(BlackDoctor.org) -- You’re really not sure how it happened, but one day you looked in the mirror and there it was—cellulite, creeping up on your legs and butt just in time for swimsuit season. Happily, there’s a speedy way to smooth those bumps and lumps: Yoga. Do this 20-minute sequence three days a week—plus 30 minutes of vigorous cardio, four times a week—and you’ll see smoother skin in just six weeks.
The Routine
Thanks to all those days spent sitting, fat pushes through weakened spots in the connective tissue beneath skin. But rebuilding muscle tone in those trouble spots and burning excess fat can help smooth out cellulite and prevent future dimpling.
Let's get started:
1. Standing forward bend
Stand with feet hip-distance apart. Hinge forward at the hips, keeping a slight bend in your knees. Lay your chest on your upper thighs as you let your head fall toward the ground. Engage quadriceps muscles and slowly straighten legs, making sure your knees don’t lock and your hips stay over the center of your feet. Hold for 5–8 slow, deep breaths.
2. Chair pose
Stand with feet together, big toes touching, and ankles slightly apart. Bend at the knees, sitting hips back (as if into a chair) and lifting your chest up to the sky. At the same time, reach your arms up by your ears and lengthen through the fingertips, keeping shoulders relaxed and ab muscles held in.
Sit back as far as you can; aim to make up to a 90-degree angle with your legs (a shallower angle is fine—go as far as is ...