losing weight.....

after giving up smoking, i've put on nearly 2 stone

now, i love cooking and food itself, but never had a problem with my weight, but at the moment, i'm feeling sluggish and bloated. my weight used to be 11-11 1/2 stone (i'm 5'9") pretty constantly, so that extra weight really makes a difference. thing is, its on my tum mostly, and i have replaced the fags with food, but i want it off!! my waist was between 32-33, and mrs al measured it last night and its a scary 38!!!

so, what to do, how to do it and any tips on how to?

cheers and many fank yoos in advance!!

 

It's because you've replaced your love of ciggies with your love of food. Classic symptoms unfortunately, it goes with the territory Al n. Only dieting will bring it down and with the probabilityof cold weather ahead, it will be a real challenge. No quick fix I'm afraid but I'll bet your lungs are happier,
Jenny

 

Stop snacking , cut everything you can , go and sleep early , that helps a lot , but bare in mind it will take time , you managed to quit smoking , that means that you are strong enough to lose waight .....
replace your snacks with sparkly water and bush your teeths more often ...and do not be tempted to smoke again , becouse of the stress .....will not help.?

 

Don't worry about it too much al n. I blame the time of year, I too love cooking and food and I don't smoke. I'm generally heavier in the winter than any other time of year. (Christmas luxuries and all that). I'm 6'3 and 17-1 at the minute, come mid spring ill be back down to around 15-8. Moving the lawn and garden maintenance, taking the little un swimming and cycling it soon drops off.

 

Cut out all food in between meals, drink weak tea or water if you get hungry, if desperate eat an orange or other fruit, no sugary stuff at all.

Have tasty meals with loads of fresh veg & protein and not too much fat so you can really look forward to mealtimes and come away feeling satisfied. Have strict portion control on the carbs and have fruit for desert.

Do some form of exercise every single day, even if it's only a 20 min walk.

Don't be too hard on yourself - 90% of the population is feeling sluggish and bloated (I certainly am) but many of them will not take any action and will retain the weight. You've already done very well to give up smoking, try to eat sensibly but don't stress yourself out at this stage. How long is it since you gave up, BTW?

 

I don't eat brekky, never have, I only have lunch and dinner, no snacks in between, but I do snack at night which I always have, BUT probably more often! It's been 4 months give or take now and I can honestly say I don't miss them one bit!!

 

I'm the same, except I was a bit overweight for years, and got more overweight after quitting. How long is it since you quit? I found both times that you sort of pile it on, then gradually it comes back down to your 'normal' level.

It wont do any harm if you use some of your new energy and breathing ability to do more exercise and enjoy more fresh. Note, that's not to suggest that you currently don't do exercise, I just mean that for me, as I've rediscovered air I've been gradually getting more active since I quit.

 

If snacking in the evening is a problem could you replace sugary fatty snacks with lighter ones? How about having a bowl of grapes handy? Or small portions of non-fried/salted nuts? You could have a low calorie chocolate hot drink or some Marmite dissolved in hot water, if you like it. Best to get the rest of the family to support you, it wouldn't help to watch them passing round the chocolate.

Another low calorie snack is a spoonful of miso dissolved in hot water with a splash of soy sauce and a few chopped spring onions. It has some food value, makes you feel full, it's tasty, it's only flaw is the salt content might be highish. You could even make it the proper way if you like!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miso_soup

You've done well to ditch the craving so quick. When I gave up I sometimes felt like having a cigarette for ages after, when I was stressed or at the pub. Never succumbed, though.

 

Is it only me who can see the big banner on the signature line of al n, saying how long it has been since he gave up smoking? Well done on that al, you should be very proud of yourself ... and I want to know what you intend to spend the money on that you have saved, perhaps a nice holiday?

My t'other half gained weight when he quit smoking and has really struggled since because he developed a love of food ... and that was in December 1977 !!!! Sadly a couple of years ago he developed D2. Funnily enough, I went the other way when I quit smoking and didn't start 'disliking' food but changed my eating habits to almost no meat and more fruit and veg and am only 1 stone more than when we married almost 45 years ago. Even so I have 'too much' around the middle and an exercise routine is now on the 2013 agenda!

Get positive thoughts ... you have done excellently so far so don't abandon the ship!

 

Forgot to say, my eating 'healthy foods' has led to problems ... yesterday I had my muesli brekkie bar and I now have an appointment with my dentist on Thursday morning as an entire molar tooth has decided to leave me via the healthy bar ...

 

I can't see any such banner.

 

Oh yes, I can see it now staring me right in the face!

 

Mmmm I can see it
It saved him £1361
How many trachycarpus palms could that buy you???

 

I still can't see the banner, but then I've just realised why. I have a plugin called AdBlocker installed. I bet it thinks the banner is an ad.

 

Chances are Al n, the waistline will come back into line when you get back out into the garden.
All that bending and digging is as good as Gym work.