There are a lot of facts, stories, and myths about quitting smoking. The most important thing for you to quit smoking without gaining weight is the approach you use. Quitting smoking is not something that can happen overnight. You have to plan properly for a systematic approach that will help you achieve your goal of quitting smoking without gaining weight. The planning should involve setting aside the additional time you will spend exercising and how you will implement a healthy eating plan.
Tips on how to quit smoking without gaining weight
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Drink plenty of water
Your target should be to drink at least 8 glasses of water every day. More water will help in keeping your body hydrated and make you feel full. If you feel the urge to smoke or to crave for unhealthy foods or snacks, refocus your mind and go for a glass of water.
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Choose the right snacks
When you start your journey to quit smoking, expect your snacking to increase. This is because your cigarettes are likely to be substituted with snacks. Therefore plan for healthy snacks, such as fruit snacks, vegetable snacks, potato snacks, almond snacks, in limited quantities. Avoid unhealthy starches and sugar because they contain high levels of sugar. Be prepared to have these snacks ready so that whenever you start craving for smoking sensation, take out your snacks and enjoy.
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Get involved in regular physical activities
These activities will increase your metabolism rate thus burning more fats. You should start with simple exercises that you love so that you can get motivated to continue exercising. If you cannot exercise alone at home, join a group or gym near you. Some of the recommended exercises include swimming, running/jogging, walking, cycling/biking, stretching, yoga, push-ups, pull-ups, and much more.
Another advantage of physical activity is that it will keep you active and busy, eliminating or minimizing the idle time you could start craving for a cigarette. Chances are also high that when you start quitting smoking, your food intake will increase. This is likely to increase the amount of excess fats in the body. But you should not worry about this if you are exercising regularly because all these fats will be burnt.
Most importantly is that you have to be ready to face challenges that are associated with quitting smoking without weight gain. Set your mind that the journey ahead is not easy and motivate yourself that you will make it.