Cellulite solution - Workout

Shape, April, 2003 by Alexa Joy Sherman

Dimples can be cute--but not when they appear on your butt, hips and thighs. If you're plagued by the uneven texture of the skin on your lower body (or anywhere else), simply try this miraculous program for a smoother, firmer, better physique. The plan is based on the years of research that forms the basis of the new book No More Cellulite (Perigee, 2003) by strength guru Wayne Westcott, Ph.D., and Rita LaRosa Loud of the South Shore YMCA in Quincy, Mass.

Based on Westcott's program, we put 18 test subjects through a 40-minute cardio and dumbbell workout, three days a week for eight weeks. The results of our Shape study and the No More Cellulite study combined were absolutely amazing; the women shed an average of 3.3 pounds of fat, gained an average of 2 pounds of muscle and noticeably reduced their cellulite--without dietinq. (Those who also followed an eating plan lost almost three times as much fat and 6 more pounds than the exercise-only group. See pages 158-163 for details.) "Cellulite is a two-part problem--too little muscle and too much fat," say Westcott and Loud. "This program offers a two-part solution--more muscle and less fat."

Now it's your turn. Do this workout for the next eight weeks (add the motivation and diet plans for even better results) and the only dimples you'll be sporting will be on your face.

THE CARDIO COMPONENT

DIRECTIONS Start every workout session with 20 minutes of cardio, selecting from any of the following workouts. Try to vary your activities, as well as your intensity, on a regular basis to prevent plateaus and keep things fun. For example, include 1-2 interval workouts (see examples below) a week (but no more than 2). Perhaps you can walk or run on Mondays, do step aerobics on Wednesdays and try a hill program on the elliptical trainer on Fridays.

WARM-UP/COOL-DOWN Make sure to start slowly for the first 3-5 minutes before increasing intensity, and always decrease your intensity for 2-3 minutes prior to doing the strength moves.

Cardio Option 1        Cardio Option 2           Cardio Option 3
Pick your machine      Take it outside           Get a group

Steady-state           Steady-state              If you prefer to work
Program any cardio     Lace up your shoes        out with others or you
machine (such as a     and hit the footpath      like to have a bit more
treadmill, stair       for 20 minutes of         instruction, head for a
climber or elliptical  moderate-intensity        class, such as hi- or
trainer) to manual     walking or jogging        low-impact aerobics,
and, after a brief     (you should be able to    step, kickboxing or
warm-up, work at a     talk in short sentences   Spinning. If you'd
moderate intensity     while exercising). Don't  rather exercise at
(you should be able    forget to start with a    home, try an aerobics
to talk in short       few minutes at an         video. Although "The
sentences while        easier pace.              Cellulite Solution
exercising) until                                Workout" only
you've completed                                 requires that you do
20 minutes total.                                20 minutes of cardio,
                                                 you'll see even faster
                                                 results if you do a
                                                 longer session.

Interval You can       Interval You can also
also choose a          alternate 1-2 minutes
hill profile on        of running (or fast
any of the above       walking) with 3-4
machines for a         minutes of brisk
slightly higher        walking for a slightly
calorie burn.          higher calorie burn.

20-minute total        20-minute total           20-minute total
calorie burn:          calorie burn: 106-140     calorie burn: 130-178
100-180 *

* Calorie estimates are based on a 145-pound woman.

RELATED ARTICLE: [THE] plan

WORKOUT SCHEDULE

Three days a week, perform the 20-minute cardio workout of your choice (see suggestions at right), followed by the 20-minute dumbbell or machine-based strength workout on pages 148-151. Take a day off in between each 40-minute workout.

WARM-UP/COOL-DOWN

A warm-up is built into the start of each session. After completing both your cardio and strength workouts, you can stretch all of your major muscle groups, holding each stretch to a point of mild tension for 30 seconds without bouncing.

STRENGTH, SET AND REP GUIDELINES

Do all 8 moves in the order listed. For each dumbbell move, perform 1-2 sets of 10-15 reps, resting 60 seconds between exercises (if you only do 1 set) or between each set. When you rest, stretch the muscles you just worked, holding each stretch for about 15-20 seconds. If you choose to do the machine based option of each move, perform 1 set of 12-15 reps, stretching between exercises as instructed for the dumbbell moves.

WEIGHT GUIDELINES

Always use as much weight as you can so the last 1-2 reps are difficult, but form is not impeded. Increase your weight by 10 percent whenever 15 reps becomes easy to complete. See captions for more specific weight recommendations.