Ex-smoker needs to shed it ..

kdaisy

kdaisy

New member
Hi All :)

I'm from S.A. so I had to get my cellphone's Converter-thingy to see what I weigh in pounds as we measure in kg's. Currently, at 37 years of age, I weigh 174 pounds (79kg) and am 5.75ft (1.75m). It's been 4 years since I stopped smoking, but I've gained 26.5 pounds (12kg) since then. I'm not happy about how this feels at the moment and I'm not sure how to go about loosing it without diet pills. I don't want to use diet pills again, this is not an option for me.

I found out a couple of months ago that, nicotine releases sugar into ones bloodstream, silencing the body's need for natural sugar. Now I understand why I suddenly wanted sweet things after I quit smoking, something I didn't like for most my life (anything sweet). The other thing is the habit of fiddling with ones hand to the mouth, which resulted in pecking all the time. Lastly, the quantities increased dramatically. Hence the extra pounds/kilo's.

I'll be looking around the site to find my bearings with navigating and I'm looking forward to all the wisdom shared here. I'll be glad for help.
Thank you for all your contributions and input so selflessly shared here.
Warmest Regards,
kdaisy xx
 
First...Welcome!
Second congrats on kicking the smoking and staying off them (imagine how much money you have saved in 4 years)

You said you were looking for wisdom so here is a little formula I share with my friends on here and it is so true. Here it is:
Activity leads to results leads to satisfaction leads to activity.....It is soooo true
 
Thank you, Brawny :)
I have registered as a member at our local Virgin Active and started doing 2 sets of 20mins on the tredmill, grade 7-8, 5-5.5 speed .. and sometimes the circuit. I think we must go more frequently coz I don't think once a week is gonna do the trick.
I'd also like to know how to speed up my metabolism via foods and vitamins?
Thank you again, Brawny... :)
 
Congrats on quitting smoking. I went through that about 22 years ago.

You mentioned you are not sure how to get started losing weight. I think the first starting point is to simply start keeping track of what you eat, even if you do nothing more than write down a list of what you eat during the day. The next step will be counting calories. I use a spreadsheet, but there are a lot of online journals that you can use.
 
Hi kdaisy! I saw your post and had to respond....I am new here.

congratulations on your quitting smoking. It's been 9 years for me and I did gain about 50 pounds. My doctor said that quitting smoking was still more beneficial for my health than the weight gain but he encouraged me to get out and walk.

And walk I did! Walking is something everyone can do, indoor or outdoor, with music or without.....I started to love it and trimmed down quite a bit. I have a long ways to go, but don't let it overwhelm you.

When I think of the money I spent on smoking, I started to buy WHATEVER healthy foods I wanted, especially cherries which I always felt were too expensive, yet thought nothing to spend $8/day on cigarettes.

You really have to change your mindset and see the success you want in your mind...if you can see it there, the magic will follow!

good luck!
Terri
 
Hi there Terri and Harold .. wow - thanks so much for your encouragement!!

Terri .. also congrats on your 9 years of 'smokelessness'! I love what you said about one's mindset coz without the right and positive mindset, the battle will be hard if not impossible. Thanks for that. Do you go walking everyday? And for how long each time? Is it regular walking or the speed walking thing?

Harold .. how does one count calories? Does this mean that it would be wise to invest in a food scale?

Thanks you guys - - - you're awesome!!

Blessings,
kdaisy xx
 
kdaisy said:
Harold .. how does one count calories? Does this mean that it would be wise to invest in a food scale?

Blessings,
kdaisy xx
Click to expand...
I think a food scale is a very good investment. I got a glass top scale, $40 from Target, and it is probably my best weight loss investment - makes it very easy to measure the portion size. Just set your plate on the scale, zero it, add the meat and weigh that, zero again, and weight the potatoes, etc. There are other ways to do it. Some foods you measure by the cup, or whatever serving size is listed on the nutrition label. There are also rules of thumb to estimate portion size by the size of a deck of cards, your fist, or whatnot. I'd rather measure. After a while you get very good at estimating.
 
thanks Kdaisy

I am very proud of that accomplishment and now I want to challenge myself to a healthier body. Its not like you can just QUIT eating, but one can definately be aware of what's being consumed.

I will walk for 45 minutes to an hour and try to make it brisk. Sometimes I'm just happy to be walking - but other times I will challenge myself to an uphill stretch, or really focusing on keeping my stomach muscles pulled in.

Now that the cold weather has arrived, I've had to trade the outdoors for the treadmill at the gym.....20 minutes on that and I am now able to do short spurts of jogging. In the gym, I'll also give the stair master, bike and elliptical a whirl.
 
I can so relate to that! I go into the trouble I am now in by thinking I could ignore having a weigh scale (a buff friend of mine said to throw away the weight scale several years ago, okay for him as he is a world class athlete, but folks like me I now know need to weight in at least weekly to get a reality check, and for the rest of my life!).

Counting calories is critical today I now believe, at least roughly estimating, tracking, more specific now that I am starting a battle of the bulge, weight loss. Today i googled for calorie list of common foods; mind opener in terms of how EASY it is to cram too many calories into one's mouth!!!!! I got into the trouble I am in as I am sure many of you have by eating WAY too many calories-- not counting or reckoning with the calories and the FAT they will turn into-- those pizzas ordered and chowed down watching a movie, the bricks of cheese snacked on (holy sh&t, just one thin slice of cheese is 100 calories, compared to an entire cantaloupe at 160 calories! Cheese is fricken EVIL!


Harold14370 said:
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You mentioned you are not sure how to get started losing weight. I think the first starting point is to simply start keeping track of what you eat, even if you do nothing more than write down a list of what you eat during the day. The next step will be counting calories. I use a spreadsheet, but there are a lot of online journals that you can use.
Click to expand...
 
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