Mocktail Minutes

Understanding Your Lymphatic System

• Mocktail Minutes • Episode 137

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We're calling it... Lymphatic health is going to be all the rage in 2026. Our lymphatic system is amazing! And honestly, often overlooked. Here's our kick take on the lymphatic system and vibration plates. 

If you have questions, or topics that you want to hear about, head over to our Instagrams https://www.instagram.com/bayleethedietitian/ or https://www.instagram.com/brianna.dietitian/ and send us a DM! You can also follow the podcast https://www.instagram.com/mocktailminutes/


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Baylee:

Hello everyone. Welcome back to this week's episode of Mocktail Minutes. This is Bailey

Brianna:

This is Brianna.

Baylee:

this week. I am drinking just ingredients, fruit punch electrolytes. I actually have it in a, I went to a coffee shop today and got a lotus drink. It was like a Christmas one, so I had a cranberry and orange like rosemary in it. So I use that cup, so I might have a little bit leftover from that, but just mixed it.

Brianna:

Yeah. I'm just doing a Tazo turmeric tea. I have like a cold or something. I don't know what I have, but I'm like, you know when you're on the verge of like, I think I'm about to get really sick, and you're like, no, I'm not.

Baylee:

Yeah,

Brianna:

So I

Baylee:

your Aura Ring

Brianna:

yes, it's like noticing like signs and then

Baylee:

radar?

Brianna:

yes, I'm like, oh no, and I'm pretty sure I overdosed on the amount of zinc you're supposed to have in a day yesterday and today. So I'm like, it'll be fine. It'll help. I was like sucking on zinc lozenges.

Baylee:

Mm-hmm.

Brianna:

And I had like three in one session because I was like talking and my voice was like, and then I look on the box and it's like, do not exceed four in one day. And I was like, I have three in like

Baylee:

Whoops.

Brianna:

30 minutes.

Baylee:

It spread it out a little bit more.

Brianna:

Yeah. So that's what I'm doing today.

Baylee:

Oh yes. That time of year. We are talking about your lymphatic system today. We, one of the things, I'm pretty sure we mentioned this when we talked about wellness gift guides, we talked about the vibration plate. So I feel like these have been trending more and more this year. I feel like they're just gonna get bigger next year. So we wanna explain like what your lymphatic system even is, because it does relate to these vibration plates.

Brianna:

Yes. So your lymphatic system is like your body's drainage detox immune system report. So it immune support system, it runs alongside your cardiac, like your circulation system. So you have like all your blood, you know, like your veins and your arteries. And then alongside of it you have like all these tinier little, you know. I don't if you haven't, if you don't know what the lymphatic system is, like Google a picture'cause it's actually really cool. But it basically runs alongside of that. And instead of moving blood, it moves lymph fluid. And so lymph fluid is like excess water from tissues, metabolic waste, inflammatory byproducts, toxins, and then immune cells like lymphocytes. So your immune cells go do what they're supposed to do and then we have to get rid of'em. Your lymphatic system is responsible for that.

Baylee:

And it's gonna help like reduce swelling and fluid retention. It's supporting your immune function. It's removing waste from tissue. Issues. Maintaining like healthy inflammation levels. So that's where like when you kind of feel around your throat, that's like your lymph

Brianna:

area. Yeah.

Baylee:

So they get swollen typically like when you're sick sometimes. So that's a little bit inflammation. I guess I don't really know, like is it correlated with any specific sicknesses?

Brianna:

It's a good question. I don't know. I know like, definitely like any like sinus ranges, drainage and stuff, you'll feel like right here it's like usually like cold, flu, sinus infections for sure. That sort of thing.

Baylee:

Yeah, because I think, yeah, it's kind of just like inflammatory response. But yeah, I would say yeah, probably more to do like sinuses, throat issues like. Probably more like upper things, like a cold or a flu or a strep throat. Maybe even like a viral illness so they can kind of swell a little bit there too. So oftentimes like doctors will check their,

Brianna:

here to see. Yeah.

Baylee:

yeah. And kind of what's

Brianna:

like, I guess like ear problems too, but there's like, you have like a like big bottleneck areas of lymph nodes and like that's one of'em. So that's probably why you have some in like other places too. But I think these are probably like what you notice the most.

Baylee:

Yeah, probably the easiest to feel as well. Mm-hmm.

Brianna:

yeah. So the key difference between like the lymph system and the circulatory system is the lymph. Does not have like a pump. So obviously your circulatory system does like it's pumping blood through it. Like there's stuff that keeps pushing it through. Your lymph doesn't, and so it can kind of just stay stagnant. So it's relying on muscle contractions, breathing, especially deep belly breathing, which a lot of us don't do when we're stressed. Body movement. A lot of us are sedentary and then manual stimulation, so like massage vibration, compression tapping, dry brushing, all of that. So you can see that like if you're not really moving your body much, you're, it's gonna be stagnant. Like this can lead to like inflammation, puffiness, filling heavy slow recovery, feeling stuck. I just feel like, yeah, like puffy,

Baylee:

mm-hmm.

Brianna:

I think. That's probably what was pro like probably popular at the beginning of this year was like, is it go massages? Or what are those little things that you like? Where it's like, look, you can like do those little

Baylee:

snatch your face.

Brianna:

like I could snatch. I'm like, well, you don't think you're gonna be like a giant difference. But I mean, if your face is like puffy and stuff like, you know, like when you're sick or at certain parts of your period, you're just like more puffy

Baylee:

Yeah.

Brianna:

just yeah.

Baylee:

Mm-hmm. And that's a good point where it's like these things, like it's not fat gain. It's often more like fluid retention and inflammation. So. When we think about your lymphatic system and weight loss, the lymphatic system does not burn fat. It does not directly cause weight loss, but it kind of plays like a supporting role because it's going to reduce that fluid weight and inflammation because it's improving excess water, like leaving your tissues, your swelling decreases. So sometimes like when you focus on your lymphatic system, you can see the scale drop pretty quickly at first, where it's like, oh, I lost. Five pounds after some work on. You shouldn't see that every week. That's kind of a sign that it's inflammation and fluid, not fat, but it still matters and it still makes a difference. And you're kind of creating like a better environment for fat loss. So for fat loss, we want good circulation. We want hormonal signaling, and we want to get rid of waste. And so if waste and inflammatory byproducts are trapped in your tissues. Fat cells become more resistant to releasing that store fat. It's also gonna affect your insulin sensitivity, making you more insulin resistant. And workout recovery is gonna slow down. So if you have healthy lymphatic flow, you have less resistance to fat loss. And. Something to bring up too is like cellulite. So cellulite is not necessarily a toxin problem, and it's not purely fat. It's influenced by your connective tissue structure, your fat cell size, fluid retention, inflammation, and lymphatic drainage. So as you improve this lymph. Flow, you're reducing the appearance of cellulite. It gets smooth out your tissues kind of temporarily, and it improves your skin texture. So it's not a permanent fix without like also including strength training and fat loss.

Brianna:

It can make it look more smoother. It's kind of like. You know how like your stomach looks a little bit more toned in the morning, you know, and then the day goes on. It's not, I feel like that's how it can help with cellulite, like lower the appearance of it. But fun fact, women, their connective tissue structure is like waffles like this. And so that's why like you see. Cellulite more on women just because there's more like, there's like squares in between their connective tissue, whereas like men is not waffles. It's like straight. I learned that. I was like, that's horrible.

Baylee:

yeah. Why do they do that?

Brianna:

Like what? But yeah, so the other important thing too is that it helps with consistency because you're gonna feel less bloated when you do lymphatic work, more energized, because again, you're helping your body. Basically detox. And so you're gonna have energy, you're gonna fill a sore, you're gonna feel less bloated. And when people feel better, they do better. You know, you're moving more, you're sleeping better, you're sticking to your habits, you're feeling motivated. So it doesn't directly like impact or doesn't directly cause weight loss, but I think it helps you feel more consistent because when you feel good, you do good. You know? Today specifically, we kind of wanted to touch on like the vibration plate, because. Like Bailey said, we talked about it. I'm pretty sure we talked about it in our gift guide,

Baylee:

I think so.

Brianna:

but I've been seeing'em everywhere. I know there was like a ton on like Black Friday, that sort of thing. So a vibration plate is a platform and it like moves rapidly. Like you stand on it, you can stand, you can sit, you can squat. I think they were really popular and like. Seventies and eighties. We've seen like those old school vibration plates that have like the band, it was supposed to help cellulite. That was like the whole reason for it. But they're coming back into circulation and the vibrations of the vibration plate can help create like rapid muscle contraction. It can mechanically stimulate tissue and increased circulation. So it's basically replicating movement.

Baylee:

Mm-hmm. Yeah. And this is where like, so this vibration plate, it's affecting your lymphatic system. So it's stimulating that. Movement and it's gonna be especially helpful for people who sit a lot and who have a sluggish, circ circulation and are early, kind of like in their movement journey. It can help with that recovery and just reduce some of that inflammation. Or for someone who often noticed like your legs feeling lighter or there's like. Less ankle swelling, reduce bloating. This can help with fluid retention. It's gonna give you kind of those results as well. So if you kind of feel like you have a lot of swelling or a lot of bloating, this is gonna be that fluid shift, not necessarily like fat changes. And it's supporting that recovery because it decreases that delayed onset muscle soreness. DOMS is what it's referred to a lot. And it's improving that circulation, post-workout, so it's reducing that stiffness. That's where, again, that consistency piece comes in. But what we really wanna point out is like, I feel like on TikTok and everything, like again, anything that you can market towards weight loss,

Brianna:

Yes.

Baylee:

it's people get excited about that. So it's not that. These vibration plates, like they're not just melting fat, they don't replace your strain training. They're not really like detoxing your body. Standing on one is not a workout in of itself. I think it's a bonus, but I personally would not count that as a workout.

Brianna:

Yeah, no, it's not. And I, I have a really good Instagram account. I think she also has like a TikTok and YouTube and all that. I'm gonna link her. She's called, well, her practice is called Lymph Love Club, and she has a lot of, she's like an actual, like certified lymphatic, whatever, because there's people that do lymphatic massages, but they're not really. Like certified. So she has a lot of really good information and kind of how she like breaks it down is like it's a tool, right? Just like everything else. And I feel like these are more of an advanced tool because you can like move on your own, right? Like you can kind of like bounce around. You can use a rebound or you can even like stand up on your toes, go back to your heels, like over and over. All that's gonna do similar stuff. The vibration plate is more of an intense. One. So I probably wouldn't like go from never doing anything and then being like, I'm gonna do this 15 minute or 15 minutes a day every single day. At like the highest level? No, you could probably start other places, but for people who are like, I'm really focusing on my lymph system, this is a tool that you can add, but it's not a magic fix. I saw, I almost saved it. I saw a TikTok of some girl and it was like going through. It was like a date, and it was like all these videos and different dates on it. It was just all of her on the vibration plate, and it was like three months had gone by and she's like 40 pounds lighter, and I'm like, stop

Baylee:

It's not just the vibration plate equals weight loss. If someone does lose weight using it, it's more fluid shifts,

Brianna:

Fluid

Baylee:

movement, it's, you're probably changing other things as you're adding it.

Brianna:

Yeah.

Baylee:

so like. This isn't gonna be your like magic weight loss tool. Again, it's a bonus. And I think people who could benefit are if you have lots of swelling or you're focusing on that lymphatic health, you need better recovery days. Or like if someone who flies, like maybe after a flight or if you've had a sedentary workday, or you could use it as like your warmup or cool down for your workouts, but like five to 15 minutes, three to five times. A week, and you do wanna do it, like you wanna have a slight bend in your knees. And then I always recommend to do it barefoot too.

Brianna:

Yeah, yeah. So that you can actually like, feel, start at a low intensity. From what I've heard, the closer your feet are, the easier it is and the more spread out they are. The more difficult, so maybe low intensity feet together, like barefoot feet together and just kind of, you know, and then work your way up more is not better. Better is better.

Baylee:

Yes.

Brianna:

And then parrot. Parrot with like walking strength, training, deep breathing, definitely hydration. You don't just wanna start doing all these really intense things for your lymph system and not be like hydrating Well, or focusing on other things.'cause you can like. You can not feel great. You can have like what's called like the detox flu, which is like totally a thing. Or if you're someone who has like a lot of cysts or just like things going on, like you can make things worse. So pair it with other tools that make you feel better. But big takeaway is supporting your lymph system or in your lymph flow is gonna help reduce inflammation, decrease water intention, improve how you feel, and then create a better environment. In your body for other things, better metabolic health, you feel better, you're moving more, you're sleeping better. It all goes together.

Baylee:

You're essentially making fat loss easier by adding this tool in. It's gonna work best when you're still doing the strength training, the sleep, the nutrition, the stress management. Again, there's no one specific thing that's going to give you weight loss magically, so being able to. Sure. Yeah. It's a bonus. I don't think it's gonna hurt anything, but don't make that your ba, your like foundation for weight loss. You're gonna make anything, your foundation, I would say, obviously your nutrition. Then I would say sleep, and then I would say just like daily, everyday movement.

Brianna:

Yes. Yes. The other thing too is focusing on your lymph. A lot of things you do for your lymphatic system also helps your nervous system. So if you're someone that knows like you're really stressed or you like are trying to work on your nervous system, some of these practices, maybe we'll go into more of like lymphatic. Supporting tools,

Baylee:

Yeah.

Brianna:

you know, but that can definitely help. So

Baylee:

Right.

Brianna:

about a vibration plate, I say yes, just don't get crazy with it. You know? It's like, don't go from sitting at your desk all day to like, I'm gonna go run a marathon.

Baylee:

Yeah.

Brianna:

Okay, low and slow.

Baylee:

Yes. But yeah, they can be helpful. That's why we did put in on our gift guide. I think it'd be a good thing that anyone could add in, but using it as a tool, don't expect to just, that's gonna be your weight loss secret. It can definitely help though. So yeah, we hope this episode was helpful. If you want us to dive more into like the lymphatic system, let us know. Or if other questions pop up, let us know as well. But we will be back next week with a brand new topic. Bye.

Brianna:

Hi.

Contributor

Baylee

Host
Contributor

Brianna

Host