We all occasionally feel bloated, sluggish and mentally fuzzy, but working out what is causing those symptoms is rarely straightforward.
Poor sleep, dehydration, stress and vitamin deficiencies are among the usual suspects – but social media has recently seized upon a less familiar explanation: a supposedly sluggish lymphatic system.
This complicated network of vessels, glands and organs acts as the body’s drainage and defence system, collecting excess fluid, waste and germs from tissues.
The fluid, known as lymph, then passes through small, bean-shaped lymph nodes, where it is filtered and checked by immune cells before being returned to the bloodstream. The system also helps the gut absorb fats from food.
Unlike blood, however, lymph does not have the heart to pump it around the body. Instead, it relies largely on muscle movement generated by everyday activities such as walking, breathing and exercising.
If our lymph fluid becomes slow-moving or gets stuck, it can lead to feelings of heaviness and swelling – especially in the legs, where gravity is working against the body’s natural drainage routes.
It is also possible to manually help the fluid on its way through the body or to make its way to the natural ‘exit points’ – lymphatic ducts that empty into large veins near your heart – with massage.
There are two main schools; manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) and Brazilian, which is a more dynamic practice that uses oils and faster repetitions to try and reduce puffiness to visually slim the body.
Devotees claim that lymphatic drainage massages reduce puffiness and swelling – fast
These specialised treatments – which cost from £65 – claim to reduce puffiness and swelling in commonly problematic areas such as the face, abdomen, thighs and upper arms.
Olivia Johnson, an experienced Brazilian-style lymphatic drainage practitioner, tells the Daily Mail that these massages can reduce ‘feelings of heaviness’ and having stagnant lymph in your body can cause you to feel ‘sluggish or tired; you could also get ill quite frequently.’
However, much of the interest in lymphatic drainage massage is driven by its supposed cosmetic benefits.
Instagram and TikTok are awash with striking ‘before’ and ‘after’ pictures of women proudly showing off their dramatically slimmed-down waists and taut profiles after lymphatic massages and facials.
According to The Method Club’s lymphatic drainage expert, Iani Motta, certain techniques can help to provide, ‘enhanced body contour definition due to the reduction of excess fluid’ as well as encouraging, ‘an overall sense of wellbeing’.
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But not everyone, however, believes that we should invest our time and money tending to our lymphatic system, arguing that it naturally clears fluid and waste products without intervention.
With this in mind, and for those interested in testing out the potential benefits of lymphatic drainage (without the price tag of a specialised massage), we asked the experts for easy home methods to keep your lymphatic fluid flowing (and reduce puffiness).
Exercise is vital
When it comes to lymphatic drainage; movement is key.
Johnson highlights that, ‘exercise is the most important thing you can do for successful lymphatic drainage – staying active is really important’.
‘All of our tiny little lymph vessels that carry this fluid, they’re covered and surrounded by muscles. So when your muscle contracts in any way that might be, any kind of exercise or movement that you’re doing, when the muscle moves, it pushes the fluid to where it needs to be. So the more active you are, the better lymph flow you’ll have in the body’
Motta also specifically recommends, ‘brisk walking; a 20–30 minute walk helps move lymph fluid through the body by activating the muscles, and heel raises – rise onto your toes and lower your heels 20–30 times to help reduce feelings of heaviness in the legs’.
At-home massages work, too
While social media offers many multi-step lymphatic drainage techniques, Johnson says that at-home massages don’t need to be complicated, explaining that even simple movements can help to get fluid moving.
‘It can be as easy as when you’re putting your moisturiser on in the morning, instead of rubbing it all over your legs; start from the bottom of your leg and work your way up, take your hands off, return to the bottom, and work your way up. That’s going to encourage that flow, up the legs, and you can do that with the whole body.’
You can also use the techniques on your face
Dry brushing, also, can help to lessen fluid retention. ‘It’s really good because it’s so simple. You need to do it in the movements, and the direction of the lymph flow, but it’s such an easy one because it’s targeting just underneath the skin where the lymphatic system is and it’s really good for the circulation as well’.
Putting your legs up against a wall
Lying flat on the floor, or a bed, with your legs at a ninety-degree angle resting against a wall for five to ten minutes, can also help to drain your legs after a long day on your feet.
As explained by Johnson, ‘when you’ve spent the whole day standing up, gravity is drawing your lymphatic fluid towards your legs, even if you were sitting down, it’s still drawing it towards the bottom of the body. So, at the end of the day, your legs are going to feel the heaviest.’
‘If you lie on your bed, with your legs up against the headboard, you can do five minutes – or ten if you’ve got time, and it’s going to draw all of that fluid where it needs to be, naturally.’
Drinking water
Flushing your system out can also be as simple as drinking water.
According to Johnson, ‘a lot of people don’t drink enough water throughout the day and that’s really important. If you stay hydrated that’s going to flush everything through the body as well.’
