Clare Skelton trains at BMF Finsbury Park and got married in the village she was brought up in at the end of April. She’s shared her top five wedding fitness tips for a BMF bride-to-be so that anyone else out there who is preparing for their big day can benefit from her experience. Grooms-to-be can take most of these tips to heart too – just not the bit about grabbing a bridesmaid!!
Try to attend one or two more sessions a week than usual to improve your wedding fitness. BMF is a great way of de-stressing from all that wedding planning and it'll make you feel totally top! I'd been going to BMF Saturday morning sessions for about a year when I decided I wanted to push myself more. I started attending two or three times a week and really began to feel a difference. Realistically, I can still probably only do about 10 press-ups before collapsing in a sweaty heap, but in the run-up to the wedding, going to BMF as much as possible meant my physical and, more importantly, my mental health really benefited from being out in the park and jumping around.
This tip leads us nicely onto....
You are probably sick of planning but this one is useful. If your calendar is anything like mine, the months in the run-up to my wedding suddenly seemed to be full of hen do's/weekends away/venue visits/dress fittings and it was making life a bit hectic. To create a structure around when you can make a session, sit down at the start of each week and pencil into your diary when you can get to BMF or go for a swim or a run. Take a look at your week ahead - if your evenings and weekends are busy, can you squeeze in a morning session here or a lunchtime session there?
There was a collective groan when Finsbury Park Manager, Jel, brought out the Powerbags one drizzly Tuesday morning. 45 minutes later, my arms were agony! A day later, I was just about able to use a pen again! That said, most brides do have their arms out on show on the big day and if it's an area you want to concentrate on, swallow your fears and start playing around with power bags, ash poles and tyres. They are your friends, I promise. Just friends that are a little bit straight with you for your own good!
I was a jittery bag of nerves on the morning of our wedding and couldn't sit still. My saving grace was my very early morning walk with my bridesmaid, Ruth - taking this wedding fitness very seriously! We met at 7 am and burnt off some nervous energy with a walk, talking non-stop and with some excited shrieks and a couple of jumping jacks thrown in for good measure! So, on the morning of your wedding, get your trainers on, grab a bridesmaid and get out - I promise it'll help with the nerves.
This is the most important one. You've got a million different worries and pressures flying around and trying to push yourself too hard will only mean you get burnt out. If you get a bit rundown or overwhelmed, take a week off training. Don't push yourself and listen to your body. You'll come back eager, excited and raring to get moving again.
GOOD LUCK and have an amazing day :)
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