There are lots of options available that work to reduce the appearance of cellulite like creams and massage treatments but the best results are obtained with a combination of exercise and your cellulite treatment. Many of the beauty centers today teach their clients special cellulite exercise to obtain successful results.
Here are some of the best exercises for reducing cellulite. Go ahead and fight cellulite with everything you’ve got!
The best exercises for fighting cellulite are cardiovascular exercises such as walking, jogging, or swimming. Since cellulite has much to do with poor circulation, these are the best exercises for stimulating blood flow and lymphatic circulation.
This is what helps fat which is trapped under the skin to move through the blood stream and out of your body. Cardiovascular exercises also promote sweating, which is an aid in detoxifying the skin and burning fat.
Great cardiovascular exercises and the muscles they work out are listed here:
| Swimming | works - Shoulder, Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Calf, Arms |
| Walking | works - Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Legs, Butt, Calf, Arms |
| Treadmill | works - Legs, Butt, Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Calf |
| Bicycle | works - Legs, Butt, Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Calf |
| Elliptical | works - Legs, Butt, Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Calf |
| Rowing | works - Back, Arms, Legs |
| Stepper | works - Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Legs, Butt, Calf |
| Hockey | works - Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Legs, Butt, Calf |
| Squash | works - Legs, Butt, Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Calf |
The second best exercises for cellulite are anaerobic exercises, which are exercises that zone in on cellulite affected areas.
Most importantly you can eliminate cellulite by building muscle and for every pound of muscle in your body, your body will burn an extra 50 calories a day!
Anaerobic exercises are ideal because this type of exercise focuses on the thighs, hips, and buttocks. Using weight machines try to target that specific cellulite area in your body such as your quads, hamstrings, or buttocks.
These anaerobic workouts are important because it helps in metabolizing fat in localized areas of the body and converting it to muscle. For thin women who have cellulite, this is exceptionally beneficial since it helps them concentrate only on the body parts which have cellulite.
Leg curls and squats are really good anaerobic exercises. They help to tone cellulite in the thighs and buttocks. This also means you don't need to lift heavy weights to get rid of cellulite. Consistency is goal.
You can find great leg curl machines and exercise tools for squats at your local gym. For the leg curl, starts with a comfortable but somewhat challenging weight set then increase your weight as you move on to the next set.
For example, I start with 50 lbs on my first set, then 60 on my second set, and so on. Each set consists of 10-12 repetitions. Rest two minutes between each set, then restart. Complete three sets.
Squats can be done in many ways, for example, you can use an exercise ball, bench, bar bell or Smith machine. I like using all three methods on different days of my workouts. Start with any technique and complete in any order.
For squat exercises use the exercise ball to simply stand with your back to the wall. Put the ball directly behind your back and do your squats.
Using a ball makes squats more comfortable and somewhat easier to do, since it gives you a slight bounce upward. For many it is the right boost to keep going. I usually am able to do more squats than with other methods when I am using an exercise ball.
The bench squat is also simple. Just grab a bench or even a chair at home, and pretend you are going to sit on it. Squat as low as you can, without actually sitting down, and then get back up. Keep the pace slow and steady, this way you will feel your thighs and buttocks muscles working.
Make sure to squeeze your buttocks every time you get back up. Do as many squats as you like, but be sure you separate them into sets. Take small breaks in between and this will help keep you focused.
If you want flexibility to challenge yourself, use the Smith Machine. The Smith machine can be used to do squats and lunges. You can start with just the bar itself, then slowly add weights to increase your workout and also gain more muscle.
Remember, it is important to place a cushion padding on the bar, this will prevent you form hurting your neck.
The bar goes behind your neck and shoulders. Then, perform squats or lunges very slowly. For a combination of the bench squat exercise mentioned above, place a bench behind you. Lower yourself to the bench and get up, using your heels to push off.
It’s important not to use your back muscles to push yourself up because you can hurt yourself this way. If you feel you are having to use your back muscles, this may be a hint that the weights are too heavy. Do three sets of repetitions, an ideal set consist of 10-15 reps.
You should exercise with light weights 3 times each week for best results in getting rid of cellulite. Your weight lifting exercise schedule may be as little as15 minutes a day, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. It doesn’t matter what days you exercise, as long as you don't weight train on consecutive days.
You should break up your workout schedule by doing cardiovascular exercises one day, like walking or running, and weight training on other days. It's also extremely important to rest your body for certain days between workouts.
Here, you can learn about effective cellulite treatments to use in combination with cellulite exercises.