The fact that smoking is dangerous for one’s health is not news. However, the statistic that cigarette smoking is responsible for over a thousand American deaths every day may be an eye opener. A large portion of smokers do not want to end up as another death toll statistic, but quiting isn’t as easy as they wish it were. Less than five percent of smokers struggle to quit without help. Recent studies show that the weight room may be the best place for smokers to finally kick the habit.
A team from the Miriam Hospital in Rhode Island recently published a recent study conducted with smokers. 25 male and female smokers between the ages of 18 and 65 were enrolled. Those enrolled reported smoking at least five cigarettes a day for a least one year. All participants underwent a 15-20 minute counseling session focused on smoking cessation. Participants were also supplied with an eight-week supply of nicotine patches. Once these steps were taken, the participants were separated into two random groups. A resistance training group and a control group.
Those placed in the resistance training group participated in two, 60-minute training sessions per week. This training lasted for 12 weeks. Training involved full-body exercises, gradually increasing intensity every three weeks.
The control group did not participate in resistance training, they watched a health and wellness video two times a week.
After the 12 week study period it was found that 16 percent of the smokers in the weight training group quit smoking and decreased their body weight and overall body fat. The comparison with the control group showed that only eight percent of participants quit smoking while actually seeing an increase in body weight and fat.
While these statistics are far better than those of the daily death rates of smokers, further study is being conducted before resistance training can clearly be stated as a smoking cessation tactic. If these results present to be typical, this program packs a lot of positive punch. A way to quit smoking that also lowers weight and body fat is a real breath of fresh air.
Via: MailOnline
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