FREEZE FRAME
COLD EXPOSURE IS ALREADY A POPULAR APPROACH TOWARDS TREATING MUSCLE RECOVERY, PAIN RELIEF AND BOOSTING TESTOSTERONE. NOW, IT’S EVEN BEING USED TO HELP SHIFT STUBBORN POCKETS OF BODY FAT
Cold is cool in 2020. Employed alongside a healthy diet and exercise regime, a whole roster of subzero treatments is now being used to alleviate muscle pain, speed recovery and boost testosterone levels.
One proponent of cold therapy is “The Iceman” Wim Hof, who claims to be able to control his immune system and blitz fat through exposure to freezing temperatures. But you don’t need to plunge into an icy river in just your shorts to tackle hard-to-shift body fat.
“The distribution of fat cells in our bodies is set during childhood and adolescence,” says Dr John Quinn, founder of Quinn Clinics. “For some, this leads to pockets of fat in adulthood that are more difficult to eliminate, no matter how much we diet or exercise.”
This is where cold therapy comes in. “Fat freezing as a cosmetic treatment was discovered by accident,” says plastic surgeon Fulvio Urso-Baiarda of the Eterno 360° clinic. “People going horse riding on cold winter mornings would develop indentations in their outer thighs from fat loss. Scientists realised that this phenomenon would come in handy if only you could bottle it, and fat freezing was born.”
If you’re looking to target that persistent area of fat around your belly, under your chin or around your pectorals, CoolSculpting is one option to consider. It uses a non-surgical technique known as cryolipolysis – fat freezing – on problem zones. “Treatment involves ‘controlled cooling’, which selectively freezes fat cells in the chosen zone,” says Dr Quinn. “Research has shown a reduction in fat cells of up to 27% in the abdomen area after one treatment. Results are generally seen between eight to 12 weeks.”
Urso-Baiarda explains how it works.
To discover more about CoolSculpting and to find your nearest practitioner, visit coolsculpting.co.uk
“The tissue is cooled to a temperature at which the fat cells freeze, but other cells remain intact. The fat cells form frozen crystals, causing them to die, and are then removed naturally from the body, which can take up to 12 weeks. Those fat cells that have been removed are gone for good.” So, if “YOU DON’T NEED you’re considering how to TO PLUNGE INTO deal with stubborn body fat, putting it on ice – in AN ICY RIVER TO conjunction with that all-important healthy BENEFIT FROM diet and exercise routine COLD THERAPY” – could help you achieve a more defined physique.