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Keeping your weight down |
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Many
smokers are worried they will put on weight if they stop
smoking, but in reality only a small number put on more than
a few pounds.
Weight gain usually happens in the first months of quitting,
and ex-smokers tend to put on average 3-5kg (6-11lb).
However, on average smokers weigh 3-5kg less than
non-smokers.
The reasons why smokers generally weigh less than
non-smokers are not well understood.
Nicotine speeds up the body's metabolism, but only by the
small amount of 10 per cent. It may also be because smoke
damage to taste buds makes food less enjoyable, or that a
cigarette can distract attention from appetite and is a zero
calorie option. |
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Think about your diet |
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Just a
few small changes in your diet and exercise habits can
compensate for the artificial way nicotine increases
metabolism.
This is because the slimming effect of nicotine is small and
correlates to about 150-200 calories a day, or 7-9 grams of
fat.
You can compensate for this by either:
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eating a piece of fruit, low-fat cereal bar or yoghurt
instead of your daily bag of crisps or chocolate
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cutting out one alcohol drink a day
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using a thin scrape of butter instead of spreading it
thick.
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Don't get hungry |
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You
may find your appetite increases when you stop smoking.
Ex-smokers are often more interested in food because a
benefit of quitting is your sense of taste and smell
improves.
But it can also be because of the role cigarettes played in
your routine. For example, without an after-dinner cigarette
to end a meal, you may be tempted to eat any extra food
that's been cooked.
And consuming 20 cigarettes a day meant putting your hand to
your mouth about 200 times a day - so it's no surprise you
want to replace those cigarettes with things like cakes,
sweets and crisps.
So what you can you do? The trick is to eat often and little
so you avoid becoming hungry. That means three main meals
and two or three snacks in the course of the day.
If that sounds a lot - it isn't. It's about regulating your
appetite, not quantity of food. Put another way, instead of
eating a sandwich with yoghurt and fruit for lunch, just eat
the sandwich and keep the yoghurt and fruit as mid-morning
and mid-afternoon snacks.
It's also a good idea to keep grapes, rice cakes, low-fat
yoghurt etc at home, ready for those pangs of hunger when
you get in from work. And don't shop on an empty stomach -
you won't be able to resist tempting treats when your hunger
is doing the talking. |
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Carbohydrates are important |
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It is
easier to maintain normal weight if 55-60 per cent of your
daily food consists of carbohydrates. This is because a
carbohydrate-rich diet tends to burn more calories. Examples
of carbohydrate rich foods include:
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vegetables
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fruit
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bread
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potatoes
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rice
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pasta
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porridge.
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Muscles are a bonus |
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Exercise is a great way of keeping your weight down. Half an
hour's brisk walk every day will burn up those 200 calories
that 20 cigarettes used to.
Exercise doesn't just benefit weight, it increases your
sense of wellbeing, reduces stress levels and just by
'doing' something you are preventing boredom - a great
expander of appetite.
And if you stick with it, you will go on to develop a
greater muscle mass that increases your metabolism and burns
up even more calories. |
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A
little transgression is OK |
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If your craving for sweet things is irresistible, choose
sweets, wine gums or liquorice with a maximum fat content of
2g per 100g. This is better than chocolate or crisps, which
have a high fat content.
While there is space in a well-balanced diet for the
occasional treat, it's a common mistake to think that tasty
food and a low fat intake are mutually exclusive.
A good habit to get into at the supermarket is to read
nutrition labels on all the foods you buy for calories, salt
and fat. Just choosing lower fat sauces for pastas and meat
can make a big difference to your daily calorie intake.
You'll also discover that this doesn't mean sticking to
low-fat/lite/light ranges: a standard tomato-based pasta
sauce is likely to have less fat that a 'low-fat' cheesy,
creamy counterpart. |
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Don't think 'I can't' |
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Our brains find it very hard to deal with the words 'no' and
'not'. Thinking about not eating actually leaves us thinking
about food, which makes us more hungry.
The first pang of hunger is a sign that it's time for a
healthy snack - not clenching your teeth and willing
yourself not to eat.
Above all, don't let weight worries put you off quitting, or
panic if you do start to gain a few pounds once you've
stopped. You can tackle weight gain later down the line when
you're more comfortable with not smoking. |
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