The Many Benefits of Dry Body Brushing
If there’s one thing that you should add to your beauty routine to help with overall wellness, it’s dry body brushing. There are so many benefits to this regime and it’s proven to work better than any creams or oils for smoothing lumps and bumps in problem areas. Dry body brushing will help you feel invigorated, look firmer and can even help to boost your immune system (and your confidence!) Just adding it to your routine twice a week will really see results in a short time. It’s a favourite with celebrities and health gurus and I really would recommend giving it a try; you’ll be surprised by the results!
How will it help
Increases circulation
Dry body brushing increases circulation which is one of the most important functions of the whole body. It promotes healthier skin and cell growth but also has a plumping effect which reduces the appearance of cellulite. There are so many creams that claim to be able to do this, but it makes sense that stimulating the blood flow to certain areas will help to smooth out your skin, giving it a beautiful healthy glow.
Not only that, when you boost your circulation, you also stimulate the lymph nodes, which are there to destroy toxins in the blood. It stimulates the lymphatic system helping to drain away all those nasties, and in turn boosts your immune system and energy levels. Sounds great so far?
It’s a perfect way to exfoliate
We all know the benefits of exfoliating our skin. Getting rid of the dead skin cells helps our bodies to generate new ones which keeps our skin looking young, healthy and glowing.
In 2018, the UK government banned the sale of microbeads due to their damaging effect on the environment, which is a fantastic step forward, the natural alternatives however such as walnut shell now found in exfoliating products can be harsh on the skin. That’s where body brushing can be your savior. Our skin can become more sensitive as we age and is less efficient at shedding dead cells, so dry brushing is a fantastic addition. It also helps your skin to absorb creams more effectively, so chances are you will need less product.
The Technique
On dry skin, with your natural body brush - before you shower, start from your feet (even the soles) and work your way up the legs using long sweeping brush strokes, smoothing over each time with your free hand. Be careful not to put too much pressure, gently is key, moving quickly and in a flowing motion towards the heart to help stimulate the lymphatic system. Make sure to concentrate on the problem areas like your tummy and bottom. It helps to raise up the leg that you’re brushing so you can work over the problem areas more effectively.
Brush over the entire body, taking care to be extra gentle where the skin is more sensitive, and take longer over the areas that are prone to cellulite such as the hips, thighs, bottom and tummy.
Once you have covered the whole body, it’s great to take a hot shower, followed by a splash of cold at the end to close the pores, and then once dry, finish with an oil containing cellulite busting ingredients, such as grapefruit or rosemary. You can add a couple of drops of pure essential oil to a plain coconut oil which will do the trick nicely to moisturise and firm up the skin.
It’s usually recommended to dry body brush twice a week, but if you have particularly sensitive skin, you could cut it back to once every couple of weeks or increase it as necessary. It’s not something you would want to do every day though, as your skin does need time to replenish.
A word on the type of body brush to use.
Our Iris Hantverk bath brush is perfect for this regime because the horsehair and Tampico fiber are sturdy enough to exfoliate well but still soft enough that it won’t irritate the skin. It is also great to use when enjoying a long soak in the bath as well. This beautiful product is made in Sweden by visually impaired artisans and it could quite easily become a product you couldn’t live without!
