When it comes to the three macronutrients, protein is like the golden child. It’s the one that does everything well and never gets blamed for much.

Protein by far has the highest thermic effect and is deeply difficult for your body to store as fat (5).

When you eat protein in a caloric deficit (eat less calories than you burn), a higher ratio of protein generally produces more favorable weight loss results.

When you eat in a surplus (eat more calories than you burn), additional protein contributes little to fat gain.

I hate to play favorites, but protein is quite the all star nutrient. It enhances fat loss results and is more forgiving when you overeat it. Fats and carbs on the other hand are a bit different. They are both useful and important in their own ways, but both contribute to your love handles more than protein when overeaten which often gives them a bit worse of a reputation.

When you’re dieting, your carb to fat ratio is largely irrelevant. You end up losing the same amount of weight given calories are equal. The research is clear on this.

However, what most people don’t know is that between carbs and fat, one of them does seem to contribute more to fat gain when you eat in a caloric surplus even when calories are equal.

This is important because if 2 genetically equal people overeat the same amount of calories, but their carb to fat ratio was different, one person will gain more fat.

And let’s be real, we all binge our faces off from time to time so choosing between candy and soda or cheesecake and mozzarella sticks can make the difference between the amount of fat we gain.

This also applies to people on a bulk who are intentionally eating in a surplus and want to minimize fat gain. Choosing an ideal ratio of macros will minimize fat gain.

So let’s look at some research to find out which is more fattening, carbs or fat?