Tips on Reducing Cellulite

Its not just overweight people (especially women) that suffer from cellulite, according to Fitness magazine reports, nearly 90 percent of all women have cellulite. Cellulite is the bumpy, crumpled skin that shows up most commonly on the thighs and rear. Though there is no real cure for cellulite, there are several ways to make it temporarily disappear.

How does cellulite develop?

Beneath the surface of our skins we have a fatty tissue that sits on a firm layer of collagen connective tissue.  Before cellulite shows up, the outer surface of the skin is smooth and supple (no bumps and no ridges).  The fatty tissue beneath the skin is also smooth which causes no bumps to show. The fatty layer just below your skin is (and remains) smooth and flexible as long as the fat cells remain strong, healthy and elastic inside.  

The dimply, bumpy texture we call cellulite begins to occur when the structure of the fat cells begin to weaken.  When the cell walls weaken, the cells begin to "sag" and this "sagging" is what accounts for the "orange peel" look of cellulite to develop.  The weaker the cells become, the worse the sagging and the worse the cellulite looks.

How to make cellulite disappear

Losing weight does not make cellulite vanish, but building muscle in the right places can make it look that way. When you are working out, add strength training to your workout, and look for exercises that build muscle in areas where you have cellulite. Adding muscle in those spots will make your skin look tighter and firmer.

Creams containing caffeine are known to make cellulite vanish for a few hours. Caffeine tightens your skin, while the strong rubbing you use to apply it increases blood flow to minimise lumps and bumps. Unfortunately this is a short term fix so you will need to reapply the cream later in the day if you want to keep cellulite hidden for the evening.

Your skin will respond better to cellulite treatments if you exfoliate first, it is important that dead skin cells do not get in the way of ingredients trying to enter cellulite-prone areas. Though you can use a scrub, a natural-bristle brush is very good as it allows you to rub vigorously over the cellulite-dimpled areas of your skin before your shower.

This deep-tissue massage makes cellulite temporarily disappear. It does this by breaking up the lumpy sections of fat into a smoother mass.

It is said that increased circulation makes cellulite less noticeable. By doing deep knee-to-chest stretches three times a week you can help reduce cellulite lumps.