Body Dry Brushing
The best, most effective health and beauty practices today are multi-faceted—they do more than one thing, work in more than one way. Dry body-brushing is one of these. Dry body brushing ... Does it really help?
Testimonials are overwhelmingly positive. My message: Try it … see and feel the difference. There’s no learning curve. No expensive equipment. It’s easy, and it can fit anyone’s schedule.
Why would you dry brush?
Consider … Every minute, we lose about 30,000 dead skin cells. Dry brushing helps remove those old cells, promoting the growth, underneath, of new cells. That’s the first benefit of dry brushing—exfoliation. Beyond this, though, dry brushing can, when practiced consistently, improve circulation of the blood and lymph. Do it well, and you’ll help your skin become both softer and tighter.
You’ll diminish your cellulite “dimples,” boost your nervous and endocrine systems, and improve elimination through your skin pores, which translates to expelling toxins better and faster. The massaging nature of dry brushing even affects the internal organs and systems that the brush goes over. Then there’s this: Dry brushing just feels good. On the whole, you can expect to feel much better and more positive after a session of dry brushing.
What kind of brush should you use?
For those of us who eat naturally, without any adulterations imposed by the food industry, it makes sense that we’d choose natural bristles. For our body brush, we chose a vegetable fiber from the Agave lechuguilla plant, also known as Tampico fiber. It’s strong, durable, stiff enough to remove the layers of old skin cells while gentle enough not to scratch or damage sensitive skin.
What's the proper technique for body brushing?
Best time: in the morning, just before your shower. Start from the tops of your feet. Apply long, firm strokes with your dry brush, moving up to the knees. Use a circular motion on the knees themselves, then proceed with long strokes toward the stomach. As a variant, try a circular motion on your thighs and buttocks.
You may at first experience some scratching, tingling, or tickling. Just vary the pressure to find what feels right. With practice, you’ll be able to tolerate firmer pressure. Brush your stomach area in slow circles, and keep moving up the chest toward the neck (just be gentle around the breast area). On the back, the brushing motion takes the form of long upward strokes again. On your shoulders, short downward strokes. Apply long firm upward strokes from hands to shoulders, starting with the fingers.
Body Brush
For softer, tighter skin.
Even if you forget the finer points, a good general rule is to move in the direction of the heart. A few areas, such as heels, knees, or elbows, might want more vigorous brushing action to remove stubborn dry skin. You’ll instinctively avoid brushing over cuts, abrasions, inflamed, or sun-burned skin—those areas have to heal first.
When you’re done, just hop into the shower. If you’ve already showered, your skin will benefit from a good lotion or coconut oil.
Can you handle a no-handle body brush?
Back scratchers and brushes often come with long handles. Don’t buy these—they’re just an excuse to cover the loss of natural flexibility. If you have been diligently doing your stretches, attending gym or yoga classes, you should be able to reach any part of your body with little or no problem. Long handles hinder you in applying the right pressure. But with brush in hand, you’ll have great control. If you’re not quite flexible enough yet, get going on an exercise program. Or just keep practicing, reaching as far as you can manage, until one day – voila! Every inch of you can experience the invigorating effect of the brush strokes.
Take it gradually
Don’t dry-brush once or twice and expect fabulous results. You won’t lose your cellulite or gain softer skin overnight. Don’t just try it for a week or two, with your new brush, then feel let down because you haven’t been radically transformed. Daily brushing over the long term is your key. Dry brush every day for a truly committed three weeks to a month. Then, you’ll see dry brushing morph into a health practice as automatic as brushing teeth.
Dry skin? Dry brush!
For those of you who struggle with dry skin, dry body brushing is a great prelude to moisturizing your skin. You may find dry brushing makes all the difference.
Dry brushing for cellulite.
Usually stubborn to deal with, cellulite-ridden areas of the body respond favorably to dry brushing due to improved blood and lymph flow, and the increase of oxygen reaching the affected tissues. Of course, an all-natural raw food diet and a fitness program are also vital for getting rid of cellulite.
Bottom line.
Next time you’re heading to the shower, delay it for just five minutes. Get up close and personal with your own skin. Help it look and feel its best. A few million dead skin cells and some cellulite are all you have to lose. To gain … a newer, healthier you. Raw foods and fresh juices will help you glow from the inside out, and your dry brush will put the finishing touch on the way your skin looks and feels.
Daily skin brushing will:
- improve your circulation
- stimulate normal oil production
- boost lymph drainage for proper toxin elimination
- open clogged pores, helping your skin breathe and eliminate better
- reduce the appearance of cellulite
- promote tighter skin
- remove dead skin cells, encouraging new cells to replace them, and
- eventually help you achieve your goal of soft and smooth skin with a healthy glow!
With bristles made from Tampico, produced in Mexico from the stalk of the Agave plant, our Body Brush gives just the right tension to exfoliate your body. For the face, try our Facial Brush for Glowing Complexion, which is designed for this more delicate area.
Caring for your dry brush
Occasionally, your Tampico fiber brush needs to be cleaned. The best way is to rub some cornmeal into the brush for a few seconds, let it sit and then scrub it out with your fingers or by vigorously brushing a clean rag. The cornmeal will absorb dust and oil from the brush and whisk it away to keep your brush it tip top shape. Do not use water and soap as this will shorten the lifespan of the brush.
What about brushing your face?
Well, if you’ve seen my videos and read my books, you know I recommend using a very special facial brush, just the right stiffness for facial exfoliation. It’s best to do this in the evening before you retire, and to put a rich night cream on afterward to take full advantage of the fresh exfoliation. Learn more about facial dry brushing here.
Facial Brush
For a glowing complexion.
An unexpected but welcome benefit from this body brushing business: You’ve just set yourself up for a fabulous day. Rough commuter traffic, a flat tire, whiny Bob in the mail room—none of it is going to bring down your upbeat feeling!