DIET: ZONE DIET & ATHLETES
Question: Some people say the Zone diet is good for athletes, and others say it's bad. Is it good or bad? Why?
Answer: Probably bad. In his book The Zone, Barry Sears claims that people on the Zone diet will gain a state of optimal health that includes maintaining an ideal weight and enhancing their athletic performance.
The Zone diet was developed by Barry Sears, PhD. The diet was made popular by his book The Zone, which was published in 1995. The diet consists of calorie restriction and eating a standardized ratio of carbohydrates, fat, and protein. On the Zone diet, the average American male exercising three times a week would eat about 1,400 calories a day:
- 40% of calories would come from carbohydrates.
- 30% from fat.
- 30% from protein.
By comparison, the average American male (not on a diet) eats about 2,000 or more calories a day:
- 55% from carbohydrates.
- 30% from fat.
- 15% from protein.
Unfortunately for the Zone diet, sports medicine experts have looked at the claims and concluded that the Zone diet is not likely to be good for athletes, and in some cases it may even decrease performance. The basic problem is that the diet does not give athletes in training enough calories. For example, the Zone diet would give marathon runners about 1,750 calories per day, while they actually need about 5,000 calories a day to meet their training needs. Athletes-in-training on the Zone diet would experience muscle mass loss and decreased athletic performance. Many research studies confirm this basic tenet of high-performance athletic training: Adequate carbohydrate and caloric intake is necessary to maintain performance. Athletes who exercise only 3-4 hours a week, however, do not necessarily need large caloric intakes and may be able to maintain performance on the Zone diet.
In summary, the overwhelming opinion among sports medicine experts is that the Zone diet is not good for athletes-in-training. The main problem for athletes on the Zone diet is inadequate intake of calories to meet their energy needs.See Also:
Diet Types
Diet: High Fiber
Diet: Atkins
Diet: Meat Consumption
Diet: Mediterranean
Diet: TABB (Trim & Beautiful Bodies)
Diet: Vegetarian
Diet: Low Fat
Diet: Stomach Shrinkage
Diet: Zone Diet
Diet: Chonic Fatigue
Diet: Low Sodium
