The Breathtaking Bride
Posted under Out & About on January 25, 2012 by Lisette
I met Sarah Jenks about a year ago at a business luncheon and was taken by her positive energy and enthusiasm for her work. Sarah’s company, The Breathtaking Bride, helps women lose weight by changing their emotional relationships with food, their bodies and their love lives. I recently reached out to Sarah to get some more information for our readers. Here are the highlights of my interview with her, on the subjects of her recent wedding and the launch of her very exciting new program, The Breathtaking Bride Booty Camp, among other things (like a great way to ditch that cookie craving). Hope you enjoy!
Lisette Lucas: Can you give us a breakdown of what the Breathtaking Bride is? How did the idea come about?
Sarah Jenks: I had been working with women around emotional eating and weight loss for a few years, but when I woke up the morning after I got engaged, over two years ago, I realized that the only weight loss programs out there for brides focused on crash diets, boot camp and personal training. I wanted to create a 360 lifestyle program for brides so that weight loss was fun, relaxing and permanent.
LL: Your services are sort of an “anti-diet” diet. Can you explain that further?
SJ: Most women believe that if they can muster up enough willpower that they can be successful on a diet, lose weight and all their problems and insecurities will go away. But once they’re done with the diet (if they actually complete it) then they gain all the weight back because the original cause of their over-eating is still there.
I work with women to discover what causes them to over eat or hold onto weight. Maybe it’s a lack of pleasure, fun or excitement. Or maybe they have high levels of anxiety, fear or loneliness. Until you do the work to make your life just frickin’ amazing, then no diet will ever be successful. Not only is working on your career, relationship, friendships and self-love getting to the heart of what really matters, but when you no longer need food to make you happy, then the weight falls off effortlessly.
I just launched an amazing program that boils down all of my best strategies into a 10-week program. It’s called the Breathtaking Bride Booty Camp, which teaches brides how to party their way into their wedding dress! It’s going to be a total blast: http://www.breathtakingbridebootycamp.com/.
LL: Can you give us some advice? When a Bride is feeling the stress and decides to go for that cookie, what can help her ditch the cookie and get out of that funk?
SJ: I get a back massage. A little self-love goes a long way. I either go to the nail salon or get a quick 15 minute massage or I have my husband or friend step in. If you still want the cookie, eat it! But put it on a plate, sit down, turn off the TV, your cell phone, close the book and really enjoy that cookie. And just let yourself have it, it’s not going to kill you.
LL: I know Bride’s go to you to learn but I’m sure with each experience you come away learning from them too. What’s the most surprising or unique thing you’ve learned so far?
SJ: Great question! I learn from my brides all the time. One of my first clients realized that where she was eating was really important for enjoying her food, so she ate in her bed a lot! It made her feel like she was being brought breakfast in bed every morning—such a luxury. So now I eat in my bed all the time, and in my new apartment I put a plush couch by our kitchen table so I can always sit on a beautiful couch and eat.
LL: Do you work exclusively with Brides?
SJ: Absolutely not! I’ve got tons of single ladies looking to call in the man of their dreams and married women who DID crash diet for their wedding and gained all the weight back, they want to do it right this time.
LL: I read on your blog that you recently got married. Congratulations! What advice can you give to our future Bride readers that you wish you would have known?
SJ: Thank you so much! HIRE A PLANNER! It was the best decision I ever made. Both my Mom and I are super organized, but we were so happy to have someone who knew the business and could be totally on call on the day. It helped us relax, be present and have fun.
For more information on Sarah and her company, please visit breathtakingbridebootycamp.com and thebreathtakingbride.com.