New challenge to your cellulite (From Echo)

New challenge to your cellulite

7:57pm Monday 14th July 2008

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IT'S the curse of the female of the species. You can pinch it, pummel it, pull it and poke it, but cellulite is a stubborn little devil.

No matter how good your diet or how much you exercise, that lumpy orange peel look stubbornly refuses to shift.

Help may now be at hand, thanks to new machine which claims to suck those fatty deposits away as you exercise.

Vacu Step was developed by German engineers and combines a normal gym- style treadmill with a high powered vacuum chamber.

It claims to be a non-invasive alternative to liposuction, and says after 20 sessions, it can reshape you hips, stomach, thighs and bum - all those stubborn areas, which any self respecting cellulite battler knows all too well.

The machine is in Essex thanks to Oasis Health and Fitness in Stanford le Hope, where the gym owners made the £16,000 investment in it because they were so impressed with the results.

Gym manager Shaun Walrond explains: "By encouraging increased blood circulation, results can be seen with far less effort than that of normal fat-burning training and each session takes only 30 minutes."

"Vacustep can not only help reduce the appearance of cellulite, but can also improve skin tone and firmness."

Eager to try the machine, which looks like a space age Turkish bath, Shaun first helped me get kitted out in the required rubber "skirt" which helped seal me in to the machine.

It was then time to step inside. Once the door was shut, the bottom part of my rubber skirt was pulled over the gap at the top and two wooden slats set on top to seal it completely.

Shaun set the controls for me to give a 20 minute workout at a comfortable walking speed and a gradual incline.

Five minutes in after a gentle warm up and it was time to activate the vacuum.

At the flick of a switch my easy stroll was suddenly like walking through mud. The air in the chamber felt heavy and every step was laboured.

Shaun explained: "The vacuum helps the blood circulation to improve. This helps the fat cells to open up and the fat that is released is then burnt up."

By now the up hill struggle against the vacuum was really starting to make me sweat, all good for the cellulite burning apparently.

"A minute on this machine is equivalent to three minutes on a normal treadmill," Shaun revealed "It means you don't have to do as long, making it perfect for those who don't have a lot of time."

After just one session there was no discernible difference in my wobbly bits, but it certainly felt like I had worked out longer than 20 minutes.

Oasis Health and Fitness are offering 20 sessions for £350, but if you book in July and mention the Echo it costs £250. For more information call 01375 679533.

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