Ever wandered down that aisle at Priceline, stumbled upon the long handled, firm bristled brushes and thought to yourself; “Seriously, what are these used for?” You’re not alone. Up until recently, I was just like you. I couldn’t work out why anyone would want to clutter up their bathroom with a whopping great brush and even after hearing the words ‘dry-body brushing’ wasn’t convinced it was worth giving up those extra ten minutes of precious, precious sleep.
As it turns out, I was correct in my assumption that the brushes were indeed used for ‘dry body brushing’ but was completely incorrect is surmising that a session under the bristles wasn’t worth the time and effort. After reading up a little on the benefits, I decided to try it for myself (a huge sacrifice for someone who really, really likes her sleep) and I haven’t looked back. Here are the main reasons why I start my day the brushing way.
- It stimulates circulation – I was paid a visit by the cellulite fairy during pregnancy and while the majority of the dimples have been banished, there’s a few stubborn patches remaining on my bottom. The key to improving the appearance of cellulite is blood flow and the best way to get the blood pumping? You guessed it, a firm brushing session. You’ll actually see the blood rushing to the surface during a brushing treatment, a great indication that you’re getting things moving.
- It assists our bodies with detoxification – You’re probably already aware that the skin, like our kidneys and colon, is an organ of elimination. What you may not have known is that the skin is responsible for shifting up to 1/3 of the nasties present in our system everyday! That’s a lot of gunk. Dry body brushing can give your skin a hand with this mammoth task by clearing the pores and stimulating the skin itself, allowing for effective elimination.
- It naturally exfoliates – Changes in the weather, the use of harsh soaps of body washes, even plain ol’ ageing can cause our skin to become dry and scaly. This is especially true in winter when layers of clothes conceal limbs that haven’t seen the sun in weeks. Dry body brushing helps to gently remove the flaky, dead cells that the body is struggling to shed itself, paving the way for fresh, healthy skin to shine through.
Getting your brush on is simple. Just make sure you choose a natural bristled brush and start out slowly and gently as it can time for your skin to adjust to the process. Starting at your feet, work your way up the body using long, gentle strokes, brushing towards your heart. When you reach your stomach, switch to clockwise circles to help stimulate digestion and waste removal. Finish off by jumping in the shower to rinse of the debris.
By Naomi Cotterill
Naomi is a sugar free eating, green smoothie scoffing mum to one toddler and two cats. When not wearing her mummy hat, she writes and blogs about all things parenting, lifestyle and wellness for a number of print and online publications including her own site (Not) Just A Mummy (www.notjustamummy.com) If she’s not blogging, making up songs about eating avocado sandwiches or getting covered with sand at the beach, you can usually find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest
