Does quitting smoking really make you gain weight?

Dancergrrl87

I've been smoking for about two years, and am going to quit once I reach 155 (6 pounds away). I've heard many times that quitting smoking will cause you to gain up to ten pounds. Is there any truth to any of this?

Thanks!

HMonsterX

Quitting smoking won't MAKE you gain weight. Eating surplus calories does that.

The reason why quitting is associated with weight gain is the quittee finds they need something to do with their hands, something else to put in their mouth apart from the ciggie. In most cases, they use food. Nibbles, snacks etc, and they dont track their calories.

I know I'd be like that if i tried to quit.

tpt42087

No I quit smoking over a year ago and thats about the same time I lost 50lbs. Ppl say you gain because your used to the hand to mouth thing and instead of a cig ppl eat more. Just watch how much you are eating!

McKayMachina

Nope. I quit smoking the same time I started losing weight. I lost 11.4 lbs. in that first month and am still averaging between 6-7 lbs./month.

The only thing that will make you gain fat is by consistently eating too much.

rockylucas

Monster is correct... it's not the lack of smoking itself which causes the weight gain, but an increased desire to eat.. AND... the fact that your taste buds have been dulled by two yrs of smoking, and will be alive like never before once you stop (That can be a good and a bad thing lol!)

Most folks cannot lose weight and quit smoking... Kudos to you for doing one at a time, I would recommend perhaps staying at ur goal weight awhile, then quitting the cigarettes slowly.

Cmccracken1

i did. i quit smoking before i started trying to bring my weight down though,,, because i was such a heavy smoker no way could i have exercized.. but i think if you have a good steady work out routine and you track what goes in your mouth you can probably quit without gaining but i did gain 25lbs on top of the 20 that i hadnt lost from the last baby,,, it's all in how you approach it i just gave myself 6 months to kick smoking and then i tackled my weight problem

_Ben

Sometimes, the withdrawl effect can cause weight gain, but that is not the main cause. Most people gain weight because they are replacing one habit with another. A good suggestion is try getting sugar free suckers or gum, so instead of eating, you can use those. The habit is both chemical and physcological, and a good way to beat the oral fixation is gum or suckers

HMonsterX

I would recommend perhaps staying at ur goal weight awhile, then quitting the cigarettes slowly.

This is exactly my plan. Word perfect.

leilani♥

Nope I quit smoking around the same time I started losing weight. The only reason why they say quitting smoking makes you gain is because you have the urge to put something in your mouth... heh

healthybabs

It will be 2 years for me on Monday that I quit smoking. I can tell you that I gained 10 lbs before I decided to do something about that. I would have kept gaining if I didn't start being mindful of what I was eating. Joined a site and started tracking every nibble and nosh. Turned that around plus more. I will tell you this, continuing to smoke even one more day is much more detrimental to your health than worrying about a few lbs. You are already here and tracking so I doubt you will see a gain. You WILL want to replace those trigger times with something else. You didn't say how much you smoke but any amount is bad...DON'T WAIT, QUIT NOW......TODAY...IMMEDIATELY!!!!!

bcattoes

No and yes. Quitting smoking does not make you gains weight, but a lot of times people start putting food in their mouth when they want a cigarette and that is what causes the weight gain.

hbrittingham

I have read a study that said your metabolism slows down when you quit smoking. I think that's more likely true for long term smokers, the fact you have only been smoking for two years should help you out a lot. Please quit soon!

I smoked for 20 years and regret it totally now. I quit over 4 years ago and promptly gained 35 lbs. Partially because I did keep putting candy in my mouth constantly, partly because I waited until I was 40 to quit and my metabolism was already slowing down due to my age.

momof8munchkins

when my husband quit 12 years ago he put on 25 lbs.. but was like above poster stated.. he neded something to do with his hands.. he began snacking mindlessly.. after meals he would always have a cigarette.. so to avoid temptation he kept eating and usually sugary stuff.. .. chewing gum may help with that need to have something in your mouth..

PrettyLittleLiar79

Quitting smoking won't MAKE you gain weight. Eating surplus calories does that.

The reason why quitting is associated with weight gain is the quittee finds they need something to do with their hands, something else to put in their mouth apart from the ciggie. In most cases, they use food. Nibbles, snacks etc, and they dont track their calories.

I know I'd be like that if i tried to quit.

He is definitely correct!!! I had my last cigarette on Sunday and I am constantly needing something to do with my hands and eating.....But the sad thing is is a vicious circle. Cuz I would eat, then I would want a cigarette, then I would eat later to stop that craving, then I would need the cigarette.

healthybabs

I can share a little tip for anyone trying to quit. Substitute dancing or taking a quick walk with smoking. I have suggested that to two of my stay at home mom friends who were trying to quit. Every time they wanted a cig at home, they would turn on the music and tell the kids....come on, time to dance! No cigs = good for mom and dancing = good for everyone!

Sheriemae

I quit 8 months ago and yes I gained. But I ate crap, and was lazy. (My own fault) My own personal experience, I was slightly depressed, no not from quitting, but quitting on top of my husband leaving for a year to go to Afghanistan didn't help. I didn't exercise and didn't pay attention to what I was eating at all. But my doctor just told me yesterday that your metabolism will slow down after quitting for about a year. So after you quit you will have to really watch what you're eating and make sure you stick to working out. I wish I never would have stopped working out and eating right. Now I'm back up, but I'm back on track, on week 3 of being healthly again, and let me tell you. I don't feel like crap anymore. Good luck with quitting smoking. Don't not quit because you're afraid to gain. You'll be healthier if you quit. Just stay focused on being healthy.

suemar74

It will be two years on the 30th since I quit, and I gained, but it was me not checking myself. It may have messed with my metabolism, but I also had age and out-of-whack hormones working against me too, so who knows. And I have *always* had bad eating habits. Even now, they're enough to make the hard-core healthies cringe a bit, I'm sure

You know what you will gain, though? Money. Stamina. Life...

Even with my extra weight, quitting was worth it.

gavini

i quit for 6 weeks over the summer and lost 9 pounds over the same 6 weeks.

then i smoked half a pack a day for a month, lost 1 pound that month.

had my last smoke almost 43 hours ago, no weigh ins over that time period though

quitting doesn’t have to lead to weight gain at all but when you want a smoke it feels like hunger - which it is, your body is hungry for nicotine because it thinks it needs it and you have trained it to "think" that- so you eat more and you gain weight. if you are aware of this, and expect it, you can be prepared by looking for carrots, water and other things that will help fill that void without hurting your waist line.

I have found oranges to be very helpful in that regard, try one when you have a craving.

nicki2135

Hiya
I quit smoking last year after 10 years, I did put on weight, around 1.5 stone BUT because I treated myself to eating whatever i wanted as a reward for not smoking each day. I had stupidly big portions and snacked whenever I wanted to!!
thats the reason I'm here now lol
BUT if your sensible keep eating in a normal healthy manner and find other ways of rewarding yourself rathr than food then there is no reason why you should put weight on and in the long run you will feel sooooo much better.
Nicki

BrewerGeorge

Nicotine is a stimulant. Like any stimulant, it raises your metabolism. Change nothing else about you diet and remove the stimulant and you will probably slowly gain weight because you're body goes back to a baseline calorie burn.

However, MFP's calorie calculations do not assume you have a regular dose of stimulant in your body. Use them and eat according to the recommendations here and you'll still have the calorie deficit to lose weight.

Heaven71

It was proven that smoking triggers the full switch. I quit last december and gained almost 20 lbs. 12 more to go!!