Quit smoking - extreme bloating typical?

[slackerinabox]

Googled and see spotty recommendations.

I quit smoking a few weeks ago and immediately made positive dietary changes to curb the dreaded weight gain (I'm obese as is). I've lost some weight in the weeks but clothes are oddly tighter and my belly expanding at a pretty staggering degree. Some of my shirts don't fit at all, actually - I'm like a size bigger on my stomach and it's freaking me out. I figured that would be an immediate side effect but, 3 weeks later and the stomach's not going down significantly (and I'm eating less and less calories every week) - is this typical or something I should go to the doctor for? Diuretic pills - good idea or just ride it out?

Thanks for any advice!

 

[SlitheryDee]

Are you actually counting your calories? You may be eating more than you think. I've never heard of water retention being a side effect of quitting smoking. It could be the kinds of foods you're eating too. If you changed your diet at the same time as quitting smoking it's harder to tell which one might be causing the bloating.

 

[Saint Nick]

Stay the path. Keep off the cigs, keep your positive dietary changes.

Have you been tracking and calculating your food? If so, I would say as long as you see visible changes in your body, and see the weight going down on the scale, you're doing everything you should be.

If not, I suggest you start if you want to take this seriously. Don't "eat less and less calories every week". You need to eat the same amount of calories until you don't see any more changes in your body/weight loss, then adjust accordingly.

You have that spreadsheet I gave you, right? Start at the number 10% below your TDEE.

 

[slackerinabox]

Stay the path. Keep off the cigs, keep your positive dietary changes.

Have you been tracking and calculating your food? If so, I would say as long as you see visible changes in your body, and see the weight going down on the scale, you're doing everything you should be.

If not, I suggest you start if you want to take this seriously. Don't "eat less and less calories every week". You need to eat the same amount of calories until you don't see any more changes in your body/weight loss, then adjust accordingly.

You have that spreadsheet I gave you, right? Start at the number 10% below your TDEE.

Hi! I've been going down the lazy road by measuring out sub-500 calorie meals and sticking to those meals vs. tracking meal for meal. I should track meal by meal and will, just thought I'd ease into it because weight loss isn't my primary goal right now but changing the types of food I eat is (I honestly ate junk food and take out a majority of the time so this whole home made food thing is a chore enough on it's own). Kinda lazy, I agree but it's easy for me to think "one chicken breast, broccoli, and 1/2 cup of brown rice - done!" vs. doing math. I've also added 30 min of cardio twice a week as a minimum and convinced my wife to join me, so I'm taking a very slow and steady approach. Every time I've jumped into a 'diet' with ferocity I've failed - I get bored or burn out, I'm trying the 'few positive changes a week' mentality and, honestly, I don't feel like I'm dieting at all (which is very good and a welcome change).

The scale shows that i've lost about 10 pounds but my stomach is poofy and shirts tight. (Two scales, we're paranoid ) I know I've had constipation/ bloating before when I've quit before but not weeks later. I'm not even adding salt to food so I'm stumped, though I had my first post quitting sore throat this weekend so maybe my body's slower on the withdrawal symptoms this go around. I'm also on blood pressure medication this time so that might be connected, though I honestly don't know much about this stuff.

Edit: Will use that spreadsheet asap. You're right, I should count calories more vigilantly - but my stomach expansion doesn't seem calorie related, any smokers experience bloating?

 

[notposting]

Also, don't forget to keep exercising if cutting calories. You don't want your body taking the lean mass away while leaving the bubblicious.

I've dropped 13.25 lbs in the last 16 days though. Unfortunately have another 100 to go. What kind of spreadsheet plan are you doing?

edit: Count them all. Once you know a meal you can put the round number in, but break out meals by ingredient the first couple times each, watch your portions, and count everything that goes in. Amazing how quick it adds up.

edit2: dumped our crappy digital scale when it was giving a 9lb range for weight...pretty much useless at that point. Bought a balance beam model which my children's children's children's children should be using someday.

 

[slackerinabox]

Also, don't forget to keep exercising if cutting calories. You don't want your body taking the lean mass away while leaving the bubblicious.

I've dropped 13.25 lbs in the last 16 days though. Unfortunately have another 100 to go. What kind of spreadsheet plan are you doing?

edit: Count them all. Once you know a meal you can put the round number in, but break out meals by ingredient the first couple times each, watch your portions, and count everything that goes in. Amazing how quick it adds up.

edit2: dumped our crappy digital scale when it was giving a 9lb range for weight...pretty much useless at that point. Bought a balance beam model which my children's children's children's children should be using someday.

Congrats on your weight loss! I'm using some home fitness dvds because our baby's making going to the gym complicated. I'm flirting with the idea of getting a used elliptical and putting it in our basement but I have a history of throwing money and equipment at a problem instead of just walking aggressively in place for an hour

I guess I will start counting calories. I'll figure out how to get saint nick's spreadsheet on my phone.

 

[Saint Nick]

If you need help decipher the spreadsheet don't be afraid to shoot me a PM. Counting calories does sort of suck, but please understand that it is just something to incorporate into the routine.

Each time I eat something, I put it into Fitday. It's just the way it is. I have my own little system of getting data in there, so it really takes no time at all (probably 30 seconds at most). Don't let yourself become a slave of excuses. Your baby will want a happy and HEALTHY father later in life so it's time to get serious!

If I go out to eat, I will make every effort possible to ballpark my meal as much as possible. This will be hard to do if you are just starting out. Eventually you'll get a good idea of what three eggs looks like, 6oz of chicken, a cup of rice, a half cup of cheese, etc. If they have nutritional info available, I will put that in. Since you are looking to lose body fat, ensure you over estimate so that you do not end up eating too much in one day.

 

[Ausm]

I stopped smoking 9 years ago and the only problem I had was coughing up water for like 6 months after the fact.

 

[SaDiZTiKStyLeZ]

I don't remember any bloating, but I lost 60lbs in 6mo after quitting smoking.

 

[notposting]

I took a modified Hackers Diet spreadsheet sand have it on Skydrive now. Easy updating on my phone (Windows Phone). If you want I can send you a copy or share mine for ideas. Has a separate weight and calorie sheets, couple graphs...pretty basic but it works. My wife just tallies everything up on hers and puts whole meal numbers in...

I quit smoking in 2004, I bloated from my diet of pizza and mountain dew and no exercise though