How Many Calories Should I Eat to Lose Weight?

Weight loss happens when, on average, you take in fewer calories than your body uses. The challenge is choosing a deficit that's large enough to see progress but small enough to be sustainable.

Start with your maintenance calories

Use a TDEE calculator to estimate the calories you burn each day. That's your maintenance baseline.

Pick a sensible deficit

• Conservative: 10–15% below maintenance. Slow, sustainable, easy to stick to.
• Moderate: 20–25% below maintenance. Faster loss, requires more discipline.
• Aggressive: more than 25% below maintenance — only short-term, ideally with clinician oversight.

Adjust based on what actually happens

Weigh weekly under the same conditions. If your average weight isn't trending down over 3–4 weeks, reduce intake slightly or increase activity slightly. Don't make daily changes based on daily fluctuations.