Quitting Smoking

laurenebargar

Just wondering if anyone else noticed when they quit smoking some extra water retention? I know I haven't gained fat, but the scale is up about 4 lbs since I quit smoking cold turkey last Sunday.

I use Libra so I realize fluctuations are normal, these just are not my normal fluctuations and im wondering if this could be the reason.

C_Duffin

Extra water retention upon quitting smoking is normal - and temporary. Your weight will normalise over time if you observe calorie intake against activity.

RuNaRoUnDaFiEld

Smoking can cause dehydration so I presume stopping would allow the body to fully hydrate.

Either way stopping is a good thing to do. Well done

laurenebargar

RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »

Smoking can cause dehydration so I presume stopping would allow the body to fully hydrate.

Either way stopping is a good thing to do. Well done

Hmm thats interesting I never thought of it that way, I've increased my water intake a bit too, just for the whole hand to mouth thing.

sarahlifts

Good job on quitting! Your weight will regulate and normalize itself.

I quit on a bulk, so....I gained weight while I could mentally deal with quitting smoking.
It is the best decision I've ever made. I an so happy to be free from ciggys. Congratulations to you!!

laurenebargar

sarahlifts wrote: »

Good job on quitting! Your weight will regulate and normalize itself.

I quit on a bulk, so....I gained weight while I could mentally deal with quitting smoking.
It is the best decision I've ever made. I an so happy to be free from ciggys. Congratulations to you!!

Thats actually really smart lol, I actually have planned to start strength training this weekend, I know that will cause some water retention too as its a new exercise so I figured its a good time

sarahlifts

Monitor what you eat to deficit/maintenance and stay away from the scale for a while.

If you know you are in a deficit or at maintenance you can ignore the weight fluctuations.

laurenebargar

sarahlifts wrote: »

Monitor what you eat to deficit/maintenance and stay away from the scale for a while.

If you know you are in a deficit or at maintenance you can ignore the weight fluctuations.

You are right, I think Ill stay away from the scale for a bit I know im in a deficit, so it might be less stressful just to walk away for a bit

KANGOOJUMPS

yep, and a lot more booze. all good tho

laurenebargar

KANGOOJUMPS wrote: »

yep, and a lot more booze. all good tho

Haha I think Ill be staying away from any booze as well, not quite sure I can handle that without smoking just yet!

sarahlorrainethompson

I quit smoking one week ago and haven’t since! My cravings were bad so I picked up running and I have been running everyday. My diet has been decently well, but after this week of running (uphill as well) and mild weight lifting (arms, squats, ab crunches) I noticed a weight gain of 1-2 kg (2.2-4.4 lbs)! I thought maybe I’m losing fat and gaining lean muscle (which is what I want) but I feel like it’s almost impossible in one week to gain 1-2 kg of muscle! Maybe it is water weight? I feel like I’m in the same boat as you...

murp4069

Congrats! I had a small bump in the scale after I quit as well. Nothing to write home about. It was gone after not too long. Quitting was one of the best decisions I ever made, been almost a year and a half since I had a cigarette.

laurenebargar

Quitting has definitely been the best decision I have made, although I am not too happy to announce that I still have not hit a lower weight. I went on a diet break where I maintained and then started a new gym routine, Im still within 5 lb fluctuation but i'm hoping with tightening up my logging and keeping up with my new gym routine I will see the weight go down again.

armstrongc1962

Hi Lauren,
I am new to the site and was reading your post. Here is pretty good article to answer your question. http://whyquit.com/pr/090109.html

Finding an exercise program you like can help take your mind off of the cravings and help with weight.
Have a great day
Connie

brookielaw

Yep. Hi-five to all of us quitters. I had no idea that my quitting bore any correlation to my weight gain (although the holiday eating was no help on that issue either) so that makes me feel a lot better. 11 days later and I think the initial water weight gain is gone. It's still so worth it. Good job!

laurenebargar

brookielaw wrote: »

Yep. Hi-five to all of us quitters. I had no idea that my quitting bore any correlation to my weight gain (although the holiday eating was no help on that issue either) so that makes me feel a lot better. 11 days later and I think the initial water weight gain is gone. It's still so worth it. Good job!

Great job quitting, i'm going on about 7 weeks with no lower weight The day I quit I was 166.8 and I have gotten as high as 173.6 But, quitting was still a great decision and I am completely committed to losing the rest of my weight.

Jancandoit7

I quit 35 days ago and have gained 3.5 pounds- I bumped up my walking routine from 3 to 4 miles and am walking faster. I have been eating maintenance calories and burning more, but I've still gained. I've read that your metabolism slows down when you quit- estimates said about a 200 cal. a day difference. Nicotine is a stimulant and an appetite suppressant, so I guess our bodies just need time to adjust.