Advice for a smoker?

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redskyharbor
redskyharbor Posts: 34 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I say smoker, between 5-15 a day depending on circumstances.
However, I've researched that even when smoking, you can increase fitness and reduce the effects of smoking through cardio.
But as a smoker with low fitness I find it very hard to push through and I end up out of breath, discouraged and lacking motivation; however I'm okay with crunches, squats and things, just intense cardio.
Any advice/suggestions on what to ease myself in with? Or how to increase my motivation to push through the wheezing fits.
Thanks guys :)
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Replies

  • RealWomenLovePitbulls
    RealWomenLovePitbulls Posts: 729 Member
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    quit smoking :happy:
  • tnrunningnurse
    tnrunningnurse Posts: 549 Member
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    I am a former smoker....quit smoking. It just that simple.
  • rhondaoberling
    rhondaoberling Posts: 17
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    From one smoker to another : You are a beautiful young woman my advice to you is to quit smoking NOW while your lungs still have a chance to somewhat heal and reccuperate from what damage that has already been done. The older you get the harder it is to try to quit! Iam 52yrs old and already lost 40% Of My lung function, the most cardio I have been able to do is walk a mile. I am trying my hardest for the millionth time to quit. At best try to cut back more. :flowerforyou:
  • lglg11
    lglg11 Posts: 344 Member
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    Quit. Now.
  • Momyontherun
    Momyontherun Posts: 8 Member
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    I agree with Realwomen. We, my husband and I, quit smoking to enjoy hiking, which has led to a whole nother world. It will still take a while to push through, but you may find that things are so much better when you aren't worried about "where can i go have a cigarette" as you walk around the block.
  • ferb03
    ferb03 Posts: 82
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    Yep, ya gotta quit smoking sister. And it can be done so if/when you decide to do it add me as a friend and I will give you all the support I can. Been there done that.
  • Nukkers
    Nukkers Posts: 139 Member
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    Quit smoking is way easier said than done. I've tried several times and I know one day when I'm ready I'll get it. I started exercising by doing the 30 Day Shred by Jillian Michaels. It's a good mixture of cardio and strength training, actually interval training. At first I felt like I was going to d i e. But after a few days it has gotten much better. I also walk 3 miles 3 times a week. This has helped so much. I plan to move on to C25K after I've built myself up enough. Good luck!
  • RainHoward
    RainHoward Posts: 1,599 Member
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    I smoked a pack a day for 20 years. I'm now 99.9% quit. I have the occasional smoke. Everyone is right, quit now, while you're young and it's easier. While your body is still able to fix the damage you've done. That wheezing you're experiencing? It will only get worse with time.

    I suppose you can still work out and all but it's going to be harder and harder the longer you smoke. Your lung capacity is going to go down, not up.
  • redskyharbor
    redskyharbor Posts: 34 Member
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    Thanks Nukkers for pointing out quitting is hard, and in fact I have cut down a lot, I've had a look at interval training since you mentioned it and it seems attainable, I'll have a look at your other suggestions :)
  • farway
    farway Posts: 1,264 Member
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    The quit advice is good,
    I eventually quit for good around 40 years ago, when *kitten* were 3 shillings & 6 old pence a packet of 20 [ 32.5p in today's money]. In those days ir was harder going as zero support or nicotine patches etc

    Have you spotted today's news about a mass quitting in October? Hopefully there will be loads of help & encouragment

    "Smokers across England are being urged to quit for a month in a government campaign"

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-19506327
  • LyssaJ1
    LyssaJ1 Posts: 240 Member
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    Well, I smoke a pack-a-day, and usually walk/hike close-to three miles every other day...at least three times a week. I was *almost quit*...down to three cigs a day and then I got a trigger-letter that totally set me off. (Yeah, I have "issues".)

    Anyway, *first* I need to lose weight...then I'll attend to quitting smoking, but I'm not doing both at the same time. Oh, and I didn't start at the almost-three-miles a day...I started off just wandering for a while around the neighborhood. Then I got a pedometer...then I started going by time and then figured out the distance.

    Take care of *and* be good to you! :smile:
  • navywife5810
    navywife5810 Posts: 63 Member
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    Well, considering today is Day One of my quit smoking goal, I'm just going to tell you the quotes that are taped all over my house to keep me motivated.

    It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.
    - Charles Darwin

    Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.
    - George Bernard Shaw

    The words "I am..." are potent words; be careful what you hitch them to. The thing you're claiming has a way of reaching back and claiming you.
    - A.L. Kitselman

    Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.
    - Thomas Edison

    Now, as far as exercise goes, intense cardio is going to be really difficult for you...it is for me, but as I've slowed my smoking, I've been able to do more. I used to not be able to walk up stairs without being out of breath. Now I can walk for hours, do Zumba, and weight train. I'm happy I'm quitting, but it's not easy. I still want them... I guess I just have to decide what type of life I want more.
  • LaurySch
    LaurySch Posts: 277 Member
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    Of course the "quit now" advice is right, but you need to be ready. I tried three times before it stuck and some days I still feel like I'm one smoke away from going back. Keep doing what you're doing, push yourself a bit more each time and just keep reminding yourself that quitting is an option.

    I can't give you advice on what works while you are smoking, I quit before I started exercising regularly. But I know that even just a few days of not smoking make a difference, maybe just test yourself by going longer without a smoke before each workout?

    Good luck!
  • ldholcombe
    ldholcombe Posts: 97 Member
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    quit smoking :happy:

    This is exactly what I was going to say.

    Plus your probably spending anywhere from $40-$80 on ciggarettes a month, what a wasted of money. You are paying to basically kill your self. I use to smoke and felt horrible all the time when I did. I could not really jog, I had head aches all of the time. I would cough up nasty stuff. Its just not worth it. If your trying to become healthier cut cigs out first. You will thank your self later!!
  • Just_Pam
    Just_Pam Posts: 23 Member
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    I quit in March using e-cigs (nicolite brand). Best decision I ever made. I had tried everything else several times and couldn't do it, even though almost everyone around me had quit over the years. It's amazing how much more energetic you can be when you can breathe!! I had smoked for almost 35 years 1-2 packs a day.
  • karenwill2
    karenwill2 Posts: 604 Member
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    you just have to make it 3 days to quit smoking. The third day is the hardest. The worst part is how much you miss it. Life is way better without it.

    Yes, I have done it. You can utter excuses like stress and whatnot but life is never going to get easy or stress free. You do have to want it for it to happen. So my best advice is WANT to quit smoking and then everything else will fall in line.
  • ktied
    ktied Posts: 137 Member
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    Of course the "quit now" advice is right, but you need to be ready. I tried three times before it stuck and some days I still feel like I'm one smoke away from going back. Keep doing what you're doing, push yourself a bit more each time and just keep reminding yourself that quitting is an option.

    I can't give you advice on what works while you are smoking, I quit before I started exercising regularly. But I know that even just a few days of not smoking make a difference, maybe just test yourself by going longer without a smoke before each workout?

    Good luck!

    I'm a smoker too, about 10-15 cigs a day, though im cutting back, and one thing I have found to be helpful in cardio sessions is not smoking before a workout, like go as long as you can before you know you have a workout and it really does help. Then you workout, forget you want a cigaarette, and i hate smoking right after a workout. makes me feel like im gonna die. So hopefully, itll just click one day and I'll really want to quit. Good luck to you.
  • grrrlface
    grrrlface Posts: 1,204 Member
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    When I started MFP I was a smoker, average 10 a day. It does get easier to breathe through the workouts if you persist!

    Obviously it is ideal to quit but it's easier said than done, especially when you're trying to lose weight.

    I got to a point in my weight loss where I decided I needed to quit for my over all health as well. I do occasionally smoke, sometimes just when I go out and sometimes I smoke for a week or more.

    The one thing I will say is that the difference in motivation is amazing when you don't smoke. I am eager to workout and eat healthy when I don't smoke. When I do I am sluggish and moody and just grab quick meals because I can't be bothered with anything! :P

    Take your time, you will only quit if you want to (I didn't want to, which is why I often go back to it but it's better that I have cut down!)

    ETA: I have one of those electronic cigarettes, they aren't as harmful for your health and you can still get nicotine. It's been quite useful! :)
  • Stevensno
    Stevensno Posts: 30
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    I smoked up to 20 a day until fairly recently,NRT is your friend.I was incredibly unfit for cardio so I instantly stopped smoking,started going to the gym 4/5 days a week and haven't looked back since.Quitting smoking can be a daunting prospect but with the correct support and the almost instant health benefits it soon became a no brainer. I hope you can find the strength to give it a go,life is so much better without cigarettes !
  • rabbit1951
    rabbit1951 Posts: 31 Member
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    If you can possibly quit smoking, please do. I quit for good on my 2nd try (June 13, 2009) with the help of a prescription (not Chantix.) I'm very lucky in that I haven't missed it at all. One big help is that, as fewer people smoke, I'm not around smokers as much. Another big help is that I'm kind of a cheapskate and when I saw someone buying cigarettes at an entertainment venue (okay- we were at the casino) they were almost $10.00. It's probably difficult to quit smoking and lose weight at the same time, but try to be successful at one thing and then tackle the other. It is SO much easier to exercise when not smoking.

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