There’s an endless amount of information available to help brides lose weight, tone their arms and trim their waistlines — including dangerous crash diets and last-minute sweat fests. The exercise experts at Life Fitness outlined this healthy and realistic fitness timeline.
6 months out: Dedicate one hour, three times per week for exercise. Divide your time into 20 minutes of high-intensity cardio, 30 minutes of strength training and 10 minutes of stretching to start. Once you’ve developed a steady schedule, target your toughest areas with focused exercises, be it bicep curls and tricep presses for a strapless gown or bicycle crunches for a tight bodice, with more repetitions and weight.
3 months and counting: As anxiety ramps up before the wedding, seek comfort among friends. Bridal boot camps and other wedding-focused fitness classes can bring you side-by-side with women experiencing similar stresses. Or try group personal training with other brides-to-be you know.
1 month to go: Don’t let last-minute wedding activities derail your routine. You’ll need it more than ever to burn off those pre-event jitters. If time is just too hard to come by, focus on doing a shorter, high-powered version of your regular routine — intense cardio for 10 minutes and heavier weights for strength training.
The big day: Enjoy your better body and glowing energy. You worked hard to get here.
Grand Junction sets criterium series
The Grand Junction Criterium Series begins March 31 with five races to follow on April 7, 14, 21, 28 and May 5. This USA Cycling-sanctioned road race begins with Group B at 5:30 p.m. each race day at the Rocky Mountain Orthopaedic Associates building, 25½ Road and Fracture Lane in Grand Junction. Sign up at or just before the race at the Rocky Mountain Orthopaedic Associates building. Fields are limited to 100 riders, so register early, $23 per race, or $120 for the entire series in advance. Contact Chris Reed, 970-274-1232 or Mike Driver, 970-904-5708 for more information.
Know your risk
The American Diabetes Association estimates that 57 million Americans are at risk for Type 2 diabetes, and 5 million have diabetes and don’t know it. Tomorrow is the 22nd annual National Diabetes Alert Day, on which the ADA recommends people take an online test to gauge their risk. By answering a few questions about such topics as your age, weight, activity level and genetic predisposition to diabetes, people can learn if they are at low, medium or high risk for the disease and read about ways to prevent it. More at
