If you have more body fat, you can safely eat fewer calories to lose fat without losing muscle, but if you're already lean, you need to be more careful with how much you cut your calories.

The more calories you burn compared to what you eat, the more fat you'll lose — it's like a math equation for your body.

If you're someone who lifts weights regularly, cutting your calories by 10% helps you lose about twice as much fat as eating just enough to maintain your weight — and you’ll still gain the same amount of muscle and strength.

For women who aren't severely obese, losing fat depends only on eating fewer calories — it doesn’t matter if you cut those calories through diet alone or by combining diet with cardio, as long as the total calorie drop is the same.