Hey Mama, welcome back! Now honestly: How comfortable do you actually feel in your body? Well, at least sometimes I don’t feel beautiful at all, not to mention good! Body positivity or not, some days it’s just hard to love MYSELF. Add a few stretch marks here, some cellulite there, and it doesn’t get ANY better….
But hey, the good news is that we don’t have to settle for that. At least in part, we can work on our insecurities. Find out how to use trainig against cellulite in today’s post.
Body positivity is key
Undoubtedly – body positivity is key. If we learn to accept that we are not Superwoman and that the women’s bodies we constantly see in the media are not real, then we have already made significant progress. Don’t get me wrong: YOU are super, mama!
But no one is perfect, and thankfully we don’t have to be. Grey hair is a part of life, just like dimples in your thighs or wobbly upper arms. And if you now think, Birte has a lot to say about her body, then I can only tell you that there are ways to do something about it and in a completely natural way.
So what to do about cellulite?
Yes, some things are normal physiological changes during and after pregnancy or with age… Although this may be true that doesn’t mean you can’t do anything about them. You feel uncomfortable with single gray hairs? Then head to the hairdresser and get it done. You love your silver mane? Awesome, embrace it!
Since starting MOVE IT MAMA, I’ve talked to so many women and moms and realized: One body change that many women are uncomfortable with is cellulite. Even though we know that almost every woman sooner or later discovers a few dells in her thighs, many still find this hard to accept with the result that many women feel uncomfortable in their own bodies.
The consequence: products like anti-cellulite cream, body lotion, shower gel, massage brushes,…. boom. They all promise to help fight the annoying orange peel skin. Whether successful or not, however, is another question…
What IS cellulite actually?
As women, we naturally have a different connective tissue structure than men – and that’s a good thing. While men’s connective tissue is mostly firm and net-like, ours is rather loose and grid-shaped. This is the only reason why our body is able to grow and change during pregnancy. Our loose connective tissue structure is therefore not bad in itself.
However, in combination with the female sex hormones, it also favors water and fat storage. The more fat a skin cell has to store, the harder it is for that skin cell to hold the fat in the underlying skin layers: The lipid tissue pushes outward against the lattice-like structure of the connective tissue, creating the “dimples” in the skin.
Toned bum instead of cellulite? Yes, please!
Don’t be discouraged, Mama! Even if this all sounds as if we are helplessly at the mercy of this natural process and can do nothing about it, this is not the case! Much more promising than creams & co. is certainly a specific strength training. “Training against cellulite”, so to speak! Are you wondering how training can improve the dimples on your thighs? I will gladly explain it to you:
Regular training causes your body to want to adapt to that stress, so it builds muscle. Muscle tissue is much firmer and tighter than fat tissue – the more of it we have, the firmer and tighter our body appears. By the way, the same principle can be applied to the so-called “hints arms”.
Cardio, Hot Iron or Zumba?
But how exactly should such a targeted workout against cellulite look like? Whatever YOU like! At least as long as it is a strength training of the lower body. Whether you want to do it at home or in the gym, alone or in a group, the main thing is to have fun and stick to it. Of course, we recommend training with our MOVE IT MAMA app. Here you can benefit from the expertise of our experts, choose from a variety of workouts and be part of a great community. Get your free 7-day workout with us here!
Training against cellulite
For your inspiration, here are my personal recommendations for the top 3 exercises to sculpt your booty and legs:
The squat is a real all-rounder! It effectively trains the entire lower body – and as moms, we love time-saving and efficient workouts:-) Always make sure to keep your back straight, your knees nicely in line with your hips and ankle, and distribute the load over your entire foot. Additionally, activate core tension by pulling your belly button slightly inward, so your entire center is stable and firm.
I personally love the lunge! Here, we also work out the thigh in particular – both the front and the back. But don’t worry, your bottom has to work too. Keep your torso upright while doing a forward lunge. Now bend your front knee and extend it back through powerfully. Again, make sure to keep body tension throughout. The knee never protrudes above the tip of the foot.
Kickbacks are a great exercise to strengthen the glutes. Find a stable stance and lean your upper body slightly forward. Now release one leg from the floor and kick backwards without losing body tension. In addition, try to tense the buttocks to perform the exercise even more effectively.
After all, we have learned that Cellulite is quite normal and occurs in almost all women, but still YOU can do something against it (if you feel uncomfortable with it) and that is through a targeted strength and muscle building training.
So with training against cellulite! Certainly that is a motivation for your next workout!
See you soon,
Keep it Moving,
Birte
P.S.: You look gorgeous!
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