When did personal trainers start becoming replaced by knife-wielding surgeons? Before plastic surgery was reserved solely for the lavishly wealthy or movie stars with an identity to create, the average American woman flocked to the gym in preparation for her big day. Losing a few pounds meant time spent with a trainer or a treadmill instead of a scalpel and operating room.

Brides-to-be get a ring put on it and run feet first into a plastic surgeon’s office to perfect those “problem” areas before they walk down the aisle. Clutch magazine writer Stacia L. Brown detailed the bridalplasty trend in her article offering “safe, non-surgical ways to camouflage imperfections from purchasing a dress that ruches in all the right places to wearing a waist-cinching corset or a padded or push-up bra.”

Clearly diet and exercise are no longer the go-to strategy for women looking to achieve their fitness and aesthetic goals in hopes of looking good in their wedding dress. And the statistics prove it. Of the 9 million surgical and nonsurgical procedures performed in the United States in 2011, women accounted for over 91 percent of the patient population. Ethnic minorities were reported to account for 21 percent of all plastic surgeries in America.

Men aren’t exempt either from this rise in plastic surgery. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons reported that more than 1.2 million cosmetic procedures were performed on men in 2011. This is a 6 percent increase compared to the year before. Top procedures for men include lipoplasty (fat removal), rhinoplasty (nose job), gynecomastia (male breast reduction) and otoplasty. In an article on the Daily Mail Online, Bonnie Estridge interviewed Darren Knight, a man who put off asking for his girlfriends’ hand in marriage for fear of how he would look in the wedding photos. Knight dropped the money on a nose job procedure, which he funded by a loan, and never looked back.

The average American wedding costs upwards of $27,000. Tack that bill on to a $20,000 combination of breast augmentation, tummy tuck, body contouring and rhinoplasty surgeries and you’d better have a fail-proof get-out-of-debt plan (well … unless of course you’re Mitt Romney’s daughter) post-marital bliss.

Gym memberships can range anywhere from $10 per month for a no-frills space with machines and a weight room to a full-scale gym with personal training, classes, a spa and steam room for a few hundred dollars per month. Getting fit without the knife is arguably a lighter load on the pocket that will take a bit of effort but can make all of the difference for marriage hopefuls looking to transform their bodies.

What are your views on bridalplasty? Would you go under the knife for your big day?