Ways NOT to gain weight after you quit smoking

Weight gain following smoking cessation can be due to several factors:

• Smoking can have an effect on a person’s metabolism; therefore, quitting can account for a small weight gain in some individuals.
• Snacking between meals or increasing the overall size of meals, can easily result in the consuming of several hundred extra calories per day. Eating just an additional 100 calories a day will result in a one pound fat gain in just over a month, about 10 pounds in one year, and an extra 104 pounds in ten years!

How to reduce your cravings

• Replace smoking with other activities:
  • Snack on fruit or sugarless gum to satisfy any sweet cravings.
  • Keep your hands busy.
  • Replace the action of holding cigarettes with activities like doodling, working puzzles, knitting, twirling a straw or holding a pen or pencil
• Drink less caffeine
  • Try to avoid drinking beverages that contain caffeine, such as sodas, coffee, tea, and chocolate. Nicotine withdrawal will make you feel jittery and nervous, and the caffeine only make the nicotine withdrawal worse.
• Get enough sleep
  • When you feel tired, you are more likely to crave cigarettes and food.
• Reduce tension
  • To help relieve tension, relax by meditating, taking a walk, soaking in a tub, or taking deep breaths.
  • Find something that will help you relax and replace the urge to smoke.
• Try not to do things that tempt you to smoke or eat when you are not hungry
  • Keep a journal of where and when you feel most tempted to smoke and avoid these situations.
  • Substitute healthy activities for smoking to help you avoid the urge to smoke or eat when you are not hungry.
• Try not to panic about modest weight gain
  • Accept some weight gain as a normal result of nicotine leaving your body.
  • Know that quitting smoking is the best thing that you can do for your body.

Withdrawal symptoms and activities that might help

• Dry mouth; sore throat, gums or tongue: Sip ice-cold water or fruit juice or chew gum
• Headaches: Take a warm bath or shower
• Trouble sleeping: Avoid caffeine beverages after 6 p.m.
• Irregularity: Add fiber to your diet [raw fruits, vegetables, and whole grain breads & cereals]. Drink 6 - 8 glasses water a day.
• Fatigue: Take a nap.
• Hunger: Drink water or diet beverage. Eat low-calorie snacks.
• Irritability: Take a walk, soak in a hot bath, try relaxation techniques
• Coughing: Sip warm herbal tea. Suck on cough drops or sugarless hard candy.

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Improve your eating habits

• Eat plenty of grain products, vegetables, and fruits.
• Choose lean and low-fat foods and low-calorie beverages most often.
• Choose low-fat dairy products, lean meats, fish, poultry, and dry beans to get the nutrients you need without extra calories and fat.
• Choose foods high in fat and sugar and low in nutrients less often.

Ways to stop the snack attack

• Leave the table immediately when you have finished your meal.
• Try getting up and brushing your teeth.
• Eat several small meals instead of a large one. This will curb the feeling of between-meal hunger.
• Don’t skip any meals since this will lead to more weight gain.

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Physical activity can help

Physical activity helps to control your weight by increasing the number of calories your body uses. Making healthy changes to your eating habits will prevent weight gain by controlling the amount of calories you eat.

In addition to helping control your weight, physical activity:

• Increases your energy,
• Promotes self-confidence
• Improves your health
• Help relieve the stress and depression caused by the lack of nicotine in your body.

Try to do at least 30 minutes of physical activity a day on most days of the week. The activity does not have to be done all at once. It can be done in short spurts - 10 minutes here, 20 minutes there - as long as it adds up to 30 minutes a day.

Simple ways to become more physically active include:

• gardening
• housework
• mowing the lawn
• raking the leaves
• shoveling the snow
• washing your car
• playing actively with children
• taking the stairs instead of the elevator
• walking your dog or your neighbor’s dog

Remember: If you are hungry, you are going to want a cigarette. Therefore, if you are concerned about weight gain, eat sensibly but don’t overdo it!

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