A mandatory gym program, as absurd as it may sound to some, might just provide part of the answer for one who is oblivious to, or lacks the motivation, to quit smoking. Through a sustained weight-training regime, one would begin to take greater pride in their physical appearance and performance levels.
This might force them to confront the realization that smoking is detrimental to their health. They will feel tobaccos negative effects in a more pronounced way, as their performance suffers and their results are not as forthcoming as they otherwise should be. Indeed, the average non-exercising smoker does not have such a bench mark to which they can compare the before and after effects of smoking.
Left: Healthy lung vs smokers lung. You decide.
For example, when demand for oxygen is elevated, such as during exercise, this increased resistance is more noticeable. Reduced lung capacity can cause a smaller volume of oxygen to reach the alveoli, resulting in impaired gas exchange and less oxygen in the blood. A heavy set of squat, for example, will completely frustrate the bodybuilding aspirant who chooses to smoke. Ultimately a decision will need to be made and, if this person chooses to continue with training, smoking cessation will necessarily need to take place.
One has the feeling that smokers are not entirely conscious of exactly what their habit is doing to them. Becoming knowledgeable in the areas of human physiology and health, through extensive study, or simply joining a gym and taking a vested interest in what many take for granted (their health), could be a realistic first step.
Bodybuilders, by virtue of their commitment to physical excellence, typically do not smoke (at least as far as my observations are, and much anecdotal evidence is, concerned). Smoking not only reduces ones capacity to perform the work required to obtain a great physique, it also directly prevents cellular growth and restricts oxygen and nutrient uptake (to mention but two limiting factors).
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