In a lot of diets, certain foods are restricted, very controlled and limited or just strongly advised against.
Some say that meat is bad for you and that you shouldn’t eat it very often. They say that most of what you need is going to come from your fresh foods and grains and such.
Other people will say that meat is the most important and that you should control your intake of fresh foods and grains because of the carbohydrates. They say that the carbohydrates will be bad for your body.
The Zone diet does not restrict you from eating any foods. Its goal is for you to eat a balance of all the important foods. There should be a balance between carbohydrates, fats, and proteins.
In the Zone plan he suggests a 40:30:30 ratio. Forty percent of your calories should come from carbohydrates, thirty percent of your calories should come from fats an thirty percent of your calories should come from protein.
Basically from there, it is up to you to make healthy choices. The program does advise and guide you, but once you know the balance, you can make your own choices. It isn’t hard to say, “I will take this much meat, this many veggies, this big of a serving of fruit and a handful of nuts.” It is as easy to do as it is to say.
It is suggested that for each meal you have some meat, some fruits and veggies, as well as some good fats that come from things such as nuts and beans.
He suggests that for your forty percent of calorie intake from carbohydrates, you choose foods that are also rich in other vitamins and nutrients such as fruits and vegetables. That way while you get good carbs you are also getting other health benefits.
He suggests these healthier choices because in foods like rice, bagels, pasta and sweets there is much more sugar than there is in fruits and vegetables.
Besides these three meals he advises you to eat snacks between so that your body is always satisfied and you don’t get hunger pains. He says it is important not to wait more than five hours between eating times.
For snacks he has a list of things that you could eat as well as recipes for each of them. He also has recipes for meals that are good for you and have the correct ratio.
So pretty much the Zone diet doesn’t restrict you in your eating, it just guides you to make healthy choices. It doesn’t say not to eat this or not to eat that, it says that this would be a better choice than that most of the time because of these nutrients.
Something else that is nice about the Zone diet is that as long as you are having the right proportions, you can have whatever you want. You can have carrots for veggies one day, and peas for veggies the next. One day you might feel like eating chicken, and maybe the next you feel like eating beef. That is just fine.
The goal isn’t to tell what to eat and what not to eat; it is to help you come to a point where you are all around healthy. It is to help you balance all that you do eat so that you can lose weight in a healthy way as well as stay healthy inside.
So, if you are going to do this diet, it is probably a good thing. It does not limit your options; it just guides them in a healthy way.