The Best Wedding Diet and Workout Plan to Empower You

Many brides feel pressure to follow a diet and exercise plan leading up to their wedding day. On the one hand, this can be a useful way to feel your best on an exciting day. On the other hand, diet and exercise plans can often lead to feelings of insecurity, unworthiness, and self-criticism. That’s the exact opposite of what anyone wants for their wedding day.

Eating well and moving our bodies regularly is an important part of adulting. It’s hard to show up in the rest of our lives if we feel meh. But I firmly believe that the best way to do this is not with scales, measurements, or comparisons. With a wedding diet and workout plan, as with any diet and workout plan, I believe our best option is to judge our progress by feelings and use diet and exercise to make ourselves feel more empowered.

In this article, I go over how to build a diet and workout plan for your wedding that empowers you, rather than drains you.

Enhancing Rather Than Subtracting From Yourself

When we think of diet and workout plans, we often think about restriction and depriving ourselves. Likewise, our central goal might be weight loss. As I’ve mentioned in other posts on workout motivation and starting a workout routine, I don’t think this is a great place to start out.

For one, it means you’re starting from a demoralizing place. It’s hard to get into a habit that feels like a punishment. For another, these motivations can lead to disordered eating and exercising. And last, in the context of a wedding, the wedding should be a celebration of you, your partner, and your shared love. Self-criticism and trying to change yourself don’t fit in well with the whole point of the wedding.

Instead, I’d love for you to think about diet and workout plans that enhance you. That may mean improving your energy, building your strength and confidence, or giving you time to do an activity that you love. These motivations are often more enduring and exciting than losing weight. And they can help us build habits that may lead to reduced weight if that is a healthy option for us, but they don’t have to. Especially during wedding planning, you don’t want to add unnecessary stress. So see your diet and exercise routine as a way to support you and modify your plan if it becomes stressful.

What to Consider Before Starting a Wedding Diet and Workout Plan

Before you get started, consider your motivation for creating a diet and workout plan. Try to develop a motivation that is sustainable, meaningful, and empowering, as mentioned above. I truly believe this is the most important thing to make your wedding workout plan and wedding diet plan a success.

Related to this, consider what you might like to enhance as part of your diet and workout plan. Do you have a strapless gown and would love to show off toned shoulders? Does your dress have a plunging back and so you want to sculpt a stronger back? Perhaps you want to dance all night long and build your energy and cardio fitness to support that. Depending on what you’d like to enhance, you might add in more shoulder-, back-, or cardio-centric exercises to build towards that goal.

Last, remember that your fiancée and guests fell in love with you as you are. A diet and workout plan won’t change that love. So again, I hope you consider how you might bring out your strengths rather than lessen yourself in any way.

Wedding Diet Suggestions

To repeat the obvious yet again, wedding planning is stressful. Your diet shouldn’t be. Luckily, healthy eating is pretty simple. I love eating foods that are filling and nutritious so I don’t add dealing with hanger to my to-do list. Likewise, instead of counting calories, try focusing on whole foods that are rich in lean protein, healthy fats, and fiber and that don’t have too much added sugar or white flour. This healthy diet will help keep you full, improve mood, and regulate hormones. Plus, in combination with exercise, they help sculpt lean muscle.

Good options for protein and healthy fats include full fat dairy (yes, really!), nuts, lean meats, fish, and seeds. You can find fiber in fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and whole grains. I’ll go over meal options that incorporate these things below.

Vitamins to Focus On In Your Wedding Diet

We all want to be the glowing bride. One of the best ways of achieving that is with healthy food that includes key nutrients that support our skin, hair, nails, immune system, blood flow, and more. You should aim to include the following nutrients in your diet:

• Vitamin C supports collagen production for healthy skin and nails. It also boosts our immune system. No one wants to be sick on their wedding day! Vitamin C is found in fruits and vegetables, especially citrus fruits.
• Vitamin A also helps with skin, nails, and our immune system. Plus it supports our vision and bone growth. You can find Vitamin A in dairy, eggs, leafy greens, and many orange fruits and vegetables like pumpkin, sweet potatoes, cantaloupe, carrots, and apricots.
• Vitamin E is yet another vitamin that is key for our skin and immune system. It also helps red blood cells form and prevents blood from clotting so it’s important for lots of bodily functions. You can find Vitamin E in nuts, seeds, whole grains, egg yolks, and leafy greens.
• Vitamin D is important for bone growth, energy, our immune system, brain function, muscles, the list goes on! Plus, Vitamin D deficiency is associated with hair loss, and no one wants that! You can get Vitamin D from sun exposure, just don’t get sunburned and keep exposure moderate! You can also get Vitamin D from dairy, egg yolks, and fatty fish.
• B Vitamins are a collection of vitamins that affect pretty much everything. You might have heard of biotin in relation to skin and nail health. There’s also niacin, riboflavin, and thiamine which are also important for skin, plus energy production. B vitamins are plentiful in many whole grains, nuts, egg yolks, lean meat, fish, and leafy greens.

How to Incorporate Vitamins and Minerals Into Your Wedding Diet

On top of these vitamins, the minerals calcium, iron, and magnesium support our immune system, muscles, bones and more. They’re all key for our ability to be active, have energy, and feel our best.

Luckily, it’s easy to develop a meal plan that incorporates all of the nutrients you need to support health and vitality, inside and out. I’ve included meal suggestions below that are rich in all of these vitamins and minerals. In general, if you center your diet around nuts, seeds, lean protein including full fat dairy, fruits, and vegetables (with a special focus on leafy green), you’ll be golden. You can also take a multivitamin. Though keep in mind that our body doesn’t absorb the nutrients from vitamins as well, especially if we don’t take vitamins with food. So you’ll still want whole food sources of these nutrients.

And as long as these foods are your main focus, you won’t get derailed if you have a little dessert, white bread, or chips. It’s all about moderation. For me, about 10% of my daily calories come from not so healthy stuff like chocolate or chips or chocolate chips, and I’m okay with that.

Breakfast Meal Suggestions

For breakfast, the most important meal of the day, you might consider any of the following options:

• Make a smoothie from fruit, a handful of spinach or baby kale, a cup of water, handful of ice, and some form of protein. I like adding in a giant spoonful of peanut butter or almond butter, full fat Greek yogurt, or replacing the water with a high protein milk option. If you want recipe options, I love this Raspberry Hemp Smoothie from Elyse Kopecky.
• Create a nutrient-rich parfait! As Donkey says in Shrek, “Parfaits are delicious!” Combine full-fat Greek yogurt with a teaspoon of honey, berries (I heat up ½-1 cup of frozen berries in the microwave and mix them in), and granola. Pick a granola that has lots of fiber and minimal added sugar. It’s easy to make your own granola as well. If I don’t have granola on hand I add Cheerios instead.
• 2 fried or scrambled eggs cooked with a handful of leafy greens and preferred spices. Top with a sprinkle of cheese and salsa. If desired, scoop egg mixture into corn tortillas for extra fiber. I make breakfast tacos for dinner too.
• Prepare oatmeal (preferably whole rolled oats or another higher fiber option). I like to mix in frozen raspberries (they melt in the hot oatmeal) and a big scoop of peanut butter for fiber, protein, and healthy fats.

Lunch and Dinner Meal Suggestions

For lunch or dinner, you might make:

• A salad mix topped with half a can of beans or a cup of chopped lean meat or fish. I like to buy salad mixes from Trader Joe’s and top them with beans for an easy, cheap meal.
• Whole grain toast topped with half an avocado mashed with 1/3 cup white beans, a sprinkle of lime juice, and a sprinkle of Everything Bagel seasoning. This is also a good breakfast option.
• A soup with lots of vegetables and lean protein. I love making Minestrone Soup! It’s especially great if you have vegetables to use up. I like adding sausage too, though that’s not exactly a lean meat option.
• I’m obsessed with pasta. It’s expensive, but there are some great pasta options made from chickpeas that are super high in protein and fiber and have a pretty good flavor. Banza is my favorite brand. I love making pasta salads for lunch from these alternative pasta options. One of my favorites is Caprese pasta salad. You can find this (and other healthy recipes) at my post on work from home lunches.
• Shredded chicken or black bean tacos with salsa, cilantro, avocado, a sprinkle of cheese, and corn tortillas
• Brown rice with sauteed veggies and lean meat. Or you can make fried rice with scrambled eggs for an alternative protein option!

Wedding Diet Snack Suggestions

• Air popped popcorn with a dash of olive oil and your preferred seasonings. I love nutritional yeast and garlic powder!
• Apple slices with cinnamon, peanut butter, or, my favorite, a dip made from a spoonful of peanut butter, 1/4 cup yogurt, and honey to taste
• A bowl of low-sugar, fortified cereal. Cheerios are a great option
• Veggies with hummus
• Healthy muffins – I use this recipe from the Rise and Run cookbook!
• Nuts!
• Kale chips – see my work from home lunch post for the recipe!
• A square or two of dark chocolate. Try and find a brand that is relatively low in sugar and has iron in it.
• Dates filled with nut butter.
• For more ideas, check out my post on work from home lunch and snack ideas!

And always make sure you have a healthy water intake. For women, the U.S. National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine recommend 11.5 cups a day. And for men they recommend 15.5 cups a day! However, if you work out or sweat a lot, you likely need even more. Luckily your food intake has water in it too. If your pee is very light yellow and you always drink when you’re thirsty, you’re probably well hydrated.

Why You Should Avoid the Crash Diet Before Your Wedding

To some people, these ideas probably sound quaint and simple. Where’s the detox diet? What about keto/Atkin’s/Weight Watchers/insert famous diet here? These diets work for some people. But for most people, they’re ineffective. The right diet plan is one that doesn’t feel like a diet. It’s something that is sustainable and makes you feel good. A diet that makes you lose tons of weight but that you can only follow for a month or two is not a good diet.

Plus, many diets that eliminate or severely limit whole food groups are not healthy. We need a wide range of foods to get enough nutrients. You want a pre-wedding diet that gives you all the vitamins and minerals mentioned above. A diet that eliminates carbs, for example, will often be sorely lacking in those B vitamins that affect pretty much everything in your body. Your body will also struggle more with cardio exercise without the carbs it needs for fuel. A diet that’s very high in protein can strain your digestive system and kidneys. No bueno when you’re already stressed! Plus, excess protein gets turned into fat and high protein foods often come with higher saturated fat to begin with.

Losing Weight the Healthy Way for Your Wedding Day

So focus on the tried and true, scientifically proven diet recommendations to look and feel the best in your wedding dresses. Think moderation and an emphasis on fruits, vegetables, lean protein, and whole grains. Eat nutritious, satiating whole foods. And aim to consume as many or less calories than you burn.

Finally, if you are trying to lose weight, keep in mind that you need to burn more calories than you take in. A very rough rule of thumb is you need to burn 3,500 more calories than you take in to lose 1 pound. That’s 500 calories a day for a week! Make sure not to starve yourself. Instead, you can try 45 minutes of jogging, 90 minutes of walking, or 70 minutes of moderate cycling daily to get to that calorie deficit. Or you can get that calorie deficit with a balance of exercise and cutting some calories. Look for easy wins like cutting out soda or alcohol or trading an unhealthy snack for one of the snack recs above.

Leading Up to the Big Day

Your diet in the months before the wedding may differ from your diet the week of the wedding. After all, we all know beans make you bloat. So you likely want to avoid any of those bean-heavy options a week before your big day. To combat bloat, drink a lot of water. Drinking tea with ginger, peppermint, or a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar can also reduce bloating, especially the last minute before the wedding. Just make sure you’re not drinking more than 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar a day, as doing so can wear away enamel and be hard on your stomach.

The week before the wedding, you may want to focus on foods that involve limited bloating and help your digestion. After all, there’s a good chance you’ll have some wedding jitters. Leafy salads with lean meat and a lemon or apple cider vinaigrette, yogurt with berries and granola, and fermented foods like kimchi are all great options for digestion. And once again, don’t deprive yourself either. Yes, it helps to focus on healthy foods. However, this can be a stressful time and you’ve accomplished something big by planning your wedding. You’ll still look ah-mazing in your wedding dress, even if you have that brownie.

Wedding Fitness Routine

I love developing a fitness plan that helps me work towards meaningful fitness goals. A fitness plan is a great way to feel motivated and empowered. The best fitness plans involve a mix of cardio, strength training, and stretching. I give recommendations for each below.

Cardio Exercise Programs

Regularly doing moderate cardio is important for your heart health and energy. These kinds of workouts will help you dance all night long. Plus, they’re key for a health body weight and calorie burn. The Department of Health and Human Services recommends 150 minutes of moderate cardio each week to boost health and longevity. To reach this, aim for 30 minutes 5 times a week.

Workouts for Beginners or Those Who Hate Cardio

If you are just getting started with cardio or if you hate cardio, then walking is a great option. As I note in my post on fat burning, it’s actually one of the most effective exercises for burning fat. It’s also great for your heart and longevity. Keep in mind you’ll need to walk longer to burn an equivalent number of calories as jogging, cycling, swimming, or other cardio exercises. However, walking is a great de-stressor. And you can always catch up on phone chats or walk to work, errands, etc. if you want to save time.

For the average 150-pound person, an hour of moderate walking burns 200-350 calories depending on terrain.

Workouts for Those Short on Time

If you don’t have much time to work out, high-intensity interval training (HIIT workouts) are a great option. The idea behind HIIT training is that you do bursts of high energy exercises like burpees or jump squats followed by short rests. They often make for a great full-body workout. This article from Self goes over a great, customizable HIIT workout that’s perfect for any fitness level, and especially those starting out. I like this one from Men’s Journal for a somewhat more advanced option. Don’t get hung up on the gendered nature of the publication. These exercises are great for creating a toned body for whatever gender you identify with.

Because of the high intensity nature of these exercises, you likely won’t work out for a full hour. So 30 minutes of HIIT exercises can burn up to 500 calories for a 150-pound person, depending on the exercises chosen.

Workouts to Seriously Build Heart Health and Energy

If you have a little experience and want to really build your endurance, I highly recommend advancing to jogging, running, cycling, swimming, or other endurance activities. These exercises help you majorly burn calories. Plus, endurance exercises strengthen your heart, lungs, and muscles. They also correspond to a lower risk of injury than high intensity exercises.

An hour of moderate jogging, cycling, and swimming burns about 700, 300, and 400-500 calories for the average person, respectively.

Strength Training Exercise Routines

You’ll get the best results from your workout if you incorporate weight training. Strength workouts are great for fat burning as they actually turn on your fat burning genes. Plus, muscle burns calories long after your workout routine. Plus, strength training can help you tone muscles so that you feel extra confident in your wedding dress.

I recommend either doing a full-body strength training workout 2-3 times a week, or doing shorter targeted strength training workouts more regularly that work different body parts. For example, you might do 10-minute lower body strength training workouts on Monday and Thursday, core workouts on Tuesday and Friday, and upper body workouts on Wednesday and Saturday. 

Fitness apps like Peloton have great strength training workouts for all fitness levels and timeframes. You can also check out my 10-minute workouts for beginners. And I love resistance bands for building strength, especially as a beginner. You can check out my resistance band workouts on this blog. These workout plans take the hard work out of workout planning.

If you have specific parts of your body that you want to tone and show off in your wedding dress, consider looking for workouts that target those muscles. For example, if you want toned shoulders, you’ll likely want to incorporate planks, shoulder presses, and front and lateral raises into your routine.

Things to Keep in Mind

First, it’s a good idea to always warm up with 5-10 minutes of dynamic stretches and cool down with 5 or more minutes of stretching, especially before and after intense workouts. Doing so helps prevent injury and soreness. You can see my post on stretching for info on how to integrate warm-ups and cooldowns into your workout routine.

Second, remember to incorporate active recovery days into your routine. Most of us need at least 1-2 active recovery days per week to avoid injury and burnout. Use these days to stretch, go on easy walks, or heck, just get through your chores. Vacuuming up your pet’s fur burns quite a few calories too!

If you need a little motivation to get going, consider working out with a best friend, family member, personal trainer, or joining a class. Group training sessions like a spin class, pure barre, or run club can take the guesswork out of planning workouts while getting your body wedding-ready. As an added bonus, they’re fun! And they are a great way to meet new friends. 

Finally, you’ll get the best wedding body results by working out regularly. Even a little bit of physical activity done consistently adds up to a lot. Short, consistent workouts are better than long occasional workouts for lasting results.

Free Wedding Diet and Workout Plan Habit Tracker

Whew, that’s a lot to keep in mind. To make things easier, I’ve provided a free printable habit tracker. Following the habits included in the habit tracker should put you well on your way to feeling strong and confident for your wedding. Plus, there’s space to add a couple of your own habits if you want to add something else in like a daily reading, meditation, or gratitude habit. Simply download and print at home or your local library or print shop.

Final Thoughts

The lead up to your wedding is a great time to get into a healthy lifestyle habit. Indeed, improving your overall health through regular moderate exercise and good nutrition can majorly improve your mood and stress levels. After all, we all want to lessen stress during wedding season and feel our best on our special day. That’s way more important than a number on a scale. 

Just remember that, as in all things, moderation is key. As long as you eat well most of the time and get in physical activity reasonably frequently, a little dessert, some chips, or a side of fries won’t derail your progress. And they may be just what you need to keep up those good habits! My wish for you is that wedding planning is a time of love, fun, and excitement, with a healthy dose of self care on the side.

I hope this post helps you do just that! If you enjoyed this post, please consider liking, subscribing, or sharing with others. It’s always a huge help! If you’re interested in related posts, check out my posts on wedding planning, saving money on weddings, or any of the posts linked above.

Finally, remember that I am not a personal trainer or medical professional. Before starting a new health routine, consult with a professional.