Establishing a healthy diet and regular exercise routine, in the months leading up to your wedding, is essential. After all, you want your wedding dress to look just as good when you’re walking down the aisle, as it did when you first tried it on – no matter what wedding dress silhouette you chose.
Following a healthy lifestyle ensures that you look (and more importantly, feel) your best on your special day. Follow these tips for staying fit, as your wedding day approaches.
Find a Wedding Workout You Love
There isn’t one magical workout that’s going to make you look amazing in your wedding dress. However, there are plenty of exercise programs that can help you burn calories, tone up, and get fit for your big day. Choosing the right one depends on your schedule and personal taste.
Whether you prefer the elliptical machine, treadmill, or stair stepper, cardio gets your heart racing and delivers plenty of benefits. Incorporating a strength training routine into your fitness plan allows you to tone and tighten just in time for your wedding day.
Below are a few bridal workout ideas that just might lead to wedding weight loss.
Start a Light Weightlifting Regimen
Strength training can be perfect for pre-wedding toning. If you’re rocking a strapless dress on your wedding day, give this tricep workout a try. You can focus on a different muscle group every day or opt for a full-body workout a couple of days a week.
Enroll in an Exercise Class
Sculpt your wedding day-ready physique by enrolling in exercise classes. Ask your maid of honor or a couple of bridesmaids to join you. You can hold each other accountable and offer support, as you stick to an exercise routine.
Choose from barre classes that focus on toning to high-energy Zumba workouts that get your heart racing. You can sign up for these classes at a gym or discover plenty of options online, allowing you to get wedding ready from the comfort of your home.
Lace Up and Go for a Jog
Jogging is an ideal workout for a busy bride-to-be. You can do it anywhere, whether you’re on the treadmill at home, on the track at the gym, or on a local trail. In addition to the obvious health benefits, running offers other benefits as well.
It can improve your mental health and alleviate that inevitable pre-wedding stress, giving you a positive outlook on your upcoming nuptials.
After your jog, pull out your wedding planning checklist and start tackling those items on your to-do list.
Eat a Well-Balanced Diet
Planning your wedding takes time, and when it comes to eating, it’s often easier to opt for convenience when you’re busy. Unfortunately, convenient foods aren’t always the healthiest and, as a result, can wreak havoc on your diet.
A healthy lifestyle begins with your diet, so understanding what you need to eat is key.
Here are some tips on how to incorporate a healthy wedding diet into every day (even your busy ones).
Focus on Simple, Healthy Meals
When you’re planning your wedding, you don’t want to delve into a rigid or even quirky diet to drop pounds. Keep your nutrition simple for a no-fuss wedding diet plan that works.
- Fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains should make up most of your meals.
- Minimize sugar, skip calorie-laden sodas and coffee lattes, and nix carbs like white pasta, rice, cereals and potato chips.
- Don’t worry, though – you can still enjoy that wedding cake tasting to choose the perfect cake for your special day.
Tracking calories is a smart way to make sure you’re staying true to your diet. Load a calorie tracker app onto your smartphone, input what you eat every day, and ensure you’re not overeating. You can aim to eat enough calories to maintain your weight or adjust them down, so that safely drop about a pound a week.
Meal Plan and Prep
Planning is key when it comes to healthy eating. When you’re planning your wedding, you’re likely focused on the odds and ends of preparing for your big day. Don’t let your busy life get in the way of eating healthy, homemade meals.
Every week, carve out an hour for meal planning. Devise a realistic, healthy meal plan for each day, keeping your schedule in mind. For example, if you have a wedding dress fitting one night after work, you’ll want to plan a slow cooker meal that’s hot and ready to eat when you get home.
Once you’ve created your meal plan, make a grocery list, and stock your pantry and refrigerator with nutrient-rich foods to devour in the coming week.
With these healthy foods on hand for the week, you’re certain to make smarter dietary choices.
After your’ve stocked your fridge and pantry, it’s time to prep food for the week ahead.
Keep reading for some simple food prep tasks that ensure that you’ll always have access to healthy food options, even on busy days when you’re booked morning, noon and night.
Wash and Cut Up Fresh Fruits and Vegetables for Snacks
Fresh fruits and veggies make for a wildly delicious snack that are the ideal way to curb your appetite.
- Melon, strawberries and grapes are easy-to-eat, snack-able fruits.
- Bell peppers, celery, broccoli, cucumbers and carrots are the perfect pairing with your favorite hummus and they offer a crunchy, satisfying snack that keeps you on track.
- Divide up your washed fruits and vegetables into small, plastic bags for an easy-to-grab snack throughout the week.
Pack a Week’s Worth of Lunches in One Sitting
If eating out on your lunch break derails your diet, bring your lunch to work for a healthier option as your wedding approaches. Prepare a batch of mason jar salads for the week, or grill some chicken and pair it with roasted veggies for a healthy, easy-to-reheat lunch that’s ready to go every morning.
Conquer Dinner Prep in One Day
Check out these simple, healthy dinner prep steps that are light on your wallet (and waistline).
- Wash and chop up vegetables
- Roast a batch of veggies and store in tupperware for quick reheating
- Cook lean ground turkey which you can use in sauces or for tacos
- Grill and chop up chicken to top salads, or pair with roasted veggies and a sweet potato for a quick meal.
Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate
Water does the body good. Give your body the hydration it needs in the weeks and months before your wedding. If you’re not a big water drinker, now’s the time to become one. Swap out the soda and fruit juice for a tall glass of water. Aim to drink around eight 8-ounce glasses of water a day.
Another easy rule to follow is to divide your weight in half, and then drink that many ounces of water a day. For example, if you weigh 130 pounds, aim for 65 ounces of water a day.
Water doesn’t just leave you hydrated, though. Some studies indicate that increased water consumption can jump start your metabolism, which can help with weight loss. Plus, you just might notice glowing skin thanks to the boost in hydration, which will leave you looking your best on the big day.
The bottom line is that there isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer to how to lose weight for wedding.
Healthy eating, and making sure that you’re sweating for the wedding with regular exercise, are worthwhile habits to establish now as prepare for your walk down the aisle.
So, while you’re busy focusing on wedding ceremony ideas and planning every last detail, don’t forget about yourself. Invest in your health now, so that you feel your best when it’s time to say “I do.”
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