dry brushing + a hack if you forget before showering!
let me show you how to glow up in your self-care routine with dry brushing the skin. all you need is a few minutes a day to put yourself & your health first!
I'm always fascinated with new ways we can show up in our health & self-care routine… and this is what lead me to dry brushing! It was something I had NO idea about until I read a little blurb on it, which instantly captivated me. This was going to be yet another way I could truly focus on living out a beautiful, glowing lifestyle with one simple addition!
If you're unfamiliar with this whole concept, then you've come to the right place. I’m just an ordinary mom trying to up-level her health when she can, and I love that this is a very simple way to do it. It requires only a couple minutes to do a few times per week. So… are you ready?!
what is dry brushing?
It's a method of brushing your skin (check out the tools below) to get the lymphatic system going by stimulating & detoxing it. The lymph system works as a one-way pump (in order for it to move it needs some help & doesn’t pump automatically), so dry brushing is an effective tool for helping it do this.
And then the brushing of the skin itself—your skin is your largest organ and responsible for 25% of the body’s ability to detox, so it deserves precious care to help it release toxins. Dry brushing not only helps cleanse the body, but helps unclog our pores (by eliminating toxins through the skin, which then helps clear the pores ;), and excretes any of those toxins causing havoc in our bodies. Like, in the kidneys and liver where brushing will help them release excess hormones that have built up in the organs!
It’s also great for cellulite and helps regenerate collagen, while also energizing you! Again, because it’s amazing for helping with circulation and unclogging those pores to help it breathe better. This is why I take eeeextra care in brushing around the upper legs & bum area ;)
Now let’s get into the most important part of the process & learn how to do it!
HOW TO DRY BRUSH IN SIMPLE STEPS
Here’s the easiest way to get started! (I always do it right before my shower. I step in as the water is warming up & keep to the side of the shower while I do this.)
Get naked (ooo lala!) & step into your shower or tub, but do NOT get wet (yet).
This way any dead skin that gets removed in the brushing process is contained in the shower or tub (gross, I know, but it's the truth!). If you're using essential oils, add a few drops of an oil to your brush. My faves to add are: cedarwood, myrrh, zendocrine (the detox blend), patchouli, pink pepper, bergamot, or slim & sassy (the metabolic blend). I only select one oil per use.
Start brushing, while always moving TOWARDS the heart (because this is the way the lymph system pumps).
Use long sweeping brush motions/strokes as you do it. It should feel slightly painful but good. You want to brush the area you’re on 5-6x before moving onto the next. LYMPH LOVING TIP: Take extra time and care to focus on the following areas while brushing as they have more concentrated areas of lymph nodes: the neck (to the collarbones), the groin area, and the arm pits.
Your order of brushing could go something like this:
start on bottoms of the feet then move onto the top of feet
work way up lower leg (all sides), to upper leg (all sides), to the bum
brush up the bum to the low back + your sides (hips)
start at the hands and work up to the shoulder
head back to the belly - do about 5-6 clockwise circles around the belly (always in this direction)
brush carefully under the breast area and sweep up to heart/center of chest (never brush directly on the breasts or nipples)
brush down the neck & down the upper back
brush down across the upper chest (brushing slow + carefully over this tender area)
When done, rinse your brush off then hop in the shower/bath!
Extra challenge is if you can keep the shower cooler, rather than hot! Post-shower, use some unscented lotion (doTERRA's is my fave with a drop of eo in it) or a body oil. I love baobab for this!
YOU'VE DONE IT!!
Try this out 2-4x a week and see how you feel. It should only take 5 minutes max & feels so good on the bod!
THE TOOLS
The great thing about this health practice is that it needs very little. At the very minimum all you need is a brush (I’ve included a few different options below!) and you can also add in some moisturizers/oils + essential oils for added health perks.
and now for the best part…
oh shoot! You forgot to dry brush before the shower and now your skin is wet!
Don’t worry, I got you!
This is when you enter the world of wet brushing. You essentially do the same practice as above, but instead with the shower running and your body wet. I often do this when I’m running low on time and can’t dry brush before starting the shower or like the title implies… when I forget to dry brush (and you might too)!
I follow the same techniques with the same brush with the same practice (adding an essential oil to the brush). You might meet a bit of resistance, but trust me, it still feels just as good!
There you have it! I hope this helps you on your journey to giving your lymph system the help it deserves while also improving the body overall. Like I said, it’s a fun and easy practice that only requires one tool + an extra 5 mins, which I know you can do!
But more importantly… Have I convinced you? Is this something you're going to add to your glowing self-care routine soon? Leave any comments or questions below and happy brushing!
