Be Gone Cellulite! Series – Coffee Scrub

Be Gone Cellulite! Series – Coffee Scrub

Cellulite sucks. No one wants that puckered uneven skin. Whether you are a fluffy girl or a skinny minnie, its estimated that 80 to 95% of women have cellulite. (And if you are part of that 5 to 20% that don’t, well then you have good genes and you are lucky.) But what is cellulite? According to a recent article from FitSugar, it doesn’t exist. Cellulite is just deposits of fat under the skin. The term ‘cellulite’ is French and was first used as a medical term to describe that pesky fat about 150 years ago.

And the worst part about cellulite is that its near impossible to get rid of completely. That’s right! Those creams and lotions and one stop shop cures won’t work. Why? They will not reach through three layers of skin to affect the fat build ups. For me, that’s frustrating but if there are ways for me to diminish those rotten bumps, then I’ll do it.

It all started when I was 13. I had a growth spurt, spent most of my summer playing the Sims and that was that: cellulite. Since then, I have developed more on my legs and buttocks thanks to pregnancy and not eating/exercising as much as I should have while pregnant. Gaining 45 lbs ain’t without its consequences. Now, with my second pregnancy, I am determined to eat well and keep active but the damage has been done. And living in Hawaii doesn’t help. Shorts, skirts, swimsuits… Clothes aren’t a big staple. So what to do… What to do…

Well, while a good amount of cellulite can be diminished by working out and developing muscle tone, there are a few ways to smooth out those dimples and you can do it naturally! No crazy over the counter creams with ingredients you can’t pronounce, no vacuum suction cups or whatever silly fade is popular these days. And I am gonna tell you show you how. (Spoiler alert: It’s been working!!)

As mentioned above, the best way to combat cellulite is eating healthy (to keep fat off your body) and toning your muscles with regular exercise, weights and cardio; check out the FitSugar article for tips on what works best. However, today I am going to share with you an all natural body scrub that has helped reduce my uneven cellulite stricten skin monumentally! And yes, my cellulite really is less noticeable! Just ask my husband.

So what is it?

Dr. Oz’s Cellulite Coffee Sugar Scrub.

I’m not one for daytime TV; I am usually working or toddler wrangling, but I came across this scrub recipe online and I am excited to say that it has helped reduce the appearance of the cellulite on my thighs. But how?

Well, caffeine is a common ingredient in popular (but useless and expensive) cellulite creams as it is supposed to enhance fat metabolism. When applied and absorbed into your skin, the caffeine is then supposed to help diminish the appearance of cellulite. While topical treatments with caffeine won’t do much (see three layers of skin before you even get to the fat stores), Dr. Oz has come up with a sugar scrub that uses coffee and… it actually works!

“But Erin,” you may ask.

To which I would respond, “Yes, dear Phyrra.net reader.”

“Wouldn’t the same principle apply? Wouldn’t the caffeine not make a difference metabolically as it wouldn’t be able to reach that evil, evil cellulite due to the three layers of skin?”

Well… maybe. While I can’t say that the caffeine is truly absorbed enough into the skin to actually affect your metabolism (there is a lot more math and science involved in finding out that fact), you are removing dead skin from that first thin layer of skin (which is between .05mm and 1.5mm thick) with the scrub so technically you’d have less layers for the caffeine to get down into. Thus, the ability of the caffeine to effect the fat should increase… but again, more science and math is necessary to find out if that educated hypothesis is true. So while the coffee may actually be affecting that fatty cellulite, it also may be nothing more than an added exfoliant.

What I can say for sure though is that after two days of using this scrub, my thighs are smoother and the cellulite there is less noticeable. Whether its the scrubbing action itself (as massage, which I will go into in my next Be Gone Cellulite! post, has been shown to reduce the appearance of cellulite) or the caffeine actually doing something, I have seen a difference. And that make me very happy. So what is this magical recipe?

• 1/2 cup Coffee Grounds (regular, not decaf)
• 1/4 cup Brown sugar
• Olive Oil

The directions are to spread the olive oil over the affect areas and then apply good amount of the coffee/sugar mixed a top it. Scrub the mixture in circular motions and then rinse off.

Unfortunately for me, I don’t own brown sugar as I don’t bake. So instead of using Dr. Oz’s recipe, I created my own with ingredients I had. (Note: these ingredients are not more common; they are just what I had on hand.) Here is what I used:

• 1/2 cup Dunkin Donuts Cinnamon Spice Coffee – I have stopped drinking coffee/caffeine as I am pregnant and that’s what I do when I am pregnant, so this was the only coffee I had. I recommend a cheaper, normal flavored brand however as, while it does smell nice, its not important/worth the extra cash.
• 1/4 cup Dead Sea Salt – Structurally, salt is more jagged than sugar when it comes to crystals. So if you have sensitive skin, sugar is the better exfoliant. However if you can take it, salt isn’t a bad alternative. I had some dead sea salt on hand from a bath salt making adventure that didn’t turn out right so I used that.
• Sweet Almond Oil – I make perfume and when I was starting up, I bought a bunch sweet almond oil to use in my perfume oil base. Turns out, I didn’t like the effect it had on the perfume as a whole so now I have a ton of sweet almond oil. Luckily, SAO is an amazing emollient and used in massage, so its really the perfect oil to use for a scrub like this. I totally recommend it over olive oil. You can get it at heath stores and maybe drugstore but you can also buy it online for a good price. (Note: if you are allergic to nuts, use olive oil or another non-nutty massage oil.)

I mixed up the coffee and the salt in a big jar, grabbed my bottle of sweet almond oil and headed to the tub. The method of application suggested works quite well. Make sure to use a good amount of oil and to start on the top of your thigh or arm or whatever vs. the underside. The salt I used did fall out all over the place as the salt crystals I used were rather large so next time, smaller granules.

After two days (a day apart) of using my scrub I can honestly tell you that there IS a positive/visual difference in my cellulite. My skin is smoother, obviously, but it is also tighter and the cellulite dimples have gone down. How much? I would say about 10 to 20% less noticeable. After two days! I will have to update this post after a longer period of use but I am seriously impressed with this simple scrub. I honestly have seen more of a difference in two days with this scrub than any lotion, potion or cream I have used in the past. Its simple and amazing and a must try if you have cellulite you want to fade. Its cheap and easy to apply so if you have coffee, sugar (or salt) and olive oil (or another massage like oil), its worth whipping up a batch and taking a nice, wonderful smelling shower this evening. You won’t regret it.

Coming up in the Be Gone Cellulite! Series: massage techniques and oils that will help smooth out those bumps! Also, at the end of this three post series I will post pictures of the results! Most likely just the afters as I forgot to take befores. But fear not! My brutally honest husband will help me vet some similar pictures online so you can see where I started. 🙂

To be clear, this post is by my friend Erin, a long-time contributor to Phyrra.net. Erin is the mastermind behind Dorian & Dahl.