Cellulite is a fancy name for collections of fat that push against the connective tissue beneath a person’s skin, which causes the surface of the skin to dimple or pucker and look lumpy and become more prominent when we sit or when we pinch our skin on the thigh. Though it is a preventable condition, it can affect both men and women.
What are the factors in cellulite formation? Genes, your age, gender, the amount of body fat you have, your diet, and the thickness of your skin are associated with the formation of visible cellulite. Your lifestyle too plays a very important role in the formation of cellulite. You will be less likely to have cellulite if you practice an active and healthy lifestyle.
How to check for cellulite? Pinching the skin around your upper thigh is a convenient way to see if there is cellulite forming on you. If it looks a bit lumpy, you probably have it. And if you do have cellulite, you’re definitely not alone: Most girls and women – and some men – have cellulite.
So, how to prevent cellulite? There are various methods to prevent its occurrence. It is essential to maintain a regular diet which is rich in fibre content, fresh fruits and vegetables.
A good quantity of fluids should also be consumed in order to maintain the required fluid level in the body. Apart from these nutrients, it is also essential to follow a strict regime of exercise to maintain the strength of the muscles and bones in the body. All these factors are applicable to both genders and assist in maintaining a healthy body.
Experts say that keeping fit will hopefully burn some of it and prevent further build-up. So, here are the following tips on how to get rid of those lumpy puckered fats on your skin:
1. Start with a healthy diet
Since cellulite is made up of fat, you should eliminate the intake of unnecessary fat on your diet. Avoid eating meals that have high fat quantity because some of the fatty foods are difficult to break down and will store as fat and will accentuate any cellulite problems you may have. Also avoid eating refined foods and food rich in carbohydrates.
These foods have high levels of sugar and other additives, and are more difficult to break down especially during the night while sleeping because of the low levels of activity, some of it will store as fat. Instead, try to eat foods as natural as possible. Drink lots of water to remove cellulite-reducing toxins. Eating small but frequent meals during the day also helps because food is digested more easily this way.
2. Turn your back on a sedentary lifestyle
Since cellulite develops from excess body fats, being active is the best way to burn it. Engage yourself in sports or an aerobics class. Exercise is the word. Other than losing body fat, it also helps firm up the muscle tissue beneath the skin and improves circulation, which is necessary to avoid cellulite forming. This will reduce or help get rid of cellulite.
3. Live right
As much as possible, you should avoid intoxicating the body. Studies show that the intake of food and drink that cause toxins to build up like coffee and tea, alcohol and cigarette smoking make the digestive process and the body’s ability to get rid of waste slower, which can result formation of cellulite. Taking vitamin supplements will help skin from getting damaged and reduce the dimple look of the cellulite-affected area. They also keep the skin looking radiant and firm.
Cellulite is a condition where fat builds up in the dermis, the layer under the skin, and presses up on the skin causing dimples, or wrinkles in the skin. The “cottage cheese” look that it produces usually occurs in the thighs, buttocks, hips and the abdomen. People that are overweight and inactive are especially prone to developing cellulite. Women are more likely to develop cellulite than men because of hormonal differences in their body chemistry and their less active lifestyles.
Factors In Cellulite Formation
Diet, hereditary, maturity, sex, the amount of fat that you have in your body and the consistency of your skin are all contributors to the development of cellulite. Your standard of living can also play a significant role in the appearance of these annoying clusters of cellulite. People that avoid the build-up of cellulite tend to lead physically active lifestyles and have low fat dietary habits.
Checking For Cellulite
If you look at your stomach, hips, thighs or buttocks and you see ripples that look bumpy, like orange peels that confirm the diagnosis. If the cellulite is not visible at first glance, just pinch your skin in any of those areas where you suspect it might be and you will know if you have cellulite. If the skin appears lumpy, or looks like “cottage cheese”, then you have it.
Once you have confirmed that you have cellulite to one degree or another, don’t feel alone, because you certainly are not. Studies show that 80% of women will develop cellulite at some point in their life. Even young girls between 10 to 16 years of age can develop cellulite.
Men can also get cellulite formations, but active men tend to avoid it. As America becomes fatter, the occurrence of cellulite is increasing amongst the growing sector of overweight men and women.
Managing Cellulite
There is no doubt, that the best way to control cellulite is to eat a low fat, high fibre diet in conjunction with a regular, vigorous physical exercise program. Exercise causes your body’s metabolism to increase and burns the excess fat that contributes to cellulite development. Messaging the affected areas helps to breakdown the fat deposits so that they can be removed from the body via the sweat glands as you exercise.
Eliminating Cellulite
Dermatologists agree that staying in good physical condition and a healthy diet are major contributors to reducing cellulite formation. Let’s take a look at some of the things that you can do that will help to reduce, and eventually eliminate, cellulite from your body.
Establishing a healthy diet should be the first step in your quest to rid yourself of cellulite. Cellulite is caused by fat build up, so it is only logical that you should limit your intake of fatty foods if you want to get rid of cellulite. Avoid foods that contain saturated fat because fatty foods are hard to metabolize and will end up as fat deposits in the body.
It is important that you stay away from processed foods and try to limit your carbohydrate intake. Processed foods and carbohydrates are loaded with sugar and sugar produces fat. In addition, these types of foods are complicated to digest, particularly while you are sleeping and they put a lot of pressure on your pancreas during the process. What is not completely digested is left in the body as fat.
Be sure to drink plenty of water during the day, because water helps the body to remove toxins from the food that you consume. Fresh fruits and vegetables should be the mainstay of your diet because they are high in fibre and anti-oxidants. Fibre helps the body to remove fats and anti-oxidants fight the cellulite producing toxins that we ingest with our food. Try to eat smaller portions of food more often during your day, because this aids the digestive process.
Physical exercise is essential in eliminating cellulite because exercise burns fat, and fat is what causes cellulite. Regular physical exercise, such as aerobics, running and workout classes raises your heart rate and causes the body to burn fat.
Exercise also builds muscle and promotes proper blood flow. Increased blood circulation helps to firm the connective tissue between the cells and strengthens the cell walls in the dermis. Strong cell walls in both the fat cells of the dermis and the skin cells of the epidermis, work to limit the formation of cellulite.
Treat Your Body Right
If you eat right and exercise, your body is better able to rid itself of unwanted fats and toxins that can lead to the formation of cellulite. Research studies show that substances that contain toxins such as coffee, tea, alcohol and tobacco inhibit the body’s digestive system and slow the body’s ability to dispose of wastes, which can promote cellulite. These things develop over time, so it is important to realize that what took years to develop will take time to correct.
Vitamin supplements can really help your body to get back on right track. Once you have changed your mindset about what you consume and how you exercise, you will see marked results as you put your anti-cellulite plan into effect. You will not only rid yourself of your cellulite, you will be leading a much healthier life that will serve you well as you age.