My wedding is in 2 weeks, how can I drop down a size?

I strongly recommend you start your fitness plan well before 2 weeks in advance. You will have much better results, I promise you. Take my word, if it’s not too late for you. For those who are already 2 weeks away from the wedding, you can lose weight by significantly decreasing your salt intake, avoiding sugar and drinking more water. This results in flushing out sodium, the cause of the water weight. It’s not going to be fun! You’ll be living off of eggs (no salt), plain chicken, turkey, tuna and plain veggies. When you lose more than 2 pounds a week it indicates you are either losing muscle or water weight. Neither will create a smaller, toned body. In a pinch, ditch the salt.

HIIT me! No, I’m not a bad speller asking to be hit. HIIT with two i’s is High Intensity Interval Training. Would you believe me if I told you 20 minutes of HIIT would burn more calories than 60 minutes of steady state cardio? It’s true! During the actual exercise session, you will burn more calories with the steady state cardio, but the beauty of HIIT is it leaves you burning calories for HOURS after your workout!

To perform HIIT, warm up for 3-5 minutes at an easy pace. Then you need to push yourself for 30 seconds, rest for 120 and repeat for 20 minutes. For example, on an elliptical machine, you would warm up for 3-5 minutes, then increase the incline or pace for 30 seconds and work your tail off! Return to an easy incline for 120 seconds. Alternate hard and easy intervals 5-8 times. Follow with a cool down for another 5 minutes. It’s not going to be EASY but the time will fly by and your body will thank you for it later when you’re strolling down the sandy beach on your honeymoon looking better than ever! If you only have 20 minutes available for the whole workout, decrease the HIIT time, always make time for your warm-up and cool down. Alternate days with HIIT and strength training and you’re on your way!

Now we’re talking! If you have extra fat on your arms, you need to take a two pronged approach. You need to cut your calories (never go lower than 12-1500 calories a day) and start strength training. As you know, you can’t control where you lose the fat, but you can control where you build muscle. I know you want to focus on your upper body, but include lower body and core strength training as well. A strength training session works similar to HIIT in that you will burn calories for hours after your training session, skimp on the lower body and core training and you limit the number of calories you will burn after your session. Plus, if you are going to be in a swimsuit on your honeymoon, what good is toned arms and a flabby bottom? Whole body strength training is the way to go!

If you can afford it, I strongly recommend you hire a personal trainer. A good personal trainer will not only provide you with a quality fitness program, they will also keep you motivated and make it fun! If you can’t afford a personal trainer, take advantage of online fitness communities. One example, and my personal favorite of course, is the Firefly Fitness Community at www.FireflyFitness.com/Community. It provides you with the support and knowledge to create a beautiful strong body. Another cost saving option is to meet with a trainer once a week and do the workouts on your own 2-3 times throughout the week. Finally, document your reasons for wanting to exercise! Create a collage consisting of inspirational quotes and pictures and hang it on your fridge, in your car, by your bed, everywhere! Next time you think of reaching for the remote control instead of your sneakers, this can remind you of why you really want your sneakers!