Can exercise get rid of cellulite?

Short answer

Not with exercise alone. Cellulite is shaped by fibrous bands that pull the skin down, and adding exercise to a diet did no better than diet alone. People carrying more fat mostly saw it fade when they lost weight.

Can exercise get rid of cellulite?
'Exercise → less fat → less cellulite' — does this formula hold?
A common belief: burn fat with exercise and the dimpled cellulite on your thighs and buttocks disappears. We checked what actually causes cellulite and how much exercise and weight loss really change it.
Cellulite is common
80 to 90% of women have it after puberty
A review of 67 studies concluded that 80 to 90% of women have cellulite after puberty. MRI scans showed that in people with cellulite, fat pushed deeper up into the skin, and more of the fibrous walls in the fat stood straight up, perpendicular to the skin.
The real cause: cords that pull the skin
Fibrous bands sat under 97.6% of dimples
A study scanned the thighs and buttocks of 50 people with ultrasound. Of 173 dimples, 169 (97.6%) had a fibrous band underneath. These bands tie the skin down while fat bulges up between them, which creates the bumpy look.
So what about losing weight?
Most improved, but some got worse
Researchers measured skin bumpiness with a 3D laser scanner in people on weight-loss programs. Most saw their cellulite fade. Those who started heavier and lost more thigh fat improved. Those who started lighter, kept their thigh fat and just ended up with looser skin got worse.
Does adding exercise change things?
No difference from diet alone
In two trials with 843 people, 37.1% and 41.6% of those who got an injection that breaks down the fibrous bands improved by at least one level, versus 17.8% and 11.2% with a fake injection. Body weight did not change. A 2025 analysis pooling 24 randomized trials (2,084 people) found shock waves, radiofrequency and injections worked, and it included no exercise trials.
Targeting the bands made a difference
Band-dissolving injections: 37.1% vs 17.8%
In two trials with 843 people, 37.1% and 41.6% of those who got an injection that breaks down the fibrous bands improved by at least one level, versus 17.8% and 11.2% with a fake injection. A 2025 analysis pooling 24 randomized trials (2,084 people) found shock waves, radiofrequency and injections worked, and it included no exercise trials.
Bottom line: exercise cuts fat but can't cut the bands
Cellulite is more about bands than fat
Cellulite is shaped by fibrous bands that hold the skin down, so adding exercise to a diet did no better than diet alone. People carrying more fat mostly saw it fade when they lost weight. Think of exercise as a tool to lower overall body fat, not as a way to erase cellulite.