The Incredible Shrinking Bride

Such programs can help women develop healthy lifelong habits, says personal trainer Mark Vendramini, who's taking a break from bridal boot camps after running such programs for six years. A lot of women come in wanting to tone their shoulders and arms because they're going to wear a sleeveless or strapless dress. But sometimes clients go to extremes, overexercising to the point where they could be endangering their health, he says. He also regularly got calls from desperate women who wanted to lose 20 or more pounds in a month. His reply: that's just unrealistic. "The general rule of thumb is 1 to 1.5 pounds a week," Vendramini says, and even that requires commitment. "It's easy to pay someone to make your hair look nice. It's easy to pay someone to do your makeup and it's easy to pay for a dress. But losing weight, that takes actual physical work," he says. "People who come in looking for quick fixes, who are not really that focused on fitness to begin with, normally only last two sessions."

Women may not be able to buy a lean body, but they can purchase a tanned one to offset all those yards of white fabric. Despite all the warnings about skin cancer, doctors say many young women are turning to tanning salons to achieve that bronzed look, and putting their health at risk in the process. "What they typically say is that they are just going to go a few times for a 'base tan'," says Dr. Anir Dhir, a dermatologist in Lexington, Kentucky. "They don't realize that tanning bed energy goes six times deeper than natural sunlight. Fifteen to 30 minutes in a tanning bed can be the equivalent of three or four hours on the beach. You're getting concentrated damage." Even a couple of visits, especially if they result in a burn, can dramatically increase the risk of developing skin cancer, adds Dr. Scott Fosko, chairman of the department of dermatology at the St. Louis University School of Medicine. "The tanning industry says it's a safe way to get a tan, but if you ask people who use them, a lot of people get burned."

Dhir says he also sees brides who want a shot of Botox, a little filler to eliminate a wrinkle, or a shot of cortisone to deal with an outbreak of acne. Chemical peels, once the hot thing, are now giving way to laser treatments that eliminate little broken blood vessels, sun spots and other bothersome blemishes. These treatments are safe if done correctly, he says, but there are a lot of people (including general practitioners and nondoctors) offering these services who have had very little training. Some have even used research-grade botulinum toxin in lieu of Botox, because it's cheaper—but misuse has landed a few people in the hospital for months, hooked up to ventilators, after developing full-blown cases of botulism. "Dosage and placement are critical for these treatments," Dhir says. "A lot of people are looking for low-cost alternatives, but you get what you pay for."

Nicolai says she's trying to be smart about her choices. She decided that her acne wasn't bad enough to take a chance on a prescription for Accutane, which has a long list of possible side effects. She has plotted out a healthy weight loss plan and hopes to lose three pounds a month by cutting back on carbs, increasing lean protein, reducing portion size and scheduling four to six 90-minute gym sessions a week. She's also put off her trip to the tanning parlor but says she may still go just before the wedding.

There's a much-YouTubed "Bridezilla" video of a shrieking bride literally chopping off her hair, and while the clip is clearly staged, Nicolai says a lot of brides-to-be can relate. "Bridezilla exists within every bride-to-be, and it takes effort to rein in that inner demon," she says. She's trying to maintain some perspective and balance. She's made an effort to seek out research on how to make a marriage successful. She's setting aside time for religion and service projects, and she's making sure that every conversation with her fiancé doesn't revolve around the wedding. But that doesn't mean she doesn't still feel the pressure to look her best when she walks down the aisle. "At the end of my wedding day, it won't matter if my hair was perfect, my teeth were blindingly white or my body was as hard as the rock on my finger," she says. "But that doesn't mean I won't try!"

© 2008