THE BUFF BRIDE FITNESS PLANTHE BUFF BRIDE FITNESS PLAN
YOU DON’T NEED ME TO TELL YOU that with a full-time fitness trainer and unlimited time and funds you could easily have buns of steel and guns the NRA would be jealous of. But the fact is that most of us not only don’t have the ability to focus so intently on looking fit, we also don’t want to, which is not to say that you don’t want to show off toned arms in that strapless dress of yours or a firm derrière in that mermaid gown.
The key: getting the biggest bang for your buck (and time!)—and I have all the insider secrets from my years of working as a beauty expert and the countless hours I’ve spent working and pallin’ around with celebrity fitness trainers.
The secret to the Buff Bride Fitness Plan: quick and easy workouts that are not only designed to be done on a busy bride’s schedule, but are also tailored to your dress in order to ensure the parts of your body that are on full display get all the pre-wedding love they deserve. But going into this, I must remind you that being healthy is way more important than looking healthy, and the two do not always coexist.
Quick + Dirty CardioQuick + Dirty Cardio
Add cardiovascular workouts to your wedding-prep routine to keep that love-filled heart of yours in tip-top shape. But on a how-to-look-show-stoppingly-stunning-on-your-wedding-day note, cardio also helps you to flush away toxins (and, thus, excess weight, too), by boosting your metabolism and promoting detoxification.
That said, you don’t need to be spending hours in the gym or training for a marathon in order to reap all the benefits. To get the biggest bang for your bridal buck, HIIT (aka high-intensity interval training) is about to be your new BFF! Combining intense bursts of all-out exertion followed by resting recovery, HIIT can get you in the best shape of your life in just twenty minutes, three days per week.
So how do you do HIIT exactly? Well, there aren’t any real rules to HIIT other than that after a brief warm-up, you do high-intensity intervals where you push yourself as hard as you can, recover, and then repeat. The best part about HIIT is that you never outgrow the workout since you can always increase your speed, incline, and/or resistance to make the workout harder. And you can take this workout anywhere. From the treadmill to the StairMaster, the rowing machine to the pool, the track to the bike!
Ready to get started?
HIIT: BEGINNER
If you’re new to exercising, this is a great place to start. Remember that the times you’re asked to push yourself can be anything from a brisk walk, perhaps at an incline, to a full-on sprint. It’s all about what’s hard for you.
HIIT: INTERMEDIATE
If you’re a regular exerciser but are looking to take your fitness to a whole new level, start here!
HITT: INTERMEDIATE PLUS
If you’re already a fitness fan, this is for you.
HITT: ADVANCED
Know everyone at your gym—and their entire life stories? You may be ready for this!
Remember, you can always increase your speed, incline, or resistance within any of these plans to make them more (or less) challenging. So, feel free to experiment with the length of these intervals and mix it up by switching between the StairMaster and bike or adding an incline to a treadmill.
Hate working out? Find some kids to play tag with! It’s HIIT at its finest (and fittest)!
Just as your cardio routine doesn’t need to take up eons of your already spread-too-thin time, neither does your weight training. In fact, I’m about to give you a buff bridal boot camp routine that will get you in tip-top shape in just fifteen minutes a day, four days each week, and just six weeks to see results. Here’s what you’ll need:
Light weights (2 to 5 pounds) Empty floor space Yoga mat, optional
For fifteen minutes, four times a week, you’ll do four exercises from the below list. Focus on the exercises most relevant for your dress style, but feel free to do them all, if for no other reason than to boost your metabolism.
Do one exercise for sixty seconds, rest for fifteen seconds, do the second for sixty seconds, rest for fifteen seconds, and so on. Repeat three times, trying to increase the number of repetitions you’re able to do in sixty seconds or the level of difficulty. Try not to repeat the same exercises two days in a row.
IF YOUR DRESS IS SLEEVELESS . . .
Your arms will be on full display. The key, though, is to tone and tighten, not to bulk, which is why you should stick with light weights (think 2 to 5 pounds each), or just use your own body weight, and do lots of repetitions. I recommend the following key exercises for you.
Tricep Dips
Sit on the edge of a sturdy chair with your hands on the edge of the seat, fingers tucked underneath. Walk your feet out until your backside is off the chair and your knees are bent at a ninety-degree angle, with your feet flat on the floor. Bend your elbows, lowering your body toward the floor before straightening your arms and pushing yourself back up. To make it harder, walk your feet out so they’re straight in front of you.
Bicep Curls
Stand with your arms at your sides with a weight in each hand, palms facing forward. Bend your elbows to raise the weights to your shoulders before lowering. To make it harder, increase the weight and repetitions.
Push-Ups
Begin in a plank position, with your hands under your shoulders, but slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Keep your back straight, your core and glutes engaged, and your toes firmly planted. Lower your body, in a straight line, until your chest gets as close as possible to the ground without touching. Be sure to keep your back and hips straight throughout the whole move. Try to keep your elbows pointing slightly backward. Pause at the bottom before pushing back up to the starting position. If this is too difficult, drop to your knees or elevate your hands on a bench.
IF YOU’RE GOING STRAPLESS . . .
You’ll want to focus not only on your arms, but also your shoulders, upper back, and chest. While a good tailor will ensure your dress is fitted enough to stay up without digging in and showcasing armpit fat or an upper back roll (even when it’s only skin), strong muscle tone is a must.
Lateral Raise
Start standing with your feet together and arms at your sides, palms facing your legs. With a weight in each hand, raise your arms directly out to the sides, then lower them.
Super-woman
Lie on your stomach with your arms extended in front of you. Lift your arms, chest, and legs up a few inches, hold for three seconds, then release. To make it harder, hold light weights in each hand.
Row
Standing with feet hip-width apart and your knees slightly bent, pitch your torso forward at a forty-five-degree angle. With a weight in each hand (dangling toward the floor), bend your elbows and pinch your upper back to drag your arms against your body (so your elbows point toward the ceiling).
IF YOUR GOWN IS FITTED THROUGH YOUR TORSO . . .
We want to chisel and whittle, not add bulk, which is why we’re skipping the traditional sit-ups (that can sometimes just add a layer of muscle on top of whatever you have) in favor of these tummy toners.
Twisting Planks
Starting at the top of a push-up position (arms straight and under your shoulders with your legs and core straight behind you), hold your core steady as you bring your right knee toward the outside of your right elbow and then back behind you, returning to a plank position. Repeat with your left knee, bringing it toward the outside of your left elbow and back. Then bring your right knee under your body and across to the inside of your left elbow, squeezing through your core before repeating with your left knee and right elbow. Repeat the entire sequence.
Weighted Rope Climbers
In a sit-up position, hold 1- to 3-pound weights in each hand and mimic climbing a rope between your knees. Keep your shoulder blades off the floor (or as close to off the floor as possible) as you alternate “climbing” your hands one in front of the other.
Mountain Climbers
Begin with your body in a push-up position. Step one leg in between your hands, with a bent knee, while keeping the other leg back. Hold your abs in tight and switch legs at a fast pace, keeping your hands on the floor the whole time. If this is too difficult, lift your bottom up so you’re in a position somewhere between a push-up and downward dog.
IF YOUR DRESS IS CURVE-HUGGING . . .
It’s all about lifting and rounding the butt and toning the thighs.
Squats
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, your stomach engaged and your weight on your heels. Sit back and down, as if you were going to sit in a chair. Aim to get your thighs parallel to the floor while keeping your knees over (not in front of) your ankles. Keep your chest up and your gaze forward. Stand back up. Hold weights in your hands to make it more challenging or jump up instead of standing back up.
Forward + Reverse Lunges
Standing with your feet hip-width apart, step your right foot forward into a deep lunge and slowly lower your body until your front knee is bent ninety degrees (your back knee will bend, too). Pause before stepping back to the starting position. Do the same with your left leg. Repeat in reverse, stepping one foot back into the lunge and then stepping back up and repeating. Hold weights to make it more challenging.
Curtsy Lunges
Stand with your feet hip-width apart before stepping your right foot back toward the left corner of the room. With your chest up and core tight and engaged, lower your body down to a lunge. Pause before returning to the starting position. Hold weights to make it more challenging.
Need Help Getting Motivated?Need Help Getting Motivated?
Over 40 percent of women say that the reason they aren’t as fit and healthy as they would like is because of a lack of motivation. Another 40 percent say it’s because of laziness. So, how do you beat both laziness and a lack of motivation? Keep on reading! Here are ten ways to get motivated and push your laziness aside.
GET CLEAR
Ask yourself why you want to get fit. Having a clear reason for working out and getting healthy—one that matters to you!—is the best way to get motivated and stay that way. So, figure out your reason (it will be different for everyone but try to think past looking great in your wedding dress!). Maybe you want to be healthy to live a long life for your children or perhaps you want to be able to climb the stairs without getting winded at work. So, spend time figuring out why you want to get fit and remind yourself of your reason regularly.
SCHEDULE IT
Like you would a doctor appointment, put your workouts in your calendar. In pen!
HAVE FUN
Finding a workout you enjoy is one of the easiest ways to ensure you stay motivated (and not bored!). It’s hard to stay motivated to do something you hate, but if you can find an exercise you love, it will be easy! Not into running in circles around a track or elliptical training? Think outside the box! Plan a dance party with friends, take an intenSati class, or make a deal with yourself that you can only watch your favorite TV show while moving!
BE YOUR OWN DJ
Download some new tunes and have fun with it. Studies have shown that listening to music while working out keeps your energy up, resulting in higher-intensity and longer-lasting workouts. So get grooving (and moving)!
SET REALISTIC GOALS
It’s easy to lose motivation when your goals are so lofty that you feel defeated before you’ve even begun. One easy way to ensure your workout goals are manageable is to try to increase your fitness by just 10 percent each week, by either adding 10 percent more time to your workouts, 10 percent more weight while strength-training, or 10 percent more repetitions every seven days.
REWARD YOURSELF
Each of us are motivated by different things—for some of us, working toward a new pair of shoes will do the trick while others may be more motivated by the dream of a vacation. Give yourself a point for each goal you achieve (maybe you keep track of the number of miles you run or the number of dance classes you attend) and, when you hit a certain number of points, splurge on something that makes you happy! Need more constant reinforcement? Set smaller goals and reward yourself more often with smaller, more manageable rewards (like a dinner out!).
REEVALUATE OFTEN
If you’re starting to feel lazy, be honest with yourself (without passing judgment) and start from scratch. Reevaluate why you want to get fit and redefine your answer. Find a new workout to try, alter your goals, or change your reward system.
DRESS UP
Hitting the gym in a ratty old T-shirt? No wonder you feel blah. Ditch the sweat-stained T-shirt and buy yourself a few cute workout outfits. When you look good, you feel good. And when you feel good, your energy is up and your workout is far better.
PLAY TOURIST
It’s easy to feel like you’re running in circles when you’re, well, literally running in circles around a track. If you take your workouts outdoors, switch up your route and tour your city as if you were in a foreign place by exploring a new neighborhood or finding a new scenic trail.
FIND FITNESS FRIENDS
Ask your friends to meet you for a run or to come over and try to learn a new dance routine (hit up YouTube for that!). Everything is more fun with friends and exercising is no exception.
Buff Bride Bonus DetoxBuff Bride Bonus Detox
If your body is working at full throttle to detox your body of years of poor food choices, you may not have many reserves left in store to fuel your workouts and to help your body to build muscle. Boost your body’s detoxification mechanisms and jump-start your fitness goals by supporting the natural cleansing systems you were born with (but likely haven’t been giving the TLC they need).
BREATHE
Sounds too easy to actually work? Think again! Our breath is one of our body’s primary detoxifying mechanisms, helping us to literally breathe out the bad. Take deep, long breaths in, followed by deeper, longer exhales to get rid of all the stale breath.
JUMP
Your lymphatic system is commonly called “the garbage disposal of the body,” churning out all the toxins and trash. To work properly, though, it needs your help to keep things moving. While any type of movement helps to turn on this internal garbage disposal, jumping is one of the best ways to throw your lymphatic system into overdrive. Just a few minutes of jumping rope or on a trampoline (or rebounder) stimulates the bowels, promotes detoxification, and helps reduce the appearance of cellulite. Not into jumping? A massage promotes lymphatic drainage, too.
SWEAT
Exercise, hit up the sauna, have some sexy time . . . whatever works for you! Your skin is one of your body’s best detoxifying mechanisms and sweat is its means of purging the toxins. Shower immediately after to wash them all away.
BRUSH
Dry skin-brushing not only exfoliates your dry, dead skin cells (the ones that are blocking the pores your body uses to detox through when you sweat), it also stimulates the lymphatic system. Use a natural bristle brush and, standing in the shower, gently scrub your skin using gentle, circular, upward motions followed by longer, smoother ones. Start at the ankles and work your way up the front of your body, brushing toward your heart. On your back, start at your neck and work your way down. Shower afterward to wash away the loosened cells.
BATHE
Once a week, add two cups of Epsom salt to a warm bath and soak for twenty to thirty minutes. The salts help to pull retained fluids and toxins from your body while you blissfully relax.
DRINK FILTERED WATER
Filtered water is like gasoline for your body’s internal garbage disposal. Drink at least half of your body weight in ounces of water to keep your body’s detoxification mechanisms working at their max and to help flush out any toxins released by these other detoxification mechanisms.
COLON HYDRO THERAPY
They’re not for the faint of heart, but for women who suffer from persistent constipation or whose weddings are mere weeks away and they’re looking to take their detox to a whole other level, ask your doctor or holistic wellness practitioner to recommend a colon hydrotherapy center. There, highly trained and modest practitioners will insert a tube up your anus (you barely feel it) and slowly flush water into your rectum to help dislodge stuck fecal matter. Again, not for the faint of heart!
