jmk wrote in message ...
On 5/20/2004 6:11 PM, Heywood Mogroot wrote:
For yesterday it said I consumed 1450 kcal and
burned 1466 in exercise (2 1/2 hrs of cycling), leaving a daily
deficit of about 2000 kcal (the BMR burn),

I know about that sort of deficit on paper but does it translate into
weight loss for you in real life? For me it did but not to the tune
that it "should have" on paper.

Pretty much. The scale says I'm 1.5 lbs lighter today than 2 days ago.
I'm no physiology expert, but if the metabolism is more or less
normal, ie not in "starvation mode" (whatever that is), a 1500 kcal
expenditure will come out of the body, not counting the higher
metabolism the body maintains for a while after the exercise, too.

Running these caloric large deficits under the BMR, coupled with
strenuous (over) exercise will cause the body to start conserving
energy and holding onto fat, though. I believe what I've read about
the importance of mixing up your exercise regimen, to keep energy
levels and metabolism up.