I played around with the Zone years ago, and some of it has still stuck. When I plan out what I consider to be good South Beach Diet days, my carbs/fat/protein ratio is almost always 40/30/30, which I assume is still the goal of the Zone.
South Beach doesn't specify the carb/fat/protein ratio for each meal and snack. Maybe there is something I am forgetting about the Zone but I never thought these diets are that different, except SBD required (for me) less work. I end up with the same ratio, but the up side of SBD is that I don't have to plan those ratios at all, and certainly not for every meal. If I get my protein, my 4.5 cups of veggies, my beans, nuts, olive oil, etc. it all works out.
If you decide to switch to SBD, check out the
meal planning thread someone just posted. I had the same information put in an Excel spreadsheet when I started to help plan my meals.
Planning on the go takes some getting used to - it's certainly more difficult than straight calorie counting. But once you get a few choices in your mind, it's way easier to find stuff while you are out (like a Subway salad) or to throw stuff in your bag to eat (like a small bag of nuts, some cut up veggies with hummus, a hard-boiled egg...).
It's true, though, what the others have said about quick loss. My loss has been anything but that - BUT I don't have that much to lose. I was really looking for a way to eat healthy forever.
Good luck to you!