Weight gain and quitting smoking with the e-cig

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jcoopercam

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I weighed 186 when I started using e-cigaretts in September of 2009. I haven't had a single analog since then, and I now weigh 243 lbs. My BP is lower, I have increased lung capacity - but I am most definitely holding onto some serious water. I've gone back an forth with the nicotine content depending on what flavors I order. I am convinced that whatever it is that keeps people "hooked" on smoking cigarettes is a lot more powerful than nicotine alone. I don't seem to crave the use of my PV regardless of the nicotine content.

I ordered a new iHybrid yesterday, so a new batch of Mrs. T's Snickerdoodle is definitely in order! :)
 

lostgypsy

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That the issue I wanted to discuss too. I am concerned about weight gain. In fact, I do want to lose something like 10Lbs, which are adding up due to age, but in my opinion, we just have to eat less while we are getting older. I know, easy to say, not easy to do. So, in my very short experience, being only 5 days analog free, vaping really helps with my food cravings. Oh, well, may be it is just hot weather... It may not do what smoking does to metabolism of different individuals bodies, but since I am going to believe it will work for me, and after reading what others, more advanced vapers said (that they did not gain additional pounds, yey!), I am all about losing weight with vaping!
 

zuzette

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Ok, so I have a question and I would like some input...It's gonna start with a little story. A year and a half ago I lost over 50 lbs. Then I got a boyfriend and..naturally...I gained about 20-25 of those pounds back. Well for the last few months I have been trying really hard to lose the weight that I had gained, but I also wanted to quit smoking cigarettes with my total health kick. With the help of an e-cig, I have been able to go from smoking a pack a day to only one cigarette every few days in about a month and a half. I know its normal to gain a few pounds when you quit smoking BUT i changed my eating habits completely and started going to the gym for an hour of cardio 5 times a week. I have been working my as* off to negate the effects of quitting but I threw out all my fat clothes and I can't afford to buy new ones to accommodate the gain. I'm considering starting back up just so i can fit into my jeans. Should'nt the nicotine in my e-cig effect my metabolism the way a real cigarette does?
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sounds like you are just making the whole thing a huge painful stressful headache. stress equals cortisol which can keep you from losing weight.

one thing to keep in mind is that as your weight decreases you need even less calories to maintain your weight than you did before weight loss. so if you want to lose weight you will need even less. exercise is only a small part of the equation....as you lose weight you will burn less calories too simply because it wont take as much effort to propel you. call it the law of diminishing returns.

to lose about 1 lbs a week you need to cut or burn 3500 calories a week from whatever you are doing now. as you lose weight recalculate your calorie budget so you stay on track. weigh your food....dont measure. it makes a huge difference. and be sure you eat balanced meals. look at food like - sugar / carbs = short term fuel , fats = midterm fuel, proteins- long term fuel. you need to replenish each kind of fuel at each meal and you will stay satisfied even as you consume less due to weight loss. and if you think of food as fuel you are less likely to find it appealing to eat too much!

and please dont smoke. any help it gives you is an illusion. smoking too has a law of diminishing returns.
 

Buggs5347

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First of all congratulations on your successes of your initial weight loss and reducing your smoking.

A lot of factors play into weight gain or loss and burning the calories. A lot more information would be needed. What types of food you are eating, how many calories you are eating, types of food you are eating, etc. The body is really really smart, all on it's own, and will actually try to prevent you from gaining weight at first if you overeat and also try to prevent you from losing weight if you feed it too little. Generally, though, it is a matter of calories in versus calories burned per day, period. Often, someone starts working out, so they start sneaking a few extra bites in here and there and add more calories than they think -- afterall, they worked out hard, they think. Or, sometimes people work out and think, well, I've worked out, so I can take it easy the rest of the day off, take a nap, etc. and actually they aren't as physically active overall. Then, sometimes people think they are working out hard and think they are burning tons of calories - cause those machines in the gym said so - but, those things are so far off the mark for most people, it isn't funny. Don't lose hope, though. Keep up your exercise, eat nutritiously and try to figure out your true caloric expenditure and caloric intake. You might want to look into purchasing something like a BodyBug - what an eye opener those things can be when you are trying to figure out your expenditure.

Another poster suggested getting your thyroid checked and I couldn't agree more. Speak with your doctor, have the blood work done, just to be sure it's not something like that, going on.

Never give up - work at the issue the healthier way, you won't be sorry. Going back to smoking is much more dangerous to your health and doesn't help in the longterm.
 

Pappy

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For me, losing weight requires BOTH exercise and diet. Just exercise won't do it because I'll eat as much (or more) than I burn off. Diet alone won't do it because (a) it slows the metabolism down and (b) I'll eventually get tired of being hungry and start eating more.

So, for me, losing weight required a change in lifestyle AND mindset - i.e., getting off my ... and working out (running and lifting weights) AND changing my eating habits.

I'm convinced that diets don't work because people eventually go off the diet and go back to their old eating habits. I had to change my eating habits - smaller and more frequent meals, being conscious of eating good foods and avoiding bad ones.

And, due to running, I now look at foods and equate them to miles - i.e., "That piece of pie is equal to running about 3 miles. Is it worth it?" Usually, the answer is no. I hate running, but I do it because I hate it less than being fat.

I went from 205 to 165 with this change in lifestyle and thinking.
 

jcoopercam

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I smoked from 1976 (14 years old) to 2009. I think what might happen, is that your body sort-of picks up at the point it was interrupted with cigarettes. The old "stunt your growth" thing... It's weird, but it's like my body started growing again! I was getting the same growing pains as I did when I was in my late teens that would actually wake me up. I don't care how fat you get - your shoe size (length) stays the same. I went from a size 10 to a size 11. I can't wear any of my older shoes now. My knuckles have grown to the point were I cannot remove my rings. There are times when I think about going back to smoking - no doubt. At this point I don't think it's possible to go back... why would I?

I did some research and found that cigarettes can actually have a profound effect on normal growth. So the adults weren't lying after all! LOL :)
 

Caridwen

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Ok, so I have a question and I would like some input...It's gonna start with a little story. A year and a half ago I lost over 50 lbs. Then I got a boyfriend and..naturally...I gained about 20-25 of those pounds back. Well for the last few months I have been trying really hard to lose the weight that I had gained, but I also wanted to quit smoking cigarettes with my total health kick. With the help of an e-cig, I have been able to go from smoking a pack a day to only one cigarette every few days in about a month and a half. I know its normal to gain a few pounds when you quit smoking BUT i changed my eating habits completely and started going to the gym for an hour of cardio 5 times a week. I have been working my as* off to negate the effects of quitting but I threw out all my fat clothes and I can't afford to buy new ones to accommodate the gain. I'm considering starting back up just so i can fit into my jeans. Should'nt the nicotine in my e-cig effect my metabolism the way a real cigarette does?

You might want to get your thyroid checked.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...hen-quitting-tobacco-changing-ecigarette.html

12. Thyroid issues when quitting tobacco
There is discussion currently among the medical community about possible thyroid problems occurring after smoking cessation. It is not known how widespread this is or how serious. The appearance of thyroid problems soon after quitting is statistically higher than should occur, so there is a question whether smoking suppresses the symptoms of thyroid disease or whether quitting triggers it, or indeed if smoking causes or exacerbates it. This is uncommon so not a major issue for worry. Apparently weight gain or weight loss can be minor effects experienced by many, related to thyroid activity. This whole area is not fully understood so you should not read anything into our commentary, instead please ask your doctor.

More info if you click the link. I did develop thyroid issues when I quit smoking.

Also, get a food scale and use a food diary. Even if you're eating great, if you're eating a little too much or portions are too large it makes a big difference.

My take regarding exercise- and I work out a lot. You'll feel great, look great- but you'll never exercise yourself thin. Outside of any medical issues, it's probably mostly about the food. At least I found that's true for me.
 
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