There are often success stories that come out of the woodwork to help publicise new diets, but one story regarding the Zone Diet masterminded by Dr Barry Sears is truly inspirational.

Zone Diet moderate amounts
The Diet itself is described more as a "way of life" rather than a fad diet and its core principle is that the body needs to calm hormonal imbalance by eating moderate amounts of all foods, in order to sustain weight loss. The Zone Diet also claims to boost longevity and keep followers healthier well into old age.

Core principles of the Zone Diet
1. Eating with balance: incorporating all three macro-nutrients, protein, carbohydrates and fats, into every meal and snack. Sears says that any diets that are high or low in any of the macronutrients put hormones out of balance and are unsustainable in the long term.

2. Omega-3 : Sears also places emphasis on "anti-inflammatory" substances which can help reduce silent inflammation in the brain, nervous system and cardiovascular system. Silent inflammation can cause early ageing and complications in the cardiovascular and nervous systems. Omega-3 supplements comprised of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) are recommended for this purpose.

3. Polyphenols: these anti-oxidants present in fruit and vegetables are a cornerstone of the Zone Diet as their anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory abilities help combat ageing and guard our immune health.

4. Fitness: Sears recommends moderate exercise of 30 minutes per day, six days per week. Exercise combined with the balanced Zone Diet and fish oils supplementation can be extremely beneficial to muscle tissue, helping to strengthen our muscles and also aids in reducing inflammation as described before.

5. Targeted Supplements: these will be prescribed on individual health and circumstance, however supplementation is treated as exactly that – a supplement to the already healthful Zone Diet and exercise plan.

Endorsement from World's Heaviest Man
The Zone Diet's major success story comes from the miraculous 400 pound (181.44kg) weight loss by the (former) heaviest man in the world, Manuel Uribe. Uribe just celebrated his 43rd birthday, and although he is still bedridden, he is also celebrating going from 1232 pounds (558.83kg) to 832 pounds (377.39kg).

Uribe thanks the Zone Diet for his success and although he is still bedridden, he has an exercise contraption which enables him to "arm-cycle" and he can do sit ups in his bed.
If he can do it, surely anyone can!