Even though exercise is not a surefire way to get rid of cellulite, research shows that some exercises may help some people get rid of cellulite.
Cellulite is a condition in which the skin of a person gets lumpy and dimpled, and it is completely normal and natural for that to occur. Most of the time, cellulite shows up on the stomach, thighs, and buttocks, but it can also happen on the arms.
Cellulite doesn’t hurt a person’s health, but some people may want to get rid of it because it looks bad.
The following exercises can help tone up parts of the body where cellulite is common. They can also help reduce the amount of fat in the body as a whole, which can make cellulite less noticeable.
Aerobic exercise
Aerobic exercise is a long period of activity that raises a person’s heart and breathing rates.
Aerobic exercise helps people burn calories and, when combined with a healthy diet, can help them lose weight. Cellulite can look less obvious if a person loses weight.
Among the most common aerobic exercises are:
- walking
- running
- cycling
- swimming
- jumping rope
Aerobic exercises can be done every day. But it’s important to remember that some activities, like running and cycling, can put you at risk of getting hurt.
Because of this, it can be helpful to change up a routine of aerobic exercises.
Curtsy lunge
By building muscle in the affected area, other exercises may help a person get rid of cellulite. For example, the gluteus medius, quads, and hamstrings are all strengthened by curtsy lunges.
To do curtsy lunges, follow the steps below:
Put your feet shoulder-width apart.
Do a curtsy by bending your left knee while moving your right knee back and crossing it over the middle of your body. The right foot should land behind the left leg on a diagonal.
Pause briefly in this position before pushing back to the starting position with your left foot.
Switch the legs and do what was said above again. One rep is equal to doing the move on both sides.
Do 3 sets of 10 reps, and rest for 1 minute between each set.
Exercises that build strength work best when the body has enough time to recover from them. So, it’s best to plan recovery days so you don’t have to do the same exercises back-to-back.
This exercise should be done twice or three times a week.
Lateral lunge
The lateral lunge, also called a side lunge, strengthens the gluteus, quads, and hamstrings.
Here’s what you need to do to do lateral lunges:
Stand with your feet about the width of your shoulders apart and your arms at your sides.
Step to the side with the right leg while keeping the left leg straight, and bend the right knee to lower into a squat on the right side.
To stay balanced, keep the chest up.
Push up with the right leg to get back to where you started.
Each side requires 12 repetitions.
A person should do side lunges twice or three times a week.
Stepup with reverse lunge
The hamstrings, quads, and glutes are all worked by this exercise. It needs a low bench or another surface that is slightly raised.
To do step-ups with reverse lunges, you need to:
Stand about one to two feet from the bench.
Step on the bench with your right foot while moving your left knee up.
Lower the left leg and step off the bench to return to the starting position.
As soon as the left leg touches the floor, lunge backward with the right leg.
Go back to where you started.
Do 3 sets of 10 reps on each leg, with 1 minute of rest between each set.
This exercise should be done twice or three times a week.
Glute bridge
Glute bridges work the glutes without putting too much pressure on the lower back.
People can do glute bridges by following these steps:
Lay on the floor with your knees bent, your shins straight, and your arms at your sides with the palms of both hands facing the floor.
Push through the heels to lift the hips off the ground so that the upper back and knees form a straight line.
Hold this position for a moment while engaging the core.
Go back to where you started.
Do 3 sets of 15–20 reps each, with 1 minute of rest between each set.
This exercise can be made harder by straightening out one leg so that only one leg is used to lift the hips off the ground.
Like other exercises that build strength, glute bridges should be done 2–3 times a week.
Split squat
Some people call this exercise the “Bulgarian split squat.” It also needs a raised surface, preferably a bench. The quads, hamstrings, and glutes are all worked by split squats.
For split squats, you need to do the following:
Face away from the bench and stand next to it.
Set your right foot about a lunge’s length away from the bench, and put the top of your left foot on the bench behind you.
Lower yourself into a lunge position with your left knee almost touching the ground and your right knee bent 90 degrees.
To get back to the starting position, push mostly with the right foot.
12 reps should be done on each leg.
Some people might hold a dumbbell in each hand to make this exercise harder.
This exercise should be done twice or three times a week.
Pushups
Pushups work the chest, shoulders, and triceps and don’t need any equipment.
To do pushups, you must:
Start out in the plank position. The arms should be straight and the palms should be shoulder-width apart on the floor. The toes should be close together.
Bending the elbows slowly lowers the body toward the floor while keeping the body straight.
Stop for a moment when the chest or chin is 1–2 inches from the floor.
Push back up to where you started.
Do 3 sets of 5–10 reps, and rest for 1 minute between each set.
If this exercise is too hard for you, you can change it by lowering your knees so they touch the floor and using your core to stay in this position.
A person should do pushups twice or three times per week.
Dumbbell rows
Rows with dumbbells work the biceps and also strengthen the shoulders and lats.
To do rows with dumbbells:
Keep your back straight and stand with your knees slightly bent and your hips tilted slightly forward.
Hold one dumbbell in each hand, arms straight and wrists facing each other.
Pull both hands toward the ribs, then stop for a moment with your elbows bent and your arms in line with your body.
Move the arms back to where they were at the beginning.
Do 3 sets of 8–10 reps, pausing for 1 minute between each set.
Dumbbell rows should be done 2-3 times per week.
