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Get in shape for Spring Break
A combination of exercise and dieting leads to a healthy
lifestyle (and helps you look good in a bathing suit, too!)
Alana Dunn & Martha-Page Ransdell /
Special Projects Editors
The Zone
Created by Dr. Barry Sears in 1995, the Zone diet emphasizes
a balance of carbs, proteins and fats by eating about 1,200
calories per day. With the Zone diet, the key to weight loss
is insulin control.
- Eat at least five times per day – three Zone meals
and two Zone snacks that are a balance of low-fat proteins,
complex carbs and a little bit of “good” fat
- Make sure to eat at least every five hours, even if
you’re not hungry
- Always eat a Zone meal within an hour of when you wake up;
get most carbs from fruits and vegetables; eat pasta and
other starchy foods sparingly
- Drink at least eight 8 oz. glasses of water per day
A Typical Day on the Zone Diet:
Breakfast: omelet, 2/3 cup oatmeal and 1
cup strawberries
Lunch: grilled chicken Caesar salad, 2 cups
grilled vegetables and an apple
Late-afternoon snack: 2 deviled eggs filled
with hummus
Dinner: 5 oz. grilled salmon, salad, 4 cups
steamed vegetables, 1 cup berries
Late-evening snack: 1 oz. low-fat cheese
“Enter the Zone” is available for $16.50 at
Amazon.com.
Eating on campus while dieting
“It’s definitely possible for a student to eat
at the dining halls while on a specific diet,” said
Rita Gordish, marketing program manager for Elon dining
services. “You could follow any diet out there and
still eat on campus, just not necessarily at every
location.” Jeff Gazda, the resident district manager of
Elon dining services, said that it’s easier for dining
services to work with an individual’s specific requests
because most people aren’t on restrictive diets.
“We try to serve the majority but take care of the few
with special requests,” he said.
In the past, nutritional information has been listed about
many of the meals served in the dining halls. However, since
Elon now uses Aramark standard recipes along with local
recipes, nutritional information is no longer provided.
“We don’t want to put up false
information,” said John Maney, director of operations
for Elon dining services. However, some nutritional
information as well as tips for healthy eating are located on
the dining service’s web site.
Weight Watchers
Begun as a weight-loss focus group in Jean Nidetch’s
home in Queens, New York, in the 1960s, Weight Watchers has
become an internationally recognized diet plan over the last
40 years. The main weight-loss plan, the TurnAround Plan, is
made up of two very different plans: the Flex Plan and the
Core Plan. Both plans emphasize a variety of foods and
exercise.
Flex Plan: Counting with points
- Each food has a point value based on Weight Watchers point
formula
- You’ll eat a range of foods while counting points
- Worry more about amount of food rather than type of food
Core Plan: No counting
- Fill up without eating empty calories – prevents
overeating
- You’ll eat fruits, vegetables, grains, starches,
lean meats, poultry, eggs, dairy products and occasional
treats
According to the Weight Watchers web site, the standard
monthly plan is $12.95 per month. See
http://www.weightwatchers.com for more information.
A nutritionist’s perspective
Elon nutritionist Cindy Novak suggested other options for
those trying to lose weight and get in shape. “I think
the word ‘diet’ should be completely erased from
the English language,” Novak said. For dieters, she
emphasized a combination of portion control, low-fat food
choices and daily exercise as the keys to losing weight.
“The problem with Atkins and the South Beach diets are
that they cut out your carbohydrates,” she said. People
need to continue to eat complex carbs, which are richer in
fiber and whole wheat and avoid simple carbs, which come in
the form of prepackaged foods.
According to Novak, daily exercise, especially walking, is a
vital part of any weight loss program. “Walking at a
slower pace but for a long amount of time is a good way to
increase endurance and burn calories,” she said. With
regular exercise, controlling the amount of food eaten and
choosing low-fat food options, there is no need to jump on
the fad diet bandwagon. If someone chooses to begin Atkins,
Novak advised not to stay on it for more than a couple of
months. “It’s not as healthy as other weight-loss
plans out there because it cuts out most of your
carbohydrates,” she said. Instead, the South Beach diet
is a modified version of Atkins and is healthier to stay on
for longer periods of time.
The Atkins Diet
Originally developed in the early 1970s, Dr. Robert Atkins
designed the Atkins diet for weight loss, weight maintenance,
good health and disease prevention by following four phases.
Phase 1: Induction
- Lasts at least two weeks
- You’ll eat: plenty of protein, including poultry,
fish, shellfish, eggs and red meat; natural fats, including
butter, mayonnaise, olive oil and safflower oil (according to
an acceptable foods list); about 20 grams of carbs per day,
mostly from vegetables
- You won’t eat: fruit, bread, pasta, grains, starchy
vegetables, dairy products (except cheese, cream and butter),
nuts, seeds, legumes
- Stabilize your blood sugar to curb cravings
Phase 2: Ongoing weight loss
- Continue to get carbs from vegetables; add nuts, seeds and
berries
- Focus on carb-counting; goal is to stay below your
Critical Carbohydrate Level for Losing (CCLL)
- Increase from 20 to 25 carbs per day during the first
week, then increase to 30 carbs per day the second week
Phase 3: Pre-maintenance
- Lasts until weight remains constant for several weeks
- Begin to eat more fruits in small amounts as long as you
don’t get cravings
Phase 4: Lifetime maintenance
- Make weight control a priority and continue regular
exercise
- Keep weight off by eating natural, unprocessed carbs
- Develop a strategy for avoiding tempting foods
“Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution” is
available for $7.19 at Amazon.com. More information can also
be found at http://atkins.com.
The South Beach Diet
Discontented with the low-fat, high-carb diet recommended by
the American Heart Association, cardiologist Dr. Arthur
Agatston created the South Beach diet in the mid-1990s.
Designed to control weight and to better heart health, the
South Beach diet works in a series of three phases. Dieters
follow the first phase for two weeks, the second phase for
however long it takes to reach the weight-loss goal, and the
third phase for the rest of a person’s life. Different
from other diets, the South Beach diet is not particularly
concerned with portion size or exercise.
Phase 1
- Lasts two weeks
- Helps get rid of cravings
- Eat three balanced meals plus snacks
- Interesting fact: snacks are mandatory even if
you’re not hungry because they help to control cravings
by keeping blood-sugar levels steady
- You’ll eat: lean meats, chicken, turkey, fish,
shellfish, eggs, cheese, nuts, beans, veggies
- You won’t eat: bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, baked
goods, fruit (you’ll begin adding these back in after
two weeks)
- You definitely won’t eat: candy, cake, cookies, ice
cream, sugar, beer or alcohol
Phase 2
- No time limit – follow this phase until you reach
your weight-loss goal
- Slowly reintroduces carbs after eliminating cravings in
Phase 1
- Slow reintroduction is key so you won’t slip back in
to old habits
- Add one carb to one daily meal for one week and see how
your body responds in terms of cravings
- If you get cravings, try reintroducing different carbs
until you find one that doesn’t give you cravings
- Goal is to get up to eating two to three servings of good
carbs per day
Phase 3
- Follow for life
- Don’t want to drop the diet and go back to your old
ways
- Keep making smart choices and trying new things
“The South Beach Diet,” filled with recipes and
daily meal plans, is available for $16.47 at Amazon.com. To
see if the South Beach diet is right for you, take an online
quiz at http://secure.agoramedia.com/tracking/sbdquiz.asp
Contact Alana Dunn and Martha-Page Ransdell at
pendulum@elon.edu or 278-7247.
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