diff --git a/vendored/libfuse/include/thread_pool.hpp b/vendored/libfuse/include/thread_pool.hpp
index 92a66648..790f5308 100644
--- a/vendored/libfuse/include/thread_pool.hpp
+++ b/vendored/libfuse/include/thread_pool.hpp
@@ -1067,14 +1067,16 @@ ThreadPool::tasks_completed() const
 }
 
 // Approximate: the two counters are loaded non-atomically with
-// relaxed ordering, so the result may momentarily read zero (or
-// a lower value) while tasks complete between the two loads.
+// relaxed ordering.  Loading completed first biases the result
+// toward zero (a completion between the two loads lowers the
+// delta), which is safer for scaling heuristics than over-
+// reporting pressure.
 // Suitable for monitoring and heuristics, not for synchronization.
 inline
 std::uint64_t
 ThreadPool::tasks_pending() const
 {
-  auto e = _tasks_enqueued.load(std::memory_order_relaxed);
   auto c = _tasks_completed.load(std::memory_order_relaxed);
+  auto e = _tasks_enqueued.load(std::memory_order_relaxed);
   return (e > c) ? (e - c) : 0;
 }