Hi again...I'm confused about the coffee questions I've been reading. Can you drink regular coffee or not? And if not...why not??? I don't understand.. thanks sia

*flies in from Starbucks* It is I, the defender of coffee.
The reports are conflicting. Some studies say caffeine stalls weight loss, some say it acts as a thermogenic. I choose to believe the latter. You'll have to see how your body reacts and judge accordingly.

I do know that many people experience adverse effects from coffee (stall, growing appetite etc.) but I do not have any problem with it. Every day I have one espresso coffee (black) before my run/cardio. During the last 4 months I lost 25 lbs, without any stall, adverse effect.
Without my morning coffee I would faint - even if I do not exercise. I tried it many times.

On the other hand I do not consume any other/more caffeine (soft drinks, tea etc.). So it is possible that the small amount is the reason I do not feel any adverse effect.

I know that many people drink coffee before morning exercise - on the exercise threads you can read many opinions about this.

Different people, different bodies, different reactions.

I think Atkins states that caffiene can cause an insulin reaction which is what you are trying to avoid. Plus, coffee acts as a diuretic and low carb plans are natural diuretics as it is. It can dehydrate you.

However, I never gave up my coffee and it hasn't seemed to bother me. Maybe my weight loss would be faster without it, but since this is something I can live with for the rest of my life, I will trade of slower weight loss for the coffee.