Physical Health And Financial Planning                                                 

Maintaining your physical health is one of the most important things that you can do to enhance your financial health. Medical care is so expensive these days that you should do anything that you can to minimize your chance of illness. By reducing your medical expenses you will have more money for investments.

Nutrition

There are many excellent nutritional programs. I believe that the Zone Nutrition Program as described by Dr. Barry Sears in his book called "Entering The Zone" is one of the best. Of course, before you follow a nutrition program or exercise program you should consult a physician. The goal of the Zone Nutrition Program is to help you achieve hormonal balance by eating properly and regulating the insulin that your body produces. This program will help you think better (by maintaining stable blood sugar levels), perform better (by increasing oxygen transfer to your muscles), look better (by shedding excess body fat), minimize the probability that you will be ill and never be hungry between meals (because your brain is being supplied constantly with blood sugar).


The program is very simple. At every meal or snack you should have an approximate ratio of 7 grams of Protein (Dr. Sears calls this 1 block of Protein) to every 9 grams of Carbohydrates (1 block of Carbohydrates) to every 1.5 grams of Fat (1 block Fat). Dr. Sears has developed a listing of what constitutes a block of Protein, Carbohydrates and Fat. Your goal is to have equal blocks of Protein, Carbohydrates and Fat at each meal. How many blocks of each do you need each day. This depends on your "Lean Body Mass" (everything but the fat on your body) and how active you are (if you exercise more than 2.5 hours a week then your Activity Factor is .9). The calculation is as follows:
Multiply Lean Body Mass (Times) Activity Factor (Divided By) 7 (=) The Number of Blocks Per Day of Protein, Carbohydrates and Fat.


The basic Zone Nutrition Program requirements are that you eat five times a day (three meals and two snacks), drink 64 ounces of water per day, never let more than five hours go by without eating a Zone meal or snack, try not to eat more than five blocks of protein, carbohydrate or fat per meal and make sure you have equivalent blocks of each. Mastering The Zone has some suggested recipes (already broken down by blocks) that I encourage you to look at. Corinne Netzers Complete Book of Food Counts lists foods and the amount of Protein Carbohydrates and Fat that they contain. Dr. Sears recommends that you use this book to create your favorite Zone meals. I have included below some portion sizes of protein, carbohydrates and fats equal to one block. Remember to have equal blocks of protein, carbohydrates and fats at each meal.


One Block of Protein
Best Choices
Beef 1oz.
Chicken breast, skinless 1oz.
Chicken breast, deli-style 1 ½ oz.
Turkey breast, skinless 1oz.
Turkey breast, deli-style 1oz.
Egg Whites 2
Egg substitute 1/4 cup
One Block of Carbohydrates
Favorable Carbohydrates
Green Beans 1 cup
Mushrooms (boiled) 1 cup
Green or red peppers 3
Lettuce, iceburg (6" diameter) 1 head
Cabbage, shredded 1 1/3 cup
Mushrooms, chopped 6 cups
Tomato 2
Tomato, chopped 1 ¼ cup
Oatmeal (cooked) 1/3 cup
Apple 1/2
Blackberries 3/4 cup
Grapes 1/2 cup
Grapefruit 1/2
Orange 1/2
Peach 1
Pear 1/2
One Block of Fat
Best Choices
Peanuts 6
Peanut Oil 1/3 tsp.
Peanut Butter, natural 1/2 tsp.
Olive Oil 1/3 tsp.
Canola Oil 1/3 tsp.


By following the Zone Nutrition Program you will be able to improve your health through nutrition. Eating well is a great way to stay healthy and avoid costly medical bills. By minimizing these bills you will have more money to achieve your financial planning goals.