Excuse me, miss? Are you getting married? Don’t forget your diet to look better naked!

As a personal trainer and bootcamp instructor I have worked with a lot of people. But I find the ones that get the best results are the ones that have a set deadline of when they need to accomplish their goals. One of the better examples of this is a woman who is about to get married. The brides to be have a set wedding date. They know exactly how many days it is until that big day—usually the biggest day of their lives. So you think it would be pretty important to look better than they ever have before, and be able to fit into that dream dress.

With any kind of person, not just a bride-to-be, the most important part of changing your body is nutrition. It accounts for 60% of your success. With rest and recovery coming in at 25% and intense exercise at 15%. That’s what it takes to get the job done. However if anyone of those is missing, failure is more likely to occur. But most people have no idea what to do in terms of nutrition.

That’s why I have come up with some guidelines for brides-to-be that will produce a leaner, sexier physique and also enhance your life in many different aspects. Typical results would be a reduction in 1 clothing size per month and a weight loss of 1-2 pounds per week. Body fat percentage will drop and lean body mass will increase creating a super charged metabolism! But remember that I always stress body fat loss or over weight loss, because this is what leads to a much more healthy person, better body composition, and happier organs.

The Sexy Bride Diet Tips Checklist

Diet Tip #1- Eat. Eat. Eat!

The best way to gain body fat, slow your metabolism to a turtle pace, and feel like crap is to eat the traditional 3 meals a day. With a lot people they eat even less. This is what a lot of people do to try and lose weight and it is WRONG!

You have to eat to lose weight and body fat. You have to eat a lot more calories than you are used to. The body is a machine, and it needs fuel. Much like a car needs fuel. Food is your body’s fuel source. You need to eat a minimum of 5 times a day every 2-4 hours. The more times during the day you eat the more likely you are to succeed.

You need to eat under your basal metabolic rate (the amount of calories you burn during the day). Find out how many you are burning by Googling ‘BMR Calculator’. Then eat under that amount per day by 300-500 calories. This will create a caloric deficit, and along with the super intense workouts you are doing will start revving up the metabolism, building lean muscle mass, and burning some serious fat off your bum!

Diet Tip #2- Fibrous Carbs, Not Sugary Carbs

You need to focus on the source of your carbohydrates (CHO). Eating sugary foods that have no nutritional content will only sabotage your efforts to looks great in that gown. The majority of you carbohydrates should contain fiber—at least 3 grams. If you are eating fruit then 2 grams of fiber should suffice. Also it should have less than 10 grams of sugar in it. Again, if you are eating fruit then 10 or more grams of sugar should be fine because fruit is a natural sugar and it contains fiber in it so it does not have the same affect on your body as eating a donut would. Although fruit juice would be considered off limits for best results up to the big day!

I’ve created a carb skeleton for you to use. If you follow correctly you should not have any problems achieving that dream body to fit into that dream dress:

Rule #1- Start replacing all white carbohydrates (i.e. white pasta, rice, bread, cereals, etc…) with 100% whole wheat or whole grains., and all refined or added sugars with natural sugars found in different foods that contain only 1 ingredient. Your blood sugar level will remain level throughout the day and will result in better ability to burn fat due to an increased metabolism.

Rule #2- Your body can take sugars and whole grains best immediately after you wake up or 1-2 hours immediately after your workout. This will ensure that they are burned off and won’t be stored as excess fat. Most of your other meals your CHO should come from fibrous carbs.

Rule #3- Increase your fruits and vegetable intake. Fruits and veggies are high-density foods, which means that they are loaded with fiber, nutrients, and water. This enables you to ‘feel full’ more quickly and not eat as much. Plus the health benefits of these 2 food groups are the highest among anything on the planet. But don’t overdo the corn, potatoes, peas, or carrots.

Rule #4- Rotate your carbs. On intense training days you should be eating more carbs, and on off-training days you should be eating less. Protein and fat should remain about the same.

Diet Tip #3- 2 Supplements You Must Take

Supplement #1 is a daily whole foods vitamin specifically formulated for your gender. It needs to be a whole foods vitamin because that way everything in it will be recognized by your liver as food and absorbed and used. Synthetic vitamins have a 13-30% absorption rate and are recognized as a none food item. When the body has all the nutrients it needs on a daily basis you have a higher metabolism, better fat burning ability, and have higher energy levels throughout the day.

Supplement #2 is a high quality essential fatty acid (EFA) supplement. Omega-3 fats in fish oil have been proven to burn more fat, especially in the belly region. Also it has been proven to increase life expectancy, reduce cancer, joint pain, and other fatal diseases.

Diet Tip #4- Water, Water, Water!

I put this last, not because it is the least important, but because it needs to be done. If you skip this one and do the others then success for you will not happen. The body is about 70% water. Every chemical and metabolic reaction in your body depends on water being present in adequate amounts. If you are dehydrated your body doesn’t work, and body fat loss will not occur!

You need to drink minimum 8 cups a day. This is the minimum amount! This does not include when you are working out. During training you need to drink about 1-2 cups for every 15 minutes of intense activity—even more if you are training in the heat.

So there you have it. Those are some of my best tips to get you looking great on your wedding day. Remember the acronym KISS- Keep It Simple Stupid. Nutrition doesn’t have to be hard; most people just make it out that way. Focus more on fat loss rather then weight loss, because it is all about how you look and feel rather than what a scale says or a chart that says you should weigh this or that.