You're right. There is the question of materiality. But as they say, "The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step." And you want to make sure that those steps are taken in the right direction.
If we are talking about burning calories to shed fat, the first prong in the process is the dietary regimen. Meaningful exercise, the second prong, becomes necessary to maintain lean tissue while in caloric deficit. Because if muscle is lost while in caloric deficit, then the body is working at cross purposes with the fat loss objective due to a corresponding slowdown in metabolism resulting from both the reduced caloric intake and the loss of lean tissue. (We both know this to be true.) I can't speak to the numbers, only the direction and of a cumulative effect over time.
