Calorie Deficit, Explained Without the Gimmicks
How to find your maintenance calories, pick a deficit you can actually keep, and stop the scale from stalling in week three.
Fat loss has exactly one mechanism: you use more energy than you take in. Every diet that works — keto, fasting, low-fat, calorie counting — works because it produces a deficit. The differences between them are about adherence, not magic.
So the only two questions worth answering are: how big should the deficit be, and how do you keep eating that way for three months?
Find your maintenance first
Bodyweight in kg × 22 (women) or × 24 (men) gives a rough basal rate. Multiply by 1.3 (desk job), 1.5 (some walking or training), 1.7 (active job or five sessions a week). That result is maintenance — the point where weight holds steady.
Treat it as a starting estimate, not a fact. Eat at it for two weeks, track your weight each morning, and adjust based on what the trend actually does.
Size the deficit for the long game
A 15–20% deficit — usually 350–550 kcal — loses roughly 0.4–0.7 kg a week and leaves you enough food to train and sleep normally. A 40% deficit loses faster for a fortnight, then you get hungry, tired and quit.
The best deficit is the largest one you can still be doing in twelve weeks.
Protect muscle while the calories drop
In a deficit, raise protein to about 2.0–2.2 g/kg and keep lifting something heavy twice a week. Those two habits decide whether the weight you lose is fat or muscle — the scale cannot tell you which.
Fat gets a floor of about 0.8 g/kg for hormones; carbs take whatever is left and fuel your training.
When the scale stalls
Two weeks with no movement usually means one of three things: portion creep (weigh your oils and nut butters again), water retention masking real loss, or genuine metabolic adaptation after a long diet. Take a two-week break at maintenance and then resume — it works far better than cutting another 300 calories.
Set your calorie and protein targets in Procaaf and build a few standard plates that hit them. Removing daily decisions is what makes a deficit survivable.
Frequently asked questions
- How many calories should I eat to lose 1 kg a week?
- About a 1,000 kcal daily deficit, which is aggressive for most people. A 0.5 kg per week pace from a 500 kcal deficit is more sustainable and preserves more muscle.
- Do I need to count calories forever?
- No. Most people count for four to eight weeks, learn what their usual portions actually contain, and then maintain by habit with occasional check-ins.
- PCOS Diet Plan for Women: Weight Loss GuideBuild a practical PCOS diet plan for weight loss with protein, fibre, balanced carbs and flexible meal ideas for women in the US and UK.
- Foods for Hormonal Health: A Practical GuideLearn which foods support normal hormone production, blood sugar, gut health and energy—and why no single food can balance hormones.
- Menopause Diet Plan: Food, Exercise & SymptomsA practical menopause diet plan for women in the US and UK, covering symptoms, protein, fibre, bone health, exercise and weight changes.
- Why You Feel Tired After Lunch (and How to Fix the Afternoon Slump)The 3pm energy crash is usually a plate problem, not a sleep problem. Learn how carb-heavy lunches cause it and how to build a lunch that keeps you sharp.
Continue reading
- Fat Loss · 8 minHow to Lose Fat Without Losing Muscle
The deficit size, protein intake and training that keep lean mass while body fat drops — plus how to tell muscle loss from normal weight fluctuation.
- Fat Loss · 6 minHow Much Protein Women Need for Fat Loss
A clear protein target for women in a deficit, why the usual 60 g falls short, and a day of real food that reaches it without extra calories.
- Meal Plans · 7 min1500-Calorie High-Protein Meal Plan
A full 1500 calorie day with 140 g protein: exact foods, grams and the macro split, plus how to scale it up or down for your own weight.
