One of my good friends who is a smoker, recently came to me expressing a desire to quit smoking.
Her biggest concern historically, is that she is already overweight and can't risk the weight gain by giving up cigarettes.
This time, however, she was not only listening but also initiating the conversation.
She had seen a commercial recently which had beautiful women wearing tight, provocative clothing but written on the clothing was a different smoking related disease - "Heart Disease," for example.
My friend thought this was an excellent commercial to reinforce for those that as a weight loss aid, smoking leaves a lot to be desired.
We both gained an education from the conversation that followed.
My friend explained that she had tried once before to quit smoking and had even made a plan beforehand. Still, she gained weight and eventually started smoking again.
While my friend had a plan, she had no contingency if anything deviated from this plan.
Additionally, she hadn't taken into account just how ingrained smoking was in her life, not just the addictive nature of cigarettes.
We decided to look at the flaws with her first plan to quit and from that, create a new plan for her.
Cold Turkey - My friend gave up cigarettes completely one day without any preparation because she heard this was the best way to go.
What she didn't count on was that smoking was so much of a habit that she felt something was missing when she'd drive to work, take a coffee break, take a lunch break, etc.
FOOD! That was obviously an easy filler. Who doesn't like food? Food doesn't cause lung cancer! This plan actually worked for awhile since she wasn't smoking. What was the result? Pretty much what you'd think - she gained weight. Of course, this didn't fit well with her second goal of dieting to lose weight. The diet she chose was a poor one, based on her likes and dislikes. While she stuck with the plan for awhile, the choices were limited.
My friend found herself bored with her available food choices and the diet soon became a thing of the past.
The third part of my friend's plan was to exercise. Great idea right? It could have been, however, my friend didn't want to start by walking - she wanted to run. She chose unrealistic workout routines and naturally, she found them too difficult and quit right away. In fact, she also injured herself by chosing such a difficult routine and was even less mobile than before.
"Moderation in all things." I asked my friend to keep that as a daily mantra and to use that as the basis of her next plan to get healthy.
We talked about how her goals to stop smoking, lose weight and exercise were great but she needed to work up to the original goals she set - not start with them.
The first thing she should have done was consider how removing cigarettes all of a sudden would affect her. I explained she was already ahead of the game, having gone through this once before. She new "cold turkey" wasn't for her.
For example, She could have chosen a stop smoking date and reduced the amount of cigarettes she smoked each day by one until she reached her goal of zero cigarettes.
She could have also made a plan for not giving up if she did slip up and have a cigarette. What was her support plan? Did she have someone to call? What other natural aides where available. She could have researched this better.
My friend's plan of dieting was also changed. What my friend needed was not another fad diet but something she could live with. Otherwise, she would simply go back to the same bad habits.
I suggested that my friend see a doctor to determine her current physical condition. This would enable her to chose an exercise routine based in reality.
I also suggested a gym. Strength in numbers is a great philosophy where my friend is concerned - she likes knowing others are going through what she is.
Starting out with several smaller weightloss, and exercise goals is much more gratifying than one big, rigid plan that makes one feel like a failure if results aren't seen immediately.
While we all want instant results, that simply isn't realistic. Take the time to notice the gradual changes happening to your body. How are your clothes fitting this week compared to two weeks ago? How much longer were you able to go on the treadmill this week compared to last? How are all of the small steps you are taking to gain better health coming together?
In the end, she chose my Weight Loss Breeze Program and has seen amazing results. The program is all natural and the exercises easy enough to accomodate even beginners.
EL331001 - 16083
Her biggest concern historically, is that she is already overweight and can't risk the weight gain by giving up cigarettes.
This time, however, she was not only listening but also initiating the conversation.
She had seen a commercial recently which had beautiful women wearing tight, provocative clothing but written on the clothing was a different smoking related disease - "Heart Disease," for example.
My friend thought this was an excellent commercial to reinforce for those that as a weight loss aid, smoking leaves a lot to be desired.
We both gained an education from the conversation that followed.
My friend explained that she had tried once before to quit smoking and had even made a plan beforehand. Still, she gained weight and eventually started smoking again.
While my friend had a plan, she had no contingency if anything deviated from this plan.
Additionally, she hadn't taken into account just how ingrained smoking was in her life, not just the addictive nature of cigarettes.
We decided to look at the flaws with her first plan to quit and from that, create a new plan for her.
Cold Turkey - My friend gave up cigarettes completely one day without any preparation because she heard this was the best way to go.
What she didn't count on was that smoking was so much of a habit that she felt something was missing when she'd drive to work, take a coffee break, take a lunch break, etc.
FOOD! That was obviously an easy filler. Who doesn't like food? Food doesn't cause lung cancer! This plan actually worked for awhile since she wasn't smoking. What was the result? Pretty much what you'd think - she gained weight. Of course, this didn't fit well with her second goal of dieting to lose weight. The diet she chose was a poor one, based on her likes and dislikes. While she stuck with the plan for awhile, the choices were limited.
My friend found herself bored with her available food choices and the diet soon became a thing of the past.
The third part of my friend's plan was to exercise. Great idea right? It could have been, however, my friend didn't want to start by walking - she wanted to run. She chose unrealistic workout routines and naturally, she found them too difficult and quit right away. In fact, she also injured herself by chosing such a difficult routine and was even less mobile than before.
"Moderation in all things." I asked my friend to keep that as a daily mantra and to use that as the basis of her next plan to get healthy.
We talked about how her goals to stop smoking, lose weight and exercise were great but she needed to work up to the original goals she set - not start with them.
The first thing she should have done was consider how removing cigarettes all of a sudden would affect her. I explained she was already ahead of the game, having gone through this once before. She new "cold turkey" wasn't for her.
For example, She could have chosen a stop smoking date and reduced the amount of cigarettes she smoked each day by one until she reached her goal of zero cigarettes.
She could have also made a plan for not giving up if she did slip up and have a cigarette. What was her support plan? Did she have someone to call? What other natural aides where available. She could have researched this better.
My friend's plan of dieting was also changed. What my friend needed was not another fad diet but something she could live with. Otherwise, she would simply go back to the same bad habits.
I suggested that my friend see a doctor to determine her current physical condition. This would enable her to chose an exercise routine based in reality.
I also suggested a gym. Strength in numbers is a great philosophy where my friend is concerned - she likes knowing others are going through what she is.
Starting out with several smaller weightloss, and exercise goals is much more gratifying than one big, rigid plan that makes one feel like a failure if results aren't seen immediately.
While we all want instant results, that simply isn't realistic. Take the time to notice the gradual changes happening to your body. How are your clothes fitting this week compared to two weeks ago? How much longer were you able to go on the treadmill this week compared to last? How are all of the small steps you are taking to gain better health coming together?
In the end, she chose my Weight Loss Breeze Program and has seen amazing results. The program is all natural and the exercises easy enough to accomodate even beginners.
EL331001 - 16083
About the Author:
Christian Goodman is a well known health researcher and author of several revolutionary natural health alternative methods. One of his recent breakthroughs is his natural Weight Loss Breeze Program. You can learn more about Christian on his Natural Health Alternative Blog.
