Last time I IFed I found hunger to become a more varied signal and something much more under conscious control.

Some hungers turn out not to be that urgent.

There's a different hunger for an empty stomach and for a suddenly drop in blood sugar, etc.

I mean different body signals tell you that you are hungry and you learn to introspect them a bit.

I had quite a bit of fun trying to get to biochemical/physiological/phycological understanding of the triggers/sensations.

The one I could never quite crack is a craving to chew when I could tell my stomach was full and I was satiated otherwise.

It doesn't feel like work to me after I'm used to it, just a part of life. I'd only be cheating myself if I cheated on it, so I always err on overestimating.

I also track protein to make sure I get at least 170g, so that's an additional benefit.

170g of protein?? Are you also doing a carnivore diet or keto?

"gram of protein per pound of bodyweight" is a fairly standard macro ratio in the fitness community.

170g of protein is only 680 cals, so plenty of room left over for carbs and fat.

Right, and in my case I was only going for .8 grams per pound. It's hard to do without going over on calories without a lot of meals being skinless chicken breast.

I think the formula is .8g per kg of bodyweight, not per pound. That’s a significant difference.

That's for the average person, but for someone who's trying to gain muscle, a minimum of .8 per lb is recommended.

I agree with your sentiment but would add I think counting calories is a better strategy than most people think. For many they lack a very high level idea of how many calories they are eating, particularly for sugary drinks. By learning to ballpark better I’ve seen people have success. And for that it’s only tricky for a couple weeks, then you just get good at estimating and it becomes more automatic. Ultimately whatever works is best but I wish more people would give counting an honest shot, especially after seeing how well a few folks I know did once they started doing jt.

Agreeing.

I personally find it psychologically much easier to not eat at all for now (knowing I'll feast in a while) than to exert the effort of eating less when I'm eating now.