Does foam rolling help cellulite

Why foam rolling only gives a temporary improvement in appearance at best

To put it simply, treatments such as foam rolling only temporarily squeeze fluid from the tissues and maybe flatten them a bit. It does nothing to reduce the amount or size of the fat cells that cause the cellulite tissue to be enlarged and have it’s dimpled appearance. Details follow.

What foam rolling does

In the pic above we also see that those cells are surrounded by fluid and encased in strong connective tissue pouches. Foam rolling (and other forms of fluid reduction such as lymphatic drainage) help squeeze out some of the fluid from around the cells and may also mechanically flatten some of the tissues like a steam roller. This will temporarily improve the appearance, but the fluid will gradually seep back in, and the elasticity of the flattened tissues will cause them to “bounce back”. In other words it’s a matter of time before everything returns to the way it was.

Increasing circulation

You may read that foam rolling (and some of the other therapies) help increase circulation. They do, and as we discuss next increasing circulation is very important, but the amount and duration of any increase is too small to have a significant long term effect.

The scientifically proven way to reduce cellulite long term

We will give an overview of how scientists have actually reduced the size and improved the appearance of cellulite long term. In this section.

• Cellulite is caused by poor circulation in the tissues
• Using massage to improve circulation
• How this differs from foam roller claims
• Scientific proof

Cellulite is caused by poor circulation in the tissues

Scientists have found that fat accumulates in cellulite tissue because the circulation in these tissues is poor (1). Your body stores excess energy as fat, but when it needs it the poor circulation means that it is not efficiently reabsorbed. The fat gets absorbed from the parts with good circulation, but left in the areas of poor circulation.

Using massage to improve the circulation

The way scientists successfully reduced cellulite in clinical trials is by regularly applying massage that increases circulation. This allows the body to normally reabsorb the excess fat, reducing the size of the cellulite part and improving it’s appearance.

You need repeated massages over time

For your body to re-absorb excess fat the circulation needs to be maintained over a long period of time, but massages only increase circulation for a limited time. This means the massages must be regularly repeated. Many trials used daily massages for weeks or months. This would be very expensive if using a professional therapist, which is why our ideal way uses self massage.

Key differences with the way foam rollers are advocated

The key difference between the way the scientists have done it and the way foam rollers are said to help by improving circulation are:

• the massage scientists used is more effective at increasing circulation,
• the scientists used massage regularly over time to maintain circulation.

The scientific proof

For your reference we have summarised the results of the clinical trials in the appendix and have pasted a table of data below from one of the trials showing the reduction in size of patients hips, thighs and waist.

The massage you can use to do this

In this section we will show you:

1. The different ways the scientists applied massage in the trials. They all work, and may be an option for you.
2. The ideal self massage, based upon the science of massage and increasing circulation.
3. General advice eg. how often and how long for.

The massages the scientists used

1. Massages by professional therapists
2. Vibration plates
3. Massage chairs

The ideal self massage

Vibration using massage chairs and vibration plates were successfully used in several of the trials. While they are convenient do improve circulation they are not optimised for doing this. The machines built for this purpose are the genuine vibration massagers used by health care professionals. These are suitable for self use, and better optimised for increasing circulation because:

1. they are designed to apply large amount of therapeutic vibration to your body,
2. they work at the vibration frequency that best increases circulation.

In this section section we will look at:

• What are therapeutic vibration massagers
• How to use a vibration massager
• How to choose a suitable machine

Choosing a suitable machine

You will need a genuine therapeutic vibration massager. Unfortunately most of the vibrating massagers you can buy will be inadequate for the purpose because do not deliver serious amounts of vibration at the right frequencies. For more information please see Why most massagers are a waste of money , and How to choose a massager . In particular you need to avoid the following.

General advice

The vibration frequency

Scientific studies have shown that 30 hz (cycles per second) vibration will increase circulation, but 50 hz will give you a bigger and more longer lasting increase (2). This means that you need to apply vibration at approximately 50 Hz. Many machines give their specifications as revolutions per minute (rpm). That is 3000 rpm. Please note that:

• The massage chairs used in the trials were 18-36 hz which is why they gave some benefits but were not optimal.
• Because they have hard plastic heads and powerful ones drive their heads in up to 16mm massage guns cannot safely be used at anywhere near the 50 Hz needed.

How long to apply the vibration for

In the trials longer applications such as 30-60 minutes were used. However, it would be much more effective to uses several applications a day of a few minutes each. The reason we say this is that studies show that when 50 hz vibration is applied the circulation will rise to the much higher level in about two minutes. When the vibration stops circulation gradually decreases back to normal over about 30 minutes. Therefore, each time you apply the massager for a few minutes you will get 30 minutes of residual increase in circulation.

You need repeated massages over time

For your body to re-absorb excess fat the circulation needs to be maintained over a long period of time, but massages only increase circulation for a limited time. This means changes will be gradual and the massages must be regularly repeated. Many trials used daily massages for weeks or months. This would be very expensive if using a professional therapist, which is why our ideal way uses self massage.

Warning about dangerous advice

We have seen massage gun advocates claim that their machines disperse fat cells or break them up so they can be reabsorbed.

• The fat cells are firmly held in position so cannot be dispersed.
• Fat cells are a lot stronger than the tiny blood vessels and capillaries, so attempting to smash them would just rupture these vessels and cause internal bleeding.

Grading cellulite

For research or description cellulite is graded as follows. Where the grades were reduced in the trials that means that the cellulite improved.

• Grade 1 – you can’t see cellulite with the naked eye, but the changes on your skin are still going on microscopically.
• Grade 2 – the skin shows paleness, lower temperature, and decreased elasticity after compression or muscular contraction. There is no visible “orange peel” roughness to the skin.
• Grade 3 – this is when the lumps and bumps are starting to make themselves visible. Thin granulations in the deep levels of the skin can be detected by palpitation. All Grade 2 signs are present.
• Grade 4 – more visible, palpable, and painful lumps are present, adhering to deep structures in the skin. The skin has a noticeable dimpled, wavy appearance. Additional microscopic changes are detected. Grade 4 signs are present, and cellulite is constantly visible to the patient.

References

1. Piotrowska A, Czerwińska-Ledwig O, Stefańska M, Pałka T, Maciejczyk M, Bujas P, et al. Changes in Skin Microcirculation Resulting from Vibration Therapy in Women with Cellulite. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022;19(6).
2. Maloney-Hinds C, Petrofsky JS, Zimmerman G. The effect of 30 Hz vs. 50 Hz passive vibration and duration of vibration on skin blood flow in the arm. Med Sci Monit. 2008;14(3):CR112-6.
3. Piotrowska A, Czerwińska-Ledwig O. Effect of local vibrotherapy in sitting or lying position in two time protocols on the cellulite grade and change of body circumferences in women with cellulite. J Cosmet Dermatol. 2022;21(5):2130–9.
4. Pilch W, Czerwińska-Ledwig O, Chitryniewicz-Rostek J, Nastałek M, Krȩzałek P, Jȩdrychowska D, et al. The Impact of Vibration Therapy Interventions on Skin Condition and Skin Temperature Changes in Young Women with Lipodystrophy: A Pilot Study. Evidence-based Complement Altern Med. 2019;2019.
5. Sadowski T, Bielfeldt S, Wilhelm KP, Sukopp S, Gordon C. Objective and subjective reduction of cellulite volume using a localized vibrational massage device in a 24-week randomized intra-individual single-blind regression study. Int J Cosmet Sci. 2020;42(3):277–88.
6. Piotrowska A, Czerwińska-Ledwig O. Effect of Three-Week Vibrotherapy on Selected Skin Parameters of Thighs and Buttocks in Women with Cellulite. Cosmetics. 2022;9(1).
7. Pilch W, Nastałek M, Piotrowska A, Czerwińska-Ledwig O, Zuziak R, Maciorowska A, et al. The effects of a 4-week vibrotherapy programme on the reduction of adipose tissue in young women with cellulite – a pilot study. Rehabil Med. 2018;22(4):18–24.
8. Cristovam DN, Botelho S, Andrade MF, Marques J, Sousa L. Whole-body vibration in the reduction of the cellulite. J Cosmet Laser Ther. 2019;21(5):278–85.
9. Bayrakci Tunay V, Akbayrak T, Bakar Y, Kayihan H, Ergun N. Effects of mechanical massage, manual lymphatic drainage and connective tissue manipulation techniques on fat mass in women with cellulite. J Eur Acad Dermatology Venereol. 2010;24(2):138–42.