Hi! I’m Rachel! I’m so glad you’re here.

You are absolutely gorgeous just as you are - but if your goal is to lose weight for your big day, you’ve come to the right place!

My goal is to help you lose those extra pounds not just for the wedding, but to make these changes for life.

I know it can seem tough - I struggled with my own weight for years. But as I studied nutrition science in school and coached hundreds & hundreds of women one-on-one, I learned how to combine biology with actual human behavior for sustainable change.

Wedding Weight Loss

Nutrition 101

First and foremost, let's talk nutrition science. The most important thing to me is that you are full and satisfied while maintaining optimal health.

Research does show that protein & fats are more physically satisfying that carbohydrates (and that a lower carbohydrate way of eating assists better with weight loss and management) - but carbohydrates are often more psychologically satisfying. So, we need both!

Here are some quick, well researched articles to read too:

Here are my rules of thumb for managing weight & weight loss

PRINCIPLE 1. ONE STARCHY FOOD PER DAY

Starchy foods include grains like bread, rice, pasta, and quinoa, but also starchy vegetables like potatoes, beans, peas, corn, hummus, French fries, etc.

Again - carbohydrates aren’t “bad”, but it is important to be an educated consumer so you can choose what foods make your body feel fueled for hours.

Strong research supports lower carb approaches for healthy, sustainable weight loss. Eating fewer carbs can:

reduce appetite (1) (helping weight loss be effortless!)
aid in more weight loss, 2 to 3 times as much in fact, compared to low-fat diets (2,3,4) - AND weight is typically lost around the tummy, which is the most dangerous location of body fat
lower blood sugar, blood pressure, and triglycerides, and raise HDL (the good kind) and improve the pattern of LDL (the bad kind) cholesterol (5,6)

See citations here

PRINCIPLE 2. ONE FRUIT PER DAY

For the same reason we're limiting starchy foods, fruits have 2, 3, 4, 5 times as many calories as non-starchy vegetables, and they're not really any more filling.

And I want you to be as full as possible!

Let’s get our vitamins more often from veggies than from fruit.

PRINCIPLE 3. DON'T DRINK YOUR CALORIES

If we had some fruits, and then we blended them up and made them into a smoothie, research shows you'd be psychologically, and physiologically less full on the smoothie.

Along the same lines, chewing nuts is typically more filling than nut butters. It's too easy to eat half that jar of peanut butter, but if you had try to chew on all the peanuts that made that same amount of peanut butter, it may be difficult.

And finally, in this same bucket, I'd recommend choosing low calorie salad dressings instead of higher calorie ones. Salad dressing isn't filling itself, but the taste is often needed!

PRINCIPLE 4. BREAKFAST - FOCUS ON PROTEIN & FATS

The first question I want you to ask yourself is: Am I hungry for breakfast? "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day" - is just not true for everyone! I generally recommend not eating just for the sake of eating - eat breakfast when you feel true hunger in your stomach.

Focus on protein & fats - such as eggs, avocado, nuts, and yogurt. Here are some of my favorite options:

2 hard boiled eggs, 1 piece of fruit, 1 string cheese
2 fried eggs + 1/2 avocado
One 2% plain yogurt + 1/3 cup frozen fruit

Pro-tip: let the frozen fruit thaw first before adding it to the yogurt, when you mix it, it tastes just like a flavored yogurt!

PRINCIPLE 5. LUNCH & DINNER FORMULA

Here's my go-to formula for lunch & dinners:

2 cups non-starchy vegetables (about 50 calories)
1 "regular" serving of protein (about 120 calories) - e.g. 1 chicken breast, 1 can of tuna
100-200 calories of fats - e.g. nuts, cheese, avocado, olives, bacon, etc.

I generally recommend cooking with an oil spray instead of using oil, because, like we talked about in Principle 4, eating the fat is typically more filling and satisfying than having it in more of a liquid form.