11 weeks

[nsd_user663_55542]

Dont like to come on to often and bore people with facts but .... 11 weeks off the smokes , i have no problems havin a beer while others smoke .... im lying ofcourse , had a card school in house last friday night and nearly broke , thankfully i did nt , it was like a moment were i said ... "jesus id love a fag" then next thing i had a winning hand at cards ( my only winning hand ) and that took my mind of it for rest of night, maybe was to drunk rest of nite to think about them lol, but anyway here i am nearly 3 months down, a few truths to tell, i dont know if anyone had this but i did google it and came up with "furry tongue" which is infact caused by smoking, its like a discoloring of the tongue, a yellow color, well that has almost disappeared, also had a dull pain on top of lung for months before i stopped smoking which has also gone, feel like my tummy is getting bigger and bigger even tho i cycling im still eating like a horse and belly getting bigger, smokin really does suppress the need for food, hopefully startin this week i will be watching what am eating and trying to keep the weight down, hope all you quitters are keeping strong , we all know we dont want that one cig that will make us feel like .......... WTF did i take it for !!!!! Stay strong peeps, we are better than a plant !!

[nsd_user663_57305]

Congrats You're hitting my "danger zone" on my many quitting attempts I tend to fail around the 3 month mark, though last time I got to 9 months. As for the eating, there are a few ways to tackle that that aren't too painful.

1. Make sure you get some lean protein with every meal, lean protein will keep you fuller for longer. Lean protein is basically, fish and white meats - turkey tops the protein stacks.

2. Drink a largish glass of water with every meal and several throughout the day.

3. Include a tun of veggies in every meal, and I mean a tun. You can basically eat as much veggies as you can handle. One of my fav recipes is turkey bolognaise - use 500g turkey mince, 2 low sugar tomato pasta sauces, couple of beef oxo and 2 peppers, 8-10 mushrooms, 3 cloves of garlic, 2-3 medium onions and optionally a courgette and some spring onions (I have stuff left over from salad) - a portion is filling a large plate and being generous with the parmesan.

4. Cut up veggies for snacks, and do it ahead of time. I like dipping them in flavoured oils and I also mix garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper in to 0% yoghurt. Doing it ahead of time and having them easy to access is really handy.

5. Avoid the full sugar versions of things, and sweet juice (even if its made with sweeteners). Sweet things make us hungry. Do have a couple of pieces of fruit in a day, but don't go overboard. Fruit and yoghurt is a good breakfast and dessert. A couple of portions of live yoghurt a day helps your body to digest things easily and also boosts your immune system.

6. Stick to regular meal times, and don't eat beyond 7pmish. Eat late and you'll pile on the pounds, it's actually a trick actors use.

7. This is probably the most important 1 - find foods that fit the bill and that you enjoy eating. Having stopped smoking, your opening yourself up to a world of flavour, so get in the kitchen and play around. A diet that involves cardboard and £40 breakfast bars won't work - succulent chicken breast in a barbecue sauce with a medley of roasted Mediterranean veg cooked with garlic and rosemary, just might

[nsd_user663_18256]

keep going squinter, a few pounds round the middle is better than self inflicted suffocation.

Also good to have pure protein within 15 minutes of exercise. Our bodies are stupid and will burn muscle before they burn fat after exercise unless you give it some protein. It also make your muscles ache less. I've found that a protein shake straight after really helps.

Ash - the turkey bolognese sounds good..... Then you mentioned courgette and that was nearly enough to send me running to the shop for some fags, lol!!!

[nsd_user663_57305]

Good thing it was optional Also, courgette is loverly