A wedding can be a lot of pressure, all of your closest friends and family gather, phones at the ready, to photograph every minute detail of you and your wedding. You will be photographed from every conceivable angle for a 24 hour period; a taste of the celebrity lifestyle most of us would rather not experience. In the UK, Wedding Culture is exploding and the pressure to have the perfect wedding, to look perfect, is incredible. It’s natural that a lot of brides and grooms-to-be wander into gyms in the early stages of engagement looking for some support. People obviously want to look their best given the circumstances, but it is so much more than that. People want to feel confident, they want to know what they are capable of, they want to head into this next phase of life looking and feeling like their best selves.
Be Weary of Crash Diet/Fitness routines
Alex Linfield Wedding Day, Photograph John McCulloch, studio900.co.uk
If you want to look good for your wedding day, any gym can make that happen. If you want your wedding to be the catalyst that ignites a lasting change in your healthy lifestyle choices, then you need a great gym with a supportive community. Crash diet and fitness routines may work for a short time, but come the day after the wedding, new couples often find themselves in a post-wedding down. It is important to set realistic goals and take setbacks in stride, this doubles as marital advice! Synergy member and Groom Alex Linfield said "I set lots [of goals]! Gym 3 times a week, no takeaways, jog once or twice a week, say "no" to desserts… Failed a bunch of them, but I never take failure in the moment as a sign that I can't make a healthier decision the next time round."
Channelling the Pressure
Synergy member Bride-to-be Rosie Adcock said “Everyone is trying to sell you something…if you don’t have ‘this’ then your wedding won’t be perfect. The same goes for the way you look, it’s too much pressure. Pinterest is both your best friend and your worst enemy.” Planning a wedding can feel like an insurmountable mountain. Everyone has an opinion of how you have to do things and will ask you a dozen questions about the smallest of details. I remember calling my reception venue no less than 3 times the week before my wedding to change the colour of my napkins. Napkins. Getting into a gym can be a great way to help manage stress and have some you time away from the constant buzz.
Gaining Confidence
Building up your strength and watching your body change can be a great boost in confidence. If you can do a few chin-ups, you can absolutely tackle the warlock that is the Seating Arrangement. Rosie “had always been afraid of going to the gym and as someone who suffers [from] a long-term injury thought [she] would never be able to lift weights and become stronger, but Synergy just made [her] feel at ease.” Having a room full of people cheering you on, a trainer right there saying "you've got this, just one more rep!" Does wonders for self-confidence. It isn't just about looking good in a photo, it is confirmation that you are prepared for this next stage in life. What ever the obstacles you and your partner face, you've got this. Just one more rep.
-Lisa Hurd
If you are interested in a free group session with Synergy Chester, check out our Group Sessions page and see what our fitness community can do for you. Prefer to have a more personal introduction? Check out our Personal Training page.
Congratulations to the newly wedded Mr. & Mrs. Jones and Mr. and Mrs. Linfield! (Right photo credit, John McCulloch studio900.co.uk)