# Excess food. Ration or engorge to max caloric efficiency? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 26, 2007, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excess-food-ration-or-engorge-to-max-caloric-efficiency/416972 "2007-08-26T05:23:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![diseased](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6bbea6/32.png) [@diseased](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diseased)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2007, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excess-food-ration-or-engorge-to-max-caloric-efficiency/416972/1 "2007-08-26T05:23:39Z")
Say I have about 20,000 calories of food. Normal human metabolism is 2000 calories a day so that is 10 days of food energy if rationed, but instead if i eat all 20,000 calories all at once and not eat for the next 10 days is it just as efficient? ---
**Author:** ![pool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pool/32/4152_2.png) [@pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pool)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2007, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excess-food-ration-or-engorge-to-max-caloric-efficiency/416972/2 "2007-08-26T05:45:52Z")
I’m guessing there is going to be a lot of unabsorbed nutrients and food matter that you could have used had you eaten over the ten day period. So ration it out I say. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2007, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/excess-food-ration-or-engorge-to-max-caloric-efficiency/416972/3 "2007-08-26T06:20:23Z")
Anything you body can not immediately use (digest) as a result of your 20,000 calorie gorging it will probably excrete, or you will throw it up, or both. Ration it.