Zone Diet Menu Plans - Find the Right Diet For You By Wendy Pan Platinum Quality Author

One of the most challenging aspects of staying on the zone diet is finding zone diet menu plans that accurately measure the proper ratios of protein, fat and carbohydrates, while keeping a zone diet diverse enough to remain interesting. Boredom with the Zone Diet is a major reason why people cannot stick to the plan.

The Elements of the Zone Diet

The zone diet is based on the principals of a 1:2:3 ratio of grams of fats to grams of proteins to grams of carbohydrates. The diet is balanced and avoids restricting any particular food group. The easy way to achieve the proper ratio is to fill one-third of your plate with low-fat protein. Then, fill two-thirds of a plate with acceptable carbohydrates, such as grains, fruits and vegetables. Then, a small portion of fat is added, and this is typically from olive oils, almonds, fish oils, avocados, as these are sources of "good" fats.

Snacks are also important to the zone diet. Snacks should also use the 1:2:3 ratio, but in much smaller portions than the meals. A typical snack would combine a small amount of protein, such as a piece of cheese, with a carbohydrate, such as grapes, and a few almonds for the grams of healthy fat.

It is also important on the zone diet to maintain regular eating habits, using 3 meals a day, and snacks at regular intervals. It is important that you eat shortly after waking up, and have a snack about 2 hours after breakfast, followed by lunch about 4 to 6 hours after the breakfast, and then have another snack 2 hours later. Dinner should occur about two hours after the afternoon snack, and then another snack should be eaten about 2 hours after dinner.

Creating Zone Diet Menu Plans

You need to shop and carefully plan meals out to incorporate enough variety that you do not become bored with the plan. If at almost every meal for a week, you find yourself eating chicken breast and salad with olives, you will lose interest in the zone diet. Snacks are also important to plan. If your snack each afternoon consists of almonds, string cheese and grapes, you will soon be searching for something to break your boredom and will cause you to stray from the zone diet.

Remember the diversity of food allowed on the zone diet, and try out new sources of protein. Instead of chicken breast every day, try out salmon or tofu. Try a different type of fruit, like raspberries or kiwi fruit. It also helps to get creative with recipes. Virtually any recipe can be adapted to fit the zone diet ratios. Several cookbooks have zone friendly diets that are very different than the usual turkey breasts and steamed asparagus meals that may have you in a rut. With some advanced planning, you can create a new and exciting zone diet menu plan that will keep you on track to your goals of weight loss and healthy living.

Wendy Pan is an accomplished niche website developer and author. To learn more about zone diet menu plans, please visit Whats For Lunch Today for current articles and discussions.

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