Trying to slim down for the big day? Take a bite of these no-fail diet tips from brides who have been there.
By: Rebecca Gardyn
Your wedding is fast approaching, and of course you hope to look your absolute best. If, for you, that means dropping a few pounds so you look better in your gown, read on. We asked brides who successfully met their own pre-wedding weight-loss goals to tell us how they managed to keep their hands out of the cookie jar and their bodies in motion in the months before their big day. Here’s what they told us.
“Rather than deprive myself of all the bad-for-you foods, I decided that I would give up only my favorite three: soda, ice cream and pizza. I also drank about 64 ounces of water every day, and whenever I got stressed about the wedding, I took a 15- to 20-minute power walk. I stressed out a lot during the last stages of my wedding planning, so I did plenty of walking!”
—Vivian Nickerson, Culver City, California. Lost 20 lbs.
“The one major thing that I did to lose weight before my wedding was to stop eating so much sugar. For instance, I am a big coffee drinker, and I used to add six packets to one little Styrofoam cup. That really adds up! So, about six months before the wedding, I started using a sugar substitute, and that one small change made a huge difference.”
—Tyava Winborne, Los Angeles, California. Lost 15 lbs.
“I began lifting weights with a personal trainer. Knowing that I had a set appointment each week, and that I would have to pay even if I missed a session, kept me from slacking off. And when the going got tough, my trainer would motivate me by saying things like, ‘Think about how you will look in your gown.’ I also started to incorporate exercise into my workday. I started sitting on an exercise ball instead of a desk chair, for instance, and I kept a dumbbell under my desk to get a few reps in while on the phone or reading e-mail. I went from a size 12 to a size 6!"
—Shannon Brooke McKenzie, Lake Forest, Illinois. Lost 13 lbs.
“With a friend, I walked three miles at least five or six times a week during the two months leading up to my wedding. My walking buddy was engaged, too, and it was an extra bonus to be able to spend our a.m. outings venting to each other about the stresses of wedding planning.”
—Angi Treash, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Lost 10 lbs.
"I subscribed to a fitness magazine that highlighted one or two workout routines per issue. Rotating those regimens kept me from getting bored and copping out."
—Kelli Peddy, Dallas, Texas. Lost 15 lbs.
"My fiancé and I joined Weight Watchers together, and we helped each other stay on track. He created a list of snacks that we were allowed to eat based on the plan's points system, and we both agreed not to bring any other munchies into the house. We also cooked together at home so we could control the ingredients and portion sizes. When we went out, we'd help each other figure out which dishes were the most Weight Watchers-friendly, and would eat only half of our entrées and take the other half home. By the wedding day, we'd both lost much more weight than we'd planned—my fiancé lost 30 lbs.!"
—Karin Laviano, Charlestown, Rhode Island. Lost 25 lbs.
"I banished the word ‘diet' from my vocabulary and focused more on my overall health and well being than on looking great in my wedding dress. I didn't deny myself my favorite treats but instead learned to eat them in moderation. I also stopped doing self-destructive things like starving myself all day and then bingeing on a pint of ice cream and feeling guilty about it later. Once I began eating three proper meals a day and exercising regularly, the pounds started to come off naturally."
—Joan Oniszko, Brooklyn, New York. Lost 113 lbs.
