How to Give Up Smoking and NOT Gain Weight?

By John Ryan

When you stop smoking, it does not mean that you HAVE TO gain weight. There are two parts to this problem and it is important that you understand BOTH of them.

First, I need to be honest with you... Yes, in the past, people DID tend to gain weight when they gave up smoking. But this was BECAUSE most people tried to give up smoking using the old Willpower Method alone. These people believed that when they gave up, they would feel terrible. They were then told that the ONLY way to deal with these cravings was to endure them... and hope that, with time and persistence, they would go away. They were advised, above all, to use their Willpower and FORCE themselves not to smoke.

And finally, they were told to eat snacks or nibble this or that - ANYTHING, in fact - to keep them busy and their minds OFF smoking. Why eat? Because the feeling or the 'hunger' for a cigarette is very similar to the feeling you get when you are hungry. And so, in the past, people ate in the mistaken belief that by eating, they could satisfy their craving for a cigarette and that it would help them keep their minds off smoking.

But of course it didn't work... and the MORE the feeling came back, the MORE they ate in the belief it could help them. Your present is NOT dependent on your past, so although we have to accept that there was some validity for people gaining weight in the past when they tried to quit, that need not be the case today.

Remember the CAUSE was not giving up smoking but HOW these people went about the process of giving up smoking. If you look closely at how they went about it, you'll see that people ate TO NUMB their feelings. Remember, when you give up smoking, you too will get these selfsame feelings/cravings - 'I want a cigarette.' And you will experience similar feelings when you realize that you cannot have even one. But unlike the old Willpower Method, you will not eat extra in order to ESCAPE or NUMB these feelings. Why?

Because, as we explain in our free online course, you will want to WELCOME and ACCEPT these feelings. You will WANT to transmute them. These FEELINGS/CRAVINGS are the KEY to your success.

Please understand this: the Old Way (Willpower method) was to hate and fear these cravings to smoke. You were told you had a big fight on your hands, that these feelings would be unpleasant and overpowering. And because the feeling you get when you want a cigarette is similar to how you feel when you are hungry, of course, you believed that by eating, you could satisfy these feelings or at least alleviate them. But all you did was to temporarily block off these feelings. By eating, you give yourself an excuse not to have to deal with and really feel these feelings. You put off the evil day... and started to put on the pounds.

Never forget that when you give up smoking, you will CONTINUE to have these empty, restless, insecure cravings for the first two or three weeks. Now, for the first time in your life, LET yourself have these feelings, these empty sensations in your body. Actually feel them, moment-by-moment in your body. CALL THEIR BLUFF. Sure, you will get the temptation to eat extra - to compensate - to 'fill' in the feelings you believe you are now lacking. These desires are natural, normal. They are not bad in themselves. And they are ONLY TEMPORARY. Just feel them!

Yes, it takes courage not to run away and try to escape by eating extra. If you will just have patience and stay with these feelings you will discover your moment of truth - that these feelings are no big deal and that you can easily handle them. You don't have to eat to escape from them.

The belief that you will gain weight automatically if you stop smoking is a myth. In actual fact, if you practice this psychology correctly, you should lose weight! However, there is one other issue we must deal with in regard to weight gain before we proceed. This is the second part of the problem we mentioned earlier... increased metabolism.

Please get this clear in your mind: giving up smoking does not automatically lead to weight gain. And even the latest studies seem to confirm this. However, in regard to the women who gained weight, the average gain of between 5 to 10 pounds over a number of months was generally attributed to metabolic alterations, i.e. the change in their metabolic rate. Let's look at this carefully as a lot of people, especially women, STILL use this as an excuse not to give up smoking.

To help us, let's try to understand the effects of smoking on your weight... First of all, smoking DOES burn calories. Up to 200 a day if you are a heavy smoker. Thus smoking can increase your energy expenditure or metabolism. What does this mean? It means that when you quit smoking it can cause slight weight gain for certain individuals (unless they take appropriate action!) because their body begins to work more efficiently and their body's metabolism slows and food is digested more efficiently. This can also cause insulin levels to increase, which enable the body to process more sugar for energy.

All this means is that you'll have to learn how to outsmart the pounds. But first, get it clear in your mind: when you give up smoking and do not RUN AWAY FROM or try to NUMB your cravings by EATING, YOU WILL NOT GAIN WEIGHT when you stop smoking. The only weight gain some of our readers should be aware of is a slight weight gain of up to 5 pounds due to the change in their metabolic rate. However, you can EASILY even avoid that by taking the following simple actions...

Here's Kristy Farley advice on how to outsmart the pounds:

To ward off gaining ANY extra pounds when you quit, follow these simple steps and improve your general health at the same time. Remember, if you are a heavy smoker, smoking will burn up an estimated 200 calories a day. To burn 200 calories you can, for example, walk briskly for 45 minutes or swim laps for 30 minutes each day. Or eliminate 200 calories of food intake, and you've used up the extra calories from not smoking. What does that translate to?

• 2 lite beers (220 calories).
• 20 regular potato chips (220 calories).
• 4 chocolate sandwich cookies (213 calories).
• 2 tablespoon of butter (200 calories).
• 2 oz. of cheddar cheese (220 calories).
• 1/2 cup macaroni and cheese (205 calories).

One benefit of quitting, however is that as your body realizes the benefits of not smoking, your energy levels will increase, and you will begin to feel better physically. A moderate increase in physical activity can keep weight gain to a minimum. NEVER try to satisfy the oral fixation of smoking by snacking. Wait to eat until the urge to smoke subsides, so that the smoking activity is not replaced psychologically by eating.

Exercise daily. A daily moderate workout not only distracts you from smoking, but also helps reduce tension and stress. Endorphins released in the brain during exercise actually make you feel better. Exercise also increases metabolism, helping you burn more calories. Eat square meals based on sound nutrition, and keep track of what you are eating, how much and why. Weigh yourself weekly and keep track of your weight.

If you do not RUN AWAY FROM or try to NUMB your cravings to smoke by EATING, YOU WILL NOT GAIN WEIGHT when you stop smoking. And even if you are one of those who may experience a slight weight gain of up to 5 pounds, due to metabolic changes - that is the easiest thing to remedy! Follow our simple advice - and you will not gain even an extra pound!

But the important thing to remember here is this: It was the Old Way of giving up smoking that caused people to gain weight in the past. It was the terrible idea that you must use Willpower to FORCE yourself not to smoke. The idea that you could use substitutes like food to BLOCK or to ESCAPE from these cravings.

But our approach to giving up smoking is the exact opposite. We want you to FACE and WELCOME ALL the cravings you get when you stop. We want you to TRANSFORM them.

You now know that by allowing and opening to every feeling and desire WITHOUT judgment or resistance you can MAGICALLY transform how these feelings FEEL, moment-by-moment in your body. They can actually be experienced as enjoyable sensations - and thus you will feel no compulsion to use food to escape from these cravings. So why continue every day to CONGEST your lungs with cancerous tars. To CLUTTER up and POISON your blood vessels. And to SENTENCE yourself to a lifetime of...

• Filth
• Bad breath
• Stained teeth
• Burnt clothes
• Filthy ashtrays
• And the foul smell of stale tobacco

...all because of the mistaken BELIEF that if you stop smoking, you must gain weight. Go on, show the world by your own PERSONAL EXAMPLE that it is a LIE! Because it is! And as you show them, ENJOY fully all the immediate benefits you'll experience when you stop...

• You'll feel stronger, younger, healthier.
• Your complexion will be better.
• Your teeth and fingers will no longer be yellow.
• Your eyes will look healthier, more alive and vibrant.
• And your clothes and breath will no longer stink of stale smoke.
• You'll feel f-a-n-t-a-s-t-i-c !!

Now what is your answer to that question, will you gain weight when you stop smoking? Is it possible to enjoy, yes ENJOY giving up smoking - and not gain ANY weight? Follow the famous 10-day free online Quit Smoking Course: Click here to go to our free web site.