Quitting and physical activity.
How to quit smoking, benefits of physical activity

• The thought of quitting scares you?
• No willpower to stop smoking
• It’s my choice to continue smoking
• I’ve got it under control
• I can’t stop
• They’ll find a vaccine against smoking
• Everyone I know smokes
• Smoking is social
• It didn’t kill my grandfather
• It’s not as bad as they say
• There are worse things than smoking
• If it was so bad, the government would make it illegal
• I smoke all-natural cigarettes
• Everyone smokes
• You have to die somehow...
• Tips to stop smoking
• Smoking and nicotine
• Quit without gaining weight
• Quit and manage your stress
• Quitting and physical activity
• Quitting and health benefits
• Quitting and withdrawal symptoms
• Failures and relapses
• The steps of the stop-smoking method

A Painless Way to Quit and Feel Good

How to quit smoking and produce good drugs

In the Smoking and Nicotine, section, we explain how the brain can produce its own pleasure-inducing "drugs" by producing endorphins, one of which is called dopamine.

These substances are very good for the body. They :

• strengthen the immune system (they help fight off diseases);
• protect from stress; and;
• help create a good mood.

These are only some of the advantages these substances bring when they are produced naturally.

When you smoke, however, your brain relies on an external drug to stimulate its endorphins.

• In this case, their benefits are considerably reduced because of the many harmful effects of nicotine and the thousands of other chemical products you inhale in tobacco smoke. (See the Smoking and Nicotine section for more information.)

One of the easiest and most effective ways to stimulate production of your endorphins is physical activity.

A “Good” Vicious Circle

Being physically active doesn’t mean you have to become an athlete or excel in a given sport.

The goal is to be active on a regular basis, in your own way, by yourself or with others – and to have fun while doing it.

Do something physical that you enjoy, or try new things.

Start out at your own level and pace, so as to gradually develop those activities into new habits as a former smoker. In this way.

• You’ll enjoy some pleasing moments and some successes.
• By giving you satisfaction, physical activity will stimulate your brain to produce endorphins, giving you PLEASURE and a sense of WELL-BEING.
• You’ll want to repeat the activity and continue to be active.

The more active you are, the better you’ll feel, you’ll produce more endorphins and you’ll ENJOY it, so you’ll want to keep on doing it...

• And increasingly, you’ll enjoy the benefits of physical activity, which will make you feel even better.

We might refer to this as a good "vicious circle", one that could help you break the bad vicious circle that makes you a slave to your cigarettes.  As a result, quitting will be painless and you’ll feel good about it.

So, it’s up to you to get moving!

For more information on this topic, check out the following sites :

• http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca
• http://www.bbc.co.uk