Weight-loss clinic: Crunch time for brides

It’s wedding season. I got married 10 years ago, but I can still vividly remember all the preparations during those final hectic months: flowers, gifts, hotel rooms, catering, tuxes, five cuts of bridesmaids’ dresses to suit different tastes and figures.

And I remember working out like a fiend to “make weight,” like a high school wrestler.

Costa Mesa-based Lindora Medical Clinic knows it’s wedding season, too, and it’s sounding the alarm about “crunch time” for brides (and grooms) to lose those extra few pounds so they can look best for the Big Day. Just in case the importance of appearance isn’t fully grasped by the deliriously happy couple, the clinic notes in its PR pitch that there will be PHOTOS! to preserve the memories of the joyous day FOREVER! (caps and exclamation points mine).

I spoke with Dr. Peter Vash, executive medical director at Lindor, and he assured me this isn’t a crash-diet program. Staffers meet with people to talk about exercise and diet choices that can help them shed pounds before a big event, like graduation, a reunion or a wedding. Some of the advice is common-sense, like cut out high-carb foods; eat more protein; and abstain from alcohol. But they can also counsel about avoiding stress, which can lead to comfort-food eating.

“Patient safety is first and foremost on our minds,” Vash said. “We’re after having people look their best, feel their best in a very healthy way. There’s no sense in losing too much weight if you’re going to look sick or sickly or not have that glow about you.”

Most medical experts say it’s unhealthy to lose more than 1-2 pounds a week. This issue gained prominence after a couple of “Biggest Loser” competitors last year acknowledged undertaking dangerous techniques, such as self-dehydration, to drop pounds before the weigh-ins. Some contestants lost up to 15 pounds a week.

Other people have different motives for losing a lot of weight fast: Check out the shocking photos of 50 Cent, who went from 214 pounds to 160 for a movie role about a football player who gets cancer.

Laguna Beach wedding planner Maria Lindsay says July actually is the most popular month for weddings around here, and that the “season” runs through November. She has a personal trainer who works directly with her bridal clients. “My brides don’t have time for a gym,” she says.

The brides-to-be who complain most about their weight are ones who have just had a baby — about 2 percent of her clientele, Lindsay said.

Lindora’s price structure varies depending on the range of services. But it has a Super Shape Up program covering eight visits for $280. And there are online programs as low as $80.