How Many Calories Should I Eat to Lose Weight?

Short answer:

Probably fewer than you’re eating now.

Longer answer:

The exact number matters far less than you’ve been led to believe — and obsessing over it is often the reason weight loss stalls.

Let’s explain without spreadsheets, apps, or shouting.

Why Everyone Wants “The Number”

Calories feel reassuring because they look precise.

People want:

• A target

• A rule

• A number they can follow “properly”

So the internet provides one. Or ten. All different.

The problem isn’t that calories don’t matter.

It’s that calorie targets are a very blunt tool for a very human system.

The Truth About Calorie Targets

Most calorie calculators:

• Guess your energy needs

• Ignore appetite, stress, sleep, and habits

• Assume perfect consistency

• Pretend weekends don’t exist

They give you a number like 1,742 calories — as if your body can read decimals.

Then what happens?

• You under-eat

• You get hungry

• Food gets louder

• You start thinking about eating all the time

That isn’t fat loss.

That’s friction.

So… How Many Calories Should You Eat?

Enough that you can:

• Eat regular meals

• Stay mostly satisfied

• Function like a normal person

• Repeat the same approach next week

Weight loss doesn’t come from finding the lowest possible number.

It comes from finding the highest number you can eat while still slowly losing weight.

That’s the sweet spot.

That’s sustainable.

That’s boring — and boring works.

What Works Better Than Chasing a Number

Instead of asking “What’s my calorie target?”, ask:

• Are you eating meals, not grazing all day?

• Do your meals contain protein, carbs, and fat?

• Are you stopping when comfortably full — not stuffed, not starving?

• Would this still work on a stressful Tuesday in February?

If yes → you’re probably in the right range

If no → no calculator will fix it

Why Scrummy Doesn’t Start With Calories

Calories explain why weight loss happens.

They don’t explain how to live in a way that makes it happen.

Scrummy focuses on:

• Stable meals

• Calm eating

• Fewer food decisions

• Less mental noise

When eating becomes steady, intake usually settles without counting.

Weight loss follows quietly, not dramatically.

The Scrummy Answer (In One Line)

Eat enough to live your life, but not so much that weight keeps creeping up — then stop fiddling with it.

No apps.

No moral judgement.

No “starting again Monday”.

Just food becoming background — where it belongs.