My next blog post was supposed to be about my top things couples should discuss before getting married. I was struggling with writing that post, because it was coming off too preachy and too much like a rant. So I decided to do the Bridal Boot Camp post instead.
Today starts 3 weeks into my official bridal boot camp, and I am starting to see results. I’m REALLY happy about it. I think the breaking point for me was seeing pictures of myself at my bridal shower on Facebook. I didn't look my best, and it made me feel insecure. I'm proud that I decided to finally do something about my weight. ANDDDD the best part about my bridal boot camp is that “My Hubby-To-Be” is doing this whole thing with me.
Within the 10 days I lost 7 lbs and the “Hubby-To-Be” lost 10 lbs. We have maintained that weight loss for the past few days, and we are now entering the third week.
Within the 10 days I lost 7 lbs and the “Hubby-To-Be” lost 10 lbs. We have maintained that weight loss for the past few days, and we are now entering the third week.
WHAT IS BRIDAL BOOT CAMP?
The words boot camp are a poor choice of words to describe what we are doing. For us it's less about activity and more about diet. We are basically cutting out all of the bad stuff, and incorporating more better eating habits and physical activity in our daily routine.
It sounds very easy but it’s actually very hard work. Initially my “Hubby-To-Be” and I did not intend on detoxing or doing any form of boot camp. We just said we were going to be on the straight and narrow for 14 days, and eat as healthy as humanly possible. We both doubted our capabilities. After putting in hard work for the first 7 days we said well this isn’t so bad. Since we didn’t starve said to ourselves "okay after the next 7 days lets try to push this new healthy thing on to the end of the month." Yep, that’s how the bridal boot camp began!
It sounds very easy but it’s actually very hard work. Initially my “Hubby-To-Be” and I did not intend on detoxing or doing any form of boot camp. We just said we were going to be on the straight and narrow for 14 days, and eat as healthy as humanly possible. We both doubted our capabilities. After putting in hard work for the first 7 days we said well this isn’t so bad. Since we didn’t starve said to ourselves "okay after the next 7 days lets try to push this new healthy thing on to the end of the month." Yep, that’s how the bridal boot camp began!
I realized during this process that I am a sugar junky. Yes, I mean junky in the most derogatory way possible. I am addicted to sugar. I thought I was going to stop eating sugar cold turkey but I realized it is impossible to cut out sugar completely in your diet. There are forms of sugar that you can cut out. The first thing to go was any form of sugary drinks i.e. the sodas and fruit juices. So we only drink water and seltzer. This was easy in the beginning but it started to get difficult around day 3 when I wanted coffee.
For the first 6 days all we ate were fresh fruits, vegetables, plain oatmeal, and nuts. This was hard because we literally had to eat every 3 hours. We also did light workouts during the first 6 days. I did a lot of walking, and other cardio activities.
WEIGHT LOSS
For both of us the weight loss is noticeable. I took a picture of myself, and noticed that my face is a tiny bit slimmer. That is motivation in itself. Seeing the scale move down, visibly seeing my stomach go down, and my face tighten up is a great thing. Results are important. I need to see results to know that I am doing something right. I think for trainers and people who work in fitness they want you to have patience which is very important. Personally, me speaking from a perspective of someone who was thin for a very long time and now is overweight, it’s easy to be patient when you weigh 130 pounds. When you weigh 180 or 190 or 200 pounds it’s not so easy to be patient.
Before detoxing I was on this cycle where I would go to the gym for 3 weeks at a time and I wouldn’t lose one pound so I would quit. I personally hate the gym for the following reasons: I do not enjoy running, I’m self-conscious about being in workout clothes, I’m self-conscious about working out around people who look like they are about to compete in American Gladiators
I find it unhealthy and counter productive to force myself into a situation that I’m not 100% comfortable with all in the nature of trying to work through problems. NO THANKS! That is why I decided to develop my own bridal boot camp routine and it’s working so far!
CHALLENGES
Earlier I referred to myself as a sugar junkie. I have been treating my battle with food and sugar like an addiction to drugs. I have watched enough Celebrity Rehab, Intervention, and Couple’s Therapy (Oh the joys of bad television!) to understand how to approach this addiction crisis. It sounds melodramatic, but it is quite serious.
One of the biggest challenges was finding new recipes. I consider myself to be a pretty good cook. But really how hard is it to cook a burger in the George Foreman grill, and deep fry French Fries in a deep fryer. I had to figure out creative ways to steam broccoli and cabbage. Oh yes, it was definitely trial and error.
Another one of my hang-ups is that I don’t have the energy to make meals that are time consuming. So I found recipes for short meals. 90% of all of my meals take 25-30 minutes to make. I incorporate fruit in my meals, and I substitute. Instead of making a chicken stir fry I will make a cabbage, spinach, mushroom, and cauliflower stir fry with a side of cherries and almonds. It sounds silly. 3 weeks ago I would have rolled my eyes, and ordered a pizza but it really isn’t bad. The key is utilizing your spices and using meaty veggies. For example mushrooms are really meaty tasting vegetables. Also olive oil has become my very best friend.
Another one of my hang-ups is that I don’t have the energy to make meals that are time consuming. So I found recipes for short meals. 90% of all of my meals take 25-30 minutes to make. I incorporate fruit in my meals, and I substitute. Instead of making a chicken stir fry I will make a cabbage, spinach, mushroom, and cauliflower stir fry with a side of cherries and almonds. It sounds silly. 3 weeks ago I would have rolled my eyes, and ordered a pizza but it really isn’t bad. The key is utilizing your spices and using meaty veggies. For example mushrooms are really meaty tasting vegetables. Also olive oil has become my very best friend.
Another challenge is doing all of this on a budget. The foods that are the best for you cost the most, and go bad (or rotten) pretty quick. It takes a lot of effort to research recipes, figure out if you can afford them, and then find the time to purchase them. I had to learn to NOT buy things all at once, because you waste your money. I plan out what I’m going to make for the next 3 days and try to go shopping every 3 days. It seems time consuming. When you have a list, and already have in mind what you’re going to pick up, and how much you’re going to spend it really isn’t time consuming.
I guess the highlight of being unemployed is I have the time to dedicate to do all of this. When I was working it was hard for me to stick to a diet or exercise plan, because of the amount of time you have to dedicate to it. That’s why it’s easy to put your body in the hands of a trainer, because you don’t have the time to figure out what works and what doesn’t.
My advice for those who work is to dedicate time in the beginning to come up with a plan. When I say time in the beginning I mean don’t completely change your current routine until you have figured out what is feasible and what isn’t. If you have a very stressful job and need to drink coffee to keep you going, try to figure out what else may keep you going besides coffee. It may take a day or 3 days or 3 weeks, but figure it out first. Making those subtle changes early really helped me when I began my detox/boot camp. I gradually stopped drinking soda, and sugary drinks. Next I moved onto wine, and then potato chips. Did I backslide, of course, but when I decided to quit for the boot camp I knew I could do it because I did it before.
GOING THROUGH DETOX
Cutting out bad food and only eating fruits and veggies is basically detoxing. When people talk about going through detox it seems like a spiritual journey. It seems pleasant and you’re going to walk away feeling enlightened and free of all burden.
Yeah ummmm it wasn’t quite like that for me and “The Fiancé.” We went through every raw emotion you can imagine. Plus the headaches were so terrible. I felt weak at times. I had to rest. We bickered all the time. And we would get into arguments about FOOD. Who argues about food? It was more like this:
When I say sugar junkie I mean junkie. The second week was hard because I really didn’t know what to cook. “My Guy” works, A LOT, and I felt there was pressure on me to figure out a decent menu. I realized that I didn’t know a lot of vegan or vegetable based recipes. 100% of the recipes that I know contain some form of meat. That’s when I decided to substitute. I substituted the noodles, the over load of sauce and meatballs in my traditional spaghetti, and placed light sauce fresh tomatos over sauteed green, red, yellow peppers, and onions. NOO it didn't taste like spaghetti but it did taste like some sort of pasta and that's what I was going for.
TEMPTATION
Temptation is EVERYWHERE. My aunt invited me to her neighborhood block party. I thought I was going to fail, and eat a hot dog. Instead I was very strong. I picked up a veggie tray and a fruit salad from the grocery store. I only ate what I brought to the block party, and I didn’t stay very long. It was tough, but I was so proud of myself.
Another huge temptation is the feeling like you’re being stalked by tv commercials.
Temptation is everywhere, but at some point you start to laugh it all off literally.
Follow me on twitter: @theantibride2013 to get more results.
Sincerely,
The Anti-Bride 2013
twitter: @theantibride2013
email: theantibride2013@gmail.com
twitter: @theantibride2013
email: theantibride2013@gmail.com
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