Did I fall off the bridal-boot-camp wagon? Sort of—figuring out I would be gone almost every weekend in May (Mother’s Day in Wisconsin, trips to Philadelphia and Delaware) made me swap out my eight-week, two-session commitment for a four-week, one-session stint.

On my last day of class, two newcomers—a bride-to-be and a pal along for moral support—were wondering if the class would be too intense for them. Intense? Yes. Too intense? If I can do it, anyone can. “You should have seen Marissa at the beginning,” Tod, the trainer leading the class, joked to them. “She could barely do a squat. Now look at her!”

I laughed but realized he was right. In just four weeks, I felt so much stronger and more comfortable with squats, lunges, mountain climbers (if you don’t know, you don’t want to know—ouch!), everything. Yet I still left each week feeling a little sore, in that good I-got-a-real-workout way. More than that, I felt a sense of camaraderie with the other women in the class. I didn’t know much about them—maybe a random tidbit or two exchanged while guzzling water—but I knew they were working as hard as I was and that they had also woken up at 6 AM on a Saturday to be there. And that was enough.

A note from Michelle, a bride-to-be who has been weighing in on her experience in the class:

“It was really hard the first day, but after the first week I was hooked. It was like gym class as a kid! After a month, I felt better in my clothes.

“I’m trying to stick to my goals: one, to make exercise a habit for the long term; and two, to get in better shape. I want to shape up for the wedding, yes . . . but also, we are spending our honeymoon in Hawaii. Aloha!”

Fit-Brides at Sport & Health (1800 Old Meadow Rd., McLean; 703-556-6550) is over for the season, but contact the club to ask about its other fitness programs.

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