I'm re-reading Jason Fung's book on obesity and am in the chapter where he talks about changes in basal metabolic rate due to underfeeding or overfeeding. One experimental description caught my eye: A British trainer overfed to the tune of 5500 calories per day, but did it on protein and fat. He only gained 2 pounds, but reduced his waist size. The weight gain was muscle mass. He then did the same thing but overfed on the Standard American [high-carb] Diet. The weight gain was as predicted by the level of over-feeding, on the order of 20lbs.
I've been talking about hedonic satiety in recent posts, but there is another kind of satiety related to the volume and frequency of food intake. Anyone that has pushed back from an all-you-can-eat buffet knows what it feels like to be overfull on sheer quantity. Honestly, for me, this is a pleasant feeling. I like feeling full, and conversely, I don't like walking around hungry.
We all have a cultural problem here, in that we universally assign judgements of gluttony to overeating, and we don't differentiate if the macronutrient composition is weighted towards protein and fat. If we are all going to naturally want a period of overfeeding after a long period of caloric deficit, why not try it this way?
Punch line - if you are hungry, eat. Just don't eat Wawa mac and cheese.
