Best time to give up smoking?

dubist · January 2013

RIGHT NOW!

PikaKnight · January 2013

Quit now. You'll never really feel ready to quit. Just do it...now..you'll be so happy you did...

Tw1zzler · January 2013

Now. Don't wait. But you must be 100% committed and 100% sure that you will do it. Mind over matter, you don't need it.

bluefox9er · January 2013

When is the best time to give up smoking? Would it be whilst I am dieting or when I have reached my goal? I'm just worried about not losing weight if I give in the smoking right now, but it's something I want to do sooner rather than later as I have been smoking nearly 6 years and I don't want my kids to grow up seeing me doing it.

right now!!

anifani4 · January 2013

When you make the decision that you will be a non-smoker. Do it now. Concentrate on good nutrition. Find a substitute for oral gratification ...like munching on raw veggies. Go outdoors as often as you smoked and take ten slow deep breaths, see the word "relax" in bright neon colors, concentrate on the breathing and the sign. It will help. If you've had a heavy smoking habit you might need to use nicotine gum to ease you out of the additiction. I applaud you for knowing that smoking is an unhealthy activity that you do not want to pass on to your kids.

33Freya · January 2013

Now. Right now is always the best time to stop because it will immediatly improve your health. Good luck!!

Kougra · January 2013

These people are all kinda right. There never will be an optimal time and if you wait for it you are just making excuses. That said, the serious advice tends to say: Set a date sometime in the near future, so you have time to prepare yourself for it, and some time to psych yourself up.
Good luck !

He is right. I quit 17 months ago and haven't looked back. This website is a good place to get info on quitting, http://www.quitnet.com. It has a lot of great tips and of course there is a support system there as well. Good luck on your journey! Your body will thank you!! :flowerforyou:

katy84o · January 2013

Quit now. I didn't gain weight when I quit. It was the opposite, I wanted to get healthy all around, I started eating better, and walking everyday.

Even if you put on 10lbs from quitting, wouldn't you rather do it now while you are starting to lose weight, then once you have reached your goal only to gain 10lbs. For me, it'd be really disappointing to reach my goal. Quit smoking and gain weight right after hitting that mark.

Good luck and you can do it! Drink water whenever you feel like smoking and if you can, when you want to go have a smoke take a walk instead. Walk around for 7-10 minutes it take to smoke a cigarette. If you smoke 6/ day that's 60 minutes of extra walking.

Edit to say: When I quit, I wasn't planning on it. I had seriously cut back on how many I was smoking. I would only smoke one on the way to work and none during the day. Total I'd have 4. I did that for two days. Then the third day I woke up and I didn't even want one. So I quit then and there. I smoked a cigarette a few months after that at a bar, and I had totally lost my taste for it.

sijomial · January 2013

Hang on I'll ask my sister, she's just about killed herself with emphysema/COPD caused by smoking....
The answer is now.

Seriously - when I took her home on New Year's Day my Mum said "don't think your sister will make it through another year".
She's thrown away her health, please don't do the same.

sandi117 · January 2013

As a fellow smoker, I have had this crossing my mind as well. I started using an app on my phone: LIVESTRONG My Quit Coach. It is an aid to help smoking, and so far I have found it especially helpful since I don't exactly have the best support group (my mom smokes, and a handful of my friends smoke as well. They're encouraging, but it's hard to take them seriously when they're not trying.) You can quit immediately or gradually (over a set period you determine, though it' default is about a week and a half.) It then gives you a budget for each day. Each milestone you make, you get badges. The app is filled with inspirational quotes.

Yes, the best time to quit is RIGHT NOW. Just throw away the pack you have and never buy another one. But for many, quitting cold turkey is really hard. The app helps in weaning.

Just a thought.

Good luck!

AnneU93 · January 2013

I decided to quit smoking when I decided to start controlling my calorie intake and joined MFP. Don't worry about putting on weight. I know that smoking boost your metabolism like 10%, but since you are watching your calories you won't start packing on pounds (it was different if you weren't using MFP or something to watch your calories since cigarettes also works kinda like hunger-suppressants)

And think of it this way if you are exercising; soon after you quit smoking your lung capacity will improve (more oxygen into your body, which the body needs to burn fat) and with the improved capacity and that your fitness will improve you will begin burning more during that same workout you usually do since you will be able to work harder.

So I won't have an effect on your weight loss -granted you work out if you don't watch your calories and correct them accordingly.

So the only thing that would happen if you quit right now is your health will improve, it will be better for your kids health right now and a better role model for there future health (less likely to start smoking themselves, you will save money that you can use on all the new wonderful clothes you can look sexy in and people would stop judging you (people would always look at me judgingly)

You just have to find another thing to do as an outlet

I did not replace my mine, I just quit and don't ask me how I could do that without another outlet.

Good luck on figuring out what to do, you will have my support if needed!!

GlamorousGrandmaJo · January 2013

I gave up in October - I have smoked on 2 occasions since then but then no-one's perfect right? ;-)

Personally I found cold turkey the best solution for me but I know other people find cutting down first works for them. If you do decide to cut down then give yourself an end date otherwise you may find you don't actually stop. Some people also speak to their doctor for nicotine patches/gum.

Apart from that - the best time to give up is as soon as possible!

Firefox7275 · January 2013

When is the best time to give up smoking? Would it be whilst I am dieting or when I have reached my goal? I'm just worried about not losing weight if I give in the smoking right now, but it's something I want to do sooner rather than later as I have been smoking nearly 6 years and I don't want my kids to grow up seeing me doing it.

When you have made a plan for how you are going to do it,, set a quit date and starting putting your plan into action. How are you going to deal with cravings, nights out, work breaks? What was a success last time you quit and what made you start again (if you did)?

Download some apps, throw away EVERYTHING related to smoking you own, all the ash trays and lighters, clean your car and home and go. Losing weight is a terrible reason to keep poisoning yourself daily it is actually a classic excuse women make, really all that is is rationalising your addiction. You can get a chronic or life threatening disease at any time and smoke residues on your clothing or in your car affects your children's health. Are you going to use tobacco to maintain too? If you had a different addiction such as alcohol or street drugs would it be OK to do that for the sake of your diet?

Research suggests that those who cut down to quit just draw harder on each cigarette and hold the smoke in slightly longer so they maintain the same set point of nicotine in the blood that makes them comfortable. They can become more addicted to each cigarette.

tomservo · January 2013

As someone who gave up last May after 20 years of smoking, and who has tried and tried before, all i can tell you is that if you need to ask that question (or think there is a correct answer), you're either going to find it impossible or extremely tough.

There is a right time to quit, but that time is only when you say to yourself "enough now". I can guarantee that everyone who fails to quit does so because their reasons and motivations weren't right for them. It was too early, mentally.

When the time is right, you will know, and there won't be any need to question it. You will just do it.

kandi810 · January 2013

It's never a good time because they become our best friends. I quit four years ago and still think about smoking all the time. It's really hard but you can do it!!

eandrsmom · January 2013

Yesterday! Good luck! Never been there, but have watched many struggle through it!

ByronJP · January 2013

It's never a good time because they become our best friends. I quit four years ago and still think about smoking all the time. It's really hard but you can do it!!

Totally agree, I have just quit again (only been 5 days) but i have quit in the past for more than 9 months and for some reason i come back. I hope to anyone that is quitting that it could be easy, so far im doing ok. I find exercising helps a lot.

almc170 · January 2013

Now! Hey, you're trying to get healthier, why not go all the way? Plus it makes exercise a whole lot easier. I quit about a year and a half ago. Not gonna lie, I still crave cigarettes sometimes. But I have no interest in smoking again. Just not worth it.