It's every bride's nightmare. The day of the wedding, you are zipping up your dress, and you find the zipper won't make it all the way up. You have gained weight, and you had no idea. This nightmare scenario can be avoided if you plan carefully, and you can make sure that you are down to your "dress weight" by shedding a little extra water weight the week of the wedding. With just a few nutritional secrets, you can slim down that waist just a little smaller and slip into your dress of a lifetime.

Avoid high sodium foods. This is the most obvious tip, but one that is easy to overlook or misunderstand. We aren't just talking about salty foods. High sodium foods are oftentimes foods that you have no idea about. There are many desserts that are high in sodium. Foods that are sweet, like peanut butter, have very high sodium content. The extra sodium in your body absorbs water and that water gets trapped in your tissue. If you have ever eaten an overly salty meal, you may have experienced the feeling of the rings on your fingers tightening. That is the sodium in your body trapping in moisture. This is adding extra inches to your body, and is easily remedied by inspecting every item of food you eat the week before your wedding for its sodium content. Keep it low, low, low.

Stay away from alcohol. When you drink alcohol, the immediate effect is dehydration. While that sounds like exactly what you want, your body counteracts that loss of water by storing any additional water you take in the next time you have a sip of H2O. Think of it like a burglar robbing a house and taking all of the family's cash. The next time that family gets any money, they are going to stash it away in a place that is safe and where it will never be taken from. That is what happens with the water in your body after you drink alcohol.

Eat foods that aid in digestion. The easier it is for your gastrointestinal tract to digest food, the more water will be expelled from your body naturally. These foods are usually things that are high in fiber, like whole grain breads and brown rice. Many types of yogurt also aid in digestion, as well, because of naturally occurring enzymes. Eat these foods along with supplements like ginger root, and you will find the water weight coming off very quickly.

Don't eat less. While this may sound counterintuitive, eating less makes your body retain water. Much in the same way that drinking alcohol encourages your body to hold on to excess water, eating less does the same thing. Instead of lowering the amount of calories in a day, spread them out. Have five small meals instead of three big meals. This will ensure that you are eating, but not overeating. You're getting the right amount of calories, but you are never hungry. Have snacks on hand that are high in potassium, which has also been shown to reduce water weight.

Exercise. Even if you are just power walking three times a week, moving your body around is the best way to get your body to start expelling, not only water, but salt and other impurities. Sweating is your body's natural way of cleansing itself, and what you really want to do when you are losing water weight safely, is encourage your body to "rinse itself out," in a sense. There is no need to become a work out freak, but getting your muscles moving on a regular basis will only aid in your water weight loss goal.

Drink lots of water. Another odd suggestion, perhaps, but it is shown to work. The more water you have pushing through your system, the more salt you are rinsing out and the less water your body will ultimately retain. All of these tips, taken together and exercised seriously, will leave you worry-free with your pretty white dress on the big day.