A year ago the love of my life asked for my hand in marriage. I was beyond excited, but also felt the nerves of the numerous preparations – most of all, fitting into the dress! I had also just been certified as a holistic health coach and was working with clients one-on-one to meet their personal goals. So, I decided to chronicle my journey through our engagement as I attempted to get in the best shape of my life for the happiest day of my life (it absolutely was, but more on that later!). My goal was to develop the perfect wedding weight-loss plan featuring delicious meals that are simple and quick to make.
However, as any soon-to-be bride knows, the entire run up to the big day is filled with more celebrations – which are great! But, celebrations also bring chocolates, champagne and basically every calorie imaginable. I had to find a balance between enjoying one of the happiest times of my life, while preparing to look the part of the beautiful bride on the biggest day of my life.
Over the past year, I gathered recipes, meal plans and workouts that helped me hit my goals. I also had the luxury, as a health coach, of working with other brides, bridesmaids, mothers and family members to reach their personal goals for their weddings. Shed for the Wed (the blog) chronicles some of my favorite recipes, meals, good decisions, and the occasional set backs. I have an improv style to my cooking, which makes for yummy creations and hard to follow directions! I am by no means an expert chef, just a lover of good homemade meals.
My husband and I have a weakness for cupcakes, sushi (with cream cheese and tempura), pizza and red wine. All of these things are not the best foods for getting into shape (or general health), but my philosophy is that life is short, and indulgence is natural! I am a firm believer in the 80/20 rule. Eat clean 80% of the time, and treat yo’ self that other 20%.
With the right meal planning and lifestyle choices, any bride-to-be can have her (wedding) cake, and eat it too!
About Shed
Shed for the Wed is obviously about shedding for the wedding. Or at least that was its original idea. But there is so much more to it than that. It is about coming into yourself and feeling beautiful. It is about finding splendor in the every day details of life. It is about gratitude. It is about sparkle. You WILL sparkle on your wedding day. (If you are marrying the right person, it is an inevitable blessing.) But I hope that I can help you sparkle every day before and after your wedding. I want to help you feel your best and be your happiest self. If I assist in that in any way, than my mission is accomplished.
Also, let it be known and clear that I do not believe that anyone needs or should lose or gain weight before their wedding. You are beautiful the way you are. Honest to goodness. I am here to enable you to feel your best. Whether that means losing weight or just eating better for your health, I am here to help.
Items of note:
- My personal cooking style is crafted by generations of Italian mothers, but includes absolutely ZERO formal training. My approach is not an exact science, but embraces a lot of eye-balling, and adjusting to taste. Personally, I think improvisation is the best for coming up with new meals and making use of what you have in your fridge.
- As several posts were not written in live time, with authenticity as the motive, I have decided to name them BLTN (abbreviated for “better late than never”). When you see that precursor to the title of the post you know that it was written sometime over the last year.
- My photos are very often shot with my iPhone in poor lighting. I will do better. Please be patient with me as I learn and grow in the blogosphere. ☺ All photos are mine unless otherwise noted.
I hope you enjoy reading these posts as much as I loved creating them. Cheers!
In joy and health,
Alexandra