Your wedding day is one of the most memorable days of your life so you want everything to be perfect, but for many brides their search for perfection leaves them feeling stressed out and anxious.
Nuzest registered clinical nutritionist and naturopath, Cliff Harvey, PhD, DipFit, DipNat, advises brides-to-be to forget crash diets and crazy exercise regimes in favour of some simple dietary changes.
“The human body is an amazing machine,“ says Cliff. “It performs millions of processes every day to move us around and turn thoughts into actions.
Good food, containing all the vitamins and minerals to run these processes, is critical for the body to work well - true beauty (clear skin, shiny hair, sparkling eyes) really does start on the inside.“
Cliff defines a healthy diet as one that is made up of 80% natural, whole, unprocessed food.
These foods are most likely to contain greater amounts of valuable micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, antioxidants) that help your body work well, fight stress and, in the process, lose fat and gain muscle.
Frantic dieting and over-exercising is often counter-productive, creating a boomerang effect rather than building the foundations for sustainable good health. Supplements can be useful to help simplify your move to a healthier diet according to Cliff - but they should not be used to replace real food. Sensible supplementation takes the guesswork out of good nutrition; ensuring that your body‘s metabolic pathways are properly fueled, leaving you healthier and more vital.
Good Green Vitality is a once-a-day shake that offers complete nutritional support. Containing 75+ ingredients that include the very best forms of vitamins and minerals in a real-food base of greens, fruits, vegetables, herbs and berries; Good Green Vitality is strengthened with antioxidants, probiotics and digestive enzymes.
“Good Green Vitality feeds your body and your mind,“ says Cliff. “Adaptogenic herbs help sharpen your mental processing and reduce stress; a careful mix of vitamins and minerals support digestive health and immunity and, most importantly, all the ingredients are present in forms that are easy for your body to absorb and use.“
For best results, make changes to your diet, add a supplement and start (or continue) to get regular exercise at least three months before your wedding. This will support any weight loss goals and give you peace of mind knowing that you are getting all the nutrients you need to really shine on the big day.
Eight ways to find your shine
Eat the rainbow
Reduce carbs and boost your intake of vegetables and berries. Work towards eating more than six fist-sized servings per day and at least one serving each of green, orange/yellow, red and purple options.
Eat meals not snacks
Avoid comfort food and take the time to eat properly balanced meals. Research suggests a link between snacking, increased obesity and poorer quality food choices. If you‘re stretched for time, protein smoothies are a quick, easy, nutritious meal. Add Good Green Vitality to make sure all your bases are covered.
For healthy eating on the run, choose a high-quality plant protein like Clean Lean Protein as a base for morning and afternoon meals. Many people find that making one large smoothie in the morning (including greens and berries plus small amount of good fat like avocado or coconut cream) and splitting it in half provides an easy-to-grab nutrition boost when the 2-3pm munchies hit.
Eat protein at every meal
Protein speeds up your metabolism more than carbs and fat. A higher protein diet is associated with lower body fat levels and lean muscle gain. Protein also helps you to feel fuller for longer - making comfort food less of a temptation.
Hydrate!
The human body gets through about 100ml of water an hour so you need at least two litres per day to stay hydrated. Kick-start your day by drinking two large glasses of fresh, purified water as soon as you wake up. Add half a squeezed lemon or one tablespoon of apple cider vinegar to one. (why?)
Cook extra dinner
Save half for lunch the next day. This will help you to avoid less healthy options during the working day.
Get enough sleep
Sleep is crucial for recovery, repair and restoration of our bodies. It‘s also vital for hormonal balance. Even one night of poor sleep increases the likelihood of over-eating and sugar cravings. Sleep deprivation also makes us more prone to mood disorders.
Learn to relax
Stress is not external but internal and is directly related to our bodies storing more fat. Learning to relax more can significantly help with weight loss.
Stay active & do what you love
Find activities that you enjoy. If you‘re not into boot camps or running, try dance or yoga. You are much more likely to continue exercising if you have fun while you‘re doing it. Find a community to support and share your exercise of choice, it can really help you to keep your health and weight loss goals on track.
Go to our recipes pages for some delicious, healthy meal, snack and smoothie ideas.
