The Healthy Bride

Katie Bedford sent me the following video, which I love and think is hilarious! Check out smartbrideboutique for wedding goodies and a really cool contest!

She’s obsessed. Like, seriously OBSESSED with her dress!

And we’re not talking about wearing it around the house on the occasional Saturday. After spending thousands of dollars and months agonizing over her dress, Julia is determined to get her money’s worth. Watch as Julia puts her dress back on and ventures out into the city.

By Alexis Hoverter A Healthy Bride Alum

If you’re new to the workout scene, finding the right clothes to wear to the gym, bridal bootcamp or on a run can be a little daunting. Oftentimes workout gear isn’t cheap and (ironically) can be rather unflattering. So, here are some tips to get you started on an affordable and comfortable workout wardrobe.

Tops:
Old Navy carries ribbed tank tops in a huge variety of vibrant colors for $8.50 a piece ($7.50 each if you buy two or more). They’re cut to be fitted, yet nice and long. Read: no riding up and flashing your tummy mid workout (one of my personal pet peeves about other fitness tops).

A good quality, moisture-wicking sports bra is worth a bit of an investment. I typically opt for either black, dark grey or bright pinks and blues – they look better layered under a tank and don’t become dingy like white sports bras.  Check out Athleta (Gap’s online-only fitness line) for bras in a variety of different styles including separate cuts and fabrics for low versus high impact sports and cups sizes. They’ve also got a decent color selection.

It’s good to have a go-to jacket or hoodie that you can throw on with your gym gear. You’ll quickly get a chill if you head outside after spending an hour sweating inside a warm gym.  Old Navy has some cute, colorful cover-ups in reasonable prices.

Bottoms:
I personally feel like my movement is restricted when I wear shorts to workout. I’m always feeling like I’m flashing the gym while doing bicycle situps or stretching – so I opt for fitted capris or pants. I prefer material that’s got some give (usually a synthetic blend of some sort) but it still fitted for ease of movement.  I frequently have good luck at Nordstrom Rack, TJ Maxx, Marshalls and Athleta (good for the long-legged gal, they offer different lengths). Be prepared to try on a lot of different styles until you find the one that fits well and looks good.

Brides want a workout that is efficient, effective and fun.  My early morning group tested out a fantastic workout this morning.

Run 5 sets of stairs

5 sets of leg blasters (20 body weight squats, 20 lunges, 20 lunge jumps, 10 squat jumps)

3 sets of butt blasters 15 each exercise stay on same side for 3 sets, then change  (on all 4’s, heel to sky w/ bent knee, fire hydrants, 45 degree kick)

4 sets of ab blasters (30 bicycles, 20 V-Ups, 20 reverse crunch, 30 crunches)

Run 5 sets of stairs

If you have more time:

15 each Biceps Curls, Triceps Dips, Overhead Press

10 each Front Raise, Lateral Raise, Reverse Flyes

Fun and Fantastically Effective!

If you like to sweeten tea, hot cereal, or plain yogurt, consider sweetening lightly with honey or real maple syrup. These are the most natural forms of sweeteners, and they contain some minerals in addition to natural sugars. Remember though, a teaspoon of honey or maple syrup can contain anywhere from 15-20 calories. A few teaspoons can add up to a lot of calories over the course of the day, so please be mindful!

Physical Activity Stages of Change Questionnaire

Take this brief test to see what stage you are in. For each of the following statements, please circle Y or N. Please be sure to read each statement carefully and to answer truthfully.

For the two statements, being physically active includes activities such as walking briskly, jogging, bicycling, swimming, or any other activity in which exertion is at least as intense as these activities.

1. I consider myself currently physically active.                                                         Y     N
2. I intend to become more physically active in the next 6 months.                   Y     N

For the next two statements, for physical activity to be “regular,” it must add up to a total of 30 minutes or more per day and be done at least days per week. For example, you could take one 30-minute walk or three 10-minute walks for a daily total of 30 minutes.

3. I currently engage in regular physical activity.                                                   Y     N
4. I have been regularly physically active for the past months.                         Y     N

Scoring
Now look at your responses to the four statements and identify which stage matches you. Read the section of text in the following pages that applies to your stage.

Precontemplation: Statement 1 = no; statement 2 = no
Contemplation: Statement 1 = no; statement 2 = yes
Preparation: Statement 1 = yes; statement 3 = yes; statement 4 = no
Action: Statement 1 = yes; statement 3 = yes; statement 4 = no
Maintenance: Statement 1 = yes; statement 3 = yes; statement 4 = yes

Which stage are you currently in? ___________________________

Source: Adapted from Marcus, Banspach, Lefebvre, Rossi, Carleton, and Abrams 1992.

Definitions and more information about your stage of change:

Precontemplation
If you are in this stage, you are probably not too interested in this book and may just be glossing over it. Maybe this book was a gift from a cruel but concerned family member or friend. But as long as I have your attention, let’s put together a quick list of the pros and cons of exercise. Physical activity yields so many benefits that to not do it really is to ignore your health. Many people could improve their health, spirit, energy, and quality of life if only they would exercise.

Here are pros and cons of exercise I generally hear from the brides I work with:

Pros
I feel healthier
I have more energy
Exercising helps me reduce stress
Exercising helps me sleep better
I can move more easily and have more flexibility
I am stronger

Cons
I don’t have any time
I hate all forms of exercise
I don’t like to sweat
I’m too old
I’m too out of shape
I have no energy for exercise

As you can see, the pros far outweigh the cons. With help, support, and encouragement, the precontemplative person can move to the contemplative stage. For those who “hate” exercise or feel they may be physically limited to doing it, there are forms of exercise for all levels of capability, whether it’s rowing, walking, gardening, kickboxing, belly dancing, or ballroom dancing. Exercise does not have to be a daunting, painful experience that means maintaining a sweating, lung-burning 45 minutes to give you results; even moderate activity can make a tremendous difference. Every 10 minutes counts, and starting out slowly is smart.

Furthermore, I don’t buy the “I don’t have time” argument because people seem to have plenty of time in their lives for television. Take some of that TV time and turn it into something productive. It’s about setting priorities and including activity into your daily life. Before you know it, your exercise and healthy eating program will be making a difference in your life.

Hopefully you’re now motivated enough to enter the contemplation stage. Go on and read the next section. You’ll feel better about yourself.

Contemplation
If you’re at this stage, that may be why you picked up this book. Thank yourself for being here. You have probably made a list of exercise pros and cons and are wondering what to do next. You are the ideal reader for this book and the reader for whom I outlined the Level One stage in Chapter 4 of the fitness section. After reading the remaining chapters in this part of the book, you should begin your exercise program by turning to the fitness section and reading my recommendations.

Start slowly and try not to take an all-or-nothing approach to your new exercise program. If you miss a day or two, don’t worry. Just keep marching forward. Do what you can, experiment with various modes of exercise, and find which activities you like best. Small changes count. Make sure you reward yourself for the little victories such as taking the stairs instead of an elevator and walking further to work each day from your bus stop. Keep setting small, achievable goals, keep telling yourself that doing something is better than doing nothing, and hang in there.

Sometimes the best way to ensure you stick with it is to find a workout buddy. Social support and accountability make a huge difference in people’s ability to stay on track with their exercise program.

Preparation
Congratulations to you if you fall into this stage. You are well on your way to a lifetime of fitness. Although you are still trying to get into your routine, you understand the benefits of exercise. Two words of advice: Don’t stop! Keep exercising, and stay focused on your plan and on the activities you like to do. Your goal should be to do more of what you’re currently doing.

The Fitness section of this book contains workout plans and schedules that may help you (you can also find some in our bridal fitness section on our website). You are the best person to determine what level of exercise you will fall into in our exercise section. Start from where you are today, and don’t push too hard. For example, if you are exercising three times per week but are not doing any resistance training, continue with your three days and add one day of resistance training. Review the exercise programs in this book, look for the schedule that most closely matches your current exercise program, and progress from there. Stay on the path you feel comfortable with, and don’t do too much. The key to your success is to set small, measurable goals and to celebrate your successes when you achieve them.

Action and Maintenance
If you fall into either of these groups, you’re in that 25 percent mentioned earlier. Good job! The key word for you now is maintain. You are doing very well and it’s important you keep going. Be sure you are setting and resetting your goals at approximately six-week intervals. Make sure you are working hard enough to keep your body challenged.  Mix things up.  Whatever you do, don’t get too ambitious and push yourself beyond your limits.

In addition, think ahead to how you will maintain your workouts during vacations, illness, and boredom. You already are doing great and just need to practice some positive self-talk down the road in the event that you encounter any bumps. Congratulations for prioritizing exercise in your life. Now the trick is to focus on keeping it a priority in the long run.

I hope this excerpt from The Healthy Bride Guide: Fit and Fabulous from this Day Forward helps make the changes you are embarking upon a bit easier and less stressful.  Change is hard, and as a bride you have plenty of it in your life right now, but embrace the challenge and go forth!

Today is our first Fit and Fabulous Foto Friday.  We are hope you will send us your coolest, wackyiest, most beautiful, fun fitness fotos for our ongoing Friday blogpost.

The Fotos below are from Mindy Bush of Memphis, Tenn.  She sent me her work with the following explanation:

About the wedding:

• Almost all of the gym equipment was cleared out to transform it into a place fit for a wedding, but the couple was careful not to overdo it. Michael said, “It should still look like a gym. That’s what we want. If we wanted to get married in a church, we would have.”

• They had approximately 200 guests in attendance, and their colors were mocha and pale blue. The couple had a huge wedding party of 20, and the groom and his groomsmen wore black and white plaid Converse with their tuxes, while the bridesmaids wore blue Converse with brown laces with their dresses. Ashley changed into her matching Converse for the reception.
• “….Ashley is a trainer at CrossFit Memphis. She married Michael Bledsoe, the owner of CrossFit Memphis. She’s always been athletic, but she will be the first to tell you she’s never been as fit as she is now, after doing CrossFit for about two years. She’s coming back from her honeymoon tonight, so I can ask her if she’d like to comment on her fitness regime and perhaps what she did to prepare for her wedding. I know that she had a specific plan, designed by Doug Larson at CrossFit Memphis, to target her core and her butt.
• Featured in the photos is Ashley Bledsoe (then, Ashley Mays), who married Michael Bledsoe in Memphis, TN, on January 23, 2010. Because the gym is so much a part of Ashley and Michael’s lives, he proposed to her there. When they were planning their wedding, they figured, “why not get married it at the gym, too?” So when it came time to do her bridal session, there was only one place fitting for the shoot: the gym!

• Ashley is approximately 5’3” and 115 lbs. Because she is so fit, and because there is no other frame of reference in the photos with which viewers may be familiar, it’s impossible to tell that she is, in fact, incredibly petite!
  
• If you’re unfamiliar with CrossFit, the official definition is “constantly varied, functional movements executed at high intensity.” The unofficial definition is “it’s hardcore.” I can say from experience that CrossFit workouts are so challenging that most everyone basically lies on the floor for about 20 minutes after they’ve finished the workout of the day (WOD).  It is definitely a sub-culture of fitness enthusiasts all its own, but it’s starting to hit the mainstream. It’s worth noting that CrossFit gyms are typically housed in some sort of hole in the wall, as the equipment is minimal, but open space is required. CrossFit Memphis, as are many others, is located in a warehouse.

Thanks so much Mindy Bush (3-Cubed Photography) with Gary Baldwin on lights for kicking off our Fit and Fabulous Foto Friday!

You are about to embark upon a new life. Things are changing all around you, and now is a great time to begin a new healthy lifestyle make over. Are you ready?

Let’s take a look at the stages of change and what it takes to really make a long lasting shift in your lifestyle. Then you can decide if you are really, truly ready to embark upon a healthier lifestyle….from this day forward.

The key to a lifetime of fitness is consistency. Getting started with a regular fitness program, or if you have started one, staying with it can be a challenge. You are not alone. Only 25 percent of American adults participate in the recommended levels of physical activity,which is certainly not a good statistic. Heart disease is the number one killer of women and men in this country, and for many people, this tragic life experience is avoidable.

Let’s get clinical

Let’s take a look at the stages of change and help you determine where you fall in “The Stages of Motivation Readiness for Change Model continuum”.

We will ask you to take some tests and to look deep into yourself to determine whether you are ready to adopt a healthier lifestyle.  Next, we will review your current state of health using our wellness and risk factor inventories.

Take your time, be honest, and be thoughtful. What you end up writing down may surprise you.

According to The Stages of Motivational Readiness for Change Model, individuals move through a series of stages as they adopt and maintain a new habit (Prochaska and DeClemente 1983). This model was determined after researchers studied groups of people participating in smoking and alcohol cessation programs and monitored how they moved through the behavior change process. The model has been validated and applied to a variety of behaviors, including smoking cessation, exercise, contraceptive use, and diet.

Behavioral change is rarely a casual, single event. The Stages of Change model shows that, for most people, a change in behavior occurs gradually (you didn’t decide to get married overnight, for example), with the person moving from being uninterested, unaware, or unwilling to make a change (known as the precontemplation stage) to considering a change (the contemplation stage) to deciding and preparing to make a change.

Making a change in life requires purposeful, determined action. This does not come without planning, dedication, effort, and a great desire. Relapses are a normal part of change and should not come as a surprise; they are just part of the change process. Many people find themselves moving cyclically through these stages before the change becomes established.

Let’s look at the stages and determine where you fall. Specifically, these stages, as applied to exercise, include:

1. Precontemplation. You are not even considering exercise, let alone scheduling it in your weekly routine.

2. Contemplation. You regularly consider beginning to exercise, but you make no effort to incorporate exercise into your schedule.

3. Preparation. You are working out, but not at recommended levels. Your exercise times are also inconsistently scheduled or not scheduled at all.

4. Action. You are exercising at recommended levels, but have done so only for less than six months.

5. Maintenance. You have been exercising regularly and on schedule at recommended levels for more than six months.

Most people move through these stages at different points in their lives. The movement tends to be cyclical rather than linear; you move through the stages in an orbital fashion.

You can also look at these stages in the context of maintaining healthy eating habits. Because the two topics go hand in hand, when you examine your fitness program, you also should assess your eating habits. Otherwise, you’re not going to be as healthy as you could. Looking at both areas of your well-being will give you a truer picture of where you stand today. In fact, you may find you score better in one area than the other.

Before you move on, go back through the previous list, substituting “healthy eating” for “exercise” throughout to determine what stage of maintaining a nutritious, healthy diet you are in. This will also prepare you for the questionnaire to follow on Monday.  See you then!

(The abouve is an excerpt from The Healthy Bride Guide:  Fit and Fabulous from this day Forward by Christi Masi available on Amazon.com)

I’ll be honest — If I’m given the choice between purchasing a new pair of, say perfectly worn-in, ankle-high, Western-inspired boots versus a pair of new running shoes, I’m probably going to choose the boots. Actually, I’m definitely going to go with the boots.

It’s hard to get really excited about a pair of athletic shoes in which you’re going to spend most of your time sweating and in my case, getting up at an ungodly hour in the morning to wear.

But, after reading this article I learned that in order to prevent joint injury, runners should replace their shoes every 300 to 400 miles. That means if you run just 15 miles a week you should be picking up a new pair of running kicks every six months.

I quickly realized it was time to replace my sad New Balance cross trainers that I bought on clearance over two years ago.

So, because I can’t completely bypass form for function, I’m on the hunt for a pair of unique trainers – something with bright colors and maybe an old-school feel. Here are some examples of what’s out there now that I’m considering. And most of them cost less than my coveted pair of boots!

Caption: (Clockwise from top left) Adidas Retrek Jogger, $87; Kangaroo Magnolia, $57; Nike Shox  Navina+, $130; Nike Air Pegasus 26, $115; Reebok SmoothFit, $85; Puma Speeder Mesh, $62; Saucony Pro Grid Paramount 2, $170; Puma Cell Voltra, $100; Nike Lunarglide+, $100; New Balance WX840, $70



Valentine’s Day was created with brides (and grooms!) in mind. It’s the holiday for lovers and encourages lots of celebration.  Maybe you went for it yesterday! So, now how do you survive today? The morning after?

Did you overindulge yesterday? Eat the whole box of chocolates in one sitting? Drink the entire bottle of wine
and then order more?  I hope you had a great celebration with the one you love, but if you feel bad today,
here are a few tips to help you get back to healthy.

1.  Start with water, but go carefully.  If you drink too much at one time, it might upset your stomach.

2.  Coffee. One of the wonders of life. It’s a stimulant and will help you get going.

3.  Dry toast. Your tummy is probably somewhat upset.  Dry toast should help get it settled.

4.  Aspirin or ibuprofen.  Will help with the pain

5.  Eat light. After the toast has settled, you might want to try a couple of eggs with a little fat.  Don’t get carried away on the fat. A big, rich, buffet breakfast is not the way to go.
6.  Go for a walk. Fresh air and light exercise will help move the toxins out of your system.

7.  Take a cool shower. A hot shower might overheat you and won’t help you feel better, so go for a cool shower.

8.  Still feeling poorly? Take a nap. Sleep is an amazing healer.

Watching the Vancouver Olympics is so inspiring!  I find it difficult to just sit and watch, so have worked out a workout I can do while the Olympics are on TV. This is an indoor workout, so no excuses about the weather!

Jump Rope – during every commercial (this should last about 1-3 minutes and is GREAT cardio)

Between your Jump Rope sesssions:

Squats with weight – 2 sets of 20 (weight should be “heavy” for you)
Standing forward lunge – 15 each leg – with weights
Standing reverse lunge – 15 each leg – with weights
Single leg supine (on your back) bridge (works hamstrings) – 2 x 20 each leg

3 times through:
Chest Press (on ball, bench, or foot stool) 15
Lat Rows   15
Pushups 25

3 times through:
Biceps Curls 15
Triceps Extensions 15
Overhead Press 12-15

3 times through:
Reverse flyes 10
Lateral Raises 10
Front Raises 10

Crunches on the ball or floor x 30 – 50
Bicycles on floor 30 – 50
Obliques each side x 20 each way
Supermans x 10 (hold each for 2 seconds)

Don’t forget to jump rope during commercials!

Have fun watching the games!  A great excuse to get into better shape for sure!