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Fitness & Health

11th Apr 2019

Quit To Fit Week 8: Smoke and mirrors – it’s time for reflection

JOE

In partnership with NiQuitin

Two months after quitting smoking, you have a lot to look back on.

As hard as it might be to believe, you are officially two months into a whole new chapter of your life. Take a minute to look back to what that would have meant to you before this journey began.

Every week is a victory, but this is a huge milestone.

Quit To Fit Week 8

As always, life coach Raul Aparici is here to help you on the way through. After having already done so much, he said it’s time to take a look at how far you’ve come.

“Just over 2,000 years ago, Socrates encouraged us to live an examined life. But the speed of our world sometimes limits how much time we allocate for self-reflection.

“Quitting smoking allows us an opportunity for some proper self-reflection; it is a great time to get to know about ourselves, our motivation and what we are capable of,” Raul said.

This doesn’t mean you have to find a quiet retreat somewhere to find your inner feelings. It really is as simple as listing out your accomplishments and keeping track of how you’re feeling.

“There are many ways in which we can engage in self-reflection and we need to find one that works for us. I always suggest a journal as a good starting point: don’t worry I’m not talking about an online blog or lengthy entries into a diary, but rather keeping some notes of stuff you think you will want to remember or that has made you curious.

“You can use a notes app on your phone, or perhaps a normal paper diary in which you keep all your other appointments. The trick here is not so much to take extensive notes but to be able to notice and document little changes in the way you are as they happen,” he said.

Become more aware

“From this info, you can start to move into every day with more awareness and you will become better at identifying triggers which may lead you astray.

“The next step would be a more conscious, detailed exploration of your journey by using open questions. Maybe talk through these with a friend or two, or write them down on a piece of paper,” he said.

“Try handwriting here versus typing as it will slow your thinking down and you may access some thoughts that may have otherwise eluded you.

“Here are some of these questions to get you started: What has worked for you? What hasn’t? How have you surprised yourself? What are you most looking forward to? Who has supported you through this process? Who can you let go of? What feelings does thinking about smoking evoke?”

This isn’t just a challenge to quit smoking for 10 weeks. It’s about changing your life for the better, and keeping on top of things is the best way to do that.

Let us know your progress on social media with #QuitToFit. There’s no shame in giving yourself a pat on the back after already doing so much!

Combining nicotine patches and nicotine lozenges is clinically proven to be an unbeatable way of quitting.*Try the NiQuitin 14mg patch for 24-hour craving control and NiQuitin 1.5mg mini lozenges for craving relief.

NiQuitin Clear 21 mg, 14 mg & 7 mg 24 hrs transdermal patches and NiQuitin 1.5mg & 4mg Mini Lozenges are stop smoking aids that contain nicotine but you still require willpower. Always read the label.

*Provides significant improvements in quit rates compared to the patch alone.

No purchase or use of NiQuitin is required.

T&Cs apply.

In partnership with NiQuitin

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