Caloric Needs

Mainstream dietary recommendations of 2,000 calories for females and 2,500 for males assume the body runs on dietary intake alone and do not account for fat adaptation. A weight-loss calorie target is created by subtracting 20% from calculated TDEE. If TDEE is 2,500 calories, the article gives 2,000 calories as the target daily intake after a 20% reduction. Total available energy on keto/IF is dietary calories plus those liberated from adipose tissue. On any given day the body may mobilize 700–800 calories from its own fat stores. A non-obese person carries over 100,000 calories of stored fat, and an obese person may carry 200,000 or more. The correct calorie intake for weight loss can be determined in under five minutes using a three-step process. Calorie targets should be adjusted based on weight changes over time.