Bridal Body Blitz Shapes-up

Every bride-to-be wants to look her very best for arguably the most important day of her life.

It is possible to achieve the result you want for your big day without putting your health at risk but don't leave it too late to build fitness.

Common pitfalls are yo-yo dieting and drastic weight loss, according to Robert Kane, David Lloyd Leisure personal trainer and ViPR master trainer, based at Hatfield.

Start your pre-wedding workout plan as soon as possible.

"I have found that the more time the bride and groom have to build fitness levels and obtain results, the better they will deal well with the stresses of planning a wedding," advises Robert.

Gillian Reeves, National Group Exercise Manager at Virgin Active, has devised a plan for you to tone up and lose weight with six months to go until your wedding day.

Weightloss

If your goal is weight loss, aim for steady weight loss of between one – two llbs a week. If you lose any more than this, you are likely to put weight back on very easily and the whole process of excessive weight loss and gain in a short period of time is a stress on your body and doesn't promote good health in the long term.

Beware that some research indicates that excessive yo-yo dieting can cause fertility issues also so stick to a structured achievable exercise and eating plan that you can work into your lifestyle and maintain for the long term.


New To Exercise

If you are new to exercise, start by working three cardio sessions into your week that all last 30 minutes each. You can choose any activity such as a Zumba fitness or Group Cycle class, jogging or power walking or swimming. Push yourself during the 30 minute session so that you feel that you are working at a perceived effort level of seven out of ten.

After two weeks, add in two strength sessions a week, you could do this at the beginning of two of your cardio sessions, for example, try using the ViPRs or TRX at your local health club. This equipment is user friendly and fun too.

After your first month, keep the cardio sessions the same but up the intensity by adding an interval format where you exercise at high intensities for short bursts of a few minutes followed by a few minutes of lower intensity exercise and repeat for the 30 minute session. Keep your strength sessions and try some different exercises rather than keeping to the same routine.

In your third month, maintain the interval format for cardio and increase the time to 40 minutes. Keep your strength sessions twice a week and again try some different exercises.

For the months four – six, change your types of exercise to give your body a new challenge and keep it adapting positively to the exercise demands so you can see results and continue to improve rather than reach a plateau.

Already Exercising?

If you are already exercising, make a change to your usual routine and try something different. If you are used to running twice a week for example, change one of your runs for a swim or boxing session. By giving your body a new physical challenge, it will be forced to adapt and you will see the results through inch loss and improved muscle tone.

Nutrition

Take a look at your nutrition and what you are putting into your body. No matter how much exercise you do, if your diet isn't right, you won't see the best results. It's simple, cut down on sugary foods and alcohol, make sure you are taking in enough energy and choose foods that will release energy slowly throughout the day such as rice, nuts and seeds. Keep a balance between food groups i.e. protein, carbohydrates, fibre and fat avoiding excessive fat intake.

Both David Lloyd Leisure and Virgin Active offer training sessions tailored to your individual needs and circumstances.

(GK/BMcC)

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