Truly, there has to be some form and degree of pain involved in carrying the title of "Ex". This "Ex" factor makes us take up greater responsibilities to forget our old habits or practices and to suit ourselves into the new ones. In other words, becoming an "ex" will also mean dealing with the aftereffects of this status.
And ex-smokers are also to be included in this family of responsible "Exs". They may need to pump iron so as to prevent weight gain, a possible aftereffect of quitting smoking. A study, financed by the U.S. National Cancer Institute has suggested that three months of weight lifting may help individuals get rid of their cigarette cravings and withdrawal symptoms while reducing the risk of weight gain which may sometimes show up as a quitting side effect.
Men and women, who underwent this weight training program, were twice as likely to come out of this habit in comparison to those who did not opt for weight lifting. The study consisted of 25 male and female smokers who belonged to the age group of 18 to 65 years. These individuals had been smoking a minimum of five cigarettes per day since the past one year.
The study participants were counseled so as to encourage them to quit smoking. They were also supplied with a eight-week provision of the nicotine patch. Then they were chosen randomly and were made to fall in two categories.
One group was made to undergo two full body resistance training sessions, each of which lasted for one hour. They were asked to perform ten exercises per week and the regime continued for 12 weeks. The intensity of the exercise regime was increased after every three weeks.
The second group, the control group, was only made to watch a health and wellness video two times a week. At the end of the training period, it was found that 16 percent of the smokers in the resistance training group were able to come out of their smoking habit completely. They were also found to have lost body weight and fat.
On the other hand, only 8 percent of smokers in the control group were found to have been able to quit smoking. But addition in kilos was also observed among them. After three months, it was found that 15 percent of the smokers in the weight lifting group, had not resumed their smoking habit compared to 8 percent of subjects in the control group.
Researchers are interested to conduct more studies on resistance training before tagging it as a supportive tool for the "Quit Smoking" ideology.
