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I do not smoke, never have, and admit to being one of those
'pain in the butts' (OK, bad
pun!) that go on about the
foul stench, and anti-social
behaviour of smokers, especially
in public places. You can
imagine my joy when one of
my local pubs recently banned
smoking. Shortly after the
ban had come into force I
spotted a guy poised with
cigarette in hand, and was
about to get huffy and even
confrontational. Fortunately
I held back and continued
my beer - but was puzzled.
The cigarette was unlit and
yet he was putting it near
his mouth, flicking the imaginary
ash and generally acting as
if he was smoking it. Curious
about this I eventually enquired,
only to find out this was
his own rather unorthodox
approach to keeping his hands
busy and therefore, as he
put it, keeping his weight
down. Although everyone knows
that smoking is detrimental
to health, it's surprising
how many smokers cite fear
of putting on weight as a
reason to not quit smoking.
The simple fact is that it
is not quitting smoking that
affects your weight, but the
change of habit can result
in you increasing your food
intake. But there are plenty
of ways to ensure this does
not happen to you. There is
no need for a special diet
when you stop smoking, but
you must use your common sense.
If you eat chocolates instead
of smoking then you are very
likely to gain weight! Monitor
your diet for a fortnight
before you stop smoking -
write a food diary, noting
everything you eat and when.
You simply use this to make
sure that what you eat post-quitting
follows a similar pattern.
In a similar way, note how
much exercise you can do as
a smoker. When you stop smoking,
you can begin to compare how
much more exercise you can
do with ease. This will inspire
you to the possibility of
becoming fitter in other ways,
and will actually help you
through the tough period of
giving up the addiction. Even
moderate amounts of exercise
can reduce tobacco cravings.
A recent study found that
women that maintained a rigorous
exercise regime coupled with
a stop-smoking programme were
twice as likely to succeed
as those who didn't. Frankly,
exercising is incompatible
with smoking, and you are
also more likely to be mixing
with non-smokers. Let's face
it, if you smoke 20 cigarettes
daily, you are putting your
hand to your mouth at least
200 times a day. When you
quit, you need to keep your
hands busy. How about peeling
fruit for snacks, doing jigsaws
or maybe even knitting. Keep
visualising yourself as a
fit non-smoker, especially
when your motivation starts
to flag. You can always get
help with this through the
use of hypnotherapy. As in
so many behavioural issues,
it is simply a matter of re-programming
our mind. Giving up smoking
is tough, and self-hypnosis
is a method that many are
discovering as a simple way
to help keep the mental attitude
and motivation on course.
Like the chap in the pub,
you may find your own method
of coping with your quit smoking
challenge, and well.. if it
works - great! Good health!
Keith Watson - 25 years as
a registered nurse. Now writing
about and promoting a holistic
approach to health issues.
To learn more about hypnosis
as a therapy, visit http://www.adam-eason.com/
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