Hi everyone, newb here with a couple of questions

[Getbusyliving]

Hey everyone, first off I'd just like to express my appreciation for such a great forum and all the helpful info I've gotten so far.

A little bit about myself. I have been a regular smoker for a couple of years now and, like most, I'd love to find a healthier alternative. Was smoking cigarettes but moved to cigarillo's in an attempt to quit. I smoke about 5-6 a day. Tried nicorette gum and lozenges too but its just not the same and gave me quite an upset stomach. I've been training at the gym 4 days a week and jog 2 days a week for many years, and smoking just doesn't really seem conducive to that sort of lifestyle. The ecig sounds like a perfect solution for someone who enjoys the ritual but wants to be a little healthier, not smell like ...., ect.

Do you guys find that smoking the ecig has given you back some of your lung capacity? Has it affected your energy levels at all compared with analogs? What level of nic would you recommend for me based on my smoking habit? I ordered the 510 and am waiting for it in the mail.

Thanks so much for any replies.

 

[Skyspider]

I am only 3 days tobacco free but I am already starting to clear out, 40 odd years of smokers gunk in my lungs, I have been coughing up a quite a bit today, this quitters cough i hear (from my doctor)is normal and a sign that soon i will be feeling a lot better breath wise, less puffing etc when exercising. Ditching all those chemicals in my mind just has to be better for you. I am very happy to have found this forum and my 510. As for the nic strength i will let the peeps here that are better informed advise on that, I am on 24mg and doing great on that for now.

 

[CaptJay]

Your nic level is going to be something you'll have to experiment on. I wish there was a better answer but everyone is so different. EVen people who smoke the same cigs, same amount and everything often prefer different nic levels.
I smoked Ultralights - around 20 per day (1 pack) and more on weekends. I settled on 12mg-18mg as 'my' level. I can also deal with 6mg and 0 mg if Ive been valping alot and don't actually want a nic hit, jsut a pacifying vape.
I started with 24mg, which just about blew my throat out, and gives me headaches and shakes if I vape too much of it. Other smokers of lights are quite happy on a 24mg nic level. Some like a lot less.
Its a bit of a 'find the balance' act to be honest. I don't know how strong cigarillos are to start with so that doesn't help
the best advice I can give you is to buy many different juices at varying strengths. Don't buy all the juices at ONE suppplier if possible. the different strengths will help you work out what's good and whats too strong (or not strong enough). The too strong ones you can mix with various low ones to get a decent 'don't taze me bro' vape and you won't lose money on wasted juices. The not strong enough ones you can mix with the 'killer TH' ones for similar results. Edit: oh and don't limit yourself to finding a 'tobacco flavor' you'll miss out on some killer tastes. Also its hard, very hard to find something tht tastes 'just like' a ciggie/cigar. They won't.

Almost all vapers find improved lung function btw, but there are a lot of quitting smoking symptoms that will overlap with your new 'habit' making it hard to tell waht's from smoking cessastion and what isn't. There's a thread in the ECF library that covers jsut that. There are threads in General e-smoking about quitting succes stories and a lot of those include info about health improvements.
Hope that was of some use

 

[mwahle1]

Do you guys find that smoking the ecig has given you back some of your lung capacity? Has it affected your energy levels at all compared with analogs? What level of nic would you recommend for me based on my smoking habit? I ordered the 510 and am waiting for it in the mail.

I work out 3-4 days a week and have for almost 20 years. My observations:

Statistics:

Heavy smoker for 25 years (yes, I worked out all the time when I smoked)
Chain-vape 36 mg juice
Completely smoke-free for about 3 months

Health Benefits:

Can breathe, smell, and taste much better.
Cardiovascular conditioning continues to improve.
Increased sex drive.
Slight decrease in blood pressure.
Dramatic improvement in blood circulation.
Weight lifting stamina increasing (probably due to improvement in blood circulation).

Negative:

I have to admit, it seems like my energy level has decreased a bit since I quit smoking.
The first few days of vaping my throat was a bit irritated.

 

[Poeia]

Not an athlete (not even close), but I am breathing better after 6 weeks vaping. If nothing else, you'll be getting more oxygen now that you're not forcing carbon monoxide into your lungs with every puff.

 

[Getbusyliving]

Thanks a lot for your replies, much appreciated. CaptJay that was some good advice to mix strengths of nic if they are too strong/weak, I hadn't thought of that. The stuff I ordered was 28mg and by the sounds of it that might be a bit much for me.

Glad to hear that the general consciences is that lung capacity will improve in comparison with regular analog use. It's a huge deal for me because I am a pretty active guy and I've noticed my lungs feeling heavier since I started smoking.

 

[Getbusyliving]

Just got my 510 in the mail, good lord it has only been two days. I don't even think the charge has shown up on my credit card statement yet! Props to evapors.com

 

[Poeia]

Chain-vape 36 mg juice
<snip>
I have to admit, it seems like my energy level has decreased a bit since I quit smoking.

mwahle1, those two might be related. 24MG seems good for me during the day (a little higher when I first wake up) but it is definitely lowering the quality of my sleep. I'm having a slightly harder time falling asleep and I definitely feel less rested when I wake up. I'm currently looking for the right lower concentration to vape during the 2-3 hours before I go to bed. I think around 18MG might be good. If you're doing 36 all day, 24mg might be a good level to ease you into sleep.

 

[lightinup]

Congrats Getbusyliving on the arrival of your and welcome to the forum! Give us a post and let us know how it is working out for you! Happy Vaping!

 

[mwahle1]

mwahle1, those two might be related. 24MG seems good for me during the day (a little higher when I first wake up) but it is definitely lowering the quality of my sleep. I'm having a slightly harder time falling asleep and I definitely feel less rested when I wake up. I'm currently looking for the right lower concentration to vape during the 2-3 hours before I go to bed. I think around 18MG might be good. If you're doing 36 all day, 24mg might be a good level to ease you into sleep.

This is good advice and I know this works for many people; however, getting to sleep and staying asleep is never a problem for me. I generally hit the bed “like a ton of bricks”. Thanks for the advice

 

[ddavelarsen]

I'm coming to the party a little late here, but thought I'd jump in since it's an intereting topic to me. I'll give a little of my background.

I smoked about 25+ non-filter Pall Malls a day for about 40 years. I was diagnosed with COPD about 15 years ago and like the rest of us tried everything to quit. Finally I just "quit quitting" and resigned myself to an ugly and prolonged death.

When I started vaping, it was moderately successful. I was using a KR808 from V4L at 36mg. Over the first few days I increasingly used the e-cig rather than picking up an analog. I liked the juice flavors vs the ick! of tobacco, and the cleanliness of the vapor. But I wasn't getting quite enough nicotine or throat hit.

I bought a VP2, which really helped the vapor production. I used 801s mostly. But then my brother found a vendor that sells 48mg juice, and when I started vaping that all my trouble vanished. I was smoke-free in two days and have stayed that way for almost three months. I've adjusted to the lower nic level from vaping, and am about ready to reduce that to 36mg again. I think I'll be happy with that this time, just because I've reduced my nic uptake gradually (vs analogs).

I've found that most vapers freak out about my nic level. Well, it works for me and I've never been even close to ODing. On the contrary, that was a nic reduction. I like the TH from high nic too. But I think I'll be okay now at 36, and eventually get down to 24mg where I can begin to take advantage of the flavors other vendors offer. That's something to look forward to.