No more celery sticks for me for lunch...
(where's a green faced, sick looking icon when ya need one?)
About 6 months into my quit, I'd had it. I decided it was time to shake that extra JunkNdaTrunk (and a few other places) that I'd accumulated during my quit. I was already active, about 5 miles every morning and Pilates...weights... and while that's healthy, it didn't phase my weight one bit. Neither were the attempts at dieting on my own (you know..."excercise more, eat less"). I finally joined a "nationally known weight loss program". I lost a 1/2 pound to a pound a week for a total of 6 lbs. Then..NOTHING... for 5 looooong months...nothing. The counselors and nutritionist tried everything they knew. I tried everything I knew. I even had my thyroid and hormones checked. It just wasn't going to budge.
I dumped my money hungry, time wasting, tummy growling program and invested MUCH LESS in a visit to a Bariatrician (a doctor that specializes in weight and metobolism). He nodded when I told him of my quit and my attempts to lose the weight as if he'd heard it a thousand times before. Then, he debunked everything I'd been doing! Eating less and exercising more was NOT what I was supposed to be doing for metabolism.
This won't be for everyone. I know that a lot of factors play into weight loss... but who better to guide you than a physician? If you want to lose it or if you're stuck or frustrated or afraid to quit (like i was) for fear of gaining, consider seeing a Bariatrician. Here's just a few basics and the gist of things...
Stop punishing yourself. Weight gain isn't completely your fault or in your control when you quit smoking. Your metabolism WILL drop approximately 10%. Now, for those that it only drops 1%, count your lucky stars. For those of us at the other end of the spectrum, we need a plan...especially if we've been spinning our wheels and not getting anywhere except more frustrated.
Excercise alone will NOT be enough to boost metabolism back to where it needs to be. It's recommended, it's good, it's healthy, it can help you maintain and it can help you lose weight... but it won't be enough without the right foods and enough of them. The higher metabolism, the better the weight loss.
Eat your breakfast and make it a biggun!(
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Quit Meter
$20,138.53
Amount Saved
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Quit Meter
Days: 757
Hours: 8
Minutes: 46
Seconds: 40
Life Gained
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Quit Meter
5177
Smoke Free Days
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Quit Meter
103,540
Cigarettes Not Smoked
