Six months to go
If you're planning to lose weight, you need to set realistic goals. Extreme regimes will simply deplete your body of vital vitamins during a period when you will be most in need of them. The simple fact is that consuming less calories than you expend in energy will result in weight loss, so give some thought to the sort of foods you plan to eat over the next six months, and how to fit exercise into your life regularly – at least 40 minutes, three times a week. Start with things that are easy to include, like walking, and schedule varied activies that you enjoy, like swimming or dancing, into your diary. Treat them like you'd treat any other appointment – honour them! This is your special time!
Lots of thought is given to bridal hairstyles and make-up, but this is only 'top dressing', and you'll want your hair and skin to shine through being in optimum condition from the inside out. Consider taking a combined daily supplement for hair, skin and nails. Kelp tablets are also excellent for strong, glossy hair, or you can use sheets of delicious toasted seaweed to make food wraps. Try to get into the habit of daily body brushing – this will not only make your skin incredibly silky, but stimulates circulation at the beginning and end of each day, encouraging toxins to leave the body.
Five months to go
If your mind is starting to feel frazzled by endless planning and juggling, ginkgo biloba keeps your thinking sharp by maintaining the blood flow to the brain. If you're just feeling generally fatigued, try Ginseng, or Co-enzyme Q10 - a powerful antioxidant which improves your body's energy production and helps speed up metabolism. An excellent way to energise your body through food is juicing – in seconds you can create delicious energy drinks that will be quickly absorbed into your body. Nothing you can buy off the shelf will be anywhere near as effect as fresh, home-made juices – but it's worth the minimal effort, your energy levels will rocket every time. And don't forget the best energiser and beautifier of them all – water!
Four months to go
If your period is due to arrive around the time of your wedding or honeymoon and you want to delay it, now is the time to see your GP. Even if you're already on the Pill, safely adjusting or delaying your period dates may need different timescales, depending on the type of pill. Get expert advice in plenty of time to avoid a very inconveniently timed visit from 'Aunt Flo'. While we're discussing things in the pelvic region: strengthening your pubococcygeus (PC for short!) muscle improves sex for both of you – your husband-to-be will love the heightened sensations from the tighter grip of your vaginal muscles, and you'll enjoy more powerful orgasms. Interested? Try stopping yourself urinating, mid-pee – those are the muscles you'll need to use. Practise doing lots of little squeezes in succession, as well as longer, sustained ones. The great news is, you can do this exercise anywhere – waiting for a bus, while you're on the phone – no one can tell! So there's no excuse not to build up to several sets of 20 reps a day!
Three months to go
Don't be disheartened if your exercise and eating regime has hit a slump. Diet-busting often happens when you don't plan ahead, so always look at what you'll be doing the next day, and if there's any need to buy or prepare anything. Boring perhaps, but effective. Allow yourself occasional treats – no-one can be a saint for months on end! Add some toning exercises as well, especially for those bits most likely to be on show in a wedding dress, or on the beach. Push-ups and free-weight exercises will help tone shoulders, arms and cleavage, and can be done at home, as can stomach crunches. Again, start off realistically; a few repetitions every day are better than one giant session once a week (that you'll always manage to talk yourself out of). But start now!
Two months to go
Having trouble sleeping? Pills aren't the answer, and are best avoided, as are stimulants – try not to have any caffeine after midday. Routine is key. If your mind is racing when you try to sleep, have a daily cut-off time for looking at wedding matters, at least an hour before you go to sleep. Use the last part of your day for some gentle yoga stretching, to release tension from your body. Then spend 10 minutes in 'light' meditation – focusing on one image in your mind, while doing slow, deep breathing, essential for physically slowing your body's responses down. Finish with a warm, not hot, bath. If it's hard to relax, try a self-hypnosis CD – they can really help you let go, by focusing your mind elsewhere. Have a weekly aromatherapy massage too. Some self-massage on your face will keep your complexion fresh and help avoid visible signs of tiredness, such as under-eye shadows and bags.
One month to go
Last minute stresses? Bach's Rescue Remedy is great whenever you start to feel overwhelmed. A few drops in water will calm you down, and get one of your bridesmaids to carry the spray version for instant de-stressing on the day. It also comes in a cream form, which can be useful if you have any skin break-outs.
Stress can also cause coldsores – eek! The last thing you want! Ensure you have some cold sore cream handy, and if you feel one coming up when you're nowhere near a chemist, dab on some strong cold coffee as a stopgap, as soon as you can.
Avoid having your hen party immediately before the wedding, two weeks prior is wiser. And your hen-night is not the night to have two crispbreads for dinner. Have a proper meal before you go partying, and try not to undo months of good work with a 10-hour booze-fest. A huge binge may cause your skin to break out in protest, necessitating inches of very unbridal, thick make-up on the big day! Include some glasses of water along with the wine/vodka swilling, and before you go out, leave vitamin C tablets and a pint of water beside your bed, taking them will definitely help minimise damage the next day. In no time your hard-won radiance will be shining through again!
