We are back with another entry from our “Diary of a Real Bride” series with Diane Falez Omari. Only this time, it’s her fiancé Steven’s turn to share his words of wisdom—and wise words they indeed are! Below, Steven talks us through why working out together with your partner can not only help build on your relationship but also keeps it real by highlighting the challenges, too, and how you can best overcome them as a team. Over to you, Steven!

For Diane and myself, sports and fitness has always played a large role in our lives. Even before we met each other, we stayed active through training at the gym, attending CrossFit classes, meeting up with friends for a game of paddle, and organizing soccer matches here and there (yes, we call it soccer in our household).

As our wedding rapidly approaches, we’ve reflected on how our relationship and our fitness goals reached new heights when we started to incorporate fitness into our lifestyle as a couple.

As we push each other to stay consistent, celebrate progress, and find joy in small victories, the sense of partnership carries over into other areas of our lives, creating resilience and balance together.

It also makes us mindful of the many different ways people seek support in their own health journeys, whether through physical fitness, nutrition, or professional care when challenges become overwhelming.

It’s also worth noting that some brides, in preparation for their big day, seek a little extra help in their weight-loss journey. Everyone is beautiful as they are, but for those who wish to feel their best and shed a few pounds safely, expert support can make all the difference.

With personalized guidance from Coby Health, brides can explore structured options like GLP-1 treatment plans that are medically supervised and tailored to their individual needs—helping them approach their special day with confidence, energy, and balance.

Beyond aesthetics, this approach reflects a growing awareness that wellness isn’t just about appearance—it’s about empowerment. Whether it’s managing stress, improving metabolism, or nurturing a healthier mindset, the journey toward feeling one’s best is deeply personal. The right support ensures that this process is sustainable and rooted in care, not pressure.

In fact, even in the world of recovery, accessibility and inclusivity are evolving to meet people where they are, and it’s encouraging to know that Sacred Journey Recovery accepts crypto as part of its mission to make treatment options more approachable and modern.

Just as we’ve discovered how fitness enriches our connection, these progressive approaches ensure that individuals can find the support they need in ways that feel practical, empowering, and aligned with their lifestyles.

In mental health care, a similar evolution is unfolding—one that embraces innovation without losing sight of compassion. Therapy today extends beyond talk sessions and medication; it’s about finding new ways to restore balance and connection within.

Treatments like those offered at Avesta Ketamine Wellness exemplify this shift, blending science and empathy to help individuals navigate depression, anxiety, and trauma with renewed clarity. These approaches remind us that healing doesn’t always follow a straight path—sometimes it requires exploring new frontiers of care while holding fast to the timeless truth that genuine recovery begins with understanding and human connection.

Working out with a partner has a ton of benefits (and a few obstacles) that we definitely think all couples should know:

Benefits

Whether your daily activity involves training in the gym, attending fitness classes, going for walks or jogs, playing a sport, or simply cooking healthy food, we believe incorporating health into your lifestyle together as a couple can have substantial benefits for your relationship.

Daily “together” time

Every morning, we wake up together at 5:30 am so we can be at the gym from 6 am to 7 am and still make it to our respective offices for 8 am. This gives us an hour every morning before work to spend some quality time together. Regardless of how hectic our workday has been or how late we got home, we can unwind knowing that at least one hour of every day is spent doing something together without the distraction of the television, work, or social media.

Accountability

Although the early mornings took time (months) to get used to, it certainly helped to have a partner to hold each other accountable. After all, who wants to stay and sleep in knowing their partner has already started their day and made it to the gym?

Shared goals

When goals such as saving money or improving fitness levels require us to modify behaviour such as shopping or traveling less, or eating healthier meals, it’s extremely important to have a partner in your corner. If our partner’s expectations and behaviors do not align with our goals, it can have a major adverse impact on our progress and our relationship. Instead of juggling our relationship goals with our fitness goals, we eat healthy together, wake up early together, sleep early together, spend time in the gym together, and get drowsy when weekend plans continue later than 11 pm… together!

Above: Bride-to-be, Diane.

Improved patience

One of the biggest obstacles in fitness is unrealistic expectations. Modifying behaviors, adjusting diets, committing to an activity schedule, and investing in gym memberships, fitness clothes/shoes, can be a lot to take on at once, and frustration can quickly set in when results are not immediately noticeable. By incorporating fitness into our lifestyle as a couple, we have the added benefit of being patient with our progress. When a “cheat meal” becomes a cheat weekend, or that birthday brunch was a little more gluttonous than anticipated, or our annual trip home was met with daily cooking with mom and zero training time, we can relax knowing that we will continue our healthy lifestyle together for the long-term and blips in our progress are just a part of enjoying life.

Above: Power couple – Diane & Steven

Obstacles to Prepare for

If fitness was easy, we’d all be in shape. Unfortunately, the road to health is paved with obstacles, and I’m here to share a few of our own.

Crankiness

Meeting our fitness goals involves an adjustment in sleep schedules and a reduction in calories and other “fun” foods such as fast food and desserts. Needless to say, our moods can be affected. This is a perfectly normal reaction from our body’s decreased fuel consumption, lowered blood sugar levels, and realignment of circadian rhythms. We just learned not to take it too personally when she has a minor outburst because she can’t find her favorite gym outfit or when I’m upset because she can take hundreds of amazing selfies for herself, but struggles to get ONE decent fit photo of me! It’s all part of the process, so enjoy it!

Competitiveness

It’s hard not to compare ourselves to each other when we’re essentially on the same routine. If we’ve learned anything in our journey, it’s that I tend to gain strength and muscle as well as burn fat faster than her; and regardless of how fit I get, she still gets more compliments. We’ve found it helpful to remember that we’re in this together and her wins are my wins and vice versa.

Social Dynamics

One of the unforeseen obstacles in our fitness journey was navigating social dynamics. We may find ourselves turning down invitations to brunches, saying no to office birthday cake, opting for non-alcoholic beverages when out with friends, and struggling to adjust from our weekday sleep schedule. Understanding that we’re both attempting to navigate these dynamics, we turn to each other for support and never impose our lifestyle on others.

Don’t forget to visit us next month to see Diane’s latest bridal diary post and to out how their wedding planners are coming along! You can also follow Diane and Steven over at @falezfitness and @therealstevenbesse on Instagram for more wedding updates!