Eat To Feel Beautiful
Blushing brides may glow with the look of love—but careful behind-the-scenes grooming is usually also to thank for their beauty. Learn what’s worth the splurge at the spa to get you looking your best, be inspired by glitzy and vintage jewels to rock on your wedding day, and get tips from photographers on how to look your best in front of the camera.
Eat to Feel Beautiful
By Ashley Bunner
With wedding planning comes the pressure to look perfect in your wedding dress, and so workout routines and crazy crash diets are an all-too-common fix many brides turn to in desperation. But achieving the ultimate body for your big day doesn’t have to be stressful. It’s simply a matter of learning which foods are harmful to your diet and why you should choose a healthier alternative to munch on. Whether it’s the month, week or day before your wedding, learning the most nutritious foods for your body will result in a healthier—and happier—you.
The Month Before
It may not come as a surprise that junk foods—chips, ice cream, candy and soda—are laden with sugar and fat. Not only are these foods unhealthy for you, they tend to zap your energy levels, leaving you feeling tired and lethargic. One month before the wedding, consider cutting back on refined carbohydrates (such as cookies and white bread), refined sugar, dairy, caffeine and alcohol. As a result of cutting these foods out of your diet, you will discover a much-appreciated increase in energy and be able to fight off further cravings. An added benefit is that it may also be a good time to figure out if you have any food sensitivities.
One Week Before
The foods you eat the week before your wedding can help determine whether or not you’ll feel light and energetic or puffy and lethargic on the big day. For the week before your wedding day, you want to eat foods that will nourish your body without excess salts and sugars. Surprisingly, many foods that we think of as “harmless”—and maybe even healthy—are actually sugar and salt traps in disguise, leading to unflattering bloating and cramps.
Some foods to avoid include:
• Dairy: Shockingly, salty cheeses, like cheddar, have more salt per ounce than potato chips! If cheese is a must for you, try switching to varieties that have lower sodium such as mozzarella or Swiss.
• Cruciferous Vegetables: While you may think that you can’t go wrong eating raw vegetables, varieties like kale, cauliflower, broccoli and Brussel sprouts are loaded with cellulose. Cellulose is a type of fiber that is hard for our stomachs to break down, therefore resulting in bloating. Avoid this the week prior to keep the bloat at bay.
• Beans: While beans are a great source of low-fat protein, they also contain a type of complex sugar that is not digestible by the human body, therefore causing bloating and cramping.
• Chewing Gum: Chewing gum is probably one of the last things you’d expect to cause bloating. But chewing gum contains bloat-inducing sugar alcohol. Not to mention, the more you swallow when chewing, the more air you are inhaling, which also leads to bloating. Pop a breath mint instead and carry on.
The Day Before
On the day before your wedding, it’s important to opt for foods with detoxing properties such as lemons, avocadoes, bananas and asparagus. Foods that help to alkalize the body also help decrease belly bloat, which is an added benefit when you’re ready to zip up your dress.
Staying hydrated by drinking plenty of water, green tea and green juice is also important. Try to avoid coffee as its acidic properties can cause the body to hang onto more fat and cause you to feel puffy.
The Day Of
The day of your wedding you may be tempted to skip meals to keep from consuming extra calories and feeling bloated, but this is one of the biggest mistakes you could make. It’s important to eat a light, healthy breakfast that will keep you satisfied and give you the energy that you need for the day. Make sure you ask someone—like your mom or maid of honor—to remind you to eat something energizing that morning.
For a healthy breakfast try eating whole grain toast with natural peanut butter, a side of fruit and a cup of black coffee (if you must) with plenty of water to drink as well.
Once you’ve made it to this point, relax and enjoy your day. Indulge in some cake later because the honeymoon and time to rest are just around the corner!
Color Trends
This year weddings are featuring plenty of neutral romantics like champagne and rose shades. Marsala is the deep-hued favorite!
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