What did we all learn at school? That the human body is 80% liquid, so you need to drink as much clean water as possible to constantly replenish your reserves. However, for many people, after some disruptions in the body, fluid reserves begin to accumulate instead of natural elimination, leading to external swelling and problems of internal organs.
Read our article about the dangers of lymph stagnation , why lymphostasis needs to be gotten rid of, and how to do it effectively at home with the help of simple gymnastics that are accessible to everyone.
Why do you need to fight lymph stagnation?
Stagnation of lymph (also called lymphostasis) is mistaken by many for an annoying cosmetic defect. Like, your legs or even your whole body swell a lot - this, of course, is ugly, but not fatal, and what can you do about it?
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And it is necessary to fight lymphostasis! After all, normal lymph circulation, which is responsible for metabolic processes in the body, is a guarantee of bodily health.
When lymph outflow is impaired, metabolic processes also slow down. In addition, cells cannot receive enough oxygen, and without it, blood vessels and tissues quickly become flabby (like in old people). And such defects, unsightly in appearance and dangerous to health, can be observed with constant stagnation of lymph even among young people.
Effective home gymnastics for lymph stagnation
First of all, let’s make a reservation that before starting classes, it would be optimal to undergo a diagnosis from your therapist in order to determine the true cause of lymphostasis. Because if swelling is only an external manifestation, for example, of hormonal disorders, then until you put this important area of health in order, any exercise will only have a short-term effect.
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Before starting home lymphatic drainage, you need to exclude several factors:
- Pregnancy (this is the main contraindication, since swelling is natural in this state)
- Hormonal imbalance (reproductive or thyroid problems)
- Acute and chronic inflammatory processes in the body (even persistent sore throats can cause lymph stagnation)
- Allergy
- Kidney disease (the main organ that removes fluid from the body)
- Heart failure
- Taking certain medications that have similar side effects (birth control pills, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, etc.)
Each of the factors listed above can provoke fluid retention in the body, so without solving the initial problem, the consequences cannot be eliminated.
There are several ways to combat lymph stagnation:
Manual lymphatic drainage massage from a specialist or hardware procedures (pressotherapy).
Drinking plenty of water and unsweetened herbal teas, combined with avoiding coffee, alcohol and excessively salty foods.
Simple but effective gymnastics for lymph stagnation.
The ideal option is a combination of all three methods, but not everyone can afford the services of a professional massage therapist or sessions in a cosmetology clinic. There is no need to be upset - an established drinking regime, changes in diet and doing exercises at home will also bring excellent results.
Gymnastics for general lymph stagnation
There are no contraindications, other than pregnancy, for these exercises and massage movements. They can even be performed for the prevention of lymphostasis and general well-being.
You need to do this kind of gymnastics at least twice a day – in the morning immediately after waking up and in the evening before going to bed. If possible, you can do it during the day to speed up the effect.
Important: all massage movements should be performed from bottom to top, since this is the direction in which lymph moves in the body.
After lymphatic drainage exercises, you should not feel tired, as you do after classical sports. On the contrary, there should be a feeling of lightness, relaxation, warmth. If the body is tense after exercise, it means that the pace of exercise is too high. Try to perform the exercises slowly, without haste, but also without pauses.
Warm up:
- Using confident stroking movements (but without pressure), rub your face and neck with your hands until warmth appears.
- We alternately rub (from bottom to top) with one hand the other. We start from the inside, then move to the outside of the arms.
- With one hand we make light circular movements (clockwise) on the chest in the area of the heart.
- With the same smooth circular rubbing, we gently massage the stomach, moving from the navel to a wider circle (as if drawing a spiral with our hands).
- We rub our legs one by one: clasping each leg with both palms, we move from the foot to the thigh.
- Now that your body is both warm and relaxed, alternately tense and relax the muscles of your arms, then your legs, then your stomach. Spend a minute on each part of your body.
As you can see, there is nothing complicated in the exercises to improve lymph outflow , and every reader can do them.
After lymphatic drainage exercises, you should not feel tired, as you do after classical sports.
Gymnastics for lymph stagnation in the legs
Some people suffer from swelling in the lower extremities. Swollen legs cause especially a lot of suffering in the evening, when they “fill up” and swell.
There are exercises that help the outflow of fluid in the legs:
- In a lying position, rest your legs raised up against the wall and push your pelvis forward.
- In a lying position, lift your legs up and rotate your feet 20 times, then clench and unclench your toes the same number of times.
- While lying on the floor, move your heels up and down, without lifting them off the floor, and bending only your knees.
- The “bicycle” exercise, well known to everyone from school physical education lessons, works very effectively for stagnation of lymph in the legs. To enhance the effect, you can do it alternately with each leg.
- Pull each leg to your chest one by one, lying on your side (on the right - the left leg, on the left - the right).
- Raise each leg up in turn in the same position as in the previous exercise.
Even if one leg swells more than the other, you should still use both limbs evenly in these exercises.
Like general gymnastics for lymph stagnation , these exercises should not cause discomfort during or after execution - muscle strain, fatigue. If everything doesn't work out, just be patient and continue at your own pace.
By the way, if your legs are swollen, it is useful to lift them up as often as possible during the day. The same rule also works for those who have severely swollen hands.
There are no contraindications for gymnastics during lymph stagnation - such exercises are useful to do even for preventive purposes.
In gymnastics against lymph stagnation, the most important thing is regularity and continuity of exercise. Be patient and your body will certainly thank you with results. We hope that the advice on our website will help readers cope with lymphatic stagnation and give them good health.
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