Thursday, October 26, 2006

Choose Figure-Firming Foods

Our bride-to-be, Erikka, talks about the benefits of following a healthy eating plan during her wedding-day countdown.

Eating right is just as important as exercising. I've learned the hard way about nutrition. I am constantly on the go, driving from place to place. In the past I would often pick up fast food if I needed a quick meal. This was always a bad choice due to high calories and fat. Plus I never felt quite right after eating junk... I guess it's true: You are what you eat.

This semester I'm taking a fantastic nutrition class (talk about perfect timing). I am required to record the food and amount I eat for an entire day. From there, I visit the website MyPyramid.org and enter my food intake that I had recorded. Out of the six food groups, I discovered that I only fulfilled one area. It was obvious that needed to change my lifestyle if I wanted to lose weight and feel great. I discovered that I was barely eating anything in the fruit and vegetable category! Now I make sure that I have a piece of fruit with every meal (by the way, a balanced meal consists of one low-fat protein and one healthy carb).

Every day I eat five small meals, one meal every three hours. I can't believe how easy it is. A portion of grilled chicken, a grapefruit, and a tall glass of ice-cold water is my favorite!

Here’s a great tip from nutrition class: Choose colorful fruits and veggies. Bright colors mean that the food is packed with nutrients. (Too bad this rule doesn’t apply to desserts!)
Stay tuned for more of Erikka’s pre-wedding health and fitness thoughts…

To get a ton of great tips on how to eat right, manage stress, sleep away pounds, and sculpt a beautiful body, go to WeddingShape.com and sign up for WeddingShape Diet and Fitness Secrets Newsletter . (It's FREE!)

Tuesday, October 24, 2006

Tips to Look and Feel Fabulous on Your Wedding Day

I recently spoke to a young bride-to-be named Erikka. Thought you would enjoy her comments on getting fit for the big day. She’s got a lot of great advice:

“Will you marry me?” is a question that changed my life forever. At first, the overwhelming feelings of happiness and excitement took over my mind and body. Immediately, I wanted to tell the world of the exciting news. So I called my friends and family and shared the details of the engagement. After the excitement, the question became what do I do next?

Stresed? Get Organized!

Personally, after I got engaged, my stress levels were so high that I could not focus on a single detail of my wedding. That is when I decided to get organized. I found it useful to visit wedding websites, which provided free online checklists. This helped me get organized because the checklists provided a step-by-step method of managing the tasks I needed to complete in order to plan my wedding. As I started to contract photographers, florists, limousines, DJs, reception sites etc., I found it essential to use a planning notebook. The notebook helps me visualize what I have left to do, for example, where I stand on payments or appointments. In addition, I save all contracts and receipts just in case there is a discrepancy with a vendor after the wedding.

Exercise With a Friend

It's a fact that physical activity can help you feel and look phenomenal on your wedding day. Currently, I am enrolled in a jogging class at school and the class meets twice a week.

We warm up by walking the perimeter of a football field and stretching each group of muscles. After the warmup, we go on a three-mile jog through a park. When we return we cool down and stretch again. Stretching is necessary but often neglected. (I've often wondered, who wants to stretch after you just exercised?) However, the benefits of stretching outweigh the time and energy it takes. Stretching decreases the chance of an injury, increases flexibility, and decreases lactic acid build up (which can cause soreness, OWW!) The class also provides me with a routine that demands commitment. When I schedule fitness into my days, it's easier for me to follow through with my workouts.

Outside of class, I attend a gym with my friend and bridesmaid, Jess. The buddy system provides motivation and support while we work out. There are days I don't feel like exercising but Jess motivates me to go. She always says, “We are going to look so hot at the wedding.” As silly as it may sound, she is right. My goal is to look as fit and beautiful as possible be. The harder I work, the closer I get to meeting my goals.

In addition, physical activity helps me relieve stress. When I work out I can release aggression and frustration in a healthy way. After I finish my workout, I feel like a weight has been lifted off of my shoulders (no pun intended). I can finally relax!

Stay tuned for more of Erikka’s pre-wedding health and fitness thoughts…

Wednesday, October 11, 2006

Don’t Miss the FREE WeddingShape Diet and Fitness Secrets Newsletter!

Hi Joseph,

I recently signed up for the free newsletter and I was wondering when I would start receiving my tips?

Erikka

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Hi Erikka,

Thanks for the note. The FREE WeddingShape Diet and Fitness Secrets Newsletter goes out every Tuesday. You're going to love the insider workout, nutrition, sleep and stress management tips. Plus you get timely wedding planning strategies to help you de-frazzle your nerves during this exciting time.

Are you a bride-to-be? If so, when is the big day? What are your diet and fitness concerns? We’d love to hear the details…

Here are three simple steps to guarantee that you don’t miss any of our cutting-edge newsletters:

Step 1. Sign up for the FREE WeddingShape Diet and Fitness Secrets Newsletter .

Step 2. Check your email to confirm your subscription. Just click on the confirmation link in the email.

Step 3. Every Tuesday, look for tips to help you melt fat, sculpt problem areas, reduce stress, and get into the best shape of your life. You’ll also receive wedding planning advice and many more surprises...

By the way, our computer-techie guy asked me to share this with you…

If you have spam-blocking software or internet service provider (ISP) filters, you MUST add WeddingShape.com and all email coming from WeddingShape.com to your list of approved senders (also known as a "whitelist" or "safelist.")

Nowadays, legitimate email may not reach its intended destination due to aggressive spam-blocking measures. This is especially true if you are subscribing from a work email address. If you subscribed from a work email, you may consider re-subscribing from your home or personal account, because corporate email security is more likely to block the ground-breaking diet and fitness secrets... which you don't want to miss!

Talk to you soon.

Joe

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

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