Can Lymphatic Drainage assist with weight loss?

The quick answer is ‘Yes, it can’.

Before you run and book yourself an appointment for a lymphatic drainage treatment (although I would highly recommend that you do), here’s the long answer on how improving the flow of your lymphatic system can help you to lose stubborn weight…

Your lymphatic system is like your body’s internal cleansing crew. It moves lymph (a fluid containing white blood cells, waste, and toxins) throughout your body to help:

• Remove toxins and cellular waste;
• Support immune function;
• Regulate fluid levels in tissues; and
• Transport fats from the digestive system.

But how does any of that relate to weight loss?

Well, if your lymphatic system is overworked and begins to get bogged down with more toxins and waste than it can handle, you will see the following start to happen in the body:

1. Fluid retention begins to build and you start to notice puffiness in different areas of the body. When lymph isn’t moving well, fluid can accumulate in the tissues, causing bloating, swell and that ‘puffy’ feeling – which can be mistaken for fat gain.
2. Toxins begin to build up as a sluggish system can’t efficiently remove toxins from the cells and tissues. Toxins get stored in fat cells (especially in stubborn areas like belly, things and upper arms), and your body holds on to the fat as a protective mechanism. That’s right, the fat is not out to get you, it is actually there to protect you by surrounding and trapping the toxins so that they can’t harm you.
3. When detox pathways are sluggish and bogged down with toxins, your body becomes more inflamed, stressed and hormonally imbalanced. This can lead to insulin resistance, thyroid sluggishness, sleep issues, or adrenal fatigue – all of which mess with energy and metabolism.
4. This increase in fatigue, inflammation (and the resulting chronic pain), causes you to become more sedentary as a result. When you don’t move your body as much, lymph flow stagnates, worsening fatigue, puffiness, weight gain and inflammation. Talk about a vicious cycle!

Booking a regular lymphatic drainage treatment is one of the ways that you can speed up the efficiency of the lymphatic system. One lymphatic drainage session can increase the circulation of lymph around the body from 1.5 – 2 litres of fluid a day, to 15 – 30 litres a day. That’s 10-15 times more toxins being removed from the body as they get sent to the necessary organs to be eliminated.

So, to summarise, the body will hold onto excess weight when the lymphatic system is moving too slowly and there are too many toxins in the body. By speeding up the lymphatic system, and kick starting the body’s clean up crew into high gear, the body will more quickly feel safe to let some of the weight (both lymph fluid and fat) go.

Now you can run and book your lymphatic drainage appointment and I look forward to seeing you in my clinic soon.