Make the Zone your Own

I've been on the Zone diet for 2 or 3 months now.  The term for people in the know is "Zoning".  Before I was eating healthy foods, cutting the alcohol, and exercising.  My weight had NOT plateaued, so there was no real need to change.  But I've treated my "get fit" endeavor as a learning experience as well.  Crossfit recommended it and many had extolled the success of it, so what the hell.

Well I'm sold.  I walk around the office handing out unsolicited free advice (people LOVE that).  I painted lines on my cubicle and hung "The Zone" signs around.  I've ordered t-shirts saying "I'm Zonin'".  Surprisingly, they were the second most popular shirt behind "I'm Gellin'".  However, it isn't an easy diet, but if you are interested, read on.

The book "Enter the Zone" can be found used in a lot of book resellers.  Pick it up for $12 and read it.  Do it in broad daylight because it is a bit of a snoozer.  However, it is full of good information.  Like most diet books, I'm sure not all of Dr. Sears claims have been proven or substantiated, but his basic premise of balancing protein, carbs, and fats is damned sound.

Pre-work:
- If you don't have recent measurements, get somebody to do them.  Early Zone benefits won't show up on the scale.  Record your body fat, measurements, and weight.  Get actual numbers.  My first measurements simply were "really fat".  Holland swears its not her handwriting so I'm still looking for the culprit. (Yes that's a joke, Holland is way too nice to do that.)
- Pick a couple of fitness metrics and note your performance.  I suggest a few recent WODs that mix strength and met-con.  If all else fails, use your deadlift max and 1 mile time.
- Clean out the fridge and the cabinet and prepare for your "entry".

Getting Started:
-  For 3 weeks, follow the Zone religiously.  Do the calculation, measure the foods, eat only the "good carbs" and stay off the "bad" page as much as possible.
- In week 4, go to your favorite Italian restaurant (BTW, it better be Primo!) and eat one of your old favorite pasta bowls.  Sit back and experience the difference in how you feel.  Tip: Make sure you've already worked out that day.
- Go right back on the Zone and see how quickly you rebound.  You've just taught yourself that when you fail at a meal, your body will tell you.... BUT it will forgive you the very next meal if you correct it.  This helps me stay the course.  If I cheat, I know I can get right back to it.
- Continue the Zone for another 2 - 3 weeks.

Success?
- After 5 or 6 weeks, redo your measurements.  Then hammer out those benchmark metrics you picked.
- What happened?  My guess is you are stronger or faster or both....
- Between CF and Zoning I continue to destroy my PRs.  My mile time was reduced by 45 seconds.  My max clean increased 50 lbs, my max deadlift increased 60 lbs.  I would have gotten some of these gains anyway, but the jump means I'm eating right.

Making It My Own:
My main advice is make this diet work for you.  I have been experimenting lately.  Get on it, experience it, and then tweak the things that bug you about it.  Find the things that work and don't work.  After doing it the way the book said for 2 months, I had enough experience and confidence to modify it to work better.  My two issues were getting hungry between breakfast and lunch AND feeling SO full in the evening.  So I added 5 nuts as a mid morning snack and started cutting back on the evening carbs a little.  The morning hunger and the bloated evening feelings are gone.

Additionally, I found that the two most important meals are my post-WOD meal and my evening snack.  When I skipped my evening snack, I did not feel/do as well the next day.

My experimentation has led me to 5 simple rules:
- Always eat exactly the right amount of lean protein.
- Eat up to but never over the amount of carbs.  Under by a block or two is OK.
- Eat at least your amount of fat or more.  NEVER skimp on the fat content.
- 85% of my daily carb blocks MUST be from the "good list".  I allow 3 of 19 to be "bad" per day.
- I MUST eat the last meal of the day within 30 mins of bedtime.

Enjoy.  And let me know if you want a t-shirt....