quitting smoking & weight loss

dianem130
dianem130 Posts: 2 Member
in Getting Started
I quit smoking a month ago and gained over 10 lbs in that month. I need to get myself to stop all the snacking. I know most people gain when quitting. I don't want to gain, I'm already over weight by 20 lbs (now 30lbs!) anyone have experience with dealing with this?? HELP PLEASE!

Replies

  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,930 Member
    Yes, you need to eat less. I know it's easier said than done but it's the only way.

    I'm not sure how accurate the information is that smoking speeds up food traveling through your body and less energy gets absorbed. But it certainly seem to suppress hunger. Thus if the first is true then your body just went back to where it was before you started, and hence you need to eat less. Plus no hunger suppression, plus probably wanting to have a smoke. Is there a way you can distract yourself? Exercise? Work on a specific goal you always wanted to do? anything that prevents boredom, really. Otherwise your gp might help you with withdrawal.
  • sollyn23l2
    sollyn23l2 Posts: 1,754 Member
    Honestly, don't know that it's the "healthy" answer, but when I quit smoking years ago I switched it out to coffee. So now, I have a cup of coffee instead of either smoking or snacking. If I'm genuinely hungry, of course I eat. But coffee just gives my mouth and hands something to do. Tea would probably work as well.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,412 Member
    Yeah, my first instinct was to say, "Drink something that's zero calories."

    I quit smoking decades ago. I had a really physically demanding job, so I don't know that I gained any weight.

    I don't think gaining 10 pounds in a month can be blamed on quitting smoking though. That's a lot of weight to gain in a month.

    I suggest logging all your food every day. That's what helped me to rein in the bad habits.
  • Skyler103
    Skyler103 Posts: 121 Member
    I quit smoking about three years ago. I've been where you are. It sucks, but not as much as not being able to breathe.

    Please make sure you are getting enough vitamin D. Because I wasn't going outside to smoke anymore, I had a severe vitamin D deficiency. It didn't matter what I ate, I was never satiated and that was caused by my vitamin D deficiency. I would eat a huge meal and 15 minutes after eating, I'd be starving again. Stomach rumbling. That's way different than having some cravings for sweets. And you can look it up, but something about an enzyme that signal your body to know it's full can't be produced without Vitamin D.

    I tried to keep myself busy and active. I painted most of the inside of my house to keep my mind off of smoking.

    I still haven't lost the weight I gained when I quit. It's much harder to lose without smoking, for me anyway.
  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,649 Member
    It's kind of like when I quit drinking 10 years ago: there's going to be extra time there that was devoted to your smoking ritual. Or little blips of time throughout the day, if you smoked throughout the day, or a big chunk in the evenings.

    So you've got to fill that time. For me, I chose to ramp up fitness and collect a trove of walking workout DVDs, which led to getting weighted belts, dumbbells, floor mat for body weight exercises, etc. Point being: it filled in the TIME.

    Practical ways, sure: chew gum, drink something hot because that's a slower way of drinking something, fiddle with a rubber band, step outside for a short walk, etc. instead of lighting up.

    I felt fortunate that I only smoked when I drank. When I quit drinking, the smoking went with it. It CAN be done. Now if I could get the sugar train under control...

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