Detox from Nicotine and other vices

[Illusion]

Going to keep a log going on here of an ongoing detox. I don't mean detox in the trendy hipster way of "OMG - LIKE THAT HAS CALORIES IN!" but more of smoking, energy drinks and some of the fast food I've been taking in recently. It's all to try and get my fitness aims achieved over the coming months. Ultimately, I want to fix my sleeping pattern too.

A bit of background, I've always been fit enough to do what I need to do - but not as fit enough as I would like to be. I bought a lot of fitness equipment (weights, pull-up bar, training clothes, etc etc) recently and have decided it's time to go for it. I've just got over a chest infection, which means my lung function should be enough to get training now - and will improve continually if I give up the smokes. I intake a lot of energy drinks which is partly down to my schedule at the moment - and the same with fast food.

Smoking has always been there - and dare I say it, I may even miss rolling a cigarette whilst hiding away somewhere planning my next move - but the advantages (fitness and more) are too much to ignore. (I wasn't an idiot. I didn't wander around approaching a building slyly moving with a cigarette hanging out of my mouth.. don't worry. )

I did 24 hours like it recently, and that was only ruined when my girlfriends best mate and her boyfriend came over. We're both into the same stuff, and were out most of the night discussing lockpicking, gear and photographic equipment - and I ended up smoking, having a few cigars, whilst drinking a few beers and some Jack Daniels.

So as of 2000 hours, 15/01/2012 - I'm going to see how it goes. Initially, the water and fast food detox is going to be for a week just to try and give me a push, and in the long term I'll be looking more towards permanent healthy habits. At the end of the week I'm going to check my weight - and do basically a fitness check-up, see exactly how far I can push myself, and use that as a baseline for my fitness goals. (Calculate my training weights etc from this too)

For the next few days, to combat the stress that will supposedly come - I will probably take some propanolol (beta blockers); as it beats taking a benzodiazipine (Valium etc) and should help out a bit.

Additionally, when I post updates on here I'm going to refer to the following smoking sheet, and see what's changing inside my body! In fact whilst typing this thread up there's been a change..

Smoking:

20 MINUTES
-Blood pressure drops to normal
-Pulse rate drops to normal
-Body temperature of hands and feet increases to normal

8 HOURS (0400 16/01/2011)
-Carbon monoxide level in blood drops to normal
-Oxygen level in blood increases to normal

24 HOURS (2000 16/01/2011)
-Chance of heart attack decreases

48 HOURS (2000 17/01/2011)
-Nerve endings start regrowing
-Ability to smell and taste is enhanced

2 WEEKS TO 3 MONTHS
-Circulation improves
-Walking becomes easier
-Lung function increases up to 30 percent

1 TO 9 MONTHS
-Coughing, sinus congestion, fatigue, and shortness of breath decrease
-Cilia regrow in lungs, increasing their ability to handle mucus, clean the lungs, and reduce infection
-Body's overall energy increases

[fx1k]

Good luck cutting back on smoking. I'm also looking to do a bit of a detox and self improvement. I eat a terrible students' style diet. I'm hoping to start ramping up my fitness within the next week or so. I've said that to myself for about a month straight now. Time to break from that cycle.

[Illusion]

Yeah, it's pretty hard to break out of some habits - smoking aside, I get you about food. I think it's all about slow gradual changes so things don't seem to difficult at first; so not becoming a healthy eating guru over night! Its just hard to kick-start.

8 HOURS (0400 16/01/2011)
-Carbon monoxide level in blood drops to normal
-Oxygen level in blood increases to normal

[Illusion]

Going to keep this as a dairy of progress for a while, whilst I try and adjust my habits.

24 HOURS (2000 16/01/2011)
-Chance of heart attack decreases

Smoking:
I felt like I caved when I found some nicorette patches that I trialled out during some multi-day explorations last year, but at the end of the day - it's the effects on the lungs that I'm concerned about, not the nicotine itself.

So I've managed the first day, and largely without any cravings (since I used the patch atleast, prior to that I was full of murderous rage!). They say (and actually, there's no real evidence) that it takes 21 days to make or break a habit. Well, that seems fair to me - despite the evidence.. (Or lack of)

With the patches in mind, it's clear that I can kick the physical act of smoking easily - the bit I felt would be the hardest, the oral fixation. (Although, I do have lollipops on standby) So I've come up with a quick dose titration scheme to have a 3 week quit plan from nicotine itself:

Week 1 (-> 23/01/2012) - 15mg 24hr Patch
Week 2 (-> 30/01/2012) - 10mg 24hr Patch
06/02/2012 = 5 x 2mg gum
07/02/2012 = 5 x 2mg gum
08/02/2012 = 4 x 2mg gum
09/02/2012 = 4 x 2mg gum
10/02/2012 = 3 x 2mg gum
11/02/2012 = 3 x 2mg gum
12/02/2012 = 2 x 2mg gum.. then a couple of days of normal gum, with one or two nicotine ones.. until nothing!

The fact of the matter is, the last week is going to be the hardest bit - hence the painfully slow dose titration. This is when I'm probably going to be relying on pavlovian conditioning some what - trying to build associations with chewing gum, which I will hopefully ween myself on to. (The irony - going from ash-tray breath to toothpaste breath!)

Surprisingly, the money saved will pay for a gym membership (thats an option, right now I think I have enough techniques and options to avoid the gym) and my phone contract..

Eating:
Had a few opportunities for fast food today - was back to the rush of the inner-city and a tight timetable. Coming out of a tube station I hit a KFC and had to resist the urge to go in; instead opting for a healthier (not too healthy) bite to eat from a convenience store - just spicy bean tortilla wrap; but when the alternative was a KFC I think I did well.

Been looking in some of the cookbooks I have, and have some good ideas for high protein meals when I begin my fitness push. Psychlonic's tip of Milk and Bananas looks to be the basis for a good post-workout shake, perhaps with some protein powder added in for good measure. It's simplicity is something I'm really drawn towards.

As far as drinking goes, I've got through a few bottles of water and haven't even had a cup of tea or coffee today! So that's another good sign.

Fitness:
Waiting for the all clear from my doctor (will try to ring and have a chat tomorrow) for an all clear following the chest x-ray and chest infection. However, as discussed above - I've began looking at the nutritional aspects to the programme, I have old workouts planned and will just adapt some of them.

The first few weeks will no doubt be about stripping off some of the fat I've allowed to develop - but there really isn't even that much.. BMI wise I'm ideal; but BMI is a load of crap. (I'm actually a bit insulted at being ideal, I would've preferred to be overweight due to the fact BMI doesn't account for muscle mass)

I've also composed a lot of tips from my collection of Men's Health and Men's Fitness magazines. Yes, they are cringey. Yes, they do show some awful fashions. Yes, they contradict themselves with every other page. ("Coffee beats depression" p42, "Coffee increases heart attack risks" p44 etc) However, there are some good tips - such as what kind of reps to do for what purpose, and how to kick start a program. I also have some of the books they do which are just catalogs of exercises - very good for mixing up new workouts.

When I get the all clear, I'll update this with the tips and research that I've tried to bare in mind whilst planning my progress.

[Illusion]

48 HOURS (2000 17/01/2011)
-Nerve endings start regrowing
-Ability to smell and taste is enhanced

It's weird, but just by making this thread (and perhaps the knowledge that its public) I think it's been easier.

I was surrounded by smokers today which made things a bit interesting, but I didn't find it difficult really. Similarly, Tuesdays are generally a day I rely on fast food for convenience; whilst I wasn't exactly eating like a health guru - it was better than my average day.

Also, drinking my first (it's nearly midnight) non-water beverage of the day! Hoorah.

[Illusion]

Woohoo. Take the patches down to 10mg tomorrow.

Similarly, been limiting the fizzy drinks - albeit, not as strict on the water now - but generally limiting myself to a glass or two a day, compared with them being pretty much the only drink I would have!

Just made 3 lunches - two salads (prawn and chicken) and a chicken pasta; all ready in boxes for Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Fruit salads for breakfast - and whatever for dinner. Will also stock up on some nuts and similar things as snacks. Note: This isn't to build muscle, it's just to get in to a frame of mind of making healthier decisions - I'll up the protein intake when I start getting my fitness plan rolling.

[Neurotic Anomaly]

Amazing progress you're making

This just might end up serving as the inspiration I've been needing to start better taking care of myself. Whilst never a drinker or a smoker, I still make a lot of ill choices about my eating and sleeping habits.

I would love to hear where you are standing now. You haven't made an update in forever.

[Illusion]

Funny you posted here - I was just downloading fitness plan software and on my fitocracy account again.

Smoking is pretty much banished - unless you count the odd use of a nicotine inhaler; and even thats not too common!

Eating wise; things aren't as great! I mean, I've cut out a lot of rubbish - and it's not even taken any effort. I've gone from eating fast food regularly to very rarely, and I don't even think about KFC or anything like that anymore. I've also began cooking homemade food a lot more, even down to unhealthy things like pizza! If, on the rare occasion, I do have a pub lunch - I've always gone for a bagguette with salad as well. I've had to do a fare bit of nutrition in my studies (doing biological and chemical sciences with the aim of switching to Biomedical Sciences in Oct) and I think thats perhaps had an effect on me as well.

Fitness - taking time getting into things. Just been doing some basic weights, a few little jogs and basic push-ups, pull-ups and sit-ups. Now I've logged into fitocracy as I feel I've got a baseline of fitness going on that I can properly build on, so I viewed one training plan - "Couch to 5K"; as a basic running plan.. and it looks too easy. Not what I was expecting, but it reminded me that 5K is essentially 3miles; and I used to have a 1.5mile run time of about 10:15; and could comfortably jog for about 40minutes or so. However, "used to be able" isn't "can" - so maybe a training plan with a very gradual is the way to go.. not sure though tbh. I think we'll give it a week or two and if I'm sailing through it we'll try and skip a week or so..!

Otherwise, I'm looking at the "You Are Your Own Gym" methodology. There's a few PDF's on the net (The Pirate Bay: Torrent) of the book, and a fitocracy group dedicated to it - although only inside the ebook have I actually found a training plan. (p147 in the PDF) On the days I'm doing that kind of training I'll probably implement some extra protein in my diet, so protein shakes and eggs etc

[Illusion]

C25K (Couch to 5K) is as easy as I expected, but it's been handy just to get out there again - and it's given me that lovely burning sensation in my legs.. I must say, I was pretty depressed at my running performance when I consider how good it used to be; also - after each run I feel physically sick. My girlfriend said I was probably pushing myself too hard, and that it wasn't healthy - I beg to differ: I think it was the smoking. I say that as simply seeing a cigarette packet on the floor made me feel 10x worse, the thought of smoking made me feel ill and my lungs were coughing up about 3 years worth of collective tar..

I'm also doing a routine from this website; which coincidentally has quite a few routines for different fitness levels, and different amounts of kit. I'm just doing a dumbbell routine from there which is going pretty well, then having a protein shake after.

Going to keep these 2 plans going till the end of next week, before finally implementing the YAYOG method spoke about above.

[Illusion]

Well, I went for my run on Friday and was surprised to find myself feeling incredibly good after.. I actually wanted to go on and see how far I could push it - but decided to stick to the plan. I'll probably do a baseline fitness test in a week or so to get a grasp of how fit I am at the moment. Surprisingly, my run on Friday was after my dumbbell session - and I was already shattered due to that: I remember there was a rule about doing cardio before or after weights - but I can't remember which one was good!

I'm also considering wimping (maybe not, as I'm actually talking about doing more) out on pull-ups and press-ups, by additionally doing some elevated ones (i.e easier) for a greater number of reps: just to see if it increases my overall performance. Although I can't be sure that this will actually give any improvement.

I did have a scare when I checked my Heart Rate today, at resting, and it was 91. I have had a similar scare in the past and had a 7 day ECG as it was suspected that I had Super-venitrcular Tachycardia; but I came back fine. I may get it checked out just to be on the safe side really.

[Illusion]

I have an excel spreadsheet I'm rocking right now - logging my HR (110BPM the other morning.. ), weight and other bits and bobs. Hopefully looking for some kind of trend between my fitness and HR, as there should be - otherwise it's back to the docs and getting the all clear. (Worst case scenario it's most likely just SVT (Supraventricular Tachycardia) - or something I'll just end up popping beta blockers for - however, taking a medication which stops the uptake of adrenaline/epinephrine is hardly an awesome prospect..!)

Been popping a few things to aid my concentration too - despite my rather scientific views on supplements and herbal remedies; I've been sticking with three things:
- Generic Multivitamin Pills - I've adjusted my diet somewhat, but really want to ensure I'm still taking in all the nutrients I need.
- Omega 3 Capsules - Pretty well proven to produce higher levels of concentration, which I sure have been lacking recently..
- Ginkgo Biloba - Evidence is very sketchy, and very conflicting, but I have a hunch that this may also improve my memory.

As you can see, memory and concentration issues are a bit of a major topic here. Truth be told, it's one of the reasons I haven't been posting 110% at the moment - I actually find it difficult to read my own posts back. Let me know if you struggle reading my posts - and I'll try and rectify it! I'm not illiterate, I swear.. I'm fairly confident that these issues aren't to do with any dietary changes - but are in fact side effects of some parts of my lifestyle, health issues and medications.

Other than those food supplements, all I have been relying on are protein shakes post-workout, and protein/energy drinks pre-workout. (These drinks are fucking weird, they are like protein shakes as in they come in the same kind of container and are powder, and you add them to water.. but damn, they actually taste nice!) The best trick I've found is to add chocolate powder to the protein powder.. makes it taste so very yummy!

Food wise, I have stayed off fast food surprisingly well actually - it's been very very easy. No major issues there at all. I've began eating a muesli cereal for breakfast, eating a mixture of almonds and raisans/sultanas as little snacks, along with cereal bars. Whilst for lunch and dinner I generally eat homemade food, and quite healthy food at that - generally pretty protein rich too.

My workout pattern the past few weeks has generally been as follows, on Mon/Wed/Fri:
- Dumbbell Training Routine - Low weights to perfect form (however, weights are going up this week!)
- 4 Circuits of Squats, Dips, Wide Angle Push-Ups, Sit-Ups - then 1 circuit of max effort. (This is awesome.)
- Interval training - walking/jogging. Nothing too intense here.

As the interval training is stepping up a gear, I'm tempted to shift the cardio sessions to Tue, Thur & Sat. As I don't really want the cardio having an adverse effect on my muscle gains, although this probably isn't anything to worry too much about, but I need to do a bit of research into it. If I do switch the days over, I will probably introduce some Tae Bo, Yoga X or Cardio X into the mix; maybe some HIIT sessions - just a few things to mix it up a bit. Even if it's just beating the crap out of a punchbag..

The only problem with having cardio and strength on alternating days is that I would only have 1 day to go for my long walks; I'm getting back in the habit of doing 24~ mile walks with a rucksack on. Not much weight in it now it must be said, but something I can gradually improve upon! Also doubles up by helping me break my boots in...

The circuits that I'm doing I will probably keep for another couple of weeks, then change them every 4 weeks - I may do similar for the dumbbell routine too. May be nice to switch routine every 4 weeks? We'll see!