Exercise motivation/support anyone?

[Exsmo]

As some of you know i have an autoinflammatory disease (i swell) have quit smoking after 35 years !

While am very proud and protective of my quit i have also gained 30lbs bc of the disease & quit combination. Stress causes my body to swell- mostly abdominal, but goes to any system in the body; heart, lungs, skin,eyes... This swelling causes me to be inactive while i was eating more. While it may have been needed then, it needs to be gone now. I can hardly move! Dont want to end up in a nursing home because i kept excusing myself. As stated excusing myself was needed at first to get thru hardest days of quit. I believe am stronger now.

Because of this am starting slow. Walked 5minutes away from house then back. Bought a weeks worth of salad material & apple cider vinegar with the mother.mother seems to be important. Regualar ACV did not relieve the bloat anywhere near what 1 tsp in a glass of water did for me yesterday.

Id like to hear from everyone! Nozmo, Hercu, you've aced your quits and exercise...Marathoners , Lexree, Atta1 both new and doing so well JulReal @10months quit and in same mindframe as me.

We have such a great little family of achieving quitters you ALL inspire me!

Whether one is at baby steps level or marathoners and supplement/nutritional experts like Hercu (i really dont think id be doing as well as i have w/out your supplement advice!) i believe we can motivate each other in this as we have in our quits. As ThinLizzy would say keep kickin it

Any advice, strategies to motivate welcome.

Any "give yourself a break" will not be helpful at this point

I did. It helped. Now i need to take it to another level.

Please understand suffering the consequences is dire(like not being able to do basic self care) with this disease so i HAVE to find motivation and lose weight and exercise. This is as importsnt as my quit.

Thanks for all who answer.

[Exsmo]

What ive learned so far. Without supplements Hercu suggested i have horrible brain fog still. ACV does help abdominal bloat and the candy bar (any refined sugar) causes more inflammation. That said i couldnt have made it those first days without my fudgsickles lol.

[mushen Valued Contributor]

Hello. What I can tell you about exercise is that it really is like a magic bullet. It does more than just the body, it works wonders for the mind too. I self -medicate against depression using exercise (had untreated depression for 5 years).

You have to start somewhere and the key is to build it into your life so it becomes habit forming. You don't have to run a marathon but you do have to move. Start small with your 5 minute walk to and from the house and gradually build on it. That's what I did. Set yourself small, achievable goals, ones that you can reach. Setting yourself a massive goal that seems an impossible task is unhelpful because you are more likely to give up. So, when your 5 minute walk becomes a little less if a challenge, move your goal to, for example, an 8 minute walk and so on. Doesn't sound much but if you continue in the same way, before long you will be at the 20 min walk. Get into a routine, it will help massively. Time how long it takes you. Keep track of your progress to help with motivation. Of course there will be days when you just can't be bothered, I get them all the time, so do most people. This is when your routine will help you most. That walk, will become something you do, like brushing your teeth. I rarely wake up and think 'can't wait to get to the gym'. 99% of the time, I could quite easily not bother but it is a habit I've formed and I just kind of do it anyway.

Don't allow yourself to give up. Get a step counter (cheap) or use one on your phone. These gadgets help with motivation because they allow you to actually see what you are doing.

Above all, have faith in yourself. It does not matter where you start, it matters that you start. Don't get caught up in what other people are doing and don't compare yourself to others. Start small and build on it.

I hope this helps. 😊

[Exsmo in reply to mushen]

Most decidely helpful Mushen. Thank you.

[RoisinO1 Administrator 3 Years Smoke Free]

Hey Exsmo - I'm away for the weekend so will reply properly tomorrow. but here is a link to a Weight Loss community here on HealthUnlocked worth a look that could probably help and advice you more....

healthunlocked.com/nhsweigh...

Great advice there from mushen on the exercise....

[Nozmo Valued Contributor]

I couldn't agree more with mushen . Build on what you're already doing and gradually increase it at your own pace. Perhaps use a phone running/walking app to help motivate you. There are loads available that track your distance and time so you can see how you're improving. The more popular ones can be used to connect with friends or social media if you're into that. I'm not particularly, so I have a simple one that I use for myself. It still helps me want to go quicker!

Stick to a routine (daily/every other day/three times a week) but also vary your route so you're taking in different scenery. I run 5km (3miles) a few times a week but I change the route otherwise it would bore me to death! Sometimes I even get in the car, drive to a scenic spot, park up, do my run and then drive back home. Anything for a bit of variation.

Hope this helps Exsmo?

[Exsmo in reply to Nozmo]

Exceptionally Nozmo. Had i varied it a bit more maybe id not have quit in the past. Scenery was important to me & i forgot to take the time for variety back in the day. May have quit of boredom & hated running on concrete. Wide open spaces & feet on earth i always enjoyed. Shouldnt have LET time get in the way... ended up wasting it on cigs!

Maybe a divine reversal? Ha

[Hidden]

hi Exsmo

I'm really sorry but I lost my glasses for reading and cant read all your post.

I'm thinking of you,I cant imagine the things your going through,ive haven't heard of the illness,it sound horrendous.

I walk,I walk a lot,I could never run or ride a bike,just walk a bit further every couple of days,

as for weight,not sure if illness or with stopping smoking,but RoisinO1 has sent a link I think,will be worth a look.

I will get my reading glasses sorted. on Monday.

hope your ok

take care 😊

do keep kicking 😎

[Exsmo in reply to Hidden]

Aww Thinlizzy if i get bored am gonna kick once or twice just for you. Luv that phrase "keep kickin". Its sorta becoming my mantra.

Re: disease, we all got something to overcome i just say it as explanation to express what i need & where i MAY be limited at times. When not in flare am normal.

Thanks for bein you. I get a kick out of ya!!

[Hidden in reply to Exsmo]

ha ha love it 😊

[Hercu Valued Contributor]

Exmo..You have got super courage...John Wayne explained courage being shit scared but still saddling up...

My dear Hetta also battles with weight since she quit 10 years ago and now being diagnosed diabeties 2 she can not use any weigh loss stuff..The only way is correct diet and exersise.. Jogging is out of the question and I bought us some mid range mountain bicycles and we go for a nice easy ride in the afternoons when cooled down..!

It is about a charade with Oupie and Oumie and the two grand daughters and three dogs on the way...Lucky we are fortunate to have the space on the farm..! Very nice relaxing exersise.

Like Mushen suggested start walking..short distance at first and more and more every day..!

Strongs !!

[Exsmo in reply to Hercu]

I do believe you could be a motivational speaker Hercu! I feel stronger already!!

Have a walk friend willing to go w me every morning @ 10am- praying she's not planning to bring her dogs w lots of stops or i'll have to go alone.

Will be great to be stongs again... Am really looking forward to a body that works right! Am feeling very positive it can happen ( slow & steady wins the race eh? )

[Sof79 1 Year Smoke Free]

Hello Exsmo,

Im sorry to hear about the condition,... it appears you are managing it well, and ready to take things to the next level.

Starting out slow is good. Maybe you could ask the doctor about adding 10 percent extra distance each week. So if you walk 10-15km in total over 7 days in the one week, following week would be 11-16.5km total distance..

Also, please ask your doctor about doing basic weight training. This is really beneficial and will help you achieve your goals of losing body fat and becoming stronger.

You could start by following some starter youtube vids , get some 2kg dumbells and ankle weights.

If you slowly increase your muscle mass , you will lose more body fat because muscle tends to burn fat, and this extra muscle will also keep your metabolism up and burning. Also you will be stronger.

Read up about nutrition related to assisting muscle maintenance while losing body fat , as you will want to reduce any loss of your existing muscle mass while losing weight.

I hope this helps, im no doctor but an avid health/nutrition/exercise hobbyist, and i wish you all the best with this.

Give us a shout if you’d like any other info.

Xxx

[RoisinO1 Administrator 3 Years Smoke Free in reply to Sof79]

Great helpful reply Sof79 - 1 week today for you, hope you have a little treat lined up?

[Sof79 1 Year Smoke Free in reply to RoisinO1]

Thank you RoisinO1 yay one whole week already! I had a proper run today , well , a race-run, and i shaved 2 mins off my time of last week! Being smoke free helped me fly already! feel so much better in myself in so many ways..well u know - uve been there and still are Whoop! .. loving this chat group! Thank you to everyone who shares and offers encouragement and advice.. we each get to be part of our own united little ‘quit clan’, rooting for each other how lovely..

[Exsmo in reply to Sof79]

Sof79 Congrats on 1 week!! Says a lot about you that youre new and already willing to help another. Rather awesome of you!!

Am so gateful for weights reminder!!! I have them right next to bed & will lay them out for tomorrow. Woo hoo i always used to build extraordinarily fast & of course muscle will raise metabolism HOW did i forget?!?

Wonderful advice. Thanks loads. That is precisely what will speed it up! They are only 5 lb weight and am only going for 10 mins a day- this week.

Y'all are awesome i knew this was going to be good. Thank so!!!

Also have some chocolate protein drinks. I used fudgesicklrs to not smoke at first (ice water wouldve worked...possibly ...it was really good with fruit in it- Roison O1 has great healthy recipe drinks!! Cold really sends keep cravings away!)

[Hidden in reply to Exsmo]

I also suffer with hashimottos only a few modules from it and hipotytoide ..a few months ago I started my regular hormone replacement no more the natural because is hard to find .so those changes of medication and the stress caused by quitting was really hard for me I was very inflamed like you said .

At 6 months after quitting cigarrets is getting so much better ..I’m still eating sugar but less than before .Is not easy to deal with so much ..the one thing is working for me is to not worry so much and stay calm ..I desided to take it a day at a time ..

My priority is to stay quit forever

[Exsmo in reply to Hidden]

One day at a time... Is best to remember, otherwise life overwhelms me😳. Good advice. Thanks Karina. Hashimotos or cancer i wish they'd have done tests right so i could know by now. Threw me off being in the moment for a bit. Glad you understand that too. Rather a strange spot to be standing in. How long did it take them to find thats what it was?

[Hidden in reply to Exsmo]

Like you said we have to take one thing at a time !! 😏

You Having to wait 6 months that’s not an easy one I can only imagine !

Well I had a blood test that determines hashimottos .

Then I had a sonogram but the nodules I have are not significant so I’m just suffering with all the hashimotos symptoms ..specially slow metabolism .

Im sure quitting smoking will help us immensely ,but at beginning of quitting it was shocking ..our body is not use to this life ..I’m feeling positive it’s all I can do

[Exsmo in reply to Hidden]

Karina my dt mever even told me there was a blood test for hasimotos! Had a blood test that was said to be fine, then 7 more visits for xray mri, better mri, radioactive scan...etc. ENT said she thought it looked like hashimotos then ordered fine meedle biopsy. Then i had to call her to find out they didnt get enough cells to tell if its cancer or the hashimotos. Still, not knowing she's ok waiting 6 more months ! I think they are being seriously irresponsible with my health. Am not willing to let 6months go by for either cancer or hashimotos to progress. Cant believe they would be! Does this seem odd to you? Was your experience confusing like this before you got diagnosed?

[Hidden in reply to Exsmo]

Hashimottos is an autoimmune disorder as you know so is detected in a blood test called antibody test wich determines if there is unusual antibodies ..if they notice modules or tumors is when you get the sonogram if the nodules are big or consistent they order you to get the biopsy

[Exsmo in reply to Hidden]

Well this makes me less clear about what theyre doing. Blood test supposedly was fine but my throat /thyroid was swollen. Did have 3 suspicious larger than 1.2 nodules. Did have another blood test now that you mention it, but ENT dr said it "looked" or " was shaped like hashimotos. Have had so many tests am not sure now about 2nd blood test. I think i need to call and have them clarify.

Thanks for your inut. Was pretty foggy when they were doing all these tests

[Hidden in reply to Exsmo]

sorry what are fudgestickirs ,?

from dizzy Lizzy 😁

[Exsmo in reply to Hidden]

Haha i must be the dizzy one hun. It was suppose to say fudgesickles. Chocolate icecream on a stick. Sorry. My eyes are still in flare a bit so i dont always catch those mistakes. (Especially the longer i stay on here)

[Sof79 1 Year Smoke Free in reply to Exsmo]

Hey there, hope its all going well and thank u for that lovely reply im at day 10 quit ! One day at a time.. yesterday was a real feel ‘flat’ day..and i was impatient also..could have been withdrawal or hormones (very much affected by monthly cycle .. anyway, i didnt contemplate a cig.. not gona ‘console’ myself with a cancer stick. I think im done with those. Wishes to everyone for self love, giving urself a break from guilt and doubt.. theres goodness and strength in all of us, we have to choose to see it xxxx this may be me giving myself a pep-talk..i do sometimes project what id say to the mirror 😂 pls bear with me xx have a great day quit-clan

[Exsmo]

Thanks Sof79 keep up the good work Especially on a "flat" day. I may be wrong but i think our emotions take the roller coaster ride too. Nice thing about this is amother emotion will be around the next bend. What you said about choosing to see___ is spot on. Its a mental battle too, no doubt about it. Thats whats so great about here. Everyone gets it! Quit clan is cute :)& very true!