When Wedding Prep Becomes a Workout…
Posted by Jolene on Oct 10, 2008. Filed under Bridal Beauty Advice
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While I’m a proud member of the Exercise Avoidance Club, my colleague Denise is definitely one of those energetic women who loves to pump it up. (She actually confessed in a recent post that she loves exercise boot camps!). This contrast became strikingly obvious on a recent business trip when Denise lured me into our hotel gym. She ran for 30 minutes on a treadmill and called it her warm-up. I walked for 30 minutes, and needed 2 aspirin, a margarita and a nap.
I think what bugs me most about exercise is its purposelessness. I mean, does it balance your check book, return your emails or take out the trash? No. Even the nebulous goal of “weight loss” is immediately negated by the chocolate truffle with which I reward myself.
In order to overcome this lack of immediately perceivable benefit, I’ve substituted household chores for the conventional workout. This may seem like a rationalization for skipping the gym. But my house does look a lot cleaner. It goes something like this:
- Dusting=warm-up
- Mopping the floor=3 sets on rowing machine
- Scrubbing the tub=2 sets of bicep curls
- Walking upstairs to go to bed=1 minute on the stairmaster
- etc., ad nauseum
It occurred to me that brides can develop their own exercise equivalency chart, so that all those wedding-related chores can actually count as gym time! Charts will vary, but might look something like this:
- Running up the 3 flights of stairs because you’re 15 minutes late to meet your caterer at a historic private estate=2 minutes on the treadmill
- Hiking to the secluded forest altar where you dream of having your wedding ceremony=10 minutes of step aerobics
- Lifting 17 albums of sample wedding invitations=17 bench-presses
- Barging through the crowds outside of the bridal superstore sample sale=1 round of kick-boxing
See what fun this is?
(For those of you interested in a more traditional workout program, check out Sue Fleming’s Buff Brides books and video downloads with real exercises!
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Comments
I like to keep my cardio sessions short and intense. I do my cardio workouts first thing in the morning for just 20 minutes of high intensity. After that I drink a 4 to 1 ratio shake of four parts simple carbohydrates and one part protein. No fat should be consumed at this time.
It works for me in reducing my body fat.
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Cardio workouts should be done every day or at least three times a week for 45 minutes to an hour. Chose something you enjoy doing so that you won’t want to miss a workout. The cardio program can consist of spinning classes, a treadmill or elliptical machine, brisk walking, or any type of aerobic exercise that gets the heart pumping. Do a variety of activities to keep your cardio time fun and interesting.