The Meggan Grubb Wedding Series: “You can see progress and be fit without letting it rule your life”

YouTuber and Beyond founder Meggan Grubb is getting married to long-term boyfriend Niall Kirkland this June. As we countdown to the big day, Meggs will be sharing the highs and lows of wedding planning, her fitness journey and her top tips for other brides-to-be...

With six weeks to go, I'm feeling really good about fitness. I've just started our new Beyond guidecalled Glow and I wrote it with the wedding in mind. It's not just for brides, it's all about feeling your best self and whatever that means to you! I prefer that type of messaging for brides as there's such pressure put on women and some of the messaging out there can be really triggering for some people.

I didn't want people to feel overwhelmed, so that's why I wanted to write a guide that would give you the progress, but wouldn't stress you out, because you definitely don't need more stress when you're planning a wedding! It's a very weight-based guide focusing on big compound lifts and it's got some really intense cardio sessions in there too.

Actually, one of my favourite cardio routines at the moment is a sort of treadmill hybrid combining jogging, sprints and a high incline walk. It was featured in the first week of the guide and I've been repeating it so much. It's definitely one to try if like me you find cardio boring!

I'm definitely more of a weightlifter and I love feeling strong and seeing what my body can do. I've recently learned how to do a bodyweight pull-up again. I used to be able to do one years ago because I was much lighter and it was easier to pull myself up. It took me ages to learn how to do one again and it was when I started integrating assisted pull-ups into my workouts. Not using the machine, but using a barbell and actually, I've not really seen this exercise around much! Basically what you do is you set a barbell quite low to the ground, so if you sit down and raise your arms up you could almost touch the bar. You pull yourself up from there, it's basically like a seated pull-up.

Since I started doing them about two to three months ago, I can actually now do bodyweight pull-ups for the first time in six years and it just blew my mind. It also makes your back muscles really pop! That's a move I recommend to everyone and for any girls wanting to learn how to do a pull-up, there are plenty of them written into the Glow Guide, of course!

On healthy meals

I am obsessed with making tuna and sweetcorn pasta with parmesan on top, it has become sort of a running joke on my YouTube channel and in my house because my fiance Niall is obviously amazing at cooking and he's got his brand The Good Vibe which has these incredible recipes. I get to try all these delicious meals but when I cook for myself, I just make myself the most basic thing ever. It's basically just boiling pasta in water and then chucking in some sweetcorn and mayo, but it's just so easy and full of veggies and protein.

Some people really love cooking and find it really relaxing whereas I don't enjoy it as much - I just like the eating part! That's why I love cooking nice pasta dishes as they're so quick and healthy. I also always make my chocolate and peanut butter protein overnight oats in the morning for breakfast, which I absolutely love. The key thing for breakfast I think is finding something that keeps you full because often I've found that if I have cereal or toast I feel hungry again an hour later and then I start snacking loads which makes me feel sluggish. Overnight oats are so filling and have so much goodness.

You can't go wrong with a protein shake too, I love them as a snack to help me increase my protein intake. I am obsessed with the Arla Chocolate Protein one, it literally tastes like a chocolate milkshake!

On fad diets

You can see progress and be fit without letting it rule your life. I always say that fitness is a part of my life, but it isn't my life. I think a lot of people can get lost in it and they get obsessed. I definitely have been there in the early days and I would have no social life because I would turn down dinner plans in case they involved eating something unhealthy. When you let your fitness plans rule your life, it's just not living - life is for living! Unless you're a competing athlete where it's your full-time job, I don't think fitness should rule your life. I'm all about balance and that's what we strive for on Beyond.

Sometimes the fitness industry can feel quite toxic, but I never think you should cut anything out of your diet. I don't believe in fad diets, or cutting out carbs. I believe you can get a little bit of everything into your meals and still see really good results.

Instead, what I'm trying to do at the moment is focus on protein intake, so the goal is around getting stronger and fueling my body rather than depriving myself. I am for a protein source with every meal and carbs and veggies - but that definitely doesn't have to be chicken, rice and broccoli body builder type meals either! I also try and pack myself a little packed lunch (usually tuna pasta!) on days I have a shoot so I don't end up ordering Deliveroo which happens a little too often at the moment...

On staying calm

Now we're getting closer to the big day, I'm trying to be mindful of my stress levels. I've just bought an alarm clock so I can leave my phone downstairs at night, so I don't look at my phone and my work messages as soon as I wake up or stress over my wedding to-do list. It also means I can properly switch off at night and spend quality time with Niall, too.

Another thing that's really helping is our new audio section on Beyond. There are different audio clips that can help you in different aspects of life whether that's gym anxiety, being kind to yourself or a calming meditation routine at bedtime. Essentially, if you have a really stressful moment, they're so helpful to turn to. They're told by my friend and Beyond's Self Love Guru SophThickFitnessand she just has the most calming voice ever! I love listening to them whenever I am going through something stressful.

And of course, you can't beat a good self-care day when wedding planning. It's so important to carve out time for yourself, even if you're to-do list feels never-ending. On a self-care day, I like to scrub off and redo my tan, do a hair mask and face mask and all of that jazz. I have that day to really recoup as a person, ready to tackle everything that's going on the next week.

Currently obsessed with: assisted pull-ups! They're so good for making progress on pull days.

Feeling grateful for: my fiance for keeping me grounded during such a busy period.

I'm looking forward to: my hen-do. It's only two weeks away now and I can't wait.