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Description: Barry Sears looks at why Americans still have dietary problems in spite of following the advice of experts. Challenging the current recommendations for a high carbohydrate diet, Sears looks into man’s history as well as the diets athletes succeed best on, to build a new dietary picture. Anyone looking for better health through an improved relationship to what they eat should put this book on their list.
Customer Comments: This book is a very clinical read, but is well worth it, because it holds the answer to weight loss.I went from 209 pounds to 151 pounds with the principles of this book. Once you understand how insulin works against you to store fat,and learn the right amount of protein and carbs your body needs to maintain your ideal weight, you can begin your journey to eat in the zone and lose weight.It has been my eating guidelines for almost 10 years. It is well worth the trouble to learn to treat food as a drug.
I read this book about 10 years ago and was initially impressed. I didn’t like the redundant writing style, but I thought this guy is a “scientist”, not a writer, and that the information was credible. It’s not! Aside from the severe calorie deprivation, recommended through a convoluted protein equation, this book sounds reasonable. Eat as if you were diabetic, or about to become diabetic.
Back then, I didn’t realize that diabetes is as much about atherosclerosis, as it is about blood-sugar levels, and eating a 30% protein (As I recall, Sears actually advocates a higher than 30% protein diet because he doesn’t count, or consider reliable, high-fibre sources of protein such as beans.) and 30% fat diet can be a recipe for heart disease, diabetes, and osteoporosis. Plus a good way to increase your risk for some kinds of cancer.

One other thing. Barry Sears claims, in this, his first “zone” book, that his “zone favorable” diet helped Dave Scott, at age 40, finish second in the 1994 Gatorade Ironman Triathlon. Dave Scott’s response was published in 2001. “That’s the biggest false statement ever. I’ve never read Sears’ book. I’ve never tried Sears’ diet. It’s been awful having to refute this lie for the past five years. I called and left a message for Sears and sent him an e-mail, and he never replied”. Read a full critique of this book in John Robbins’ “The Food Revolution”. The only reason I gave “The Zone” 2 stars, is because at least it’s an improvement over Atkins.

If you’re looking for a book on superior nutrition, as well as one for weight-loss, start with Joel Fuhrman’s “Eat To Live”, and if you have to, modify his approach to suit your needs. He’s got the results and credibility Barry Sears can only dream about. The only zone Sears has found is “The Twilight Zone”. He’s not the first, and won’t be the last, to make a lot of money there.

I really like the 40-30-30 diet. Once I got the formula down–as to how many grams of protein, fat & carbs per block, and then how many blocks I should eat a day–It was easy peasy. I am losing weight readily and am never hungry.

As for recipes and such…I don’t like the recipes in this series (i.e. perfect meals in minutes). There are a bunch of nice smoothy recipes that serve FOUR! Who makes smoothies for four? Who even has a blender big enough to make smoothies for four? In anycase, I have found that the 40-30-30 ‘Formula’ series by Daoust has better meal ideas. But The Zone is best for understanding the 40-30-30 concept, and putting it into action.

I don’t understand what the big deal and supposed ‘conspiracy’ about the Zone being a lower calorie diet. Except for Atkins, isn’t that what people expect of a diet? I am losing weight more quickly on the zone than on other diets and I’m not suffering while doing it; That’s the big deal about the Zone.

I am giving Dr. Sears and his Zone book series 4 stars. I would have given him 5, but the whole Smoothy thing really pissed me off.
Customer Rating 4.0

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