Calorie Deficit for Weight Loss: How Many Calories Should You Eat?

What Is a Calorie Deficit?

A calorie deficit simply means eating fewer calories than your body burns in a day. When you consistently eat less than your maintenance level, your body taps into stored fat for energy, which is what leads to weight loss. It's the single most important factor in losing weight — more important than any specific diet, food combination, or meal timing.

Step 1: Find Your Maintenance Calories

Your maintenance level (also called TDEE, or Total Daily Energy Expenditure) is the number of calories your body burns per day to maintain its current weight, factoring in your age, sex, height, weight, and activity level. This isn't something you need to calculate manually — Caloura generates a personalized calorie target automatically based on your body data and goal, removing the guesswork.

Step 2: Create a Safe, Sustainable Deficit

A commonly recommended deficit is 500 calories per day below maintenance, which typically results in about 1 pound (0.45 kg) of weight loss per week. Going much lower than this can leave you fatigued, hungry, and more likely to quit. Slow and steady deficits are more sustainable long-term than aggressive crash diets, which often lead to regaining the weight.

• Mild deficit (250 cal/day) — about 0.5 lb/week, easier to sustain
• Moderate deficit (500 cal/day) — about 1 lb/week, most common recommendation
• Aggressive deficit (750-1000 cal/day) — faster results but harder to maintain and riskier for muscle loss

Step 3: Track Consistently, Not Perfectly

The deficit only works if you actually know what you're eating. This is where most people fall off — not because the math is wrong, but because they stop logging. Using Caloura to scan meals, log water, and check your daily progress ring keeps you honest without requiring manual calculations every day.

Common Mistakes That Stall Weight Loss

Underestimating portion sizes is one of the most common reasons a deficit doesn't show results — a "small" deficit on paper often isn't one in practice. Liquid calories from drinks, dressings, and sauces are also frequently overlooked. And weekends often erase a deficit built during the week, since consistency across all seven days matters more than a few perfect weekdays.

The Bottom Line

Weight loss comes down to a consistent, moderate calorie deficit — not extreme restriction. Let Caloura calculate your personalized target, track your meals with AI food scanning, and follow your progress over time. Download Caloura for free and start your weight loss journey with a plan built around your actual body and goals.