Yes, tracking calories and measuring results does work, but I have found it to be an ever moving target. The more weight I lose, the more I have to restrict and

Yes, tracking calories and measuring results does work, but I have found it to be an ever moving target. The more weight I lose, the more I have to restrict and/or the harder I have to work to burn the same amount of calories. And it certainly doesn't work over smaller ranges like 5 lbs. It's pretty easy to gain or lose 5 lbs simply by retaining or losing water which seems to fluctuate a lot based on more or fewer carbs/sugar. I have to see closer to 10 lbs loss to get a good direction. As for the micro level issues, I agree they don't really matter in the scheme of tracking everything and losing weight, but where they do come into play is comparisons. If my body burns "just" 100 calories fewer per day than someone else, that person and I can follow the exact same diet and exercise and all else being equal, I will gain 12 lbs per year while they maintain their weight. And I have heard so many people brush off these small variations among people as insignificant. But 50 or 100 calories a day is actually very significant.