Everyone wants to look great for their wedding day!

For some, that means they want to lose weight, slim down or get fit. Many people are working towards fitting into their wedding dress or wedding suit, so getting in shape before their big day is very important.

One of the ways to accomplish that is with a keto diet.

A keto diet is a low-carb, high-fat diet, which has many health benefits. It helps with weight loss and overall health.

When you follow a keto diet, your body goes into ketosis - a metabolic state where your body becomes extremely efficient at burning fat for energy, which obviously means you’ll lose weight faster and easier. That’s why many people choose the ketogenic diet as their long-term weight loss plan.

So, I’m writing this post to share with you ideas on how the keto diet can be incorporated into your wedding diet, so you’re fit & happy before you tie the knot!

Keto For Wedding Diet

What Exactly Is Keto

As I mentioned, a keto diet is a diet where you replace carbohydrates with fats. Not completely, but you reduce carb intake to the minimum, and up your fat intake.

That causes your body to go into ketosis, a state that helps you burn fat for energy more efficiently.

It typically contains around 65% fat, 25% protein, and 10% carb intake.

An important thing to mention: when you start your ketogenic diet, you might get the keto flu. That’s a group of symptoms that may start a few days after starting the keto diet - headache, constipation, nausea, fatigue, etc. It usually lasts for about a week. However, some people don’t experience it at all.

How To Calculate Your Macros

Macros are the main nutrients we eat to survive - carbs, fats, and protein. They’re the base of healthy eating. So, how to calculate your macros?

Decide how many calories you want to intake each day. Then, decide exactly the percentage of each macro that you want to intake. Next, multiply the number of calories by the percentage, and you’ll know how many calories worth of carbs, fats, and protein you should have each day.

For knowing exactly how many grams of fat, protein, and carbs each food has, you can check the package, or just find the info online (for example, search “zucchini carbs” and you’ll see how many carbs 100g of zucchini has).

What To Eat

Here’s what food is good to eat on a keto diet:

Cheese (hard cheeses, cream cheese, etc.)
Healthy fats (avocado, olive oil, nuts, etc.)
Meat
Butter
Dairy products (milk, yogurt, cheese, etc.)
Eggs
Fish
Nuts
Low-carb veggies (tomatoes, peppers, etc.)

What Not To Eat

Here’s a list of the things NOT to eat on a keto diet (at least not in large quantities, a little bit may be fine depending on what it is if it fits your macros):

Bread
Root vegetables (potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, etc.)
Tortillas
Rice
Pasta
Sugary foods (sodas, fruit juices, ice cream, etc.)
Alcohol
Some sauces (ketchup, barbecue sauce, etc.)

Pre Wedding Keto-Friendly Meals

Here are some low-carb meals (snacks, breakfast, lunch, dinner) that you can incorporate into your keto-friendly diet.

1 Egg & 1/2 Avocado

189 calories

1 Egg, large - 72 calories
½ Avocado, small - 116.5 calories

DIRECTIONS

Hard boil egg
Note 1: Keep the other 1/2 of the avocado fresh by running water over it & storing it in an air-tight container in the fridge. Use the 1/2 of the avocado without the pit first
Note 2: if you’re prefer to use a to-go guacamole packet or 1 string cheese for easier transport, that is fine too!

1 Serving Baked Cheese Crackers and 1 Hard-Boiled Egg

242 calories

1 oz Baked cheese bites - 170 calories
1 Egg, large - 72 calories

DIRECTIONS

Hard boil egg
No dairy? Use nuts

Scrambled Eggs with 1/4 cup Feta

244 calories

2 Egg, large - 144 calories
¼ cup Cheese, crumbled, feta - 99.75 calories
1 Pepper, dash - 0 calories

DIRECTIONS

Spray a pan with an oil spray. Turn heat to medium-low.
Whisk eggs and feta in a bowl, pour into the pan.
Mixing frequently, cook for ~2-3 minutes.
Remove from heat, plate, and top with pepper.
No dairy? Have avocado on the side.

Egg Cauli Fried Rice

349 calories

2 Egg, large - 144 calories
1½ cups Cauliflower rice, raw (already riced) - 57 calories
½ Bell pepper, red - 18.5 calories
¼ cup Celery stalks, chopped in half - 4 calories
1 Tbsp Olive oil (Tbsp) - 119 calories
1 tsp Sesame seeds (tsp) - 6 calories
1 Garlic salt, dash - 0 calories
0.6 Tbsp Soy sauce - 0 calories

DIRECTIONS

Dice pepper and celery.
In a small bowl, whisk eggs with a fork.
Add oil to pan.
Stir-fry veggies including cauli rice on medium heat ~7 minutes, until you see some browning.
Add in eggs ~2 minutes, stirring frequently, until cooked through.
Top with seasoning, sesame seeds, and soy sauce.
Eat it as is, or serve with grilled chicken or grilled salmon.

Spinach Frittata

239 calories

2 Egg, large - 144 calories
¼ cup Frozen spinach - 9.5 calories
¼ Bell pepper, red - 9.25 calories
⅙ cup Cheese, shredded, cheddar - 76 calories
1 Salt, dash - 0 calories

DIRECTIONS

Spray a smaller pan (if making 1 serving at a time, or larger pan if making multiple servings at once) with an oil spray and stir-fry spinach on medium heat. Once cooked through, drain any excess liquid with a sieve.
Add in bell peppers (diced) for 2-3 minutes.
Whisk eggs in a bowl, add cheese and salt.
Pour egg mixture into pan.
Cook, covered with a lid, for 3-5 minutes, or until eggs have cooked through.
Notes: Fresh spinach is fine instead of frozen. For 1/6 cup cheese, estimate by filling half of a 1/3 cup measuring cup.
No dairy? Use a dairy-free cheese or top frittata with 1/4 avocado, cubed

Burger on Lettuce Wrap with Side Feta Salad

333 calories

1 Burger patty, turkey (fresh or frozen) - 180 calories
1 Lettuce leaves for lettuce wraps - 2 calories
1 Tbsp Dressing, creamy (e.g. ranch), light (less than 50 calories per 2 Tbsp) - 22.5 calories
¼ cup Cheese, crumbled, feta - 99.75 calories
2 cups Mixed greens - 20 calories
¼ Bell pepper, orange - 6 calories
1 Tbsp Red wine vinegar - 3 calories
1 Salt, dash - 0 calories
1 Pepper, dash - 0 calories

DIRECTIONS

Spray a pan with an oil spray
Cook burger on medium heat for ~4 minutes on each side, until cooked through
Add to lettuce leaf, top with creamy dressing
Dice bell pepper
Mix the bell pepper, feta, salad greens, and vinegar together
Top everything with seasonings
Note: the brand Bolthouse has good low calorie creamy dressings, or just use a smaller amount of a regular creamy dressing if you prefer
No meat? Use a veggie burger.
No dairy? Use nuts or avocado.

French Onion Chicken Skillet

471 calories

1 cup Broth, chicken or beef - 35 calories
1½ Onion, yellow - 82.5 calories
6 oz Chicken breast, boneless, skinless, raw - 190 calories
¼ cup Cheese, shredded, mozzarella - 84 calories
⅔ Tbsp Olive oil (Tbsp) - 79.73 calories
1 Garlic salt, dash - 0 calories
1 Pepper, dash - 0 calories

DIRECTIONS

Slice chicken into bite sized pieces. Slice onion into strips, or small chunks.
Add oil to pan.
Cook chicken and onion for ~10 minutes on medium-low heat, until chicken has cooked through and the onion is fragrant (you’ll know!).
Add in broth and top with cheese and seasonings, simmer on low heat at least 5 minutes.
No chicken? Use tofu, fish, or beans. No beef broth? Use chicken or vegetable broth. No dairy? Use a dairy-free cheese, or more oil.
Note: some people may experience gastrointestinal discomfort from a large portion of onions. If this is you, swap out the onions for another veg, e.g. eggplant, peppers.
Note: 2/3 Tbsp oil = 2 tsp.
Note: This recipe comes out soupy. If you’d prefer it not soupy, use 1/3 cup broth.