Sunday, May 4, 2014

Cellulite Body Scrub

We're getting close to bikini season (or it's already here, depending on where in the country you live) and we all gave up on our New Years resolutions months ago. Or maybe just me. In any case, things like stretch marks, cellulite, and body fat are probably going to come to the beach with you. Or me. It's inevitable... I mean, who can buy just one box of Girl Scout Thin Mints?? It's impossible! So when I saw this post from PaulaParrish on how to make a cellulite body scrub with ingredients in your pantry, I had to give it a shot.

Go to your kitchen cupboards and pull out:

1/2 cup of fresh coffee grounds
1/4 cup of sea salt
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1/4 cup of sweet almond oil or olive oil

Combine the coffee, sea salt, brown sugar, and oil in a bowl. I thought this was going to smell a lot better than it actually did... maybe too much of a good thing?


Anyway, mix until thoroughly combined and pour into a container (I used an old Ball mason jar). Keep this in a cool, dry place (so... not the bathroom, unless you're planning on using it).



3 things I did not expect:

#1 - This is a pretty rough exfoliant so be gentle or your legs and behind will feel like they are being rubbed with sandpaper. On the other hand...

#2 - Since all the dead skin was scrubbed off, my legs felt much smoother!

#3 - This makes quite the mess in the shower. Little coffee grinds got all over the shower walls and it looked like I was trying to drown an ant colony.

3 reasons why this may or may not actually work for you:

#1 - The original post said to use twice a week but who knows how long it takes for results to show.

#2 - Everyone's diet is different. The vegan, health-conscious, 8-glasses-of-water-a-day reader might try this and not see any results (maybe because they don't have a lot of cellulite). Or maybe they will?

#3 - The freshness of the coffee grounds will depend on the benefits of the caffeine. Who is to say how "fresh" the grounds should be before it loses its effectiveness? A week? A month?


I tried this and honestly, I didn't notice any physical difference, other than my legs were smoother. So it wasn't all bad!

TOTAL COSTS: About $10
$3.49 for coffee grounds
$1.99 for sea salt
$2.49 for brown sugar
$1.99 for olive oil

TOTAL AMOUNT OF TIME: 5 minutes

EASY-PEASY SCALE (1 super easy - 5 very difficult): 1 out of 5
It's quite easy to combine four ingredients in a jar and apply it in the shower so it can't hurt to try it!

4 comments:

  1. Hi Kat,

    Awesome article, this is the first time i've heard of a homemade cellulite body scrub made from household items such as coffee powder! I've got a few questions:

    1. Is there any discomfort or any feeling of 'stickiness'?
    2. Just wondering what are the benefits of adding coffee powder in the body scrub, is it just for the smell or is there something beneficial in coffee powder?
    3. How long is the shelf-life (estimation?)

    Thanks!
    James

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    1. Hi James! Nope, there wasn't any stickiness to the mixture. And the coffee grinds contain caffeine which, according to the original post, "reduces redness of the skin. It also firms and tightens surface of your skin through constriction, that is why it reduces the appearance of cellulite." And, depending on how much you use, the recipe could last you 2-4 weeks. Hope this helps!

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  2. Oy... the sandpaper effect! I'm surprised it doesn't smell as awesome as it sounds. On the upside, exfoliating one's legs isn't something that gets done a great deal. I frankly don't believe that anything budges cellulite, but I'm always up for exfoliation.

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    Replies
    1. I 100% agree with you - I don't think this actually does anything for cellulite (but hey, I could be wrong) but boy does this work on exfoliating the skin!

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