fatigue. When making a Zone meal our general recommendations are to aim for one that is under 12 grams of fat with 25 grams of protein, about 35 grams of net carbs (total carbohydrates minus fiber) and approximately 400 calories or less. Having the right amount of fat, balanced with protein and low glycemic carbohydrates helps minimize hunger and fatigue for 4-5 hours. The amount of protein consumed on the Zone Diet is pretty close to what the average American (female or male) is already eating, but now split evenly throughout the day. We realize that eating is not a one size fits all approach which is why we recommend using our protein calculator and food block guide as the most precise way to determine your needs. BREAKFAST Jalapeno Omelet with Cheese : Instructions In a bowl, mix egg beaters and olive oil. Add garlic, tomatoes, and jalapeno peppers. Spray a skillet with cooking spray and add egg mix. Wiggle pan to even out the temperature so it cooks evenly. When almost set, add cheese. Serve with berries. LUNCH Spinach and Strawberry Salad : Instructions: Wash spinach and spin dry. Place in a large bowl with remaining salad ingredients. Heat a small skillet over medium-low heat. Add olive oil, shallot, champagne vinegar, orange zest, salt and pepper. Cook until shallot is translucent, 2-3 minutes. Whisk in orange juice. Drizzle warm dressing over salad mixture. Toss gently to wilt spinach. SNACK DINNER Shrimp and Veggie Pasta : Instructions Prepare the Zone Fusilli as directed. Set aside. Meanwhile, heat a medium skillet on medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons dressing, butter, zucchini and onions to skillet; cook on medium heat 4 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in shrimp, tomatoes and snow peas; cook 1 to 2 minutes or until heated through. Add the cooked Fusilli to the veggies and shrimp. Stir in remaining 2 tablespoons of dressing and transfer to a bowl for dinner. Garnish with parsley. TOTAL CALORIES: 1,242 BREAKFAST Blueberry Protein Pancakes : Instructions Whip egg whites with vanilla until thick and frothy. Whip in flour and wheat germ. Gently fold in 1/4 cup low-fat cottage cheese, blueberries and olive oil. Spray a griddle with olive oil spray. Cook over medium-high heat until golden brown. Do not under cook. Makes 4 pancakes. Mash the blackberries for “syrup”. LUNCH SNACK DINNER Asian Chicken Stir-Fry : Instructions Steam the broccoli for 3-4 minutes, rinse with cold water to stop cooking. Set aside to drain in colander. Heat the olive oil In a large skillet to medium. Add chicken and garlic, cook until juices run clear. Add water chestnuts, mushrooms, pepper, snow peas, scallions and soy sauce. Cook until tender (add vegetable stock in tablespoon increments, if needed). Stir in the mandarin orange sections and toasted sesame oil. TOTAL CALORIES: 1,526 {{cta('f884f663-989d-40aa-bd3e-04f67fbe54f3')}} {{cta('29cb0e22-c114-42e7-ae77-46c07ef930c8')}}
Cookout Menu Ideas and Survival Tips
Summer cookouts can be one of the hardest eating events to navigate since they tend to go on for several hours. Rather than having 3 things to choose from you have a smorgasbord of foods and beverages making it easy to overindulge. The idea of wanting to sample small bites of everything can quickly add up and once alcohol is involved, forget it! Here are a few simple tips that will allow you to indulge a bit without the guilt. Top 7 Tips for Surviving Cookouts Eat Before You Go: Sampling new dishes prepared by someone other than ourselves is part of the fun at a cookout. You can still sample the things you want to try, but don’t skip meals leading up to the event. Starting your day with your usual breakfast, and either a snack or lunch before you go will make you less ravenous or likely to go off the deep end with your food choices and portion control. Fill Up on Quality: Fill your plate with grilled vegetables, fruits and lean protein to start. This will allow you to get full on higher quality foods first and then you can always go back later if you are still hungry or want to sample something a bit more indulgent. Move Away From the Table: We tend to hold most of our conversations around where food is placed. Rather than grazing the entire time and feeling as though we never fully ate, make a plate of food and then move the conversation to another area where you’ll be less prone to keep going back for more. Pick Your Pleasure: Decide whether you want to have alcohol or sweets, but not both. Alcoholic beverages can seem really refreshing on hot days, but the calories can quickly add up. If you choose to drink, pick light beers, wines, and spirits and avoid beverages mixed with juices and simple syrups. Make a mental note of how many drinks you want to have before starting and stick with it. If sweets are your pleasure the same rules apply. With both alcohol and sweets try and consume protein around the same time so you avoid spiking your blood sugar making you want to go back for more. Ditch the Chips: Be choosy with what you are going to have. Nibbling on pretzels, potato chips or crackers isn’t all that exciting, plus the salt can make you feel bloated and retain fluid. Why not save your calories for something better? Choose foods you don’t usually get to have and if you go for something that is more carbohydrate centric just try and balance it with protein. Hydrate: Being in the sun or long exposure to heat can easily zap our energy making us reach for salty foods and drinks to perk us up. Make sure to stay hydrated especially if consuming alcohol and reach for food (fruits and veggies) and beverages that will help you hydrated throughout the day. Bring It: If you know you want to be a bit more indulgent but don’t want to completely blow it, make the dish yourself and find a way to lighten it up. Here we’ve given you some ideas on things you can bring if you are attending or make if you are hosting that are light on calories and balanced in protein, fat and carbs but not on taste. FREE recipe cards below. Here are a few delicious Zone approved recipe ideas which you may find helpful when planning your menu. If you need more, please check out our recipes at www.zonediet.com. Tzatziki Dip : Instructions If not using an unstrained yogurt, strain it using a strainer lined with a coffee filter for a few hours to remove as much liquid as possible. Set aside. Quarter the cucumber and cut off all the seeds. Grate the cucumber and sprinkle with salt. Let sit for around 20 minutes. Give it a squeeze in paper towels to help release excess liquid. Stir all ingredients into a bowl to combine. Refrigerate for a couple of hours before serving. Zone Cookout Fusilli Pasta Salad : Instructions Prepare Zone PastaRx Fusilli according to package directions. Drain and rinse in cold water to stop cooking. Set aside. Hard boil 4 eggs. Set aside, whites to be added to salad at the end. In a large bowl make sauce by whisking together 0%-fat Greek Yogurt, extra virgin olive oil, fresh-squeezed lemon juice, vinegar, dijon mustard, pickle relish, dill, garlic powder, oregano, salt and pepper. Add in the prepared vegetables (red bell pepper to onion) and then gently toss in Zone PastaRx Fusilli, egg whites and olives until well-combined; cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Spinach PastaRx Orzo Side Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette : Instructions1. Prepare Zone PastaRx Orzo according to package directions. Reserve 1/2 cup of liquid an drain. Set both aside to cool.2. In a small bowl, make your dressing. Whisk the lemon juice, reserved pasta water, olive oil, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Pour onto the salad and toss to coat. 3. In a large bowl, combine the thawed, squeezed spinach, tomatoes, cucumbers, black olives and cooled Zone PastaRx Orzo. 4. Pour dressing onto the salad and toss to coat. Add more reserved pasta water if desired, and season to taste. Burger Wraps : Instructions Mix ground turkey and one-quarter of the onion and bell pepper. Divide the mixture and form into 2 patties. Grill the patties until cooked. In a pan add olive oil and sauté the remaining bell pepper, onion and mushrooms. Layer, staggered, 3 lettuce leaves for each “wrap.” In each “wrap” spread 1/2 cup spinach and add half of the cheese slice. Divide the sautéed vegetables and the broken up burger (chop each burger into a few pieces). Drizzle 2 tablespoons dressing in each wrap. Have grapes for dessert. Chicken Satay and Vegetables with Peanut Sauce : Instructions Marinate chicken in 2 tablespoons of soy sauce for at least 15 minutes. Whisk remaining tablespoon of soy sauce with chili sauce, red pepper flakes, peanut butter, sesame oil and parsley until smooth. Set aside. Preheat broiler. Thread chicken, bell peppers and onions onto skewers. Place skewers on a lightly greased, rimmed baking sheet. Broil on top rack with the tomatoes for 3 to 4 minutes per side or until cooked through. Serve satays on a platter over broccoli with tomatoes around the edge and the reserved sauce for dipping on the side. Have a bowl of strawberries. {{cta('35fd4432-5fe5-4f6d-ae36-eac904145c0c')}}
Farmers Markets - The Flavors of Summer
For those of us who enjoy fresh foods, you can’t beat what summer has to offer. The wide availability of great-tasting produce and fresh herbs makes it easy to incorporate into almost every dish. Couple this with our increased awareness of locally grown and organic versus conventional, wild versus farmed, and grass-fed versus corn-fed, and it’s no wonder that Farmers’ Markets have nearly tripled in the past 10 years. What used to be a local sampling of fresh fruits and vegetables has now expanded to specialty foods like meats, fish, cheese, wine, breads, honey and flowers too. Farmers markets are a great way to learn about your local farms. Here you might have an opportunity to talk to vendors about their pest management whether it's integrated pest management (no spraying unless tests show pest infestation), following organic practices or certified organic. You may inquire about whether the farm has any pick-your-own options for berries, peaches or apples in the fall. Some of these farms may participate in CSA’s (Community Supported Agriculture) as well. CSA’s are a great way to invest in local agriculture where farms put together a variety of locally grown produce for you on a weekly or biweekly basis that you pick up throughout summer months and early fall. The key with CSA's signing up in early spring as many farmers have a limited number of slots they can supply each summer. While this may not be the venue for bargains, I encourage you to see what’s available in your area even just for added inspiration to your weekly meals. Spice up your salads with fresh fruits, herbs and goat cheese, make a fruit salsa to add to your fish, or pick up a new ingredient you’ve never tried and incorporate it into your meal. Many town websites offer a vendor list of who is at the market, the products they offer and even include various recipes to try. The best part is most of them are open until October so you’ll really get a sampling of all summer and early fall have to offer. Just remember your Zone principles: stick primarily with the produce and protein and keep the breads, pastries, jams, and wine to a minimum. Tips for Navigating Farmers Markets Go at the Start (or Go at the End): If you want produce at it's freshest or a better selection go at the start. Markets tend to be less crowded at the beginning and at the end too. There probably isn’t much haggling that can happen but if you are looking for a better price shopping at the end would be the time. Many vendors are less apt to want to lug things back with them so they might be more willing to offer a slight discount. The caveat is that the selection might be limited. Know What's In Season and Plan Ahead: If you only go to a farmers market periodically then it's fun to just stroll through and be spontaneous with your purchases. If you go more frequently, knowing what's in season and planning ahead can make meal planning much easier. Have a few recipes ideas in mind before you go, and grab ingredients to incorporate into your week night meals. In addition asking questions while there about what might be offered in the week(s) ahead or your town website might list the offerings too. Walk the Whole Market: Before buying anything walk the whole market as a few vendors might be selling the same thing so this gives you a sense on pricing and offerings. If you frequent the markets weekly, sometimes waiting a week or two on new arrivals (berries, peaches, zucchini etc.) where more vendors have a supply could lessen the price. Get to Know the Vendors: Talking to the vendors is a great way to learn more about the what they supply. This can be a good opportunity to ask questions about produce you might be unfamiliar with, tips for preparation and recipe ideas too. FREE recipe cards below. Fruit Salsa : Instructions: Combine all ingredients. Refrigerate for a short time. Serve on top of chicken, fish or protein of your choice to add some summer flavor to your meal. Nutritional facts per serving (daily value): 8 servings (approximately 1/3 cup) Calories 25cal; Protein 1g (1%); Total Fat 0g (0%); Carb. 6g (2%); Fiber 1g (4%). Cheesy Lemon Zucchini : Instructions: Spray a skillet with cooking oil. Heat olive oil in skillet over high heat; stir in zucchini, lemon zest, and red pepper flakes. Cook for about 2 minutes add stock as needed. Stir in salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper; cook and stir until zucchini is tender, about 5 minutes. Stir cream cheese into zucchini mixture; cook until cream cheese begins to melt, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in oregano. Nutritional facts per serving (daily value): 4 servings Calories 91cal; Protein 6g ; Total Fat 3g; Carb. 13g; Fiber 4g.{{cta('e4f599c6-35fc-4a23-81db-549d8dcdedb1')}}
What Are Nightshade Vegetables and Should You Avoid Them?
It seems that no food is off limits from being put on the restricted list and this includes a group of plants call nightshades. Nightshades are believed to increase inflammation in those with arthritis, food allergies, autoimmune disorders and so on. Here we’ll tell you what they are and if the science supports the claims. What are Nightshades and which Vegetables Fall in the group? Nightshades come from the Solanaceae family, a group of 3000–4000 plant species that contains a unique group of compounds called alkaloids. Alkaloids are naturally produced by these plants to protect themselves from insects, animals, and disease. This same family also includes tobacco and belladonna (also known as the deadly nightshade). Many of the alkaloids found in plants are used for pharmaceuticals, narcotics or poisons, but just like the old saying “the dose determines the poison”, nightshade vegetables like the following have been consumed for hundreds of years without issue and the latter three are staples of the Mediterranean diet: Potato, Tomato, Pepper and Eggplant. To Avoid Nightshade Vegetables or Not, What Dr. Sears Suggests For most of the population intake of nightshade vegetables isn’t an issue, especially if they are cooked or grilled. Heating and prolonged cooking (like using a crockpot or a pressure-cooker) can help reduce the alkaloid content by about 50%. In tomatoes, cooking can also help to reduce their methanol content which is converted to formaldehyde in the body. Many of the concerns about nightshades often arises in individuals with a leaky gut. In these individuals, the breakdown products of many foods including a wide variety of proteins can cross a leaky gut barrier making the body initiate an immune response, promoting inflammation. The problem is not the nightshades, but a leaky gut. The only commonly consumed cooked nightshade plant you would want to limit on the Zone Diet is potatoes because of their impact on increasing blood sugar, not its alkaloid content. The others are great sources of fermentable fiber and polyphenols, critical for gut health. Regardless of what you hear, eating cooked tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants are excellent additions to the Zone Diet. Don’t have a healthy gut??? Dr. Sears suggests starting to rebuild the gut with omega-3 fatty acids, polyphenols, and fermentable fiber. This supplies the right nutrients to begin the repair and promotion of more beneficial bacteria in the gut. {{cta('518756a3-8dc7-403c-b723-674900dc1a54')}} References:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5121179/https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18399356
9 Tips To Avoid Weight-Loss Plateaus
You’ve been doing everything right; watching what you’ve been eating, getting your exercise in, even avoiding sweets and alcohol only to hop on the scale and see it’s not budging. Don’t let this be the turning point where you give up and revert back to old habits. Weight-loss plateaus happen to the best of us, but before you let frustration set in it may only take a few tweaks to kickstart your weight loss again. Your Changing Body Composition: If you are not losing weight, but your clothes (especially around the midsection) are fitting better, then you are losing body fat and gaining muscle at the same time. This is an ideal situation and tells you that you are doing all the right things. Consider Weighing and Measuring Your Foods: Our portion sizes tend to get easily distorted especially if we rely on eating out. Reacquaint yourself with what your portions should look like by measuring out your foods just to make sure you are still eyeballing correctly. You don’t have to do this long, just until you get yourself back on track. Track Your Intake: Keeping a food journal is a great way to keep you honest about what you’re eating. If you have to write it down you’ll be less apt to eat it. This is also a good way of knowing if you are going overboard on your protein, carbohydrate and fat choices and where to begin to cutting back.{{cta('daffa570-1055-4766-af51-e09d66a17e47')}} Eat Small Frequent Meals: Sometimes we skip meals like breakfast thinking it will save calories for later. This can actually work against you. Eating frequently throughout the day ensures you are controlling your blood sugar levels and ultimately prevents you from overindulging at your next meal. Calorie control is important for weight loss, but hormonal control is even more important. Watch the Cheating: Sometimes when we see the scale going in the right direction we’ll allow ourselves an indulgence or a cheat meal after a tough workout. This is fine in moderation, but be mindful of the frequency with which you reward yourself. Taking the weekends off, nibbling on snacks throughout the afternoon or finishing the leftovers once dinner is done, can really start to add up. If you know you are going to cheat, eat something sensible and healthy first in an effort to curb how much you indulge. When it comes to snacks, instead of going for things that quickly add up the calories, replace refined carbohydrates with fruits and vegetables and add some lean protein for sticking power. Exercise: The same amount of calories that helped you lose weight might not be the same amount you need to keep the weight off. Unfortunately, when your weight goes down, you need less calories to maintain your new weight because your metabolism has become more efficient. This is a great time to insert physical activity if you haven’t already. If you already exercise your body may have become very efficient at doing the same activity. Start to switch things up. High intensity interval training (HIIT) gives you the most bang for your buck in the least amount of time when working out. It helps to burn more body fat as it’s based on doing intense bursts of exercise followed by an active recovery to keep your heart rate up and burn fat quicker. Watch Your Alcohol Intake: Alcohol is fine in moderation, but pending your drink of choice it might come with a lot of extra sugar and calories which will halt your weight loss efforts. Plus drinking tends to make us lethargic slowing down our activity level along with loosening the reigns when it comes to food choices, making us move less and eat more. Switch up the Ratio of Protein to Carbohydrate: As we age we may become more sensitive to carbohydrates impacting our blood sugar levels and our ability to lose body fat. If you think you might be carbohydrate-sensitive consider bumping up your meals by one block of protein and lowering them by 1 block of carbohydrate. For instance, for males this might mean your meals are 5 blocks of protein, 3 blocks of carbs, and for females 4 blocks of protein, 2 blocks of carbs. Calorie Restriction: Most of us would rather boost our activity level than have to cut back on calories, but if you feel like you’ve covered all the bases above it might require cutting back on calories more. Ensuring you have the right balance of protein, carbohydrate and fat at each meal and snack can make cutting back on calories easier while keeping hunger and fatigue in check.
Hydration - What You Need To Know
We often hear about the importance of hydration as the warm temperatures set in or after prolonged physical activity, but this is one topic that shouldn’t be seasonal. Approximately 55% of children and adolescents are inadequately hydrated1 and our sense of thirst declines with age. Compared to young adults, when older adults are deprived of water for a period of time, they are less likely to replenish that water loss, making them more susceptible to dehydration2. The good news is that the foods and beverages we eat and drink are an easy fix to keeping us hydrated all year long! The Benefits of Hydration Hydration is critical to ensure our body is functioning how it should and also plays a role in our energy levels and fatigue. Not being adequately hydrated can impact our body in numerous ways2. Athletic Performance: Water helps to regulate our body temperature and sweating is the body’s way to stay cool by releasing heat through sweat. An athlete can lose anywhere from 6-10% of body weight through sweat loss, making rehydration post-workout critical. Cognitive Performance: Mild dehydration can lead to disruptions in our ability to think clearly and our mood. In older adults lack of hydration can be a factor in confusion. Kidneys: Adequate hydration ensures our kidneys, an important regulator of water balance, blood pressure and waste disposal, can filter waste from the blood to be excreted in the urine. Heart: Water balance in the body is tightly linked to our total blood volume, blood pressure, and heart rate, so any change in hydration status can impact these. Headaches: Water deprivation can lead to the development of headaches and may be a potential trigger for migraines. Skin: Water is often attributed to giving skin a youthful appearance through diminishing fine lines and wrinkles and giving it that moisturized look. While we may be hard pressed to find the science to back these claims, the skin does act as a barrier to help keep moisture in the body. How Much Do You Need Most of us have heard that we should aim for eight 8 oz. glasses of water per day (about eight cups of water) and the reality is that if we hit those goals we’d probably be doing a pretty good job at staying hydrated. However, an even better marker would be the color of your urine. Ideally, if you are adequately hydrated, then the color of your urine should be a very pale yellow. Since approximately 80% of our fluid intake comes from physically drinking water and other beverages, these would be your primary sources for hydration. This includes caffeinated beverages too, but they can also act as diuretics so you would need to consume even more water to ensure adequate hydration. Although no specific recommendation is set with regards to water alone, the fluid we take in per day from food and beverages should total approximately 11 cups per day for women and 16 cups for men3. High-moisture foods do contribute to overall hydration, but water itself remains the best way to keep our hydration status in check: it’s calorie free, preservative free, and contains no artificial sweeteners. Tips For Staying Hydrated Be Choosy: Pick beverages like water, milk or caffeine-free coffee or unsweetened tea (tried to avoid the sweeteners or creamers which can stack up the calories and pounds). Bring It With You: We don’t always have the luxury of a drive-through option. Fill a water bottle at the start of each day and no matter how busy the day gets you’ll always have it with you. Spice It Up: If plain water isn’t for you, try lemon, lime, berries, or cucumber or consider making these into ice cubes to keep your beverage cold and flavorful. Go Bubbly: Cutting back on soda can be tough, try sparkling water as an option to get the fizz without the calories. Make A Goal: Aim to finish a certain number of glasses of water before lunch or dinner or shoot to have a full glass at each meal. Set a Timer: Sometimes we need a reminder to drink so set a timer or make a calendar reminder to get you to drink Eat Your Water: Don’t forget your foods count too! Get your water through high moisture foods like fruits and vegetables. 14 Zone Favorable Foods that Help to Reach Your Hydration Goals Not a huge fan of drinking water, the foods you eat can help too! Here are 14 Zone Favorable fruits and vegetables that have a high water content to help you reach your goals4. Besides being good sources of water, these foods are ideally suited for the Zone Diet since they have a very low glycemic index as well as being rich in fermentable fibers and high in polyphenols. {{cta('daffa570-1055-4766-af51-e09d66a17e47')}}
The Importance of Breakfast
We’ve heard it time and time again that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but is that true? One of the biggest benefits to consuming breakfast is to replenish energy stores and to stabilize hormones. After a full night’s sleep our blood sugar level is low and by early morning our liver glycogen stores have been depleted in an effort to maintain blood glucose throughout the night. Once energy stores are exhausted, blood glucose and insulin levels begin to drop and as a result the stress hormone cortisol is released. Cortisol levels naturally rise in the morning, but it's release signals the body to begin breaking down muscle for energy. This is why it’s critical to eat an appropriate breakfast to restore blood sugar levels and replenish glycogen. By skipping breakfast cortisol levels stay elevated until the next meal resulting in the increased breakdown of muscle for energy. Why a Zone BreakfastThe Zone is based on keeping your insulin levels in a zone that is not too high and not too low. This will stabilize blood sugar and prevent the continued breakdown of muscle for energy. Eating a Zone breakfast can help keep your insulin levels stable, provide the necessary protein to prevent hunger and replenish the levels of liver glycogen. It is important that the breaking down (catabolism) that happens overnight is balanced with the building up in the morning (anabolism). It is this balance that makes breakfast important for starting your day out right hormonally and sets the stage for the other benefits that come with eating breakfast such as improved alertness and productivity, increased cognition and memory, satiety, and weight control.Zone Breakfast vs. Traditional BreakfastThose who eat breakfast regularly have been shown to have higher intakes of vitamins and minerals and a more well-rounded diet. We always recommend eating a Zone breakfast within one hour of waking and having one with the right balance of lean protein, low-glycemic carbohydrates and a dash of monounsaturated fat. By keeping insulin levels balanced, Zone meals are the easiest way to keep your sugar cravings under control during the day. Doing so minimizes the need to constantly look for quick fixes when your energy levels start to plummet. Breakfast SwapsWhen looking for a Zone breakfast aim for one that is under 400 calories, with less than 12 grams of fat, 25 grams of protein and about 35 grams of net carbs (total carbohydrates minus fiber). Need an easy breakfast idea? Swap out your current breakfast for a ZoneRx Shake instead. Where most grab and go breakfasts fall short on protein, are high in carbs and added sugar, and can be high in fat, ZoneRx shakes have the precise balance you need to replenish your body coming off an overnight fast and to power you through to lunch. See how it compares. {{cta('a51aeeb3-c8ab-4c9a-9217-1fe34bd6a84f')}}
What to Eat Before a Workout or After
Having a pre or post workout snack doesn’t have to negate everything you’ve burned off during the course of your activity. In fact, having the right mix of fuels in your body allows you reap the best results from your workout. A pre-workout snack can give you the energy you need to power through, while eating immediately after helps to replenish muscle glycogen and promote greater recovery. We recommended consuming a Zone snack 30-45 minutes before a workout and having another within 15 to 30 minutes after. When choosing a snack, all you need is about a 100 calorie Zone snack balanced in protein and carbohydrate and a little fat. The combination of protein and carbohydrate prior to working out will help to minimize muscle damage and maintain blood glucose levels which naturally fall during a workout. Fueling post-workout helps to replenish muscle glycogen and initiate muscle repair. So what might this combination look like? Pre-Post Workout Snack Ideas Greek Yogurt, Almonds, Blueberries This combination has the right blend of protein, fat and carbohydrate, plus its light to avoid that full or bloated feeling prior to or after exercise. Greek yogurt packs a protein punch with just a 1/4 cup having 6 grams of protein. Couple this with blueberries which are rich in polyphenols to help combat the stress from your workout and some almonds to keep your energy going longer. Apple with Cheese This snack is a convenient one to have on hand and if you forgot to pack your snack and are headed to workout, you can often find this combination in most convenient stores. Cottage Cheese, Almonds, Fruit Cottage cheese is rich in leucine, an amino acid that helps with protein synthesis, making this a great recovery snack. Eggs with Hummus or Guacamole If you aren’t a huge breakfast eater and tend to work out in the mornings this is something you can make ahead on the weekends and grab before your morning workout. Simply scoop out the yolk inside in a hardboiled egg, discard, and replace with guacamole or hummus for a nutritious snack that won’t leave you feeling too full. ZoneRx Bar There is nothing more convenient or portable than a ZoneRx bar. Easy to eat on the go and to have tucked in your workout bag when you’re ready. Simply have half a bar before you workout and the other half immediately after and you’ve hit all your pre and post workout needs. ZoneRx Shakes Move over chocolate milk and welcome ZoneRx shakes. For a long-time chocolate milk has been touted as one of the best recovery drinks because of its mix of protein and carbohydrate. Unfortunately too many carbohydrates in our snack choices can actually impede growth hormone from being released post-exercise due to high levels of insulin. Instead reach for a ZoneRx Shake. When our workouts fall before a main meal, ZoneRx Shakes make for a great post-recovery meal replacement. They have the right mix of everything you need to keep blood sugar levels balanced and are enriched with polyphenols to help combat any post-workout stress. If you don’t want a full meal replacement but still want something substantial, simply use half the amount of powder and milk for a great post-recovery snack. For more pre and post workout ideas check out our recipe section to search through hundreds of perfectly Zoned meals. {{cta('a9e96fff-3523-4d72-b761-29f9ef2a1279')}}
Insulin Resistance and Weight Loss
Carbohydrates are often villainized as the culprit for our weight gain, but it’s more complex than this. It is constantly elevated levels of the hormone insulin that actually makes you fat and keeps you fat. Since carbohydrates cause a short-term increase in insulin levels, this has led to the carbohydrate-insulin theory of obesity, or the idea that the solution to our growing obesity crisis is to cut out carbohydrates. It’s not that simple. Insulin is a hormone that helps regulate the amount of glucose, a breakdown product of carbohydrates, in our blood required for optimal brain function as well controlling enzyme activities, gene expression and the distribution and storage of energy. Under normal metabolic conditions, insulin levels rapidly rise and rapidly fall in response to our intake of carbohydrates. This all changes as you develop insulin resistance. With insulin resistance, insulin is less able to tell our cells (primarily muscle) to quickly remove glucose from the blood. As a result, the higher levels of circulating glucose make the pancreas secrete higher and higher levels of insulin to accomplish the task. These constantly elevated insulin levels are a result of insulin resistance, which in turn is caused by increased cellular inflammation. So it is not insulin per se that makes you gain weight, but the constantly elevated levels of insulin caused by insulin resistance that is the problem. How Insulin Resistance Makes You Fat It is constantly elevated insulin levels that makes you gain weight, and keep the weight on. The reason is that if the muscle cells are not taking in enough glucose from the blood, the increased insulin levels drive that glucose into the fat cells instead and that accelerates the storage of dietary excess calories as stored fat. This makes you gain weight. Furthermore, these increased insulin levels prevent your fat cells from releasing stored fat to be used as energy for the body. This keeps the weight on. What Causes Insulin Resistance? There are several factors that play a role in insulin resistance, but cellular inflammation is the biggest culprit. Cellular inflammation results from an imbalance of two key fatty acids in our blood, Arachidonic Acid (AA) and Eicosapentaenoic Acid (EPA). When the levels of arachidonic acid are in excess it leads to the generation of hormones known to be pro-inflammatory. This inflammation makes it difficult for insulin to communicate with our cells in the liver, muscle, and adipose tissue. In an effort to increase communication, more and more insulin is produced resulting in high circulating levels and with that comes the excess weight. It is the dietary factors below that over the long term lead to increased cellular inflammation, making it more likely to become insulin resistant. An imbalance of protein to carbohydrate at each meal. Excess dietary caloric intake causing oxidative stress. Excess dietary intake of omega-6 fatty acids. Excess dietary intake of the saturated fatty acids, especially palmitic acid. Lack of dietary intake of omega-3 fatty acids. Lack of dietary intake of polyphenols to activate anti-oxidative genes to reduce oxidative stress. Lack of dietary intake of polyphenols to promote gut health. Lack of dietary intake of fermentable fiber to promote gut health. How to Tell If You Have Insulin Resistance You can’t determine your level of insulin resistance by looking in the mirror as about 16% of healthy, normal weight Americans have severe insulin resistance (1). However, if you have diabetes (30 million Americans) or pre-diabetes (86 million Americans), you are guaranteed to have severe insulin resistance. More than 80% of obese Americans have severe insulin resistance. This high prevalence of severe insulin resistance goes a long way to explaining our obesity epidemic. The higher your levels of insulin resistance, the more likely you are to gain excess body fat and have difficulty in losing it. It also means that that you are likely to regain all the lost body fat unless you reduce the underlying cause which is not carbohydrates, but insulin resistance that is caused by cellular inflammation (2). Blood Tests for Insulin Resistance There are blood tests to know whether you are insulin resistant. Measuring insulin levels can get expensive, yet the triglyceride (TG) to high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) ratio can be used as a surrogate marker for insulin resistance and is commonly performed in your routine blood work. Insulin resistance is typically associated with an increase in body fat, so it makes sense that the first place you can measure its start is in the liver. This is because the liver is where dietary fats are repackaged into lipoproteins which transport triglycerides and cholesterol to cells. When insulin resistance develops, triglyceride levels rise, HDL levels decrease, and LDL (low-density lipoprotein) becomes smaller and denser. If you’re one to avoid blood testing, we have developed a simple quiz to gauge whether you may be insulin resistant or on the road to becoming it. You can access our insulin resistance quiz here. How the Zone Diet Can Help The Zone Diet was developed to help control insulin levels in the body. This is achieved by balancing the protein-to carbohydrate ratio at each meal coupled with the use of small amounts of monounsaturated fats know to be anti-inflammatory. Since diet is one of the main reasons we develop insulin resistance, it’s also one of the easiest changes we can make to help reverse it. Within 4 days of following the Zone Diet, it has been shown clinically to reduce insulin resistance (3). With our new Zone Foods, we’ve tried to make it even easier for individuals to stick to the Zone eating plan with minimal thinking to help reverse insulin resistance quicker. Using the Zone Foods (e.g. Zone Cereal and PastaRx) at every meal has been clinically show to decrease insulin resistance 24 times more effectively than using their gluten-free equivalents (4). Summary Constantly elevated levels of the hormone insulin can make it difficult to lose body fat. High insulin levels are a result of insulin resistance, which in turn is caused by increased cellular inflammation. Insulin resistance can be reversed within 4 days of following the Zone Diet. As we age it becomes more and more difficult to lose excess body fat due to insulin resistance and increased levels of cellular inflammation. By bringing the focus back to choosing the right foods and ensuring the appropriate balance of protein to carbohydrate at each every meal along with adequate intake of omega-3 fatty acids and polyphenols we can keep insulin levels in check and keep us on the path to continued wellness.{{cta('daffa570-1055-4766-af51-e09d66a17e47')}} References McLaughlin T, Allison G, Abbasi F, Lamendola C, and Reaven G. “Prevalence of insulin resistance and associated cardiovascular disease risk factors among normal weight, overweight, and obese individuals.” Metabolism 53:495-499 (2004) Sears B and Perry M. “The role of fatty acids in insulin resistance.” Lipids Health Disease 14:121 (2015) Markovic TP, Jenkins AB, Campbell LV, Furler SM, Kraegen EW, and Chisholm DJ. “The determinants of glycemic responses to diet restriction and weight loss in obesity and NIDDM.” Diabetes Care 21:687-694 (1998) Johnson CS, Sears B, Perry M, and Knurick JR. “Use of novel high-protein functional food products as part of a calorie-restricted diet to reduce insulin resistance and increase lean body mass in adults: A randomized controlled trial.” Nutrients 9:1182 (2017)
Our Top Supermarket Picks
Not many of us have the luxury of spending hours in the grocery store going aisle to aisle. Here we’ve highlighted some of our top grocery finds from each area of the supermarket that can easily be incorporated into tasty weekdays/weeknight meals and get you in and out in a zip. Dairy: 2% Lactose Free Milk Why we Like It: It has the right balance of protein, carbohydrate and fat making it Zone approved. Plus it’s a good source of high-quality protein to promote satiety while being rich in calcium, vitamin D, phosphorus and other essential nutrients. Why Lactose-free? Regular cow’s milk contains lactose, which many can be difficult to digest. In lactose-free milk, the lactose has been totally removed to consist of only glucose and galactose. Want an easy meal no matter the time of day? Add 10oz of Lactose free milk to a scoop of ZoneRx Shake mix to keep you going until your next meal. Seafood: Wild Salmon Why we Like it: It’s a great source of protein, low in saturated fat and rich in omega-3 fatty acids, known for their brain boosting and anti-inflammatory properties. Opting for wild salmon over farm-raised brings the omega-3 content up even further and has been shown to be 8 times lower in PCBs compared to farm-raised. How does it’s omega-3 content compare to OmegaRx 2? A 3oz serving of raw wild salmon contains about 1700mg of total omega3 fatty acids, whereas one serving of OmegaRx 2 (4 capsules or 1 tsp.) contains nearly twice as much with 3000mg of the omega-3s EPA and DHA. Meat: Grass-Fed Beef Why We Like It: Compared to regular beef, grass-fed beef can contain almost 2x the amount of omega-3s compared to regular beef. While we know red meat should be consumed in moderation, when you do choose to consume it, opting for grass-fed is a good way to go. Using it ground makes for great tasting burgers, a taco night hit, or a delicious filling for stuffed peppers. Fruit: Berries (Blueberries, Strawberries, Raspberries, Blackberries)Why We Like It: They have one of the lowest glycemic responses compared to most fruits out there. Why we really like them is that they are rich in polyphenols, the chemicals in plants responsible for the color and wide range of nutritional benefits. Although summer is the peak season for berries, you can find different varieties (e.g blackberries) all year long that are fairly priced too. Berries make for a perfect sweet to end a meal, a great addition to steel cut oats, or nicely coupled with low-fat cheese for a mid-afternoon snack. Veggies: Cruciferous Vegetables (Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Cauliflower and Kale)Why We Like Them: They’re nutritional powerhouses based on their levels of fermentable fiber, polyphenols, vitamins, minerals and are known for their cancer-preventive properties too. Plus they have lowest amounts of carbohydrate making them less likely to stimulate insulin. Roast or sauté in a little olive oil and use as a side dish to any protein choice. They’re also a great base for any salad when you swap in baby Kale, shaved Brussel Sprouts or Broccoli slaw in place of romaine or iceberg.Frozen: Green VegetablesWhy We Like Them: Produce that sits in the refrigerator for days or has traveled long distances to reach us, loses its nutrients with time. Frozen vegetables are a great option in this case as they are typically flash frozen at low temperatures to stop aging and retain their nutritional value. Spinach, broccoli, or asparagus make for great weeknight stir-fry’s. If you haven’t tried frozen riced vegetables yet (available in broccoli and cauliflower (although not green), these can be added to soups in a cinch or a great replacement for rice in any dish. Plus the ones in the microwavable steamer bags can be made in minutes for those nights you really run short on time.Inside Aisles: Almonds Why We Like Them: They are rich in heart healthy monounsaturated fats, along with numerous vitamins, and minerals. Almonds are easy to have on hand or for a snack on the go, plus they add a nice crunch when topped on oatmeal, yogurt, or slivered on vegetables. Since they are about 79% fat, just be careful to limit your intake and be mindful of portions as the calories can really stack up and they are easy to over-consume. Steelcut OatsWhy We Like Them: They contain GLA (gamma linolenic acid), an essential fatty acids known to help boost the production of the good eicosanoids (PGE-1). Consuming 2 to 3 times per week can help build up your GLA levels. Plus they are a great alternative to breakfast cereal since they have a lower glycemic response, and are high in fiber, B-vitamins and calcium. Canned BeansWhy We Like Them: Beans are a great source of fermentable fiber and their versatility lends themselves to most dishes you create. While lectins, a protein within them, might be giving them a bad rap lately, don’t stress, because cooking sprouting or fermenting them degrades lectin. It’s only individuals who have a compromised gut barrier, like “leaky gut” whole need to limit their consumption.SpicesWhy We Like Them: Spices like basil, oregano and rosemary are incredibly rich in polyphenols (good for the gut), plus they are a great way to add flavor to any dish. Elevate any of your dishes by adding them to omelets, meat, salad dresses or vegetables. Extra Virgin Olive OilWhy We Like It: It’s primarily a monounsaturated fat, known for their heart healthy benefits, and rich in the polyphenol known as hydroxytyrosol. A good rule of thumb is to buy a cheaper olive oil for cooking, since polyphenols degrade upon heating, and then use a high quality one like Zone Extra Virgin olive oil for use in salad dressings or on top of cooked dishes to reap all their health promoting properties.{{cta('daffa570-1055-4766-af51-e09d66a17e47')}}
Peak Performance: An Athletes Guide to Meal Timing
Fueling for performance requires knowing what foods to choose and when to have them. Dr. Sears has worked with elite athletes his entire professional career and his recommendations are based on years of seeing what has led to the greatest improvements in becoming faster, stronger, and leaner. You don’t have to be an elite athlete to use this guide. No matter your fitness level, use these recommendations to reap the most from your workout and enhance how quickly you can get to your next one. Hormonal Timing and Performance: A More In-Depth Look Performance can be considered to fall within 4 phases:Hormonal Warm-up –ensuring your body has the right fuels to performThe Demand Phase - when you are working out and putting stress on the bodyThe Recovery Phase - Immediately following your work outThe Repair Phase - The remainder of the time when you are not working out and repairing damaged muscle tissue Hormonal Warm-up:When: 30-45 Minutes Before and During Exercise.What To Do: Eat a Zone snack 30-45 minutes prior to exercise. Half of a ZoneRx bar is an ideal choice. Why: Consuming protein helps to minimize muscle damage and stimulate glucagon synthesis to elevate blood glucose levels that will fall during exercise. Carbohydrate consumption helps spare muscle glycogen that will be depleted and maintain blood glucose levels that will be lowered during exercise. Demand Phase-When: The workout or activity that is putting stress on the bodyWhat is Happening Hormonally Pro-inflammatory eicosanoids increase Pro-inflammatory cytokines increase Insulin decreases Cortisol increases What is Happening Metabolically ATP is depleted Protein degradation increases Muscle glycogen is partially depleted Muscle damage increases Fluid loss increases Recovery Phase When: Peaks 30 Minutes After Exercise and lasts a maximum of 120 minutes (Recovery Phase Is Short)What To Do: Eat a Zone snack immediately following exercise. Half a ZoneRx bar would be an ideal choice.Why: The combination of protein and carbohydrate helps to replenish muscle glycogen and initiate muscle repair. Growth hormone is released once exercise stops to initiate repair and this can be inhibited by high levels of insulin. Where carbohydrates alone could impede the release of growth hormone, the combination of both protein and carbohydrate helps to ensure this release happens quicker. Repair Phase When: The 20-24 hours following workout completionWhat To Do: Consume a Zone meal or snack every 4 to 5 hours. Ensure each meal contains at least 25-30 grams of high quality protein. Aim for lean protein choices that contain leucine, an amino acid found in foods such as chicken, lean beef, pork, fish, seafood, and cheese. Consuming about 2.5 grams of leucine helps activate mTor, a gene transcription factor required for new protein synthesis. Balance your protein with non-starchy vegetables at each meal. This will help to control insulin levels between meals and when balanced with the right amount of protein will help stabilize blood sugar levels. Supplement with omega-3 fatty acids and polyphenols.Why: The combination of the Zone Diet, omega-3 fatty acids and polyphenols helps maximize the anti-inflammatory response that results in tissue repair post-work. Calculating Your Protein Needs Depending on your sport you might be trying to gain weight, primarily through lean body mass, or to lose body fat while maintaining lean body mass. Either way it’s important to know how much protein you should be consuming each day. To find your personalized requirements based on your gender, size and weight, try our Protein Requirement/Body Fat calculator. This will also tell you how many Zone Food Blocks of carbohydrate and fat you should consume each day to go along your protein requirements. The following menus are based on Dr. Sears' work with Olympic athletes. No matter your fitness level, used this as a guide and simply adjust the amounts based on what you've determined your protein requirements to be. Get started here with our meal planners for both males and females. {{cta('a9e96fff-3523-4d72-b761-29f9ef2a1279')}}
Q&A with Dr. Barry Sears
You have questions, Dr. Sears has answers. We know it's hard to stay current with everything in the news and what exactly to believe. Leave that to Dr. Sears! Whether its a question about a study in the news, health trend, or something that pertains to your own personal health, this section is devoted to answering these questions. Most likely if you have questions, someone else has them too! The New York Times Recently Published an article that fish oil doesn’t protect against heart disease. What are your thoughts on this? This article was based upon a meta-analysis looking at various studies using fish oil and markers of heart disease. The highest dose of fish oil used in any of these trials was 1,800 mg of EPA and DHA per day, with the majority using around 400 mg of EPA and DHA per day. What this study showed is that when you don't give therapeutic levels of fish oil, you won't see the benefits. You will see no effects on the resolution of inflammation, a driver of heart disease, until you reach about 5,000 mg of EPA and DHA per day. Kombucha is a fermented beverage that has a long tradition of being used in many cultures because of its nutritional benefits and is gaining popularity in the marketplace. It’s thought that its fermentation process results in the production of a large number of healthy bacteria? Do you feel it’s a good aid for gut health? The benefits of Kombucha are believed to come from their levels of probiotics. Probiotics are live bacteria. 99.99% of probiotics are destroyed in the stomach due to its high acidity. The few that survive only pass through the gut acting as target practice for the immune cells that line the gut to improve their recognition of more pathogenic bacteria. Probiotics do not colonize the gut. They have benefits, but those benefits are mild compared to fermentable fiber and polyphenols for gut health. What exactly are the differences between Prebiotics and Probiotics. Is it important to have both in the diet? Probiotics are live bacteria that are unable to colonize the interior of the gut. This means they lack the ability to change the microbial composition of the gut. Prebiotics are fermentable fiber that serve as the food source for the microbes in the gut. Fermentable fiber can significantly change the microbial composition within the gut, thus they are far more important for gut health. Non-starchy vegetables are an excellent source of fermentable fiber. What is bone broth and what are your thoughts on it as a protein supplement? Bone broth is essentially cooking stock. It is made by taking the bones from either chicken or beef, adding vegetables and spices for flavor, and then covering with water and simmering for anywhere from 24-48 hours. Using bone, beef, or chicken broth for cooking is better than using water, but the true nutrition for a meal will come from the protein, carbohydrates, and fermentable fiber that you are adding the broth to. When it comes to bone broth as a protein supplement, there are others that are vastly superior. Bone broth contains primarily collagen which is a poor source of quality protein as well as minerals. When choosing a protein supplement one with milk or whey protein isolates would be more ideal as they richer in essential amino acids whereas collagen is not. What have you been doing to protect yourself against the flu this season. Do you have tips for how to keep your immunity high the rest of the season? Whether you’ve had the chance to get vaccinated for the flu or not, there are things you can do to bump up your immunity. The first would be good hygiene with regards to keeping up on good handwashing, making sure you are getting plenty of rest, and ensuring a healthy diet that doesn't make your immune system have to work even harder. A diet balanced in lean proteins, good fats and colorful carbohydrates primarily from vegetables, is most ideal to avoid overloading your immune system. This is why I think it’s important to follow a strict Zone Diet, coupled with OmegaRx 2 to increase the resolution of existing inflammation and to provide your immune system further capacity to defend you again the flu virus. Let us know in the comments below if you have questions you'd like Dr. Sears to address in his next round of Q&A.{{cta('cd305230-6e34-42f6-9e2c-c2beda556f50')}}
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