Your wedding day isa wonderful occasion, so naturally you want it to be perfect. For many women this can mean pressure to trim down for their special day. So, they diet and successfully shave off the kilos. But, when the honeymoon is over and the pressure is off, the overeating begins.

According to studies, two to three kilogram gains by the first anniversary is common.

 

Dr Jane Greer, American marital therapist and author of Gridlock: Finding the Courage to Move on in Love, Work and Life, says that after the wedding women return to their usual eating pattern. The trouble starts when the eating continues - and often escalates into bingeing. Women also find themselves cooking for two - and eating the same portions as their partner. "For many couples food is like sex; it's a shared pleasure," notes Dr Greer.

 

With matrimony comes complacency. Couples are at ease with each other, which is fine, except they become couch potatoes and forgo any physical. The trouble starts when the eatinq continues. The discipline they might have had when they were single and available.

 

Put on a few kilos since wedlock? Follow these tips: DON'T

 

• Eat leftovers -save them for lunch or feed them to the family pet.
• Eat the same portion size as your partner - he is most probably bigger than you and has greater kilojoule requirements.
• Drink too much alcohol, soft drinks and cordial.
• Turn to comfort foods in times of emotional stress - especially after a squabble. Instead, release any tension through physical activity, such as walking.

 

DO

• Find a type of exercise you can do together.
• Use small dinner plates

• Savour your meals, research suggests you're likely to eat less when you eat slowly, savouring all food tastes and smells.

• Share your dessert with your partner when you eat out.

 

Start the fitness challenge today!

 

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