How to quit smoking without gaining weight: the best recommendations

Reviews from experts are disappointing for those who want to quit smoking but are watching their figure. Every second former smoker gains an average of 5 kilograms in the year after the last cigarette, and notices that the stomach, sides, and buttocks begin to grow. A person can begin to gain weight especially intensively in the first three months of giving up a bad habit. But experts assure that you should not be afraid of such weight gain. From the point of view of benefits for the body, the absence of nicotine is much more beneficial than extra pounds and a big belly. You just need to know how to lose weight after quitting smoking.

Cleansing

Cigarettes contain more than just nicotine. They contain 195 harmful components, 14 of which are addictive, and 55 components take a long time to be eliminated. If a person smokes one cigarette after another, then all the substances will not be able to be removed from the body, they will accumulate, disintegrate, and their decay products will poison the body for a long time.

If a person decides to quit smoking, then one must remember:

• 99% cleansing of the body occurs after three weeks in those who smoked less than 5 cigarettes daily.
• If a person smoked 5-10 cigarettes every day, then cleansing will occur after 5 weeks.
• For a person who once smoked 10 cigarettes, the cleansing period is 8 weeks.

The specified time period is the most stressful. It is at this time that various side effects may appear. For example, one of the side effects is a slow metabolism (this is why people complain “I quit smoking and gained weight in the first weeks, my belly began to grow”). To make metabolic processes faster, you should immediately begin removing toxins. This will restore metabolic processes and prevent the sides, stomach and other parts of the body from growing.

Here are a couple of methods that will help you quickly eliminate harmful substances during the period of quitting smoking, prevent uncontrolled weight gain, and prevent your belly from growing:

1. After a person quits smoking, he needs to spend more time in the fresh air. Ventilate the room more often, walk in forested areas, and do physical exercise in the fresh air.
2. Folk remedies will prevent you from gaining too much weight (a decoction or infusion of oregano, string, linden, chamomile, coltsfoot will prevent weight gain). A healing decoction of bay leaves with lemon and a spoon of honey will be useful.
3. A properly formulated diet will help keep your weight normal - oatmeal, rice, flaxseed, potato broth, fruits, herbs, and vegetables are healthy. If you start eating right immediately after quitting smoking, your weight will not start to increase at all.
4. Ascorbic acid, rutin, vitamins A and E will help normalize metabolism, disturbed by long-term smoking - you can get them with fruits and vegetables, or you can start taking vitamin complexes.

The effect of constant doses of nicotine on the body

Nicotine, which is necessarily contained in cigarette smoke, has an extremely depressing effect on the area of ​​​​the brain called the hunger center. Therefore, smokers often experience less hunger or, on the contrary, a feeling of fullness comes faster even from very small portions of food. That is why active smokers require slightly less food to feel full than an ordinary non-smoker.

In addition, when entering the body, certain doses of nicotine are responsible for increasing the secretory function of the stomach. However, the stomach suffers from this, because it produces enzymes and gastric juice for food, which ultimately does not arrive at all or enters in small quantities. The mucous membranes are in constant irritation and gradually become damaged, leading to the occurrence of chronic gastritis and stomach ulcers. These diseases are frequent companions of smokers. The secretory function of the stomach decreases over time, the digestion of food and its absorption becomes worse, so active smokers do not get better.

The main physiological reasons for active weight gain

When a person quits smoking, doses of nicotine cease to have an effect on the body, more specifically on the stomach, the center of hunger. So why do people get fat when they quit smoking? After getting rid of nicotine, the processes of dulling hunger no longer occur at the level of the brain, the body gradually restores lost functions, and it begins to respond normally and adequately to the vital need for food. Accordingly, the amount of food eaten increases.

In addition, the mucous membrane is restored, which begins to actively digest and absorb food better, requiring more of it. The result is a set of kilograms. This is often the answer to why people gain weight when they quit smoking.

Also, for some reason, such a factor as the direct restoration of smell and taste is constantly discounted. This also stimulates appetite, which leads to eating more. And an excess of food is the main reason for the body to gain weight, so when you quit smoking you gain weight.

The main psychological reasons for active weight gain

If long-term smokers decide to stop using cigarettes, then they begin to experience a physical and psychological need for the process of smoking. Often they try to drown them out using a variety of other methods.

Quite often, the habit of “keeping something in your mouth” is replaced with seeds, cookies, and sweets, which becomes the main reason why people gain weight when they quit smoking. Experiencing serious stress in the process of quitting tobacco, many people simply try to eat away this stress. The craving for puffs is interrupted by frequent snacks, the number of which is equal to the number of cigarettes they have not smoked. When visits to the refrigerator become more frequent, the weight of those quitting smoking increases. Therefore, when figuring out whether people get fat when they quit smoking, you need to remember that it depends on the specific person and the specific approach to quitting the addiction.

But none of the ex-smokers takes into account the fact that during the period of active smoking they did not gain kilograms to their own normal weight. When the direct effect of nicotine doses on the body finally stops, metabolic processes are normalized, and accordingly, the weight gradually returns to normal. He is brought to the level where he should be. So when figuring out why people gain weight when they quit smoking, you need to remember that gaining kilograms is not always evidence of a side effect. It may be evidence that the body is simply returning to normal.

The danger of habit substitution

People often write reviews on forums: “Now I can’t smoke, but whenever I want to take a puff, I eat cookies or candy.” This method of quitting smoking will not allow you to remain at a normal weight - the person will begin to gain weight, and the stomach, buttocks, and thighs will grow especially strongly.

The main rule for those who do not want to gain weight: do not replace the habit of smoking with the habit of eating. It is necessary to strictly ensure that sweets, confectionery, buns, fatty and high-calorie foods, sandwiches, chips, crackers, and sweet carbonated drinks are not consumed. You shouldn't eat a lot of these foods at all - they cause everyone to gain a lot of body weight. For those who have only recently quit smoking, weight gain with such an incorrect diet will occur instantly.

You need to be careful with special candies and chewing gum, which must be chewed or sucked when the desire to smoke arises. They are non-caloric, but increase salivation, the production of gastric juice, and irritate the receptors of the oral cavity. 15-20 minutes after taking anti-smoking candy or chewing gum, your appetite will increase - you need to be careful not to start overeating.

Why does someone who quit smoking gain weight and how to avoid it?

Let's start with the fact that the very fact of giving up a long-term habit is a strong stress
for the body.
Which, in the absence of a usual way of dealing with it, you have to... that's right, jam it. Usually everything that is fatty, sweet and very, very endorphin-rich is used. In addition, the body is deprived of the usual nicotine pumping
, which causes a surge of hormones.
And these are additional feelings of depression, self-doubt, loss of performance and other thirty-three displeasures. The solution is simple. If you aim a cigarette pack at the trash can, inspect the refrigerator
.
Stock up on vegetables, fruits and grain breads. That is, everything that you can reach with your hand, throw into your mouth at the first signs of withdrawal, and that will not be deposited on your waist. Try to eat less fatty and sweet foods, and more foods containing fiber - this will dull the feeling of hunger. By the way, many ex-smokers mistake symptoms of nicotine deficiency
.
You can switch to fractional meals, which also helps get rid of the feeling of constant “malnutrition.” In order to gradually get rid of the need to occupy your mouth and hands with something, you may like to drink juices through a straw. Just choose low-calorie vegetable mixtures without salt
and juices that do not contain sugar.
But what you shouldn’t do at all
is try to satisfy the desire to smoke with candy.
You can ruin your teeth and gain those extra pounds. You should also avoid chips, nuts and other crackers. They will only contribute to fullness. And it’s better not to look in the direction of alcohol, which also produces hormonal pleasure. This will only help for a short time, and an attempt to quit smoking may end in binge drinking. To make it easier to control your diet, our experts recommend writing down everything you eat during the day. Register on our website and get access to a food diary and other personal services that will help you monitor your caloric intake. When cigarettes have become a “class enemy,” it’s time to increase physical activity
. Firstly, movement helps produce endorphins just as well as sweets. Secondly, during exercise, especially if it is cardio exercises, the lungs work intensively and metabolic processes accelerate. This means that the body gets rid of the remnants of tobacco toxins much faster. Thirdly, movement itself distracts from the desire to smoke. Including morning exercises in your activity plan will help you cheer up before the work day. And if you exercise properly in the afternoon, you will be able to quickly fall asleep without obsessive thoughts about cigarettes. And those same “extra” 100 kilocalories will be spent.

Rules for a special diet

The diet of a person who has quit smoking should be healthy and balanced. During this period, he needs many useful substances to restore the normal functioning of organs affected by smoking. Proper nutrition will help stop the intense weight gain that could appear after quitting cigarettes. It is best to create a menu of the following products:

• White meat chicken, turkey.
• Fish.
• Quail eggs.
• Olive oil for salad dressing.
• Fermented milk products with low fat content.
• Honey.
• Garlic, onion.
• Sour fruits, berries.
• Greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, cauliflower, pumpkin, beets, radishes.
• Walnuts, pine nuts, cashews.

The listed products will help you lose weight, prevent your stomach and buttocks from growing, and prevent you from gaining weight in the future. But remember: if you quit smoking, you will face another problem - your appetite may increase. If after a mandatory meal a person feels hungry, then apples, low-fat yogurt, and carrot salad are suitable for a snack. They can dull your hunger, and they definitely won’t make you fat.

How to deal with this?

When a person begins to gain weight by quitting smoking, immediate action must be taken. It is important to understand yourself and identify the causes of excess weight. You need to tell yourself: “I’m quitting smoking, but I won’t get fat!” If there are no physiological disorders or diseases, you need to adjust your diet, add physical activity, entertainment that distracts you from thoughts about food and cigarettes.

What you shouldn’t do is give up and pick up a cigarette again. Postponing the fight against extra pounds until you completely wean yourself off cigarettes is unwise.

So, if a woman quit smoking and gained weight, what to do:

Change of taste preferences

1. Change snack foods. High-calorie chips and nuts can be replaced with pieces of raw vegetables. Carrots, turnips, kohlrabi, white cabbage are cut into small cubes. Broccoli and cauliflower are boiled and broken into inflorescences. Crackers are replaced with granulated bran or unsweetened biscuits based on them. Sugar is replaced with the herb stevia.
2. Enrich your diet with dairy products. Dull the feeling of hunger with dairy products. It has been observed that they reduce the craving for smoking. By drinking 50–100 ml of kefir or milk in small sips, you can enrich the body with calcium and vitamins. The feeling of fullness will last up to two hours - this is how long the body needs to absorb lactose. Children's curds without sugar satiate without exciting the appetite.
3. Avoid goodies. Spices, smoked foods, saltiness, and marinades irritate the gastric mucosa, increasing the production of saliva and gastric juice. The most difficult is the first month. During this time, you can forget about the canteen and bring home-cooked food to work: boiled meat, fish, vegetables.
4. Doesn't switch from cigarettes to candy. It is a myth that sucking hard candies reduces the craving for smoking. The body gets hooked on sweets faster than on nicotine. Quitting a candy habit is harder than quitting smoking. Chocolate, ice cream, cakes - all this instantly settles on the sides, hips, stomach, preventing you from moving and living fully.

Increasing physical activity

If a girl or woman who has given up smoking begins to gain weight, what to do: go in for sports and find something you like. You can buy a membership to the fitness center. Everyone chooses classes to their liking: group or individual. 2 sessions of 45 minutes each are enough to maintain tone. After the first small victory over yourself, the desire to move more will appear.

You can go swimming, dancing or Nordic walking with your friends. Regular physical activity not only helps stabilize weight, but also distracts you from smoking. Walking, skiing, bagel sledding, ice skating, exercise on home exercise equipment - any physical activity will do, as long as it is regular.

Movement is life

Everyone knows: doing exercises, moving actively, running, jumping is difficult for smokers - shortness of breath, chest pain, dizziness, nausea interfere. Each new cigarette smoked worsens the condition. Experts themselves do not recommend excessive exercise for people who smoke 20 or more cigarettes - their bodies are too weak, physical exercise can provoke complications (for example, smoking and running means being at high risk of developing respiratory pathologies and provoking a cardiac crisis).

When a heavy smoker quits smoking, can he exercise to stop his growing weight? Yes, moving more after quitting smoking is not only allowed - it’s useful! Just don’t think: “I quit smoking, so right now I’ll load my body with physical exercise so as not to gain weight.” Remember, we wrote at the very beginning that the body needs time to recover and remove toxins? It is for this reason that you should load yourself up with sports gradually - start with a minimum number of simple movements, gradually increase the pace and intensity. A moderate sports regime will prevent you from gaining weight and will not lead to injuries and disorders.

Consequences of weight gain

Obesity has a negative impact on a person’s appearance, reducing a person’s self-esteem and self-confidence, exacerbating bad mood, which becomes a frequent companion for those who have recently given up a bad habit and are forced to make a strong-willed effort not to succumb to weakness and not return to an addiction. At the same time, adipose tissue eventually becomes an internal secretion organ and changes the hormonal background of the body, provoking changes in physiology.

At the same time, excess body weight significantly increases the risk of developing atherosclerosis, the eternal companion of former smokers, causes cardiovascular pathologies and is the cause of joint pain. And, finally, the acquisition of overweight entails the acquisition of a mass of psychological complexes, changing the character of a person and his way of life beyond recognition. However, the main danger of a person gaining weight after quitting smoking is that, in an attempt to regain his figure, he abandons a wise decision, again returning to a slowly killing habit.

Important attitude

It has long been proven that you can gain weight after quitting smoking due to increased nervousness. If previously a person “muffled” his experiences with nicotine, now the person who quit the bad habit found himself deprived of this method of calming down. And the desire to smoke only contributes to the fact that irritability can grow.

A small number of people lose their appetite when stressed. But most people will begin to notice that, on the contrary, they begin to constantly want to eat. This is a psychological way to distract yourself from the problem. The result is that a person can quickly begin to gain weight, so it is better to find a safer way to calm your nerves.

For example, at the first signs of impending stress, a quitter can go outside (15-20 minutes of leisurely walking helps to put his thoughts in order). Meditation is useful. It is also recommended to drink a glass of water - it relieves irritability, is good for the body, and prevents you from gaining weight in the abdomen and thighs.

Let's summarize: if a person has left smoking in the past, but at the same time began to weigh more, then you need to be patient and take measures to lose weight. Activities to remove toxins, a special diet, exercise, and monitoring stress levels are helpful. This will help you not gain weight and become healthy.

And another argument

Fatness, of course, does not make anyone look good. But the harm from the extra 3-4 kilograms that will appear in the first months after quitting smoking is much less than from the usual pack a day. Therefore, for the time it takes to quit smoking, you should forget about weight gain. You will definitely be able to lose weight later, when the body has successfully dealt with previous stress. After all, those who quit smoking now have many more “bonus” years of life ahead of them. A smoker can call 8-800-200-0-200
(the call is free for residents of Russia), say that he needs help quitting smoking, and he will be switched to specialists at the Advisory Call Center for Help in Quitting Tobacco Consumption (CTC) . If all KTC specialists are busy at this moment, his phone number will be sent to KTC by e-mail, and they will call him back within 1-3 days. Psychologists and doctors provide counseling to those who contact the CTC. Psychologists help prepare for the day of quitting smoking, help find a replacement for smoking rituals, together with the client they will determine the optimal ways to overcome addiction, and support in difficult moments in the fight against nicotine addiction. Doctors will advise on the most effective therapeutic methods for quitting smoking, and give advice to patients with various diseases on how best to prepare for quitting smoking, taking into account existing health problems.

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34 comments • To leave a comment you must be an authorized user

• versace-800 Thank you for your comments. Now I’ll definitely quit smoking
• versace-800 Thank you for your comments. Now I’ll definitely quit smoking
• epikureets Smoked for 20 years. I haven’t smoked for 8 months, in character. In 7 months I gained 7 kg, although I can’t stop the urge to smoke. Of course I’m not happy, but I won’t start smoking.
• dushechka-19 damn. It’s easy, of course, to say: “Fullness, of course, doesn’t make anyone look good. But the harm comes from an extra 3-4 kilograms.....” and blah blah... but if you weigh 80 kg and have been struggling with excess weight for 6 years, then 3-4 kg is a TRAGEDY. no more, no less. And I also want to quit smoking
• erektrik Quote from the book by Allen Carr “……This experiment shocked me. ….. The opposite happened. Previously, I said that I knew more about how to quit smoking than anyone in the world, and that one puff will make you addicted again. But I couldn't get addicted! I could smoke, after about a month I was already smoking 20 cigarettes a day. But I had to force myself. It was like smoking your first cigarette or drinking your first glass of beer. Even after a month of smoking, I felt neither the need nor the desire to smoke. Then I realized that I couldn’t get hooked on nicotine, even if I tried to do so for the rest of my life, because it’s not the drug itself that causes addiction, but the illusion that you get some kind of pleasure or support from it.” I really liked it. Addiction is created in the head and not in the body.
• Svetaintek 20 days without cigarettes, I haven’t gained any weight, I run on the exercise machine every day and I feel great! I know for sure that I won’t smoke again!
• cmc236 I haven’t smoked for 3 months, I’ve gained 7 kg. The stress from quitting smoking was too much and is just starting to let go. Now I’m trying to stop weight gain - I went to the gym, so far to no avail.
• kroshka7474 I don’t know how it’s clear, but I’ll try soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooof.
• igor34 I listened to the audio book by the foreign writer Alan Kar “an easy way to quit smoking”, this book helped me, I quit smoking and haven’t smoked for over a year now and I can’t resist. Smoking experience: 24 years.
• olegmakarov So, the real and only reason in this case is that for many years a person has become accustomed to saying to himself “I’ll finish this job and smoke” or “I’ll smoke and get down to business.” He says this and catches himself saying, that he quit smoking. But something needs to replace it. So he takes a piece of candy, a cookie, a sandwich, etc.
• olegmakarov The real and only reason that those who quit smoking get better (if they quit smoking in a healthy way, that is, they simply stop, without any medications, etc., because then this is a separate topic.)
• olegmakarov It’s funny that the phrase from this text “Let’s start with the fact that the very fact of giving up a long-term habit is a strong stress for the body” is among the “myths about smoking” on the same site. Guys, would you like to decide somehow?
• irinam__74 Of course, I am for a healthy lifestyle. I haven't smoked for a few days. But if I don’t wear an autumn coat, it will be a disaster...
• Kateyka It seems to me that you simply shouldn’t look for reasons not to quit.) Excess weight appears because a person consumes more calories than he expends. Unless there are hormonal imbalances in the body. So if there are no problems with the endocrine system, then with proper nutrition there will be no weight gain! This is all without even raising the issue of playing sports.
• Pe4enufka Today I eat with gusto and pleasure in the dining room, and I began to prepare tasty and healthy food at home. In general, I feel very healthy, just like in the advertisement of this site, “I don’t smoke! I quit!” ))))
• Pe4enufka And it seems to me that after quitting smoking I regained my normal weight and I finally had an APPETITE! A healthy, normal appetite, which I used to simply light up. Previously, it was easier to keep in shape, since I exchanged any trip to the kitchen for a trip to the balcony with a pack of cigarettes, I ate once a day with great reluctance, I fainted, but I was happy with my figure and how easily I managed to stay thin .
• alexey_nosmoke And you girls smoke ELECTRONIC CIGARETTES, maybe you won’t gain weight. Has anyone in Krasnodar already tried this? Will you respond?
• JULL777 I haven’t started eating more often, and I haven’t changed my diet, I always watch my foods and their calorie content, but I’ve gained weight. I haven't smoked for 2.5 months. Panic sets in, will I lose the kilos I’ve gained...
• jonnysol Hello everyone. Simple advice. Drink water. You need to drink 30 ml per 1 kg of weight per day. Those. For a person weighing 70 kg, you need to drink 2 liters of water. To avoid gaining weight, drink water before meals. To gain weight, drink after meals.
• otragenie An article from typical myths. I quit and didn’t gain weight because I didn’t eat everything. What an increase in metabolic processes, what nonsense??! But do non-smokers have slow metabolic processes, just because they don’t smoke?? The author’s pens should be torn off for scaring people...
• Olya29 I also smoked for 7 years... I quit in January!!!! I actually gained 7 kg, but now I’m trying to lose it! I go to work by bike, I walk a lot!!!! and as for the easy way to quit smoking... it doesn’t exist until a person decides to quit for himself - he won’t quit, or he will start smoking soon!!!
• Bentry Quit smoking two years ago. In 3 months I gained an extra 20 kg. I got scared and started smoking again, and lost those 20 kg in 2 months. And all because while I didn’t smoke, I ate everything, especially sunflower seeds and candies. I was even almost fired from work because I was constantly chewing something)) Now I’m inspired to quit smoking again. All that remains is to check the “Food Diary” service. suddenly it will help!
• svetlyachok_ivs In general, I believe that smoking, and quitting it, and weight gain is a purely psychological concentration on precisely this problem! In other words, self-hypnosis! The fact that we “SMOKING QUITERS” engage in self-criticism is a fact, and the fact that we cannot force ourselves to think about the question: Do I smoke or did I smoke at all? - apparently it’s not given! We just need to think about pleasant things and the advantages of “not smoking”! If you want to smoke, take a cigarette and break it in front of your face , it will become easier, the main thing is to BELIEVE IN YOURSELF AND IN YOUR POWER!
• kisajulka no guys, not a myth. I also gained a lot of weight when I quit, although I didn’t eat anymore. and it's really scary...
• arturushka Stupid fiction!!! That's for sure... It's just that there really is no stress, if the desire really arises, then quitting smoking is very simple and does not entail any weight gain. Alan Car described it very well in his book “An Easy Way to Quit Smoking” I recommend it to everyone, just read carefully, take your time, and don’t be scared...
• Is KaRrin777 really a myth?! I’m very afraid of gaining weight, that’s why I smoke... I quit, gained 5 kg... Then I took up sports, started eating right and, for some reason, smoking. At first it was a little, only after a heavy meal... now again everything has turned into an addiction. I eat right, I go in for sports, I’m afraid that if I quit, nothing will save me... I don’t want to gain weight. But I also hate cigarettes: the smell, the addiction, everything that comes with them...
• akim321 WEIGHT GAIN AFTER GIVING UP SMOKING IS A MYTH
• akim321 guys, I quit smoking half a year ago, during which time I didn’t gain a single kilogram. I smoked for more than 30 years. I quit with the help of Allen Carr
• andrey48 I’ll be honest, I’ve gained 3-4 kilograms in my stomach/belly))
• Kymarius I quit on January 1 of this year. I smoked since 2000. that is, 10 years.. Before I quit, my weight was 98.. Now it’s 117.. This, of course, is not happy.. but then it was my own fault that I started eating everything in a row.. Now I’ve stopped.. But I don’t regret quitting smoking at all. The cough, shortness of breath and other nasty things have disappeared.. And the weight is a gain... as it rose. it’ll chip in.. I’m already working on it.. One piece of advice, quit smoking... It’s more harmful no matter how you look at it..
• Ledi_repoter I quit smoking on November 7, 2009, that is, 8 months ago. During this time I gained 12(!) kilograms!!! Previously my weight was 52 kg, but now it’s 64!!! Of course, I still won’t start smoking, but being overweight is an absolutely real disadvantage of saying goodbye to a cigarette! And it doesn’t matter how much you eat... Personally, after I quit smoking, I began to eat even less than before... In general, now I’m struggling not with a cigarette, but with excess weight... BUT IT WAS STILL WORTH IT TO QUIT SMOKING! I AM PROUD OF MYSELF!
• VioletMono Didn't even bother to read the article. I'm getting better because I eat a lot. Stupidly it is. Eating a lot is due to imaginary “stress” and a feeling of emptiness associated with the removal of nicotine from the body. This feeling is often confused with hunger
• Damantych Well, you shouldn’t bring it to the point of exhaustion)))
• Lonelle Hmm.. My weight while smoking was almost 90, yes.. terrible. I haven't smoked for six months. Now my weight is 64 (not the limit)