Chocolaty Goodness….. I realize that this wedding health series has stretched out over the last few weeks but bear with me, this is my favorite one!  EAT CHOCOLATE!… or indulge in whatever you crave.  Don’t overindulge enough to counteract your other healthy activities but do not deny yourself prior to your wedding day.

Too often I feel the year before your wedding has turned into a punishment.  Now a days you cant get married in the venue you want or secure the best photographer because everyone is booking up over a year out.  The year before your wedding is not supposed to be all work and no play, your engagement period is supposed to be filled with excitement and enjoyment. You should be attending engagement parties, and bridal showers while celebrating with your friends – not hyperventilating because your pink flowers don’t match your pink invitations.  This is why I think one of the top health suggestions is to Eat Chocolate.

Be in the mindset of portion control,  and in the practice of taking care of yourself.   The saying is have EVERYTHING in moderation. Don’t avoid all carbs because you think they will make you fat, or give up sweets all together.  You will crave these  and you will become bitter that you aren’t allowing yourself to indulge whether you realize it or not.  Avoid feeling obligated to act a certain way or maintain a certain look.  Let yourself make your own decisions and indulge in what is most important to you!

So, Eat chocolate. Have the last piece of pie. Skip your next workout session.  Go out with your friends next Saturday night. Close your wedding planning books and watch a TV marathon. Cancel your next appointment because the sun is out.  Go on a date with your future husband.  And most importantly EAT CHOCOLATE

How did you indulge throughout your engagement period?

Relax.  Your pre wedding health depends on it!  Getting sleep and avoiding feeling stressed will make a huge impact on your body as the months creep closer to your big day.

Stress is easy to come by while planning a wedding, but will cause numerous health issues if you chose to carry the stress.  You will build up the stress and begin to see changes in your sleeping pattern, your immune system and your overall attitude.

Why it is Important to Avoid Stress:

1. Your sleeping pattern will become off schedule, you will feel tired during the day and you will be unable to sleep during the night hours.  Your sleep will become restless and you may not be reaching your deepest REM cycle of sleep.

2. Your immune system will begin to slowly fail. Your body might feel achy and you will be much more likely to catch whatever bug is going around that season.

3. You will become cranky (or at least I do)!  Little issues that pop up you won’t handle as well as you should because of the tension and stress you are feeling.  Small things will become Big things in the planning process.

Suggestions on Embracing Your Stress:

1. Learn to manage your stress.  When you feel your body begin to tense and you feel the adrenaline pumping and stress building take a step back.  Walk away from what you are doing and take 10 minutes to rest.  Stress isn’t necessarily all bad, but you need to learn to control it and not let it build up.

2. Get a massage!  Plan a pre-wedding beauty day to pamper yourself including a full body massage to work out any kinks you may have building up.  I have also known brides to not only do a pre-wedding massage, but to purchase packages and they get one 3 – 4 months prior and then another one the week prior.  It forces you to make time for yourself and relax.

3. Find time for your life outside of the wedding. Wedding planning is consuming.  Brides many times feel they are all alone in the planning process.  While their group of friends are out on the town they are at home planning invitations and addressing envelopes.  Don’t feel trapped by your plans.  Schedule time for your friends at least once a week – get out and laugh! The simple act of laughter every day will help your stress feel more manageable in the long run.

How did you decrease stress building up to your big day?

Run. and if you can’t run, Walk. if you don’t like walking, Bike. if cycling is too boring for you, Row. Find what works for you and get off the couch!

You may ask … when are you going to find time to exercise when your calendar is already jam packed with meetings and friends/family and countless plans. I promise you that if you make time to exercise during the planning process you will feel like you have more time than ever and be re-energized to face each day with a positive outlook and excitement!

Why exercise?

• Improves Endurance - Exercise will help improve the stamina of your body and allow it to use less energy for the same amount of work. Your heart doesn’t have to work as hard to do strenuous activities and you will be surprised at how much more energy you feel you have throughout the day.
• Improves Your Mood – Exercise triggers endorphins which make you feel happier and relaxed. Endorphins are your body’s natural pain and stress fighters. When you exercise and look better, your confidence will increase along with your self esteem. So next time wedding planning stresses you out go for a short 30 minute run/walk and instantly feel better!
• Controls Your Weight – Many brides I meet want to drop those last 5 excess pounds. Exercise is the way this is going to happen! While watching what you eat will play a huge role in weight management – physical activity will help you burn the extra calories. You can make the workouts fun by getting your fiance involved or your maid of honor! Take the stairs more often and use commercials to do sit ups or jumping jacks during your favorite shows.
• Gives You a Good Night’s Sleep – By exercising more often your body will drift into a deeper sleep and should fall asleep faster. Your body will work harder during the day with the work out and have a greater need to recoup when the night comes. Avoid workouts too close to bedtime, this will only stimulate your heart and brain and make it much more difficult to stay asleep.
• Better Sex – Yes, I said it! The spark will be added back into your sex life by exercising more frequently! You will be looking better and will be more comfortable and confident with your body. The feel good endorphins we mentioned earlier will help enhance your arousal. If none of the other reasons catch your eye – as newlyweds I know this one is on the top of your list!

Sleep.

In the midst of wedding planning I know that sleep can fall by the wayside. Sleep is easily in the top five – for important ‘must do’s’ to maintain a healthy lifestyle while preparing for your wedding. Yet it is so easy to stay up late working on your programs or researching inspiration for your big day.

The Harvard Women’s Health Watch suggests six reasons to get enough sleep:

1. Learning and memory: Sleep helps the brain commit new information to memory through a process called memory consolidation. In studies, people who’d slept after learning a task did better on tests later.
2. Metabolism and weight: Chronic sleep deprivation may cause weight gain by affecting the way our bodies process and store carbohydrates, and by altering levels of hormones that affect our appetite.
3. Safety: Sleep debt contributes to a greater tendency to fall asleep during the daytime. These lapses may cause falls and mistakes such as medical errors, air traffic mishaps, and road accidents.
4. Mood: Sleep loss may result in irritability, impatience, inability to concentrate, and moodiness. Too little sleep can also leave you too tired to do the things you like to do.
5. Cardiovascular health: Serious sleep disorders have been linked to hypertension, increased stress hormone levels, and irregular heartbeat.
6. Disease: Sleep deprivation alters immune function, including the activity of the body’s killer cells. Keeping up with sleep may also help fight cancer.

Make time to sleep! Close your wedding binder, turn off the TV and REST! Find time to do activities unrelated to your wedding that you enjoy. Start shutting down all electronics about 30 minutes before you want to go to sleep and get in a routine. Find an activity such as reading, or simply talking 30 minutes prior and just calm down. Don’t sit and talk about the wedding or your day that might stress you out, but spend some time winding down! It may sound crazy, but remember when you were 8 years old and you had a bedtime? Don’t underestimate the power of a bedtime! Give yourself a bedtime and stick to it for two weeks. You will be surprised how quickly that bed time will become habit and you will quickly increase on your overall hours of sleep a night!
Sweet Dreams!

Source: Harvard Health Publications

Drinking water has so many fabulous impacts on you as a bride-to-be.

1. Weight Loss – It only makes sense, when you are drinking water, you are not drinking other high calorie drinks.  It is easy to drink a day’s worth of calories with soda, smoothies, coffee and juices.  Once you replace these drinks with water you will be amazed at how easily the pounds go down.  Also, much of the time we think we are hungry we are only thirsty. Always keep a water bottle with you and refill it regularly.  Keeping a steady flow of water in you will keep you from eating less often.

2. Clear Up Complexion – Water will help carry healthy nutrients to your skin and flush the body internally, acne breakouts are less likely to occur due to toxin release through your skin.  You won’t see results overnight, but after a week or two of reaching your water goals you will see an improvement.

3.  Energy – Water will help keep you energized throughout the day. Much of your body is made up of water and keeping it hydrated will in turn give you more energy for daily workouts.  Water also helps prevent muscle cramps, lubricate joints and maintain muscle tone making your workouts more enjoyable.

4. Cleanses Your Bod – Water flushes toxins out of vital organs, carries nutrients to your cells and provides a moist environment for ear, nose and throat tissues. Water helps with digestion and keeps most of the bodily functions working properly.  Keeping them fueled with H20 will ensure no uncomfortable body issues on wedding day.

5. Cures a Headache – Whether your headache is stress related, hormonal, or sinus related, water is an easy cure for all of them. Before reaching for a few Tylenol try drinking some water first and see how you feel.  Many headaches are a side effect, telling your body that you are dehydrated.

Suggestions to Help Increase Your Intake

- Always carry a water bottle with you

- Schedule workouts – you are more likely to drink water while exercising

- Track how much water you drink per day, creating a tracking form will keep it in the front of your mind

- Purchase a water purifier to help the water taste its best

- When you go out to eat make it a habit to always order water.  Restaurants will keep refilling your drink, so you could drink a lot of water or a whole lot of soda pop!  Keep it clean with water!

- Discover how you like to drink your water, surprisingly many people will only drink water if its ice cold, or at room temperature – find the way you like it and drink more of it!