Attempting to quit smoking while losing weight
 

Possible? Probably.
Very difficult? Definitely.

Is anyone else out there attempting to quit smoking while losing weight? It's pretty much a *have to* situation as prescribed by my doctor recently, due to my current eating habits/smoking habits, and my family history.

Any advice is appreciated. :)

OMG! May the force be with you lol - that sounds pretty difficult! But I'm sure you can do it. Then, write a bestselling novel that can inspire us all please!

I've never been addicted to smoking (I've smoked maybe 3 packs total in my life), but as far as breaking habits and losing weight goes, I think it's important to find a replacement habit. So instead of smoking, maybe have a stick of gum... I've had times when I kept more than 5 flavors of gum around my house because it helps beat sweets cravings. Or drink a diet soda - not the healthiest habit, but it's what I do sometimes when I'm craving food. There's lots of little tricks you'll find for yourself on the way, but sometimes it's gonna come down to taking it minute to minute. It gets easier once you've done it for a while.

But the biggest piece of advice I have for anyone: never, never, never, never, never give up. Never. You'll mess up sometimes, sure, but see it not as a failure, but as a place where you need to reassess what went wrong and try again.

Thanks Lizzie :) I'll make sure to send you an autographed copy of that best selling novel. lol

And with trying to change habits, whether it's not smoking, or not eating two bowls of cereal, it's really a day by day thing. I've learned that I can't beat myself up over it, as both overeating and smoking are addictions. And it takes time to break that.

I would pick the two hardest things to give up at the same time though. :)

My, oh my!!! It is a huge task but it can be done. U have to be the most focused you have ever been in your entire life!! My two top tips is replacement for the oral fixation and replacement for the activity. Okay, so invest in sugar free gum stock because u will need it. I replaced my cigs with a pack of gum in every nook and cranny that I would ever be located in, at, or near!! U MUST HAVE GUM!!!! Every time u get the urge to eat pop a piece of mint gum. Then, u must find some activity to fill your time. Knit, sew, take a class but for me the obvious activity was exercising. It takes off the calories and keeps u busy. You do not realize how many times you reach for a cig out of boredom. All and all, good luck....u will need it. However, like I said it can be done!!! Good Luck!!!:hug::hug::hug::hug:

My dad did it... but inadvertantly... when one of his dear friends died of lung cancer, he quit smoking and took up running. Lost a heck of a lot of weight and gained breathing again. You can do anything if you want it enoguh.

Jokan - I do have gum, and suckers. My dentist said he'd rather fill a cavity and me be smoke-free. :) I am starting to walk 30 minutes a day so hopefully that will help offset the anxiety I feel for not being able to smoke. And yes, I smoked out of boredom more than anything. But I'm working more on my crochet projects too. That at least keeps my hands busy. I do drive the people at work crazy by clicking my pen too much. But I think that will get better over time.

Silverstar: You could not be more right when you say you can do anything if you want it enough. It goes with losing weight too. I don't want to be a smoker, and I don't want to be overweight. It's going to be challenging, but I do not want to wind up in a position like your dad's friend. I am sorry for his loss. My father died at the age of 42 (when I was 15, I'm 34 now) from a heart attack that was exacerbated by his smoking. The older I get, the younger he seems, and I have to do something now about the weight and the smoking, because I would like to see the age of 43 (and past that).

I quit smoking while losing weight! Good for you for trying to do it! I pretty much just replaced the smoking with exercise. I was very ready to do it though, so I didn't find it that difficult. I used the patch at first for a couple of weeks but stopped because of crazy dreams, side effects. You will do great!!

All I can say is good luck. I quit smoking a year and 1/2 ago, and it was difficult to just do that. I gained a lot of weight when I quit, and if I had known then what I know now, I would have definitely come up with an eating and exercise plan to do while I quit.

For me, when I was having nicotine cravings, it felt just like being hungry physically. So I ate. Bad choice on my part. Now, I would say that when you quit, every time you want to light up, do a lap around the block or around the pool or anything but smoke or eat! Don't let food become a nicotine replacement.

I used the newest medication to quit smoking and it was incredibly helpful for quitting smoking and I never could have quit without it. I also joined an online support group clled quitnet, which I'm sure you can google.

Also, stick around here as much as you can and get "food support" too.

Barb

Lauren, that's what I was thinking that if I start exercising that it would at least offset the drop in metabolism from not smoking. I'm doing the patch right now, and it keeps the edge off usually, it's just breaking the oral fixation that's hard.

Barb,

I will definitely need the food support, as I'm doing my best to not replace the smoking with overeating, but that's a battle I'm currently trying to win. Maybe I should try duct tape? lol

I couldn't take the medicine for smoking cessation due to the bad dreams. I do the patch right now, and the only side effects I have from that are slight skin irritations.

I think it'll get better in a few weeks. I like not smelling like smoke.

I quit smoking while trying not to gain a ton of weight! When I had a crazy craving, I would do something physical like 20 jumping jacks or push ups or something similar. I was amazed at how much I was doing those first few days! And I upped my water intake TONS!

Good luck, this is hard to do, but know that it isn't impossible! You can do it!

I quit smoking while losing weight too, it's been almost a year. I was REALLY ready and I used the patch which helped TREMENDOUSLY. I had tried several times before and could never do it no matter how I tried (cold turkey, the gum, etc.) so I think this time it was a combination of really being ready and the help of no nicotine withdrawals to deal with.

I didn't even have to use the entire program length worth of patches, I easily weaned off after about 3 weeks. It feels AWESOME!!! Makes losing weight so much easier because you can breath so well when working out, lol. Might seem liek a small thing but imo it's very significant.

Good luck... I KNOW you can do it.

I'm right there with you with wanting to quit smoking. I'm a little nervous that I'll start to eat more if I quit smoking. It's just vicious cycle that I have to break out of.

Dandi - That's a good idea, about the jumping jacks. Someone also told me to brush my teeth when I get the urge to smoke as well, as you don't want to smoke (or eat) right after you brush your teeth.

Bensempress - That's what I like about the patches. While yes, I'm irritated that I have to change the habit of smoking, most of the time it helps to at least make the cravings bearable. And I think that exercising more will help, because my lungs will rebel and say "ok, you can't smoke and work us out like this, you have to pick one" lol

Hopeful -

I love Colorado Springs. I used to live in Lakewood, just outside of Denver. :)

But I think that's what I'm dealing with the most, is the fear of breaking the cycle. If I take away the smoking, then I'm afraid the eating will increase (and it did, some). Then I'm afraid that I'll gain (which I have, some). I start the Sonoma Diet on Sunday, and I'm going to do that, add exercise, not smoke, and take it from there. It helps to know that others also have the same fears/concerns. I've felt pretty isolated at work since the people I would go out on smoke break with pretty much avoid me around break time, and if *god forbid* I have to go outside, they are the first ones to make sure I don't smoke, which is irritating, but whatever.

I also quit smoking and lost weight at the same time. The only way I was able to do it was exercise. I took up bike riding and the huffing and puffing and basically feeling like I wanted to pass out from the lack of oxygen made me realize the damage I did to my lungs. That is what made me never pick up a cigarette again. It also did wonders for the anxiety I felt over not smoking. I smoked for 20 years and have now been smoke free for 2 years. Also when I started 2 years ago I weighed 220. I now weigh 155. It can be done. Anything is possible if you want it. Good luck with your goals!

Oh…also the sugar free gum is a must!

I quit smoking and GAINED 30 pounds. How? Well, while everyone was telling me to drink water and chew gum and walk the cravings away--I would hide in my closet with a milkshake trying to 'fill' the craving.

DO take the walks, brush your teeth, color, sew, whatever! Don't switch from one addiction to the other. I am just now getting the weight thing in control--I wish I would have done them at the same time.:hug: Good Luck!

You can do it!

Bobo - Thanks for the advice. I'm popping gum like crazy. lol

parkedout- I know how you feel about the milkshake. I'm ok at work, for the most part, but when I get home is when I would hit the pop-tarts, or the pretzels. I feel like a cow grazing more or less.

I've been following the thread with interest. I'm not a smoker, never have been (except in uni when I was smoking something other than cigarettes!). For the advice, I'd say to not be afraid of the side effects and don't "need". Instead, just change your mindset (a lot less difficult than it seems).

When you create need, you create anxiety. They (whoever "they" is) say that we create 97-99% of the anxiety that we experience-- it's all in our heads. You shouldn't NEED to do anything, but you "should feel strongly about" quitting smoking and losing weight. By saying that, it automatically lessens the anxiety you create for yourself.

When we say we "need to lose X pounds by Y date", we create an atmosphere of anxiety; if we don't achieve the goal, we feel like a failure, even if we're 2 pounds from that goal. We say to ourselves "Self, you didn't do lose X pounds, you only lost Y pounds! You didn't make your goal. You didn't do this, or that or the other." Instead of saying something like that, set little goals: "I feel strongly about losing weight. I feel strongly about stopping smoking. This is what I will do to achieve that goal."

Goals are measurements of our progress, so we want to be able to make SMART goals.
S- specific
M- measurable
A- attainable
R- realistic
T- tangible (others will say timely, but I find that having time-based goals in weight loss creates anxiety). Tangible goals are ones that you experience with all your senses. Breathing easier while exercising is a tangible goal, both from weight loss and from smoking; you can experience things you haven't done in a long time. You feel better, smell things better, taste things better, maybe start hearing things in a different way or hear new things (Wow, she's looking great! I wish I could do that!) and maybe you see things differently or see new things (like the way your body is changing).

I also find that visualising what I want will allow it to come to me more easily. Every morning, I've started thanking myself for the healthy size 10 body I have. Now, I'm still a size 16, but by focussing my attention on counting my calories and exercising, I can literally "see" myself as a size 10 and the weight has started to come off again. So by thinking of yourself as smoke-free, you can be smoke-free. By thinking of yourself as thin, you can be thin. But you should feel strongly about experiencing your visualisation through all 5 senses.

This is all very high-level thinking, much higher than we usually do. What we do now is good, but knock the thinking up a notch and see what happens. Visualisation is a very powerful tool that we have and should be using to get what we want- more money, a better job, weight loss, smoke-free... whatever!

I know that you can do kick both the eating and the smoking habit. :D

I quit smoking 18 days ago. I gained 7 pounds in the first 5 days and realized I need to start exercising and eating right or it was going to get out of control and fast.. which leads me here.

It CAN be done, its all mind over matter. I made up my mind to quit and so I did. Now my smoking obsession has pretty much been replaced with a healthy eating/weight loss obsession but hey its a whole lot better for me. And my lungs thank me every time I work out, which adds to my determination to keep on quitting!

Good luck!!

Im new at 3FC and must say I love seeing the support for each other . I have been smoke free for 3 months and can already tell a difference in how I feel. but I also gained 10 lbs on top of the 15 I was trying to lose so now I really have to get focused on losing the weight . I had put off trying to quit smoking because of the fear of gaining weight but I know it is possible to be smoke free and at a healthy weight .

Good Luck :)

I stopped smoking before having to to lose weight (health reasons) I went cold turkey when I quit + each day I kept a mental countdown, I kept telling myself you've quit for x-number of days "why give up now?" - also I drank water each time I had a craving - The months just rolled by + now 7 months later I can say I only attempted 1 or 2 puffs and the taste was REVOLTING! - my hubby said the other day he's glad that he cant smell smoke in the house or on me anymore. It sounds arrogant but I told myself I wouldnt spend the money I was spending on cigarettes for anything else and it worked. Keep trying!!

Hi, I quit 6 years ago and I was a heavy smoker...It was very simple for me. I did it the Allen Carr way. A friend of my husband quit after being a smoker for 40 years..he told me about this book and it worked! I did NOT gain a single pound either! Best of Luck!

I quit 2 months ago and here's how.

I thought of all the health risks with smoking. The smoke, tar, lung problems, smell, locations you can smoke on and on.

I chose to get my nicotine someplace else.

I started wearing patches with a simple few thoughts:
1. It is cheaper than buying cigarettes and I still get my nicotine.
2. I can wear it all day and not smell or have to go someplace exclusive to smoke and I still get my nicotine.
3. I don't have to stop getting nicotine I just have to change how I get it.

I figured if I did the patch for the rest of my life it was cheaper and healthier than smoking, dipping or chewing. Eventually I just quit wearing the patch and had some withdraw but by then I was only dealing with the physical addiction at that point. As a back up plan for stressful moments I had some nicotine gum but never used it.

I never thought of it as quitting. If I never get off the patch at least it is cheaper and healthier.