EWWW cottage cheese!

I really like my body's curves... I have a small waist and very curvy hips. I'm about 5'7.5".. I don't weight myself, but am about a size 6 or 8 (probably around 140 pounds). I like my body, but the one thing that has been getting me down lately is my... dun dun dun... CELLULITE. It's terrible. And the thing is, I'm only 21 years old. I have terrible cellulite on my butt and thighs, and I also have some on my upper arms and stomach.

Do ANY of you have ANY tips for reducing the cellulite?

toning exercises and jogging did it for me.  I get the same thing on my bottom and thighs, and losing weight and doing cardio seems to have helped a lot.  Now my bottom is cute as can be, and I hope only gets cuter as I head towards my goal weight :)

I used to work at Victoria's Secret and we tried to sell some Skin Firming products. I remember that it was all a lie, that there was caffeine in the products so it dehydrated your skin to make it look tauter. It didn't work, and it gave me a rash when I tried to demo it on customers.

I'm convinced there isn't anything effective you can do outside going to a cosmetic surgeon or skin doctor (I've been to neither so I don't know the options) to rid you of celulite.

I have it too, on my butt. I just assume all women do, too!

How's that for advice you didn't need?

Edit* Jsnyder, my celulite actually became more noticeable as I lost weight because there was less fat to stretch the skin! haha

First thing to say is that pretty much 90% of women have cellulite.  So you're in the majority rather than the minority. (Magazine models also have it but it gets airbrushed out.... )

If you want to reduce its appearance try switching to as 'clean' a diet as possible with plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables and other natural foods that you have to prepare and cook yourself.  Avoid like the plague processed/ready-made foods, refined carbohydrates and anything containing added sugar, salt, preservatives and things like caffeine, fizzy drinks and alcohol.  All of these lead to water retention and often the retained fluids can make stomachs swell and cellulite worse.

Well then I have no idea why it went away.  I just figured the more toned butt and thighs and the fat loss (it was the first place I lost fat from) pretty much did it.  But I also eat pretty much like gi-jane describes, so who knows?

Diet and exercise both can improve cellulite. Eat lean, and engage in cardio and weight training to burn fat and build muscle. The more fat you lose—and equally as important, the more fat you replace with muscle—the more improved will be the appearance of your cellulite.

Original Post by queensaline:

Edit* Jsnyder, my celulite actually became more noticeable as I lost weight because there was less fat to stretch the skin! haha

I've never actually factored loose skin into equation. I can see what you are saying: that could be a problem.

If you don't have that issue, however, then fat loss and replacing fat with muscle works very well. And exercise may improve the skin issue, which could also then improve the appearance of cellulite.

THanks for all the replies! All of you have been very helpful. I'm actually training for a half-marathon in the fall, so I'm hoping that will hope tone me up.

Also, can dehydration cause cellulite to be more prominent? I know someone mentioned caffeine creams being a hoax, but can drinking tons of water help? I know I have been VERY dehydrated recently (I'm not really sure why). But my pee is actually almost orange. Very, very dehydrated. Can this be a factor?

Long-distance running can actually lead to an increase in body fat by breaking down muscle. It does burn fat, which should really help with the cellulite, but the muscle loss could be problematic. Fat is pretty shapeless, which helps lead to the dimpled appearance of cellulite. Muscle has a firm form that limits it.

If you don't want to build muscle, you should still probably engage in strength training to prevent losing what you have. But losing fat and building muscle is the best combination for reducing the appearance of cellulite (and of course eating well, which also helps you to shed the fat, and improves the appearance of your skin in general).

I have this friend who has the most amazing body. She looks like she just walked out of Shape magazine, no lie. We're on a crew team together and we were at a regatta where she and some of the other gals decided to just walk around in their bras (what the hell, right? So jealous). Anyways, this girl is tall, tan, lean, and muscular with legs for days.

But... the best part of my day came when she was fixing something on the top of the van and I saw cellulite on her thighs. Pwahahaha. A little Schadenfreude for me.

I had it on my butt and thighs. Disappeared after 2 months of eating plenty of fruit, drinking lots of water, and adapting to a clean, whole-foods diet. That, combined with tons of cardio and weight-training, made me lose 15 lb and kept my skin taunt.

 

I hear hard massages help, but are painful.

Drinking a lot of water and avoid eating salty foods and do not add extra sal to your dishes.

The newest issue of fitness magazine has a few page spread on reducing cellulite.. i'd check it out!

Drink lots of water & try dry skin brushing. Not only can it help cellulite but has other benefits too!

http://healingtools.tripod.com/skinbrush.html

I'm pretty convinced by now the only way to get rid of cellulite is to photoshop your pictures. ;)