Weight gain and quitting smoking

BluBell56

Is there anyone here who has lost or maintained their weight while quitting smoking?
I know that extra weight is far better than smoking but any help or tips would be appreciated

sijomial

Quitting didn't result in any weight gain for me.
I just stopped on the day I brought my baby son home (almost 25 years ago).

Didn't feel the need to replace smoking with anything else.

RoxieDawn

You are already predicting weight gain....

If you watch your calorie intake, get more active you shouldn't gain any. I would not try to lose weight, maintain until the worst is over and you are ready to lose weight..

The worst is over after about 10 -14 days and it gets better every day thereafter.. You can do it..

PennWalker

BluBell56 wrote: »

Is there anyone here who has lost or maintained their weight while quitting smoking?
I know that extra weight is far better than smoking but any help or tips would be appreciated

I quit many years ago and maintained my weight. It helped me to drink extra liquid and have some hard candy and gum around (you can buy the sugarless kind). It felt strange not having the cigarette to go with everything I did, so my hands wanted something to do.

Exercise is good. Go for a walk, ride a bike, just do some movement. The cravings will pass if you wait a minute. I agree with the post above that the worst is over after the first 2 weeks. It still took me several months before I didn't react to the smell of smoke. Good luck. And remember if you gain some weight, it's no big deal, you can lose it.

tahxirez

I actually lost while I quit. It was one of the catalysts to really kickstarting my losses actually because my workouts and runs got even better. At the time I replaced smoking with running and it was very rewarding for me.

markrgeary1

Been smoke free for 16 years, no real weight gain. After a few weeks or months your food will taste better so it's easier to overeat. Just log your food it will be OK. Congratulations!

jadefitnow

Sadly, I gained about 10-15 lbs when I quit smoking, but it was worth it. At the time it was frustrating, but after years of using that as an excuse, I decided to just deal with it. In the end, I am 10X more fit, feel 20X better and eventually lost the extra weight. Don't smoke- you'll love yourself for losing the habit, and then you'll lose the weight too!

HippySkoppy

Gaining weight when you quit is not inevitable but it is common.

I look at it this way, knowledge is power. It gives you the chance to avoid the pitfalls of over eating due to boredom, stress or food just tasting better. There is also the opportunity to offset any gain through extra exercise as you will feel less breathless and even more motivated.

I'm a long term smoker, I have quit and failed more times than I've had hot dinners and this advice comes from someone who desperately wants to give this another shot; planning is paramount.

Setting a quit date that makes sense to you helps. Avoiding if you can stressful events/or celebrations on the calendar that could derail you (this can be difficult as life goes on and things happen, just do your best). Decide to get rid of all the things that remind you of smokes and I find promptly washing any clothes that have smoke smells on them quite helpful.

Be extra kind to yourself too during this time. Quitting can cause you to ride a rollercoaster of emotions...I was quick to anger, teary and anxious at times, hopefully you won't experience this.

This time I am getting myself patched up prior to quitting, I've got a vape. thingy and even though I have failed numerous times I have learnt something useful each time so I am just going to suck it up and get back up on the horse again.

I went over 3 months just recently and didn't gain weight either....maybe that is just too small of a window in time but others who quit with me did suffer with large weight gains in that period and all of them sadly took the habit up again specifically to lose weight.

Good luck.

kshatriyo

BluBell56 wrote: »

Is there anyone here who has lost or maintained their weight while quitting smoking?
I know that extra weight is far better than smoking but any help or tips would be appreciated

I quit smoking about 12 years ago, and would not trade my current weight for any of it. My mom died of lung cancer this year after being an avid smoker. Her body got under 100 pounds as the cancer ate her away.

320sycamore

I quit smoking on Sept 10th and have lost 20 lbs since then. Hard work, but in some ways I feel more in control by doing both.

tahxirez

If any of you are interested there is a website called quitnet that has a daily newsfeed and a lot of really supportive people. It has helped me a lot.

ibboykin

I had started a new eating lifestyle well before quitting smoking. Had I not, I probably would have gained.