I had recently been having trouble with a new pair of jeans (36") that seemed to have been manufactured on the small side. I dreaded going to the bathroom at work, because it was not trivial to get them closed up again. No big deal, they’d stretch soon enough.
Yesterday was my birthday again and I had the same meal, kind of. The plate of rice smothered in BBQ sauce became 1/4 cub of rice that I mixed in with my normal veggies. The ribs became a single, very tasty, rib and I did eat a bit extra by having salad as well as my veggies. I decided I wanted to have the normal cake and ice cream, I wanted it to be a pretty normal time for the family. I had 1/4 cup of ice cream and a thin slice of cake. Wow that seemed like I had really splurged, but testing several times after the meal showed I never got over 119 and was down to 107 by 3 hours PP.
My wife game me new jeans for my birthday, these are 34". They close up just fine, they might even be a bit roomy. My inlaws gave me a shirt L (my XLs were getting snug last year) and it fits great.
So, did I feel deprived? I honestly did not. I felt better after eating. I had "the same" meal and I do not seem to have harmed myself. Too bad I did not have a clue before I pushed my body over the edge.