Q: I AM TAKING A BLOOD TEST AND HAVE RECENTLY QUIT SMOKING. HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE BEFOR THE NICOTINE IS COMPLETELY OUT OF MY SYSTEM? I WAS HAVING ABOUT 1 PACK OF CIGARETTES A WEEK AND HAVE QUIT FOR 1 WEEK AND STILL GOING STRONG. SOMEONE TOLD ME THAT NICOTINE IS A FAT SOLUABLE DRUG AND TAKES A MONTH TO ELIMINATE IT. I AM ALSO HOPING IT WILL HELP ME WITH MY ENDURANCE TRAINING I AM STARTING. WHAT ARE YOU THOUGHTS?

A: Congratulations on quitting! Unfortunately I'm not qualified to advise on when nicotine will clear your system. But I can tell you that quitting smoking will definitely help you with endurance training (and endurance training will also help you to stay away from smoking!) It's not the immediate presence of nicotine that harms your endurance but rather the long-term damage that smoking does to your lungs and cardiovascular system. So just because nicotine clears your system doesn't mean you'll immediately become much better at endurance events. But over time, provided you keep training and stay away from smoking, your body will heal the damage and your endurance will becomes as good as any non-smoker's. Again congrats and keep it going!