You are right and wrong. If you do eat fewer calories than you burn, you will lose weight. But your metabolism, the rate you burn, is in part controlled by your genetics.
I eat very little. I have absolutely no carbs, no fruit and limited everything else. Mostly I eat green veggies and meat. So, why wasn’t I losing weight?
Finally, I had my metabolism tested. I must eat less that 1200 calories a day or I will not lose weight. That is very little! It is a gift from my mother. I finally got below that and have started to lose weight. Finally.
And for this thread, I don’t take up more than one seat. But Fred, on the trip from Singapore to Narita, did invite me to encroach upon his seat, too. ;)
I had a lady almost climb in my lap once but she was scared (I think)
True, but there are activities that will crank up the metabolism a bit and that helps. As I get older, mine has slowed down quite a bit and I have to do the same thing you are doing. I find that the days I do a lot of physical work are the days I drop more than the days I sit around. It doesn't have to be 'exercise'. If I do a lot of yard work or major projects around the house, it helps. I just have to be careful not to snack and ruin what I have lost. I have convince myself that I will feel hungry more than I used to and that's just life. There are worse afflictions, for sure! It is so nice not to have to carry around all that extra weight.