My Zone experiment
by Shiret Singh on Thursday, August 5, 2010 at 5:09pm
ON May 31st, 2010, Memorial day, I decided to put myself on the Zone diet. Up until this point I had been Crossfitting for almost 2 years, had certainly gained strength as well as endurance, but was feeling unsatisfied with my current performance at the box, and I wasn't thrilled with the way I looked either. I read Nicole Carols essay, Getting Off the Crack, several times, and went through a level 1 certification class, which spends a significant amount of time talking about the role of nutrition in Crossfit. I went to sectionals and regionals and watched, in awe, at some of the strongest men and woman I had ever seen (our coach being one of them!!) do WODS that seemed impossible to me. Most importantly, I had a heart to heart with my best friend/hero/husband, Gary, who as a cardiologist by profession, knows more about nutrition than anyone I know. (one of the few docs who practices what he preaches, and always has)
This is the guy who came home 13 years ago with lists and lists of foods and their glycemic index, explained to me what a glycemic index was, and told me we were eating this way from now on. Yeah, BEFORE The South Beach Diet was published, but I digress....
With a strong family history of diabetes, a primarily overweight/obese patient population, and an uncanny way of staying on top of current research in such a manner that when the rest of the country was eating low fat, my husband was eating low carb, I am fortunate in having my own, really smart and really supportive dietician by my side. Except that while I was a healthy eater compared to the rest of the country, I wasn't eating like Gary. Which, when I went to him back in May whining about my performance at the box, and my thighs, is what he candidly pointed out to me. It wasn't pretty, but it was the truth, I had fallen into the "I work out hard, so I can eat whatever I want" hole and I was in deep.
After thinking/reading/talking for a good while, (and watching everyones numbers, every week, get better, while mine were stagnant....yeah, I'm dysfunctionally competive, could use a 12 step program ;-)!!) I simply got tired of working so hard for what I deemed to be nominal results, and I knew I was putting forth maximum time as well as effort, and I also knew that I was fortunate enough to have a coach who is a genius at programming, the only thing left was nutrition..... I had no choice but to address my eating habits. And so, with Gary by my side, and Barry Sears making the rules, I entered the zone on 5/31/10.
First thing I did was buy several scales, two food scales, one for my kitchen and one that is in my purse to this day, if I eat out, I weigh what they bring me. Also bought a body weight scale w/ fat percentage, more on that horror. Then I printed out lists of foods and how many blocks they are, this stays in my kitchen next to the scale. I was ready.
I was 159lbs with a fat percentage of 24. Ugly! Couldn't bear to take measurements, which I sorely regret, but I was a size 6 or a medium. My Helen time the beginning of May was 18:39 my 5k time was 31:39 or there abouts. Couldn't manage more than 7 or 8 pullups at a time, and I'd been doing them since December. You get the idea.
Started this at 14 blocks, and at first, made sure every meal had an equal amount of protein/carbs/fat. This quickly became a problem for me as I naturally ate more carbs in the early part of the day, and more protein at night. Immediately started to feel shitty and weak, especially during WODs (which are typically at lunchtime for me), as I wasn't taking in enough carbs before or after the WODs in an attempt to save the blocks for my later, equal meals. The WODs I did the beginning of June are some of the worst I've ever done in terms of performance, by Friday, I was done. Barry could keep his Zone, I was freaking OUTTA there!
Common sense prevailed in the form of Gary, who pointed out that some of the Zone rules were meant to be broken, or at least modified for individual needs. In my case, it was important for me to have 4-5 blocks of carbs before, and 1-2 blocks of carbs after,in order to do well, and feel good afterwards. So what if I was eating the lions share of my carbs before one oclock, as long as at the end of the day all three columns (and yes, I write every bit of food I eat down, and the blocks it equals) said 14 blocks, I was good to go. I went with this modification because, A) quitting after a week was SO unpalatable B) I knew I could eat this way, I'm a protein junkie at night.
Now things got a bit better, and I started to see the weight come off, a little bit of weight.
After a couple of weeks, I started to realize that I could probably be OK w/12 blocks, the moderately hungry feeling I always had was something I was getting used to, (really!!) and while the weight was coming off, it was slow, and I wasn't seeing any real gains at the box. So I went down to 12 blocks, and all of a sudden, I was taking off weight like crazy! At twelve blocks, I started to notice my clothes getting bigger on me, and my energy level going up. WODS were still not what I wanted them to be, but I kept the faith. Within a few weeks, 12-15 lbs were history, and people were starting to notice.
At this point, I want to address the cheat meal. This is something I hear a lot about, for me, I decided that I was not going to go this route. It seemed like too much trouble to go through weighing, measuring, WODing, only to ruin it with a meal/event/party (and there have been MANY this summer!!). This is just my take, of coarse one meal doesn't ruin a week or two efforts, but I wanted all my efforts to count. So I choose to not cheat.
What WAS I eating, WELLLLL, better than I ever have, 2 eggs every morning w/ fruit and nuts, an apple 40 minutes before every WOD, at that point, a zone bar after every WOD (more on that later) cheese sticks or sliced turkey w/more fruit & nuts throughout the rest of the day, or another zone bar, and a big spinich salad w/ chicken at night was a typical day. Did not have any alcohol the first 3 weeks, then, started saving a carb so I could have a beer or a glass of wine at night. It was good, and then, I hit a wall. Down about 17 lbs, feeling good, but not at my goal weight yet, I stopped losing weight. Oh NO!!
Talked to Gary about my dilemna, really wanted to take off more weight, but I was stuck, and I hadn't seen the gains I was looking for at the gym, but I was afraid I wouldn't be able to function with any less food. My man pulled through for me, AGAIN. He advised me go down to 10 blocks, but increase my fat blocks when needed. In other words, have a block of nuts when feeling hungry, throughout the day, up to 20 blocks of fat, just keep the carbs strictly at 10, as well as the protein.
And this is when things got good at the box, because I took off more weight, and overnight (almost) I was 23 pounds lighter, which made it easier to run/do pushups/pullups.... any body weight movement I tried to do became easier, and I was doing it quicker. Did I lose some strength, yes, a little, but not much, and I have no doubt I will regain it, and more, because I an determined to do so. I am still not at my goal weight, want to lose 30 lbs altogether, today I am 5 1/2 lbs shy of that number, I have taken my carbs down to 8 blocks, with 10 blocks of protein and 20 blocks of fat. It's not easy, but I like being strong and fast a whole lot more than I like sushi, margaritas and chocolate......and I love that stuff! But I really love being more than a casual crossfitter, I want to be as good and strong as possible!!
Today is August 5th, it has been 9 1/2 weeks since I started this experiment, which, next to marrying Gary (!) and finding crossfit, so far seems to be the one of the best things I've done for myself. The clothes I have had to buy for myself are a size 2. I cut my Helen time by 5 minutes, and my 5k time by 5 1/2 minutes. I've put together 13 pullups, and know I can/will do more. I'm getting closer and closer to the athletes I've been chasing for almost a year now, and I thank them for giving me something to strive for. I am grateful to be part of a box full of positive, hard working members, and a coach who is smart, creative, and unyielding in his expectations. Finally, there is no way I could have done this w/o my wonderful husband, who is guiding me, supporting me, and putting up with me like no one else would. This story is just starting, I hope the future is filled with strong WODs....bring on the muscle!!
This is the guy who came home 13 years ago with lists and lists of foods and their glycemic index, explained to me what a glycemic index was, and told me we were eating this way from now on. Yeah, BEFORE The South Beach Diet was published, but I digress....
With a strong family history of diabetes, a primarily overweight/obese patient population, and an uncanny way of staying on top of current research in such a manner that when the rest of the country was eating low fat, my husband was eating low carb, I am fortunate in having my own, really smart and really supportive dietician by my side. Except that while I was a healthy eater compared to the rest of the country, I wasn't eating like Gary. Which, when I went to him back in May whining about my performance at the box, and my thighs, is what he candidly pointed out to me. It wasn't pretty, but it was the truth, I had fallen into the "I work out hard, so I can eat whatever I want" hole and I was in deep.
After thinking/reading/talking for a good while, (and watching everyones numbers, every week, get better, while mine were stagnant....yeah, I'm dysfunctionally competive, could use a 12 step program ;-)!!) I simply got tired of working so hard for what I deemed to be nominal results, and I knew I was putting forth maximum time as well as effort, and I also knew that I was fortunate enough to have a coach who is a genius at programming, the only thing left was nutrition..... I had no choice but to address my eating habits. And so, with Gary by my side, and Barry Sears making the rules, I entered the zone on 5/31/10.
First thing I did was buy several scales, two food scales, one for my kitchen and one that is in my purse to this day, if I eat out, I weigh what they bring me. Also bought a body weight scale w/ fat percentage, more on that horror. Then I printed out lists of foods and how many blocks they are, this stays in my kitchen next to the scale. I was ready.
I was 159lbs with a fat percentage of 24. Ugly! Couldn't bear to take measurements, which I sorely regret, but I was a size 6 or a medium. My Helen time the beginning of May was 18:39 my 5k time was 31:39 or there abouts. Couldn't manage more than 7 or 8 pullups at a time, and I'd been doing them since December. You get the idea.
Started this at 14 blocks, and at first, made sure every meal had an equal amount of protein/carbs/fat. This quickly became a problem for me as I naturally ate more carbs in the early part of the day, and more protein at night. Immediately started to feel shitty and weak, especially during WODs (which are typically at lunchtime for me), as I wasn't taking in enough carbs before or after the WODs in an attempt to save the blocks for my later, equal meals. The WODs I did the beginning of June are some of the worst I've ever done in terms of performance, by Friday, I was done. Barry could keep his Zone, I was freaking OUTTA there!
Common sense prevailed in the form of Gary, who pointed out that some of the Zone rules were meant to be broken, or at least modified for individual needs. In my case, it was important for me to have 4-5 blocks of carbs before, and 1-2 blocks of carbs after,in order to do well, and feel good afterwards. So what if I was eating the lions share of my carbs before one oclock, as long as at the end of the day all three columns (and yes, I write every bit of food I eat down, and the blocks it equals) said 14 blocks, I was good to go. I went with this modification because, A) quitting after a week was SO unpalatable B) I knew I could eat this way, I'm a protein junkie at night.
Now things got a bit better, and I started to see the weight come off, a little bit of weight.
After a couple of weeks, I started to realize that I could probably be OK w/12 blocks, the moderately hungry feeling I always had was something I was getting used to, (really!!) and while the weight was coming off, it was slow, and I wasn't seeing any real gains at the box. So I went down to 12 blocks, and all of a sudden, I was taking off weight like crazy! At twelve blocks, I started to notice my clothes getting bigger on me, and my energy level going up. WODS were still not what I wanted them to be, but I kept the faith. Within a few weeks, 12-15 lbs were history, and people were starting to notice.
At this point, I want to address the cheat meal. This is something I hear a lot about, for me, I decided that I was not going to go this route. It seemed like too much trouble to go through weighing, measuring, WODing, only to ruin it with a meal/event/party (and there have been MANY this summer!!). This is just my take, of coarse one meal doesn't ruin a week or two efforts, but I wanted all my efforts to count. So I choose to not cheat.
What WAS I eating, WELLLLL, better than I ever have, 2 eggs every morning w/ fruit and nuts, an apple 40 minutes before every WOD, at that point, a zone bar after every WOD (more on that later) cheese sticks or sliced turkey w/more fruit & nuts throughout the rest of the day, or another zone bar, and a big spinich salad w/ chicken at night was a typical day. Did not have any alcohol the first 3 weeks, then, started saving a carb so I could have a beer or a glass of wine at night. It was good, and then, I hit a wall. Down about 17 lbs, feeling good, but not at my goal weight yet, I stopped losing weight. Oh NO!!
Talked to Gary about my dilemna, really wanted to take off more weight, but I was stuck, and I hadn't seen the gains I was looking for at the gym, but I was afraid I wouldn't be able to function with any less food. My man pulled through for me, AGAIN. He advised me go down to 10 blocks, but increase my fat blocks when needed. In other words, have a block of nuts when feeling hungry, throughout the day, up to 20 blocks of fat, just keep the carbs strictly at 10, as well as the protein.
And this is when things got good at the box, because I took off more weight, and overnight (almost) I was 23 pounds lighter, which made it easier to run/do pushups/pullups.... any body weight movement I tried to do became easier, and I was doing it quicker. Did I lose some strength, yes, a little, but not much, and I have no doubt I will regain it, and more, because I an determined to do so. I am still not at my goal weight, want to lose 30 lbs altogether, today I am 5 1/2 lbs shy of that number, I have taken my carbs down to 8 blocks, with 10 blocks of protein and 20 blocks of fat. It's not easy, but I like being strong and fast a whole lot more than I like sushi, margaritas and chocolate......and I love that stuff! But I really love being more than a casual crossfitter, I want to be as good and strong as possible!!
Today is August 5th, it has been 9 1/2 weeks since I started this experiment, which, next to marrying Gary (!) and finding crossfit, so far seems to be the one of the best things I've done for myself. The clothes I have had to buy for myself are a size 2. I cut my Helen time by 5 minutes, and my 5k time by 5 1/2 minutes. I've put together 13 pullups, and know I can/will do more. I'm getting closer and closer to the athletes I've been chasing for almost a year now, and I thank them for giving me something to strive for. I am grateful to be part of a box full of positive, hard working members, and a coach who is smart, creative, and unyielding in his expectations. Finally, there is no way I could have done this w/o my wonderful husband, who is guiding me, supporting me, and putting up with me like no one else would. This story is just starting, I hope the future is filled with strong WODs....bring on the muscle!!
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