When Dr A wrote his first plan, no carbs were allowed AT ALL but you had no restriction on caffeine. Dr A later became anti-caffeine, but not necessarily because it affected weight loss. It doesn't for most people. I gave up all but two cups of coffee a day and no longer drink much of anything but water. Coffee wasn't where I got my caffeine kick...it was in the diet soda. Once I was able to break the habit I started drinking a lot more water, which, of course, is much better for you. The amount of coffee you were drinking probably correlated to the amount of coffee and diet soda I took in daily. It kept me going but I didn't ever sleep well. If you cruise through some of the threads, you will see that the caffiene issue is addressed many times. It affects some but doesn't most as far as weight loss goes. How you feel once you have been off for awhile is another thing.