Welcome to my on-line 40-30-30 profile calculator! Getting
started on the Zone Diet or any other 40-30-30 nutritional plan
is much easier when you know where to start. With this handy
calculator you can determine your daily macronutrient intake
requirements. The profile that is generated will be valuable to
you once you begin planning your meals.
Instructions for the profile calculator
There are several measurements that you will need to take and
these will be different for men and women. All are listed
and explained for clarity but see the table below for the ones
that apply to you.
Possible measurements:
Waist - the distance in inches around your waist at the
level of the navel. This should be taken while relaxed. Don't
try to suck in that gut!
Hips (women only) - the distance in inches around the widest
part of the hips.
Height (women only) - height in inches (ex. 5'2" is 62").
Wrist (men only) - distance in inches around the wrist. This
should be right where the wrist bends. Just behind the hand
and in front of the wrist bone.
Weight - Weight in pounds.
Activity Level - this will be rated as follows:
Sedantary - couch potato... you really have no exercise plan.
Light - basic exercise such as walking.
Moderate - physical training 3 times a week or sports participation.
Daily - daily training (moderate weights, aerobic).
Heavy - heavy weight training each day.
Intense - daily heavy training plus sports activity.
You may not be accurately described by the above examples
but you should use them as a guide to see where your activity
level fits in. Note: This calculator automatically takes into
consideration "increased activity level" for men and
women over 30% and 40% bodyfat (respectively) so don't adjust
that yourself.
Additionally you may enter your name and date of calculation. I
recommend this (and that you print out the results) so that
as you re-take your measurements and re-calculate from time to
time you will have a record of your progress.
Remember that the male and female determinations are made differently
so some differing measurements will be taken.
Basic knowledge of the Zone Diet is prefered but regardless of your familiarity with this
technology, here are the general guidelines that must be followed in order to stay "in the Zone":
Eat at least 4 times per day and space meals and snacks at regular intervals wherever
possible. Try 4 meals or 3 meals and 2 snacks or 3 meals and 3 snacks or whatever works
for you. Just distribute the recommended block requirements among the meals and snacks
so that they total your daily requirement. A plan for an 11 block day may look like this:
3 meals of 3 blocks and 2 snacks of 1 block or perhaps a 3.5 block breakfast, a 2 block
lunch, a 3.5 block dinner and a 2 block bedtime snack.
Try not to go over or under your recommended daily requirements. However, if your daily
requirement seems like more than you can eat then don't push yourself.
Always match your protein, carbohydrate and fat blocks in a 1:1:1 ratio every time you eat.
If you plan to eat 2.5 blocks of protein then be sure to have 2.5 blocks of carbohydrates and
2.5 blocks of fat during that same meal. Regarding the fat, however, you can go higher if you
need (or want) to. Just don't cut it short. Most important though is that the protein and
carbohydrate blocks balance.
Remember, a block of protein is 7 grams, a block of carbohydrates is 9 grams and a block of
fat is 3 grams. Balancing is done block to block to block, not gram to gram to gram.
Consume unsaturated fats wherever possible. Avoid saturated fats and hydrogenated oils
such as margarine and "fake" cheese. Nuts, olive oil, and avocados are among the best
sources of fat and contrary to popular belief, they will do little to your weight.
Foods with a high glycemic index such as grains and potatoes should be eaten sparingly.
Avoid foods that are high in arachidonic acid such as organ meats, red meat and egg yolks.
Try more fish, fowl and egg whites instead.
Note that the above suggestions do not outline the Zone Diet in its
entirety. If you wish to truly follow the Zone eating plan you should
begin by reading "The Zone" by Dr. Barry Sears and to learn even more,
visit "The Zone Files".