Wedding 101 and Do It Yourself Wedding Planning

Friday, June 14, 2013

Fitness: Bridal Work-out

Wearing that perfect Dress.

                                       (An article about weight loss and doing it for less cost too!)


                                                (Fitness Magazine's Drop 10 challenge)

Here is my weight chart since 2010. And I'm almost back. But 107 will do just fine which was my weight
in 2011.



I have PCOS (Poly-cystic Ovarian Syndrome) Yes, its a syndrome indicating no cure.
What it does basically is it gives women acne, stores fat and hinders fertility. (But hey, I will NOT let that
happen) so to combat PCOS I needed to loose weight. PCOS is manageable. I declare victory over it!

I stopped Ballet in 2009. And after four years of being a couch potato I need to wake up and burn those fats!

And It worked. So here are the things that worked for me. :)

Before we go to my simple steps, let me first tell you some things about me.
  • I'm demi-vegetarian (No red meat diet for a looooong time)
  • I don't smoke, drink nor stay up late.
  • Current weight was 125 (January after Holidays then 120 in February) Target: 107 (December) And I have a Medium-petite frame. 
  • I'm NO EXPERT. But I'd like to share what has worked for me to inspire people.
  • Again, I have PCOS. which hinders weight loss but is nothing compared to my motivation.

               
 January

I started with 3 x week cardio through the DVD. 30 minutes per workout.
 
                  
Nothing hard. Just something fun. I love dancing so it was an easy thing to do. And it was enough to prep myself to go back to exercise regimens. What happens when you give yourself so much when you start? You get burned out! Then you end up eating much more because you deprived yourself or you were so tired that you started hating exercise. Then you quit and the next thing you know your back in the problematic cycle. 

*I dropped 2 lbs and was eating in moderation. I said goodbye to Frappes btw.
*I kep eating healthy too. (What if you are not a healthy eater, don't rush it. Take time, little by little. This is more effective than eating all salad straight in 2 months then after that you crave pizza or ice cream or something then boom you over eat. Don't deprive. Take it easy)
  February

I started running on weekends! (plus the DVD workouts) = 4 x workout in a week
30 minutes workout.
      
I started running in Makati Triangle. It was free. Being healthy doesn't need to be expensive.
If you are having a hard time running you can walk your dog on weekends. :) Find a nice park. But if you feel like going to the gym go ahead. There are a lot of affordable offers out there. You just need to find the right one for you.



If you are not a runner or someone who hates walking in the sun. Maybe you can do indoor sports. Badminton, Tennis, whatever. Or if you don't mind the sun how about some soccer?
Football perhaps? The thing is this worked for me because I loved it. Just do anything you enjoy.
*I dropped 3 lbs and was still eating in moderation.

If you're loosing the motivation. Make a tumblr account or read blogs on fitness.
For tumblr, posts are short and there's a lot of pictures. So if you read everyday surely you'll be
motivated. Here are my fave sites.

Here are some of my fave sites:
http://fitspoforever.tumblr.com/
http://fitnessgyro.tumblr.com/

top fave: http://wakeuphealthy.tumblr.com/

my tumblr though is for wedding: http://balletbride.tumblr.com/ and has very little fitness posts.
 March (Pumped up month!)
Swimming. I love swimming!

This time I was on a roll! I wanted to do exercise. I love sweating! And I love my
exercise outfits. :) 

So,I continued running, plus yoga at home 3x in a weekday, Saturday are for running and Sundays are Nestle Aerobics which was free and then swimming on Sundays.And even though I was doing a lot, it felt good. And I think its because I did not pressure myself nor was hard on myself. I went on my own pace. You may have a different pace from mine, just go with it. Do what makes you happy to be fit.

Note: This are all in 30-1hour per work out only. 
Maybe if I did more I might have lost more. But then again my goal is to maintain this
active lifestyle for long term. So that is enough for me.

I dropped  another 2 lbs and was eating in moderation. 
 April


I started getting bored with the DVDs so I subscribed with http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/

They will send you emails to keep you motivated. And they have online videos of workouts
made by experts. FOR FREE.

So I usually watched a few vids and try it at home. I was doing 15 minutes exercise. 
Sometimes I swim sometimes I ran. But I was doing no less than 4 workouts in a week.

I maintained my weight but saw a huge difference on my abs. :) Which was fine with me.

 May

I started calorie counting!

Its important to get your Daily Caloric Need. Then base your food on that. Download
an app on your smart phone to see how much you are eating. This is late for me to do, but
I plan to continue doing this. Its simple, if you need 2,000 calories a day and you eat 2,500 calories the excess of that is stored in your body. Unless you burn them.


               I jointed http://fatsecret.com/




I kept track of my BMI. And my Daily Caloric Need which was 1,800 calories a day.
I also need to increase my protein intake because I eat a lot of vege.

    *eg: For  a 115 lb girl who spends 8 hours on a desk job, no exercise
                       it is 1,500 calories. This isn't very healthy but this is what I took
                       for a certain day.

               a sample meal for the day would be (source: http://fatsecret.com/)
     
Breakfast25.1649.9610.40441
 
  1 cup cooked Chocolate Flavored Wheat Cereal
1.1626.964.40121
 
  1 serving Goldilocks Sylvanna
24.0023.006.00320

Lunch3.4934.373.76181
 
  1/2 cup cooked White Rice
0.2222.042.10102
 
  1 cup Cooked Green Peppers and Onions (Fat Added in Cooking)
3.2712.331.6679

Dinner17.4446.0820.20424
 
  1 serving Season Brand Brisling Sardines in Tomato Sauce (No Salt Added)
17.002.0016.00220
 
  1 cup cooked White Rice
0.4444.084.20204

Snacks / Other21.5046.5217.62440
  
  1.3 servings Market Pantry Lightly Salted Dry Roasted Peanuts
18.206.5010.40221
  
  1 cup cooked Noodles
3.3040.027.22219

I did not scale but I can feel the difference. And people started to notice.
 June

My work schedule is now 3pm-midnight. I wake up late the next day and it feels bad to run because of the pollution in the city, I stopped running for the month. What I did was just 30minutes of stretching (yoga Poses), cardio, self-weights or dancing.

And taaadaaa! I'm now 115 lbs. 

only a few to go. ^ ^. Wish me luck.

Hope you got inspired.

July

I can't believe another month passed by.

Right now I am 113 lbs. Dropping another 2 lbs.

I missed running so despite the late schedule at work, I push myself to wake up
early Saturdays for a run.

I also changed my weekday exercises to Jump Ropes.
I do it 30 minutes total in the morning.
This is not the entire 30 minutes. When I get tired, I do other exercises just to keep myself moving. then I'm back on the rope till I reach 30 minutes.

So what do you think?

Any suggestions? 

Monday, June 10, 2013

How not to steal someone else's money for your wedding day!
So here it is.

A goal not to get my parents savings for my wedding.
A goal on not loaning a lot of money for our wedding.
And for not asking Fiance for a million.

And still have my dream wedding.


When I was a little girl, I dreamt of carriage and everything else princess-like for my wedding.
A grand ball on a plateau of roses and champagnes over chandeliers.

And then I became the business woman I am today.

Where VALUE FOR MONEY is most important.

So here's how I'm doing it.

1. Set the Wedding Budget first hand and work your way to that.

If you want to spend something a little bigger than you think, see the possibilities. In the Philippines, Ninongs and Ninangs and relatives are willing to help out. Though you should put a limit on that. Depending on what you feel is best for you. As for us, we will not let our parents pay for the wedding but if they insist to put a little as a gift like giving wines or cooking on the engagement dinner. We accepted that. Some of my aunts pledge a cake or the wedding car.

Learn no accept.
But also more importantly, it feels great not to depend on asking.

2. Think about doing it during lunch time or Brunch.

This will save cost than a full blown party dinner.

3. Use what you already have:

We live in Baguio. We decided to wed there. Friends and families don't need to commute to a destination wedding. And we are in the summer capital of the country.

We used PMA, because its more affordable and looks really really great.

We also searched for local suppliers to save Out of town charges.

4. Online wedding website and Save the date Video.

It does not harm the environment. And its free too!

5. Ask friends to help out.

It can be their gift too. And saves you a lot of cash.

6. Knowing what's important

Its not really about the big / grande celebration.

Well, its great if you can afford that. But if otherwise. Don't force it.

THE IMPORTANT THING IS: You found the right person.

That's a great blessing.

7. Foregoing some stuff that you are willing to let go.

See what little things that may be of little importance that you can not do anymore.
Like very nice church programs. Its thrown away after the event.
Or like small figurines for the give away. Why not just a photo booth?!

8. Wedding Expo or Sales

Great deals on what you like. 
             
  
LOVE LIFE: what to wear tonight

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

What to expect when planning your wedding!
I talked to my fiance on the phone today! And that may sound normal but to the Army Life,
its actually pretty rare. Specially if your boyfriend/fiance is somewhere without signal bars.

The thing is your favorite thing in the world right now, is your fiance.
And your favorite thing to do is planning your wedding.

So what to expect base on my experience:

1. People has a lot to say.

What do I mean by that, you are going to receive a loooot of advice. 
Its rude to decline but don't be pressured to adapt to everything they(we) say.
This is your wedding day with your fiance. Don't please other people.
Do what you want and what you can afford.
BUT!
DO LISTEN. People have their best intentions. And we are not perfect. 
Listening specially to your family will be great.

2. There are a lot of couples who are also getting married.
             Book ahead! (6months-1 year of preparation is ideal; but more than that will be great)

3. Its expensive.

Yes you can save. It would be great though to be realistic. And not to spend a lot.
Preferably no loans too.

4. There's a lot of help around. You just need to ask.
    And when you need to know about something, say hello to your know it all buddy: The Internet.

 5. It can be overwhelming, so relax. Keep your cool. Think positive.

6. All girl friends secretly wants to be your bridesmaid.
          You have two options (1)Get all of them (2) Pick a few. 
          There's no right or wrong answer here. 

7. There are a lot of supplier's out there.
          It helps to picture what you want ahead of time. Then match that with whats available.

8. It feels awesome.
          From God's provisions to the the love of your Fiance. From the support of your family
to the excitement of your friends, office mates, classmates, neighbors, FB friends even the
mamang magtataho sa kanto. Treasure it.

9. Time runs faster than you think!

10. Not all will comply on your RSVP, and some who will RSVP will cancel at the last minute.
So just have a pretty good estimate from your number. :)

Have fun! May you have the best wedding planning experience as much as I'm having.
Or even better. :)

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

The Ultimate List of Emergency supplies for the Big Day!
Wedding Photography Advice For Couples For Their Wedding Day
To the Most High Almighty
Lord God, You are amazing. I am in awe of how much you love me. How much you work in my life. You direct me in your ways that I can't explain. You give me lessons that makes me better.
You mold me to be the woman you want me to be. I am so grateful of your love.

I love you God.
I love you Jesus.

Thank you so much for always being there for me. There are so many great creations that you have made, and yet you listen when I call. You call me when I don't listen. And you carry me when I'm down.

Life has been so good and so amazing. It feels good to breath. To run. To Dance for you. To travel to see the wonders that you've made.

Today, I receive your affirmation. You want me to be successful in your name. You are giving me a great future Oh God. I pray that I may be able to do what you want me to do. And that I may be
able to share much of what I can.

Lord you are just so amazing. I have experience your love and Divine Grace everyday. But today was just so special.

I will forever be at your feet. Thank you for giving me a heart that knows how great you are.
For knowing that you will only do good all the time.

Thank you my Creator, My friend, My God.
Thank you Jesus, you are the lover of my soul. You are my savior. No one else can love me
as much as you have. Thank you saving my life.

May I represent you all the days of my life.

AMEN.


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