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Copley News, Spring 2006
Body-building brides shape up for their big day
By Shannon MayoCopley News Service
Brides-to-be are kicking up their fitness levels and escaping the stresses of wedding planning by enrolling in "bridal boot camps," an increasingly popular trend in the bridal industry.
Bridal fitness programs, which run anywhere from three months to one year in advance of the wedding date, are popping up everywhere from San Diego to Seattle. Brides are performing cardiovascular, butt-kicking exercises, which include strength training, stretching and yoga to ensure they are beaming with health on their big day.
"I obviously would be lying if I said I didn't want to look good in my dress," said bride-to-be Julie Hackworth, 34, of Seattle, who is taking classes with fitness trainer and Healthy Bride founder Christi Masi. "I've been on a kick just trying to get healthier and stay healthier and I had my diet in line, so now I just needed to kick up my fitness."
After three months of classes, Hackworth said she is much stronger and feels better than ever. "I think less about the weight I still have to lose and more about how great I feel and all of the good I'm doing for my health," she said.
Interestingly, Hackworth said her health-conscious friends don't talk about their weddings all that much, yet some women have swapped vendor numbers for wedding dresses, cakes and save-the-date cards. "I think it's a place where we can blow off steam and not really have to think about it for a while," she said. "But I definitely have developed friendships with these girls and we're all kind of united under this common thing of disliking this one person who's torturing you for an hour and a half."
Hackworth says the intensive, boot camp-like classes are definitely worth the money, time and effort. When she goes to the gym, she says, she knows she is going to the gym, but when she goes to the bridal classes, she's hanging out with friends in addition to getting a good workout.
Many brides-to-be, like Hackworth, are motivated to tone their bodies so they look nothing short of fabulous when they sport their wedding dress and later on, the honeymoon bikini. According to Dr. Cedric Bryant, chief exercise physiologist for The American Council on Exercise, the wedding day is an excellent motivator for women to get in shape and hopefully develop a workout routine that sticks. Depending on the fitness level of the individual, Bryant recommends women give themselves four to six months to make significant changes in how their body looks.
"If you adhere to sensible eating and a consistent exercise plan that involves cardio conditioning with resistance training, you'll be able to see some pretty dramatic results within that time frame," he said. "And if you can get them to stick with it, the odds of it becoming a long-term habit are pretty high." But Bryant does warn of the dangers of brides who take an overly aggressive approach, such as severely restricting calories, lifting too much weight or enduring cardiovascular exercise for too long. "Women have to be smart enough to realize the old saying that 'Rome wasn't built in a day' and you can't remodel your body in a couple of weeks either," he said.
Christi Masi, author of "The Healthy Bride Guide" and Modern Bride magazine's 25 Trendsetters of the Year, uses a circuit-style routine in her classes, where women are combining cardiovascular exercises with resistance training.
"We are always working our arms and abs, which are very high on the list for women," she said. "And arms in particular for brides."
Although Masi's program mainly focuses on fitness, nutrition is definitely a component. For the first class session, Masi's brides set goals and expectations and many aim to improve their eating habits. "In one of my classes, one woman said that she was going to cut out pizza and fried food from her diet," Masi said. "Another woman wanted to make sure she was eating all of her fruits and veggies every day." Other similar bridal boot camps have been sprouting in Arizona, New York and Texas, among other areas. In January 2006, personal trainer Bryan Schuler of Wired Fitness started up an outdoor fitness program designed specifically for brides and their bridesmaids. Last year, an engaged couple who transformed their bodies and lost weight before their wedding day inspired Schuler to create the classes.
"When I was at their wedding reception, everyone was telling me how great they looked," he said. "It felt good. I thought if I can help them, why can't I help others?"
Schuler accommodates every bride, working with woman at a variety of fitness levels and ages. And he likes to cap the classes at 10 to 12 people to keep it personal. But healthy-minded brides are going to want to plan financially for a firm and fit body. Schuler, for instance, charges between $180 and $240 for one month of classes. Masi's rates range from $110 to $258 for six weeks of classes.
Though it just might be worth it. After the wedding day, the bride only has the photographs, videos and the groom to remember her one special day. Schuler believes brides want to flip through their wedding albums with pride.
"These are pictures you will be looking at for the rest of your life," Schuler said. "Do you want to say 'Man, I was out of shape?' or 'I looked fabulous.' You are going to want to look good."
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