Cigarettes and Cardio?

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  • MissyMissy18
    MissyMissy18 Posts: 315 Member
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    Yes, I am one of those smoking sinners and I run ten miles per day. Oddly enough, I had some lung function and respiratory tests done recently and the results were excellent...my lung function is actually better than my doctor's and he has never touched a cig in his life. He said my lungs are pink and healthy and show no evidence of smoking, which is rather weird, and he insisted I must not inhale. In other words, I am wasting my money on cigs.

    I do intend to quit though, because the price of cigs are so high. I just bought a new SUV and what I spend on cigs is easily a car payment. Might as well be smoking dollar bills.

    No, I don't advocate smoking. I am just adding my input to this thread.

    You are spending a car payment's worth on cigarettes and you don't even inhale? This is just strange.
  • staceface519
    staceface519 Posts: 167
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    Ive been a smoker sice age 12 (i know i know) and im 27 now. . . . i find that if i cut down smoking quick, it has an effect on my body everytime i exercise. . . so i have to ween myself down. . i used to smoke a pack a day and now im down to about 5 - 7 cigarettes a day. . . . at first i used to have heart palpatations from the withdrawl and the stress. . but now that ive been able to control it i have no problems running, or anything. . even with asthma. . .

    each person is different and how their body reacts to the chemicals that are in cigarettes. . within the past year ive stopped buying newport 100's for 10 bucks a pack and buy cigarettes from the indian reservations we have here. . theya re all natural tabaco and i can still get my menthol. . without it being fiberglass. . . ive noticed i dont get sick as much and dont get soar throats as bad either. . .

    cant deny 25 bucks for a package of 200 cigarettes :) money saver. . woohoo!!!. . .

    and i was tested recently for my lung function and all and came back 100% perfect! :)

    One of the many reasons to quit smoking is that ciagarettes are a weight maintainer. . . sometimes (depending on the person) when you quit , you tend to eat because of the oral fixation. . . . others lose weight. . . .i know when i have a cig on an empty stomach i dont feel hungry after that so i dont eat, which is so bad, , , but to each their own!
  • saracatherine89
    saracatherine89 Posts: 291 Member
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    I admit to being guilty of this. I am a very on/off smoker- my habit tends to get better and worse with my stress level. Unfortunately, I am extremely stressed lately and have been picking up this habit again :(.

    I have not noticed it impacting my running abilities and do not cough or get short of breath when I run. The thing I notice most is that my heart rate is a lot higher on days that I smoke vs. days that I do not smoke. I only smoke 1-2 cigarettes a day IF that, because I live with a smoker, but I am going to quit when I move out. I've only been smoking for 4 years and I am more of a social smoker than a regular one.
  • nickhuffman74
    nickhuffman74 Posts: 198 Member
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    I quit January 21st of this year after being a smoker for 16 years. I have noticed a 100% turn around in my ablility to do cardio. Such a difference!!
    However, my husband still smokes (and is a long time smoker) and he can still kick my a** when it comes to cardio. Out runs me with ease.
    Of course (everyone knows) smoking is unhealthy but the degree to which it effects ones ability to do cardio (I think) depends on each individual.

    You are comparing apples to oranges. There is more to outrunning someone than their ability to breath and process oxygen. Smoking ages you, give you gum disease, heart problems, circulation problems and a slew of other issues. This is not directed at you but all the smokers. Don think that because you can run a few miles in your younger and middle age years that smoking wont ravage your body in your later years and rob you of time with your loved ones.
  • Keefypoos
    Keefypoos Posts: 231 Member
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    5 years ago I gave up smoking
    I put on 36lbs in about 4 months
    over the last 18 months I have got my self back to my "smoking weight"

    the health benefits are to many to list here but suffice to say my children are very happy i've gone through this process
  • phoenixoncemore
    phoenixoncemore Posts: 202 Member
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    I smoked for 10 years. I smoked while being active and fit for all ten years, Including one full season of playing college soccer (not advisable), six rugby union seasons and one Aussie Rules football season. I did Tough Mudders, rebel races, warrior dashes, half marathons, 5K's, 10K's, Turkey Trots. I didn't *think* it affected me for any of that time.

    Then, in February of this year I quit cold turkey. I was just ready, I guess. Since I quit I've realized exactly how much smoking was affecting me.

    Since quitting smoking I have:

    - shaved a full two minutes off my mile time
    - finally started losing the fat around my waist
    - finally finished a full two hour Aussie Rules training without needing my inhaler
    - finally gotten really solid sleep (when I smoked I woke up throughout the night. I thought I was just a poor sleeper, turns out it was the nicotine, who knew?!)
    - not woken up feeling totally crummy once after a night out despite amount of alcohol consumed
    - not wheezed going up the four flights of stairs going up to my fourth floor walk-up apartment (when I smoked, I thought it was weird that someone as "fit" as I was was still wheezing going up stairs)
    - found other, more productive ways to deal with stress (I'm also a high strung Type A personality)
    - made new connections with my fitness enthusiast friends because I no longer felt like I needed to hide my dirty little secret from them


    The list goes on. Rather than ask for advice on how to continue smoking while working on your fitness tackle the underlying issue first. You need to quit, and yes, you can. It's a filthy nasty crutch of a habit that's impeding your growth, both fitness-wise and as a human being, every time you light up. You can do it girl! I believe in you. :flowerforyou:

    Wow, that's amazing. Congrats on quitting. :flowerforyou:
  • riccoismydog
    riccoismydog Posts: 320 Member
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    I was a smoker for 15 years. When I was in my 20's I did hard cardio no problems. When I quit I could run and do the elliptical. But I was winded when I went up huge flights of stairs.

    I always had a super high heart rate when I did these things though.

    I have been quit for about three months. I am just now starting to notice my heart rate while I exercise with great intensity to have dropped majorly. From about 170-180 to about 130-140. Thats while running hard or climbing stairs fast. :)


    Don't be afraid to use the nicotine replacement. Get your self off the smoking and then work on your addiction. I still use about five 1mg lozenges a day. With the aim to drop one per week until I am completely off. I don't need to make this painful, when it really doesn't need to.

    I just noticed the other day how most smokers now a days just look wrong.

    It makes it easier that no where in Canada is legal to smoke, except in your own home. Unless you have kids, then thats illegal too. Go Canada.
  • blissfulself
    blissfulself Posts: 193 Member
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    I used to smoke and now that I don't I have noticied I can run a lot longer than before, but I think its also a mental thing. Running takes a lot of mental strength anyways and I feel like when I smoked I just was expecting not to be able to run that fast/far so I didn't, but now that I don't smoke I think I can run faster and farther so I do. I exercised and successfully lost weight several times when I was smoking though. When you do plan on quitting though I would highly recommend exercising, as it makes quitting so much easier (in my opinion)
  • andivaclavicek
    andivaclavicek Posts: 150
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    I was smoking and going for bike rides every weekend with my dad. I decided to quit after I almost passed out going up a steep hill. I'm 17 days smoke free and have noticed a huge difference. I'm able to ride harder for longer... errr, the bike. Anyway, quitting is the way to go, but I totally understand that you'll get there when you're ready. :smile:

    Oh, also, I only put on 4 pounds of "quitting weight". And I'm happy to say, as of today, that 4 pounds is gone again. So quitting was just a minor speed bump in my weight loss journey.
  • nickhuffman74
    nickhuffman74 Posts: 198 Member
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    I am not a big fan of cutting back or replacements. When I tried before I always failed until I just stopped smoking and gave up nicotine all together. Replacements, gum and cutting back just keep you in a withdraw state for a longer period of time, if you just stop smoking nicotine is out of your system in 72 hours. Then its all a mind thing.

    http://whyquit.com/

    This is a good read while quitting

    http://www.joelspitzer.com/whyquit/joel/ntap.pdf
  • hpettenger
    hpettenger Posts: 27 Member
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    I tried to quit earlier this year and made it a week before I relapsed.

    I just did the same thing. I made it a week, and started smoking again. I find that when I smoke, it makes me more fatigued during and after my work outs. It is harder to keep up. I'm gonna give quitting another go!
  • simplysassi
    simplysassi Posts: 138 Member
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    bump
  • blissfulself
    blissfulself Posts: 193 Member
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    Also congrats to all those that have quit smoking!! and for those who are still smoking- keep exercising! I don't think you should ever let smoking get in the way of exercising.. like a few of these posts have said, sometimes you just gotta get one thing straightened out (i.e. weight/exercising) and you can't do it all at once! xoxo
  • jtslim42
    jtslim42 Posts: 240
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    I smoked for 15 years and was running at least a 5K a month. I worked out 5 days a week. I recently quit (WOOHOO!) and I am training for a 1/2 marathon! You will quit when you are ready:)
    And today is day 67 of not smoking!
  • deviantcupcake
    deviantcupcake Posts: 136 Member
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    I've never been much of a smoker, but my boyfriend has been smoking since he was about 16. Not massive amounts, 1-2 a day, maybe more if he has a drink. He runs and cycles. He does get a mucky chest if he hasn't worked out in a while, but mostly he doesn't notice it affecting him at all. He ran the London Marathon this year with no problems, even smoking throughout the training.
  • blissfulself
    blissfulself Posts: 193 Member
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    I tried to quit earlier this year and made it a week before I relapsed.

    I just did the same thing. I made it a week, and started smoking again. I find that when I smoke, it makes me more fatigued during and after my work outs. It is harder to keep up. I'm gonna give quitting another go!


    it def takes several attempts and relapses before you are successful. i used a smoking cessation support forum that helped tremendously where you can log your progress and quit days and talk to other people who have quit the same time as you
  • redredy9
    redredy9 Posts: 706 Member
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    It makes it easier that no where in Canada is legal to smoke, except in your own home. Unless you have kids, then thats illegal too. Go Canada.

    Go Canada indeed! :love: :love: :love: I wish that were the case here in the States! I hate being forced to inhale someone else's toxins especially after I've worked so hard to cut it cigs out of my life.
  • MikeInAZ
    MikeInAZ Posts: 483 Member
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    People, it's 2012, please stop smoking already!

    U5MJn.jpg
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    I am not a big fan of cutting back or replacements. When I tried before I always failed until I just stopped smoking and gave up nicotine all together. Replacements, gum and cutting back just keep you in a withdraw state for a longer period of time, if you just stop smoking nicotine is out of your system in 72 hours. Then its all a mind thing.

    http://whyquit.com/

    This is a good read while quitting

    http://www.joelspitzer.com/whyquit/joel/ntap.pdf


    Seventy-two hours is a long damn time. More power to the ones that can do that, but they better sedate me in a hospital setting like they would a heroin addict. :tongue:
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    It makes it easier that no where in Canada is legal to smoke, except in your own home. Unless you have kids, then thats illegal too. Go Canada.

    Go Canada indeed! :love: :love: :love: I wish that were the case here in the States! I hate being forced to inhale someone else's toxins especially after I've worked so hard to cut it cigs out of my life.

    Yes, because America needs another drug to add to the f***ing drug war! Prohibition leads to black markets!

    http://www.thecuttingedgenews.com/index.php?article=11372

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