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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote]I absolutely believe this. I have always been a normal weight but if I go on vacation, for example, where we are just eating and lots of rich and decadent foods that I would normally eat once in a while but there I'd be eating day in and day out, at first, I would get nauseated by SO MUCH FOOD. But over time, I think your body somehow adjusts and that becomes your new normal. But this is the thing that I think many overweight people don't really "get" - the same thing happens in reverse. Thus, if you are used to eating SO MUCH FOOD, but spend a few weeks or a month adjusting back down to normal portion sizes, your body/hunger cues will also adjust and you will not feel hungry. I constantly hear people accusing normal weight people of "starving themselves" and "being hungry all the time" when, in fact, you just don't need as much food to feel full in that state. I think a case can be made for this phenomenon. [/quote]

+1.  I think this is absolutely the key.  And explains why when Americans spend significant time in another country, they often "naturally" shed weight as they adjust to smaller portions.

When you are heavier, you eat to maintain that body weight, which will translate into a fairly high daily calorie intake.  If you diet, of course you will feel hungry because you are eating less than you need to maintain.  I agree though that you can reset what your "normal" intake is as your weight goes down, and there is less to maintain. It takes some time - a month or more of being truly hungry, but it is not impossible.  The residual desire to eat more I think is mostly habit and culture - not genetic - again you only have to look at what happens to overweight people when they are in a different place or different routine.  I think the genetic component is the small but significant variance in metabolism: different people of similar height/sex/activity who eat 1600 cals may end up nonetheless at different weights - which is totally unfair.  But I don't buy that Americans are just "genetically" programed to eat more - again, just compare to almost every other country/cultures where average weight is statistically far lower (anecdotes about portly Brits aside).[/quote]

+2.  If I go on a binge (usually while travelling in the states or during blizzards...), my stomach gets accustomed to eating much more food.  So, I have to purposefully reduce portion sizes for a few days, which does leave me a little hungry.  But after a few days, I'm used to it, and I don't want to eat more.  I'm not hungry at all.  I'm perfectly happy.  And thin.  It isn't genetic.  It is just making sure that I don't stretch out my stomach so much that I crave the same quantity next time.[/quote]

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