In continuation of three tips that helped me remain smoke free and might work for any of you trying to kick the habit but struggling to figure out a way to do it once and for all, I give you tip number two, replace your smoking habit with a healthy habit.
This was one of the best things I did to remain smoke free. By replacing my smoking with a healthy habit I was able to reverse the damage to my body sooner and get into the best shape of my life. I took up hiking and jogging to substitute my smoking. I since have hiked all over the country and have also run in many local 5k and 10k races, and even half marathons!
Now of course your healthy habit doesn’t have to be running or hiking distances, it can be anything you feel like. Instead of lighting up that first cig when you wake up go for a short walk in the morning or hit the gym. You could join a club sport like basketball or play softball on the weekends. The options are countless and can easily be made to fit your lifestyle and your interests. But by choosing some kind of healthy habit to replace your old smoking habit it can provide a great distraction from trying to quit smoking and also give you some motivation.
This tip can be difficult to follow but if you set goals for yourself you will remain smoke free. When I quit, I set a goal of running a 7 mile race in my hometown in under one hour. I was able to accomplish this by setting aside an hour three to five days a week after work to go for a jog. Three months later the thought of smoking never really crossed my mind as I was purely focused on achieving my goal, and in the process I lost 25 pounds and felt a lot healthier overall.
This tip of picking up a healthy habit worked out great for me and it could likely help many of you out there who are pondering quitting. It keeps your mind focused away from smoking and allows you to get healthier faster as well. So if you are still thinking about quitting smoking and you want to use that gym membership you got on New Year’s for this year’s resolution, I say go for it and don’t look back.