Fitness Guest Post: Kelli from The Turquoise Piano

We all know one of the first things to be added to the wedding to-do list is to get your engaged booty to the gym! And whether you're trying to lose a few pounds or just tone up what you already got, we all want to look our very best on our wedding day!

Well, since I am no fitness expert, I have invited one of my new favorite bloggers to talk a little about getting in shape for your big day. Take it away, Kelli...

"First of all, thanks Meaghan for letting me guest today.  I love meeting new bloggers and their friends!

Hey y'all!  My name is Kelli.  I'm a mom of two little girls trying to lose the baby weight and I actually never really say y'all out loud.  I'm from Utah.  It's just not in our vocab (but I say it in my head all the time).  I blog over at The Turquoise Piano about fitness, DIY, decor, real estate, and some kid stuff.  Basically whatever I have to say, I say it there.


Today I want to talk about weight loss before your wedding (or your friend's wedding).  I know you want to look your best on your wedding day.  I did.  But between the stress of planning the wedding and spending enough quality time with the people who matter, we often struggle with how to get there.  I did the Atkins diet for a few weeks before.  Worst. Diet. Ever. For me.  It's basically all fat and protein and zero carbs.  I had no energy and felt sick.  And the worst thing is that even if I did lose weight, I gained it all back plus more that quickly.

Fast forward a year and I lost my job and started a new one as a nutrition and exercise consultant because I had a bachelors degree in exercise science.  My new job was where I learned how to be healthy.

The first thing you need to know is to never eat below 1200 calories.  Your body will lose weight, but as much as it loses fat it will lose muscle and you'll be the same body fat percentage.  Not lean.  I suggest eating  5-7 small meals per day with 200-400 calories in each meal.  That way your metabolism stays high and burns fatty fat fat.

The second is that lifting weights will not make you bulky.  You're not going to look like you're a weight lifter on steroids -- unless you are on steroids.  Lifting weights is important to burn calories and become lean, which is what you want.  I suggest lifting 2-5 times per week.

Cardio is also important.  I suggest at least walking 4-5 times a week for at least 30 minutes.  Doing so burns your fat storage and you also get leaner.

It's all about becoming lean.  It's not all about losing weight.  Please do it the right way.  You can come over to The Turquoise Piano for my workouts, meal plans, and more suggestions.  Leave comments, email me with questions, whatever!  I'm here to help."

Thank you, Kelli, for sharing your fitness insights today! If you like what you read today, get yourself over to her blog and check out more. Also be sure to leave Kelli some comment love below!

And if you haven't yet, make sure you enter the Kiki La'Rue giveaway before it ends on Monday.