8.09.2013

A Realistic Fitness and Weight Loss Plan Before Your Wedding

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**I am still in Costa Rica having a blast on my honeymoon! For now, I've got a guest post for you from Gaiam TV about getting in shape before a wedding! Enjoy!**

A Realistic Fitness and Weight Loss Plan before Your Wedding


The Challenges:

  • Hectic schedule
  • Stress
  • Temptation
  • “Forced” eating

In the time before your wedding, your schedule is going to be even more hectic than it is normally. Think you didn’t have enough hours in the day before? Now you’ll have even fewer, so trying to fit in a new diet and fitness routine is hard.

Your stress—and stress eating--will multiply in ways you can’t predict. Expect the unexpected: your maid of honor will pick a fight with your mother-in-law-to-be, or a hailstorm will kill the flowers you wanted to be the centerpiece of your decorations.

Even casual friends will tempt you with something “nice”: take you out for a meal or drinks (you won’t believe how many calories in your favorite cocktail!), or maybe a box of your favorite chocolates.
There will even be many occasions you will be “forced” to eat. Dinners with family are required, and not eating is bad for diplomacy.

But don’t despair—you can overcome these challenges and get fit and toned before your wedding.

Your Weight, Your Body, and Your Dress

Considering getting a dress sized too small and hoping to fit into it on your wedding day?
  • Know Your Body: Where Do You Lose Fat and Build Muscle?
  • If You Don’t Know What to Expect: Trim & Tone First, Then Get Fitted
  • It’s Easier (and Feels Better) to Bring a Dress In Than Let It Out

Remember that exercise and dieting can’t guarantee where you’ll lose inches. You may lose inches in the wrong places—or gain them as you build muscle. You have to know how your body responds to workouts, where you tend to lose weight and where you build muscle easily.

If you don’t know how your body will respond, try getting your trimming and toning done before your dress fitting, then get on a maintenance program.

It’s also easier to bring a dress in than let it out, so getting your dress sized midway to your goal is more advisable.

Workouts That Overcome the Challenges

  • Not too time consuming
  • Something you enjoy
  • No special equipment
  • Variety

Select workouts that aren’t too time consuming. A half hour a day is preferable if you’re already busy. Consider workouts like Buff Brides that let you do the routine in small parts for easier scheduling.
Workouts should relieve stress, not add it. Pick something you’ll look forward to. Love biking, tennis, or a morning swim? You can burn tons of calories just making time for activities you enjoy.

"I don’t have my equipment" is an easy excuse to skip a day, which can easily become two, three, or more. Pick something like the Insanity Workout (no special equipment required) over P90X (weights and resistance bands required).

Variety is the spice of life—and workouts! Mix up your workouts by getting a subscription to a service like GaiamTV, which gives you access to numerous workout videos, not just one program. And you can take them with you wherever you have Internet access.

Diets That Overcome the Challenges

  • Foods you enjoy
  • Easily adaptable
  • Easy measurements

It’s easier to stay on a diet you like. If you enjoy meat, try an Atkins-style diet. Like a little meat? Try Mediterranean. Not that big a fan of meat? You can go veggie with the Engine 2 Diet or similar.

Between temptations and “forced” eating, you’re going to find yourself eating out a lot, so it’s best to pick something you can eat anytime, anywhere. There’s pretty much always something on the menu that fits a Mediterranean diet. You can usually make an Atkins-style diet work, too. A vegetarian diet can be a little harder, but for casual get-togethers you can usually steer people to suitable restaurants. Prepackaged meal plans are hard.

Portion control can be hard to manage if your diet has strict requirements. You won’t have the time or opportunity to carefully measure your food. Look for a diet with an easy rule of thumb, like The Zone (an Atkins-style low-carb diet): measure a portion of meat by the palm of your hand, then fill the rest of the plate with fruits and veggies.

With the right workout and diet, you can achieve your pre-wedding goals, despite the challenges.


Matthew Candelaria received his PhD in English in 2006. A lover of words with an insatiable thirst for knowledge, his personal inclinations have led him to become a freelance researcher and writer.  He has written on a wide variety of topics, personal enrichment to health and wellness.

3 comments:

  1. I also want to share a simple weight loss tip. Drink water more and more because it cuts fats in our body and also helpful to reduce calories. Otherwise, your tips are also good for weight loss and I will follow these points.

    ReplyDelete
  2. If you have gained weight since the time you met your fiance then you are in trouble. Weight loss will not help you.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I really love this information and its an very awesome one to consider.
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    ReplyDelete

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