WELLBEING - Let’s chat about cellulite!

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Summary - 

90% of all women at some stage are most likely to have one of the 3 grades of cellulite. I’ve spent a lot of time researching all things cellulite - what is it, why do most of us have it and how can you reduce the appearance or better yet, get rid of it altogether. In this episode, I share everything I’ve learnt and do myself to combat cellulite. 

Things I Mention - 

  • The what, why and how of cellulite

  • Why you should care about cellulite from a health perspective 

  • The 3 different grades of cellulite

  • The lifestyle, environmental & internal factors that contribute to cellulite

PLUS, lots of tried & tested methods that have been proven to help reduce the appearance and amount of visible cellulite. 

Links & Helpful Resources - 

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One of my goals this year is to reduce the appearance of the cellulite on my butt & thighs. Not necessarily for aesthetic reasons, more so for internal health reasons. I’ve spent lots of time researching and learning all that I can about cellulite because it’s been a noticeable part of my life since I was a teen but more so within the last 5 years. I have no desire to lose weight or change the number on the scales. None of that bothers me and if you were to look at all my stats and examine my weight, height, activity levels etc. - you’d discover that with regards to being “healthy”, I sit proudly towards the higher end of the spectrum. I have cellulite though and not just Grade 1 or Grade 2 cellulite (which we’ll get into in a minute) but I’m heading into Grade 3. I say this because I want you to realise that you can be healthy and a recommended weight for your age & height and still have quite noticeable cellulite - cellulite doesn’t discriminate. So why care about it at all? 

From what I’ve learnt in the last few years and the thing that concerns me the most is that cellulite is a sign from your body that something is going on internally. We can generally take a good look at what is happening on the outside of our body to get a good indicator of what is going on inside and cellulite is a sure sign that there is some dysregulation happening internally - this is what bothers me about it. 

About a year ago, I was diagnosed with MTHFR which in a nutshell just means that my detox pathways aren’t good and my body has a tough time trying to eliminate toxins - one of those in particular, is folic acid.  Before becoming pregnant with both of my kids, I did what most women do and consumed a daily pregnancy multivitamin which is packed full of folic acid. At the time I had no idea that my body doesn’t recognise rr process folic acid so it’s essentially considered a toxin to me and here I was consuming quite large doses of it every single day - not to mention that my favourite foods are all carb related - bread, pasta, rice etc. which again all contain folic acid and I’ve been known to enjoy a wine or three since the ripe old age of 18.  So where I am heading with all of this? … From my body’s perspective - for most of my adult life, the last 5-10 years especially, I’ve been flooding it with toxins and where do toxins show up in your body - as cellulite! Needless to say, I have my fair share of cellulite. 

OK as I always like to go back to basics, let’s first get clear on what cellulite is - 

Cellulite is when our fat cells or adipose tissue are enlarged and become intertwined with our fascia. Fascia is the name we give to the sheet of connective tissue that sits just beneath the skin. So to give you a visual of what’s happening in the body - cellulite is like holding up a sheet of mesh and pushing play doh through it. 

And why does it happen? It occurs as a result of your individual body fat percentage, your body’s toxicity levels, how well your blood sugar levels are managed, perhaps having higher levels of insulin and it occurs in women as we age because of a lower metabolism and less muscle tone. 

90% of all women at some stage are most likely to have one of the 3 grades of cellulite. These are - 

  • Grade 1 is a small amount of cellulite, very few dimples which aren’t visible to the naked eye. 

  • Grade 2 is slightly more visible. Although you may see a small amount while not seated, when you sit down, it’s more noticeable. 

  • Grade 3 is deeper dimples or dentations. You can visibly see the cellulite when you’re walking around, not just in a seated position. 

SO whilst you might not have MTHFR, the majority of us still live a pretty toxin-heavy life, it’s very hard to avoid, which means the majority of us are bound to have some level of cellulite. There are many forms of toxins in our society today - 

Lifestyle Toxins are those found in highly processed foods,  alcohol, caffeine, tobacco and drugs. 

Environmental Toxins are those caused by car exhausts, air and water pollution, pesticides, herbicides, parabens, radiation and are included in lots of products that we use today such as hair products, cleaning products, soaps, perfume and make-up products. 

Internal Toxins are those that could be caused by metabolic reactions (like MTHFR) or hormones, harmful bacteria and emotional toxins caused by fear, stress, grief, resentment etc. 

As you can see, our modern world makes toxins very hard to avoid! 

Now whilst all of this seems like a lot of bad news for us, there is some good news to report - if you’ve got cellulite, you can erase or reduce the appearance of cellulite and I’m going to share a few of the methods that I’ve tried that have worked really well for me - 

Increase Blood Supply To The Area

Increasing the blood supply to the areas on your body where cellulite is noticeable will help push out and drain toxins. You can increase blood supply a couple of different ways - 

By foam rolling - foam rolling is like giving your fascia (that sheet of connective tissue beneath the skin) a massage to help increase blood to the area and reduce inflammation amongst many other benefits that I won't go into in this episode. 

By dry body brushing - I aim to do this for 5-10mins at least 3 times a week before I jump in the shower - no water or lotions required. Every night is optimal though, if you are this disciplined. Dry body brushing also penetrates the fascia. 

If you really want to ramp up your results, also use a coffee scrub in the shower to tighten your skin. 

Utilise Exercise

You can do this -

By doing exercise that involves contracting and relaxing your muscles such as yoga.

By doing strength/ resistance training a few times a week to increase muscle mass which will reduce the appearance of cellulite. Most women have cellulite in their thighs, butt and back of the legs. Some of my favourite exercises to target these areas are - 

  • Kettlebell Swings

  • Donkey Kicks

  • Sumo Squats

  • Glute Bridges

  • Crab Walks

By doing more aerobic/ cardio exercise to lower your body fat percentage. Overdosing on cardio is unnecessary though, just aim for the recommended 10k steps per day! 

Support Your Body's Natural Ability To Detox

You can do this - 

By drinking filtered water. Water is one of the most effective ways to flush out toxins/ excess waste but ensure you drink it filtered so you’re not just introducing more toxins. 

By using a sauna to promote sweating. I know this isn’t the most achievable form of reduction for most but if you’ve got the opportunity to jump into a sauna whether it be when you’re away on holidays or by asking for a gift card, then definitely do that. 

Consume More Beneficial Foods/ Drinks

You can do this - 

By consuming antioxidant rich foods. Purple foods are said to be the most antioxidant rich so eat lots of berries, goji berries, red onion and red cabbage.

By eating more lean protein to increase muscle mass. I bang on about this a lot but for good reason. Ensure you are eating at least .8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. 

By introducing collagen. Collagen is a type of protein largely responsible for skin elasticity. The body produces collagen naturally and it is in abundance when young, but unfortunately production starts to decline at about age 25 so introduce more collagen in the form of bone broths or collagen powders. My favourite way to introduce more collagen is through my coffee. I purchase the GLOW coffee from Before You Speak which contains marine collagen. 

So they are some of the most effective ways that I’ve been able to reduce the appearance of my cellulite. If you’re in the same boat, I hope these methods work just as well for you. See you back here next week ...

Elisha CasagrandeFEEL BE LOOK, Brisbane Health Coach, Brisbane Personal Trainer, Cellulite, Dry Body Brushing, Collagen, Detoxification