Protein/Carbohydrate Ratio Checklist

Category

Correct Ratio

Incorrect ratio

APPETITE
SATIETY
SWEET CRAVINGS

Following the meal…

• Feel full, satisfied
• Do NOT have sweet cravings
• Do NOT desire more food
• Do not get hungry soon after
• Do not need to snack before next meal

Following the meal…

• Feel physically full, but still hungry
• Don’t feel satisfied; feel like something was missing from the meal
• Have desire for sweets
• Feel hungry again soon after meal
• Need to snack between meals

ENERGY LEVELS

Normal energy response to meal:

• Energy is restores after eating
• Have good, lasting, “normal” sense of energy and well-being
  

Aberrant energy response to meal

• Too much or too little
• Became jittery, hyper, shaky, nervous or speedy
• Feel hyper, but exhausted “underneath”
• Energy drop, fatigue, exhaustion, sleepiness, drowsiness, listlessness or lethargy
  

MENTAL
EMOTIONAL
WELL-BEING

Normal qualities

• Improved well-being
• Sense of feeling refueled and restored
• Slight upliftment in emotions
• Improved clarity and acuity of mind
• Normalizing of thought processes

Aberrant qualities

• Mentally slow, sluggish and spacey
• Inability to think quickly or clearly
• Hyper, overly rapid thoughts
• Inability to focus/hold attention
• Hypo traits: Apathy, depression or sadness
• Hyper traits: Anxious, obsessive, fearful, angry, short or irritable

In short, there should result an overall restoration and normalization in mind, body, emotions, appetite and well-being from eating. You should feel better after eating. If a clear worsening results from eating a meal in any of these areas, the cause is most likely improper protein/carbohydrate ratio. This is assuming, of course that you are eating the proper foods for your metabolic type and restricting any known reactive or allergic foods.