"Yoga gave me the ability to calm down."
I used to smoke cigarettes and quitting was one of the best (and hardest) changes I've ever made in my life. Once I did quit smoking I immediately noticed what a joy it was to be able to breath again and overall my energy level increased.
Humans typically don't use their full lung capacity. Do you ever notice holding your breath when you're stressed out? Do you notice you want a cigarette the most when your stressed out? And do you realize that deepest breaths your taking during the day is when your taking a drag off of your cigarette?
Here's how I kicked the smoking habit and how you can use yoga to quit smoking.
First and foremost, in order to quit smoking, you really have to WANT to quit. You have to be fully dedicated, 100 %, no questions asked. I was extremely fortunate to have a roommate, Allie, who was a smoking counselor for Nicorette and she played a huge factor in helping me to kick the disgusting habit. She told me one day that there was enough acetone in one cigarette to remove nail polish on a women's fingernail. That fact alone and my desire to truly want to quit started my journey to quit smoking.
Allie also explained to me it takes a person on average 5 to 7 attempts to fully quit smoking. It's important that your partners/spouses are supportive of the fact that you are trying to quit. If you break down and have a cigarette they should not criticize you but instead understand that smoking is an addiction, not a choice.
Secondly, set a quit date. You can begin cutting back on cigarettes. So instead of having two cigarettes on your drive to work, only have one followed by a stick of gum. You can also keep track of your quit date, and receive encouraging updates from quitting smoking Web sites such as QuitNet. I recently saw one of my old co-workers post on Facebook his QuitNet smoking results:
Can you believe it? He's saved over $3,000 dollars from quitting smoking, not to mention he's living a longer, healthier and happier life.
Third, avoid triggers that make you want a cigarette. My biggest triggers were coffee, driving, smoking after a meal, as well as smoking while I was drinking. I battled these triggers by switching from coffee to green tea or juice smoothies in the morning. Juices and cigarettes don't mix. Instead of smoking while driving, drinking and after meals, I bought packs of the Tea Tree Oil Chewing Sticks. (I like the Thursday Plantation brand the best) Another friend of mine who had quit smoking used these as a substitute for quitting smoking and I was amazed at how much it helped me. There are not only deliciously minty for after meals, but they prevented my from putting a cigarette in my mouth. Sure, I looked like a country-bumpkin but hey, it worked great!
And of course, try yoga. Yoga played a huge factor in both my decision to quit smoking as well as my "want" to quit, especially since the most important part of yoga is breathing. I was participating in 20 hour yoga teacher training weekends and recognizing how difficult it was for my to breathe during our asana (physical) and pranayama (breathing) practices. I used cigarettes as a crutch during stressful situations and instead of smoking cigarettes when your stressed out try breathing. It may sound stupid but you'd be amazed at how great you feel after taking 10 deep breaths, breathing in through the nose and out through the nose. Or try some physical yoga poses such as Triangle pose or Sun Salutations. Next time you are craving a cigarette try using these yoga breathing techniques or poses to
battle that craving.
And one other quitting smoking tip, if you've been smoke free and feel a craving come on, remember that smoking is a memory, not something you have to rely on. Try replacing that urge to smoke with a chewing stick, piece of Nicorette gum, or consider trying the patch.
It's never too late to quit smoking, you just have to WANT to quit for yourself.
Posted by Raina on Thursday, November 5, 2009