the more I read the more afraid I become

[DarlingBri]

I drank 6 cups of coffee a day when I started - and yes, French press coffee at that.

When I went into Induction on Atkins, I dropped it to 1 cup on Day 1. It was fine - much better than I thought. With steady bloody sugars, I actually do not get the sudden energy drops that made the other 5 cups a necessary part of life. (Steady blood sugar has changed my life more than weight loss ever will.)

Tonight (I'm about to go to bed) is the end of a 36-hour, no sleep work day for me, and I stretched to... two cups.

Having said that, I'm having a very slow Induction, which I am personally fine with. However, if I can't lose at the rate of even 1 pound per week coming out of Induction, then I will look at cutting coffee. It's starting to seem like a slightly less painful prospect, but I don't think that if I had not given myself permission to drink one cup a day, I would even have started Atkins.

[imagood1]

Welcome to the Atkins Board.


You've already heard many people on the coffee issue -- I started decaf 3 years ago when my husband came out of triple bypass surgery -- when it's something that needs to be done it's easier -- whatever decision you make is yours. As far as the sugar free werthers if you follow the plan the way it's written, they aren't allowed. If you need something to make your breath better brush and use mouthwash often or chew on parsley - it's a natural breath freshener (yes I do this -- several times a day).

Make sure you drink a minimum of 64 ounces of pure water (nothing added) - it will help keep your breath fresher, exercise starting today and taking a multi-vitamin. If you haven't already, read the 2002 Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution (DANDR).

Eat the foods on the acceptable food list and find delicious recipes here: just make sure you use Induction Recipes to begin with.

http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/menus.html (Linda’s)
(Never ending induction recipes)(Never ending induction recipes)(Never ending induction recipes)(Never ending induction recipes)(Never ending induction recipes)http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/forums/atkins-diet-14-day-induction/58513-never-ending-induction-recipes.html (Induction recipes)
(Induction Recipe Basics--More recipes added)(Induction Recipe Basics--More recipes added)(Induction Recipe Basics--More recipes added)(Induction Recipe Basics--More recipes added)(Induction Recipe Basics--More recipes added)http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/forums/atkins-diet-14-day-induction/6807-induction-recipe-basics-more-recipes-added.html (Induction Recipe Basics)

If you need anything we’re here to help you!! Good luck to you!

[pinkfeathers]

I would like to say the opposite. I drink coffee. Sometimes 2-3 a day. It's not affecting weight loss for me. I also have cream and sweet n low in my coffee. Sometimes I'll even have a soda. Very rarely. I have done atkins effectively before and did the same then, too. I guess all people are different but I have no problems drinking coffee. I say drink it.

[Michigal74]

I had to have my coffee. This was a big enough change as is was for me, and I wasn't willing to give that up. I have one cup in the morning with a bit of cream.

Maybe I'd be losing more if I didn't have it (obviously I'm not losing gobs of weight like some people). But 2-3 lbs per week is nothing to sneeze at. It was a price I was willing to pay.

Some say do it strictly. Some say drink decaf. I say that there are some things I'm not willing to compromise on, and my coffee was one of them. I am doing everything else by the book. In the end, it's still a huge change from my old eating habits.

Good luck!

[Brook]

Originally Posted by pinkfeathers

I would like to say the opposite. I drink coffee. Sometimes 2-3 a day. It's not affecting weight loss for me. I also have cream and sweet n low in my coffee. Sometimes I'll even have a soda. Very rarely. I have done atkins effectively before and did the same then, too. I guess all people are different but I have no problems drinking coffee. I say drink it.

To be fair, you can't say it's not affecting loss if you haven't gone without it to see if there is a difference. What is fair to say is that you're satisfied with your progress and see no need to give it up.


I do drink coffee. I didn't when I first started this and had about 100lbs to lose, but I do drink it through induction when I do it now. I do count the carbs (1 gram per 8 ounces). - And I do recommend a clean induction, especially the first time through it. I'm a firm believer you can't know what your body is capable of if you don't give it a full go.

I wish you success

[bellajgw]

Coffee is a sensitive issue for me. I'm addicted and I realize this, but I have now gone from 5-6 cups a day of very strong coffee to 1-2 cups a day of relatively strong coffee. I am not a morning person and yet I have to get up at 4:30am each morning to drive to work and if I don't have at least 1 cup before I leave I will fall asleep behind the wheel. It has happened, thankfully I've never had an accident because of it but its scary as ****. Will I ever get down to NEVER having coffee? Maybe...its something I'm willing to consider, but at the moment I'm happy having reduced the amount of coffee and the strength.

Is it affecting my Induction and my weight loss? No idea, maybe, possibly, but then again I'm doing ok and really have nothing to complain about so why not have my morning coffee? I may eventually replace it with some nice Green Tea that has less caffeine and is actually helpful for weight loss, but right now I will sip my coffee in peace.

While you have the right to do this diet any way you want there will be things that you do that will affect your weight loss. Perhaps coffee is what you will need to give up to make Atkins successful for you, maybe not. Sure, the closer and more strict you are to the diet the more chances at being successful you can be, but lets face it, while Dr. Atkins was a brilliant man he did not know everything about everything and each person's body and constitution is different.

Personally, I follow 95% of the Induction rules. So, if I lose 95% of the weight that I could have, I'm happy with that. Its up to you.

[not2late]

my 2 net carbs.....

I think you need to find a diet that YOU can live with 100%. Once you become dissatisfied---food choices, weight loss rate, etc.---you will most likely fall off the diet and go back to the eating habits that got you fat in the first place. We see it happen all the time on ADBB.

Moreover, you will constantly find "loopholes" to bend the diet's guidelines. So sure, Dr. ATkins wrote avoid caffeine if you are caffeine dependent. And you might not think you are "caffeine dependent" (eventhough, you "need" to drink coffee everyday because if you don't you get headaches or fall asleep) so it's okay if you drink caffeine because you aren't dependent. Or Dr. Atkins wrote don't eat anything that isn't on the Induction Acceptable Foods List, but since a Godiva chocolate truffle is "only" 5 net carbs, it would be okay to eat it as long as you don't go over 20 net carbs for the day. Eventually, you will bend the rules enough that diet you are on might be low carb, but it ISN'T Atkins.

So the first thing to do before undertaking any weight loss/weight maintenance plan is to read it thoroughly and completely. Then decide if that plan is right for you. If it's not, then don't waste your time, money and energy.

Don't go on a plan because your best friend's cousin lost alot of weight on it. Go on it because it's something YOU can and are willing to live with and to abide by the rules. It's self-defeating to go on a strict vegetarian diet if the only vegetables you like are carrots and potatoes and would much rather be eating chicken, beef and fish than tofu, tempeh, quorn and TVP.

[chadcs]

Atkins is based on normalizing blood sugars. Like it or not, caffeine does affect blood sugar. Just google caffeine and blood sugar.

If you are going to go by the book, toss the caffeine. Once you wean down and are free you will feel a lot better.

This was a hard one for me as well. Going from quadruple espressos to decaf is not fun but not hard to do.

[Charmed.Life]

I am doing Induction but I do allow myself coffee. I am one of those people that are not affected by it; I can sleep after having a cup. It does not cos blood sugar spikes for me and I refuse decaf.

I find I am not craving it as much as I have in the past. But I refuse to give it up.

It each her own Good Luck!

[sexysomeday]

I have cut back on my coffee, but I have to say that it is my vice. I made the decision to use "1/2 the caf" coffee and cut back as long as I was losing weight and wasn't feeling the effects of unstable blood sugar. If that was the case I would've gone directly to Decaf. I enjoy my coffee in the morning, so I had to compromise. I've been on induction for 5 full days and have lost 8lbs so far and I have felt fine. Everybody is different..........