Smoking and cycling...

How many of you are smokers as well as cyclists? Have you been smoking long? Have you ever quit smoking, or thought about it, what did you try (cold turkey/patches/blah)? If you have quit smoking what sort of differences, in relation to your cycling, did you notice over what sort of time period? Curious of Camberwell.

:)

I myself don't smoke, but if I did I would start on the patches.

im really trying to give up at the moment. pretty much been smoking 15 years now and my bodies telling me its time!

Stop drinking first. Alcohol is always what makes people (me) fail.

Gave up smoking in 1995. I was a 23 year old at that time and had been smoking for about 7 years.
I am fitter now than I was then. Its probably the single biggest thing you can do to improve your overall fitness in my opinion

I've also smoked for 15 years... It probably does affect my cycling but you get used to it... I did notice I was the only one having a fag on the London to Brighton... Will give up eventually but for now I just like it too much...

My favourite passtime. I wish I didn't love it so much.

As for fitness, who knows, I can run a marathon in just over 3 1/4 hours so it can't be that bad.

Its probably the single biggest thing you can do to improve your overall fitness in my opinion

Agree. I stopped 18 months ago. I smoked cigarettes for 15 years and dope for 10 years. My circulation was becoming very bad. I loved smoking tbh. But its not good for your health or your ability to get the miles in.

I used laser therapy, it worked for me I had tried everything else, nrt, hypnotherapy, acupuncture, Allen Carr, not the comedian etc.

Makes you feel great being a non smoker.

I may be being plain stupid, but what the hell is laser therapy for stopping smoking?

I've just quit (again)
Allen Carr was good the first time I read it, but when I started again every subsequent re-read became less effective. I'm on patches now. Booked myself in at Boots so after an appointment you get 4 weeks' worth for the cost of a single prescription (6-7 quid), plus the added incentive of having to go back every week or so and talk to them about whether you've been doing ok. This seems like a good method to me.

As far as cycling goes, I really started to notice some differences after a week or so. If you've got a regular route with some tough bits in it, you'll notice that they become a bit easier and you recover from them quicker than before. With running, I found that you'll start to find it easier within only a couple of days.

Smoking crack has done nothing for my hill climbing ability but for endurance cycling over relatively flat terrain my power has increased for the same heart rate. I highly recommend it.

I may be being plain stupid, but what the hell is laser therapy for stopping smoking?

If you dont stop they laser cut ypur fingers off so you cant smoke! hehe!

Not at all mate. It works on the same points as acupuncture. It apparentlty releases endorphins reducing the anxious state you can get into when you are craving nicotene.

Mostly around my wrists and fingers nose ears etc It made me feel really relaxed didnt think about the ciggys at all.
It was £120.00 and you can go for as many sessions as you feel you need.

Haha! Class! Im sure Cippolini was a fiend for the tabs? I may be wrong though.

@Merak: Dunno about Cipo, but Merckx certainly smoked, as did Anquetil. Having said that, back then it was compulsory for the French...

Cipollini smoking

Smoking crack has done nothing for my hill climbing ability but for endurance cycling over relatively flat terrain my power has increased for the same heart rate. I highly recommend it.

YouTube - super crack

i quit 4 years ago after smoking for 15 years. i bloody loved smoking but it got to the stage that every cigarette was accompanied by total psychological doom about the consequences, and i hated that i couldn't get through the day without one.

I quit when i moved to a new flat - i made the decision not to smoke indoors, it was on the 5th floor with no lift. A couple of days after running up and down i just quit.

One of the best things that got me through was a list of what happens after you have a cigarette; after 20 mins. heart rate returns to normal, after 12 hours Carbon Monoxide levels return to normal, 2wks-3 months risk of heart attack drops and lung function improves ... was like a checklist.

It totally transformed my level of fitness, as well as my ability to taste and smell. and my clothes didn't totally reek.

Smoking affects my cycling only if I unclip while trying to lighten one up :P

I pretty much chain smoke, it sucks... Gave up for 5 years then started again one stupid night about 3 years ago... I really notice it if I've been putting the hammer down for a bit, I get out of puff... I'm sure I'd be going like the clappers all day long if I wasn't in constant need of vitamin N... Laser treatment sounds good, prolly just cuz lasers are cool tho'...

Stopped last January, just stopped - well, I was told that I had high cholesterol, but it was lower than the last test... so decided it would be beneficial to stop... should take another test to see if it has reduced since stopping. Have also tried to eat better too, thought I don't think I ate that badly anyway, beef dripping butties are totally natural!

i smoke 10 Embassy filters a day or thereabouts, and i find my mouth gets all cakey and horrible when i cycle, and my lungs feel like sticky air balloons as compared to when i was a non-smoker.
I hate it, but i just find it so impossible to stop.
I need Darren Brown to hypnotise the hell outta me, and make me stop.

Theres only one way to give up smoking, and thats HTFU . . none of this Alan carr hypno miracle patch therapy shit . . i smoked 30 ish a day for 10 years, just decide i had had enough about 5 years ago and went cold turkey, its not easy, and i'd view it as a mentle challenge more than anything else, but if you use any bullshit quick fix it'll never work out in a long term soloution.

I used to smoke but then stopped for fitness, but then I was wondering- smoking cigars shouldn't affect your fitness should it because you don't inhale? Maybe the answer is to simply swap the marlboro lights for the monte cristo cubans?

@BlowieBen - mouth cancer, apparently.

There's only a few weeks of physiological withdrawal (sleepless nights, irritability, blowing hot and cold), followed by social don't-know-what-to-do-with-yourself-ness for a few months after that.

I smoked dope in a pipe for a few years after quitting nicotine, but smoked very little due to the lack of tobacco urging me to have another spliff every half hour.

Don't really smoke anything now, and as far as cycling goes, as mentioned by Brett, it's just the recovery that's quicker.