The Zone tries to _balance_ carbs and proteins...it's their claim to fame....but look at what they advise for main meals and you will find alot of veggies. Fruits are also a big part of the Zone. I don't know if they're backing out fiber content (ECC) when counting carbs.

Here's a sample menu from the Zone:
http://www.zoneperfect.com/Site/con...plans_7d11b.asp

The Zone doesn't look too bad to me....except for eating fruit at meal time and I don't know what a Zoneperfect bar is....

Presently, we eat 5 to 8 ounces of (cooked) beef, chicken, pork, and fish at dinner time, with 2 to 3 cups of veggies...cabbage, brocolli, squash(yep), mushrooms, onions (vidalia sweets or mayan!), fresh snaps... We only eat fresh fruit at snacktime.... bananas, apples, canteloupe, watermelon, etc. Steadily losing inches and pounds. The fruits and veggies add up to alot of carbs for us...I don't bother with the ECC anymore...I just eat sensibly and eat often, don't count calories and I don't sweat it when I go out to eat once a month...Chinese, pizza, fried seafood.

I've lost 60 lbs in 5 months, Mark has lost 62 lbs in less than 5 months using Protein Power Lifeplan....I'd recommend it to anyone willing to do it for the rest of their life...but if you can't commit to the life change, the Zone may be an alternative...at least it advocates nutritional balance of some kind.

Cheryl