CICO is fine. Those are all factors that affect the "calories out" part of the equation, they don't break it. The problem is education. Your average person sees

CICO is fine. Those are all factors that affect the "calories out" part of the equation, they don't break it. The problem is education. Your average person sees things like "values based on a 2,000 calorie diet" and "you burn 100 calories per X minutes of walking" think that's how it works, a hard rule. Many have no understanding of how their own conditions (like age and genetics) warrant adjustment.