What's A Wedding Diet?

**Disclaimer: This is not going to be a post telling you the quick and easy way to lose weight for your wedding. I am basically just going to share what I did, and how it worked. I am not a nutritionist {as you will clearly see if you keep reading}, and I am not a fitness expert. So please do not take this post as a "How To" for weight loss. It is not that. It is more about little tweaks you could do to your day/routine that could have an effect on you physically and just make you feel great. 

I did not go on an official diet prior to the big day. I actually tried at one point, but failed miserably. Friday night dinners are a big deal in our household. It's the meal that celebrates the end of a work week and the beginning of the weekend. Mistakenly, two weeks before the wedding I told Brit we should try to have a healthy meal for our Friday dinner. So he suggested Chinese. Veto. Pizza. Veto. Go to the grocery store and pick up some things to make a healthy dinner. Done! Well, here is what we came up with:

• Chips and guacamole
• Hummus {2 kinds} and crackers {3 kinds}
• Cheese {5 kinds}
• Andouille Sausage 
• And of course, wine

I mean, it's not necessarily the worst thing we could have eaten, but it definitely doesn't make you want to throw on a bathing suit or strut around in a wedding dress. 

So needless to say, the "wedding diet" was not something that was held to great importance in our household. To be honest, I hate the entire idea and all the pressure that surrounds a person's weight on their wedding day. So many people asked me when I was going to start dieting, if I was working out, or if I was hiring a personal trainer.

Seriously?? If I dwelled on such comments, I could probably start to feel really bad about myself, which is not something a bride should ever be doing. But I just kept telling myself, he proposed to me like this, clearly he doesn't see anything wrong with me, and that's all that really matters, right? 

All I really wanted on our wedding day, in regards to physique, was to feel good about myself. Unfortunately, I feel best when scarfing down a plate of fries and finishing it off with some sort of chocolate delight, and maybe a bottle glass of wine for dessert. At least I feel good for a little while. But, I wanted to feel like my best self on our wedding day, so I did do a couple things differently, and got some minor results. 

The pictures below were taken the day we got engaged {10 months before the wedding}, and the day after we go married. 

Eating: 

I tried to eat healthier. I tried adding more veggies to my diet. Turns out the only purpose veggies serve to me is a delivery method for ranch dressing, cheese, or peanut butter. Not sure that can really constitute a "healthy" diet, but at least I was getting some nutrients, right? I also tried to practice a little bit of self control. When all I wanted to do was grab a handful of chocolate, I would try, try, try,  to make myself eat something healthy first. This didn't always work, but the few times it did, I felt better about my choices. 

Also, instead of sitting down with an entire box of crackers and cheese, I would practice a little bit of portion control. I would try to set out just enough to satisfy me, rather than engorge me. I still managed to eat 5 bags of mini eggs during the Easter season, but that's moderation for me. 

Mmmmmmm

Exercise: 

I am someone who typically works out. When people would ask if I was going to "start working out", I kinda wanted to demonstrate just how much I do work out with a nice blow to their left cheek. Practicing self-control with food can apparently stem into other parts of life as well {fortunately for them}. 

Even though I worked out before, when you know you're going to be in front of a lot of people whose only entertainment is you, it's a bit motivating to maybe go the extra mile, literally. I started a little routine that really worked for me and it was hardly a step up from what I was already doing. Also, it didn't involve hours at the gym or having to hire a personal trainer. 

I would run about 3-4 days a week before all the wedding planning, so I upped it to 4-5 times a week. I never ran more than 4 miles, distance is not my forte. I typically stayed within 2-3 miles. It got to the point that I would feel really off if I didn't run two days in a row. It becomes easier to stay active once you start {a body in motion stays in motion and all that jazz}.

Arms: 

I grabbed this image off Pinterest and did the routine with 5 lb. weights once-twice a week. And when I say the routine, I mean I did as much as I could but by the 6th image I was down to about 15 reps instead of the recommended 30. Oh well, getting up and trying is better than not trying at all, right? 

Waist: Also from Pinterest {who needs a personal trainer when I can just Pin workouts} This one is a bit more challenging, but definitely provides results. I did this about twice a week as well. It actually goes pretty fast because you're constantly changing what you're doing.

Also, I had to look up what about half of these were. A simple google search should help. 

Abs: 

This little Ab routine is something a friend showed me one day {she got if from her personal trainer}. I would alternate between this and the "Waist Trimmer" from above. This was more for lazy days but when I still wanted to feel like I did something. It's fast, effective, and before you know it, you've done 120 crunches! *See detailed instructions below image* 

1. Start with doing regular crunches {x10}
2. Then move straight into doing crunches while lifting one knee toward you, and lowering it as you lower your head {x10}
3. Continue the same technique, but this time as you lower your leg and head, straighten your leg, but don't let it touch the floor!{x10}
4. Move straight into do a leg lift while doing crunches. Again, don't let your leg touch the floor when you lower it {x10}
5. Cross your ankle over the opposite knee, then bring your knee toward you {just like in #2} while doing crunches {x10}
6. Finish off with 10 bicycles {x10}

Do the exact same thing but using the other leg, without pausing in between sets of 10. 120 crunches, 5 minutes. You'll be finished before you know it. Easy Peasy! 

So this is what my routine looked like before the wedding. It ended up cutting about 7-8 lbs. off the scale for me in 10 months {which include Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter}. For me, it wasn't so much about the weight as it was about how I felt about myself. Because here's the thing, at the end of the wedding day NO ONE is going to say "well, it was a great wedding, just wish the bride would have lost that extra 5 lbs so I could have really had fun".

Thanks for visiting!