How to Quit Smoking & Reach Your Weight Loss Goals

Hello new you!

The time for new beginnings and possibilities is now. It’s the time to break old, sometimes hard-to-give-up habits and create fresh new empowering ones. For many that means attempting to finally stub out the smokes. If that’s you, good for you. We’re here to help you crack that ambition and reveal a healthier, happier you.

We know it’s good for our health but one of the reasons many put off giving up smoking is because they think it will make it more difficult for them to reach their weight loss goals. Not if we can help it.

At Unislim we’ll do all we can to help you smash your goals, feel good about yourself and really kick the habit in 2018.

With our weekly classes and online community you’ll have the cheerleading, non-judging, team you need around to help you focus on healthy, delicious food and exercise and good habits that will make you feel incredible. And we have the low down on how to manage cravings, help you kick the habit and power through feeling fighting fit and fabulous.

So here are some helpful tips to help you stay on course.

Plan it. Remember that as sure as cravings come, they also float away.

Be mindful and watch as your cravings appear, take a mental note of them and watch them disappear. This can take a bit of practice but it does work!

Science tells us to succeed at breaking a habit we need to replace an old habit with a new one. That means establishing a new response to those familiar – and let’s face it – powerful cues that make us want to reach for a glass of wine, chocolate bar or cigarette. Make a list of positive replacement activities – a quick walk, dancing to your favourite song, petting the dog – that you plan to turn to instead of having a cigarette.

Get busy moving. One of the simplest ways to lose weight, boost your mood and metabolism when you’re trying to quit is to ramp up the exercise. Get this: when you stop smoking you are going to feel better, walk better, run better. Cash in on this feelgood factor and get active.

Studies show that people who exercise while trying to quit smoking are twice as likely to succeed and – you’ve guessed – are less likely to put on weight.

Another plus is that exercise can burn off the nervous energy that can challenge former smokers (that’s you) without a cigarette to pull on.

Do you normally feel like a ciggie after a meal, while on the phone, or at times of stress? We get this. We’re all creatures of habit. Ask yourself ‘do I need’ a cigarette or ‘do I want’ one? Track your cravings in a journal. It makes them easier to anticipate and work around when you spot them coming down the track.

Keep some sugar-free sweets, chewing gum or vegetable sticks to hand throughout the day to keep your mouth occupied when you feel the urge to light up.

You may notice an increase in appetite to begin with but this will soon regulate itself. Keep going.

Your taste buds are about to come alive again so benefit from this new sensation. Be mindful when eating, slow down, chew your food well and really savour those forgotten full flavours.

Carry a bottle of water with you all the time and keep hydrated. Not only will it boost your metabolism, it can help quell those niggly cravings and help stop snacking.

At the end of a long day who doesn’t like some Me Time? Keep your hands busy by emailing a friend, take up knitting or plan an exercise class, to zap those fleeting desires.

Keep a travel-size minty mouthwash in your bag or car. Not only does it freshen up your palate but it can quash the craving for sweet things. Brush your teeth straight after dinner. You’re less likely to spoil the clean breath feeling with a cigarette.

Imagine how good you’ll feel with extra power in your step, clean breath and cash in your pocket. Think of your strongest motivation to give up and give yourself visual reminders. Use post-its stuck to the fridge or your laptop, in your phone – to power you along throughout the day.

Be patient. The longer you’ve had a habit, the longer it will take to get rid of it. Some say it takes 21 days to kick a habit. For many, it’s a bit longer – up to three months. Have faith in yourself and take it in baby steps with weekly rewards for staying on track.

Keep a Healthy Me jar and put the price of a pack of cigarette in it as regularly as you would have bought one. Give it a few weeks and watch that cash tot up to a juicy big stash to spend on a handbag, clothes or weekend break just for you.

Keep strong and remember, with the right support, you can do it. You’ll also find some helpful tools on quit.ie.

Good luck!