Our lymphatic system is a key component of our immune system, and it includes our lymph nodes, lymphatic vessels and ducts, lymphatic fluid, and immune cells that help us fight infection. It also allows us to maintain evenly balanced fluids and is crucial in the absorption of fat soluble vitamins such as A, D, E and K, which are essential for long term health.
Without proper circulation of our lymphatic fluid, we can develop swelling known as lymphedema. Most noticeable in the arms, legs, fingers and toes, this swelling can be highly uncomfortable, causing a feeling of heaviness, tightness… even restricting the range of motion of our limbs!
Moreover, with decreased lymphatic flow we may have a higher risk of infection or experience recurring infections as our immune system is blocked from freely circulating to areas where it’s most needed. Over time, our skin may even become thickened and fibrotic, and fat cells may proliferate in areas where lymphatic circulation is reduced.
If that sounds like no fun, you are correct, it isn’t.
And although we have more than twice the volume of lymphatic fluid than we have of blood (roughly 12 liters of lymphatic fluid and only 5 liters of blood in a 150 lb human body) there is no organ to pump the lymph fluid and keep it moving.
If blood has our heartbeat to help circulate it, how do we circulate our lymph fluid? Read through this list below and pick one or two ways to help give your lymphatic system a boost of movement today… and every day:
12 Ways To Boost Lymphatic Circulation
1. Jump on a trampoline
Jumping on a trampoline is an easy way to get our lymphatic system moving. Head outside to jump on the trampoline alone (or better yet with your kids or grandkids!) or for an easy indoor version, bounce for 15 – 20 minutes a day on an indoor mini-trampoline. This is fabulous year round way to boost not only lymphatic flow, but move your cerebrospinal fluid and encourage the circulation of your blood too, while at the same time improving muscle tone, burning calories and the many other health benefits that exercise brings.
I remember interviewing astronaut Edgar Mitchell for my role in the health documentary Heal For Free when he was well into his 80s — he was incredibly agile as well as mentally sharp and focused. When I asked him what his secret to good health was, he showed me his indoor mini trampoline and said he starts every single day with 15 minutes of bouncing. I immediately went home and bought one for myself! There are different styles, including indoor mini trampolines that have a bar you can hold onto while you bounce.
(FYI: Any exercise that involves bouncing or jumping will help boost lymph circulation, so horseback riding counts if you happen to have access to riding a horse! Enjoy walking, trotting and cantering on your horse and your lymphatic flow will improve with each step your horse takes.)
2. Use a vibration plate.
For the same reason that jumping on a trampoline or riding a horse will boost lymph flow, any bouncing or shaking movement will be helpful, and if you have limited mobility, limited time, or simply don’t like the idea of jumping on a trampoline (or a horse!) then a vibration plate is the way to go.
My dear friend Stacey got me hooked on this one from LifePro, she surprised me by gifting me with it one day after she experienced amazing positive effects from using a vibration plate herself. Just 15 minutes a day several times a week will not only boost lymphatic circulation but can also help move your cerebrospinal fluid (more on that in #5 below!) burn calories, tone muscles and more.
3. Massage.
You can actually receive a special form of massage that specifically moves lymph fluid by a certified therapeutic lymphatic massage therapist. Lymphatic massage can also be performed at home, not just in a trained practitioners office. A very light touch is all that is needed to move lymphatic fluid and preform manual lymphatic drainage.
You can look up lots of specific techniques online, which simply involve a light stroking of the skin in the direction of lymphatic drainage. Here is a good video to get you started on lymphatic self massage for the upper body, and here is a good one for the lower body. You can preform self lymphatic massage on the neck, abdomen, chest, shoulder, arms, legs, hands, feet and more.
4. Dry Brushing.
Similar to the light strokes you can make to encourage lymph movement through lymphatic massage, dry brushing the skin is another way to boost lymphatic flow — with the added benefit of exfoliating the skin! Using gentle, long sweeping strokes, sweep a natural bristled brush or a soft loofah mit up each limb towards the torso prior to stepping into a warm shower or bath.
As an aside, dry brushing is also a fabulous way to prep your body for grounding, so if you sleep grounded at night be sure to exfoliate and moisturize your skin before slipping into bed. Here is the hemp mit that I offer in my shop (along with my favorite trace mineral lotion for the ultimate grounding experience!) but any natural bristled brush will work.
5. Deep breathing.
Deep belly breaths, known as diaphragmatic breathing, is another simple technique to get lymph fluid moving. That’s because there are two large lymphatic ducts in your chest (the right lymphatic duct and the thoracic duct) which is where lymphatic fluid drains into your bloodstream.
Placing a hand on your lower abdomen, slowly inhale through your nose all the way down past your chest into your abdomen, feeling your hand rise. Exhale fully through your mouth. Repeat for at least three deep breaths, and consider starting and ending every day this way, as deep breathing comes with a host of additional benefits from the boost to your vagal tone, including decreasing stress, boosting oxygenation, supporting heart health, improving digestion and more.
Did you know taking deep breaths also boosts your cerebrospinal fluid flow? It’s true and I write more about this for you here, along with a video I case you want me to walk you through it:
6. Elevate your legs.
If you experience swelling of the feet or ankles, common after long car rides or plane trips, your legs might benefit from a lymphatic boost. Simply elevate your feet above the level of your heart to allow lymphatic fluid to drain — it could be as simple as laying down with several pillows under your legs so that they are higher than your chest.
Another way to to elevate your legs is to rest your legs up against a wall while you lay on the floor and relax, as shown above — this is also a great time for those belly breaths we just talked about! Aim for 10 minutes of leg elevation. Similarly, inversions (like those found in some yoga postures) help to move lymphatic fluid out of your lower extremities, reducing swelling. Practice daily.
7. Hydrate.
Dehydration concentrates lymphatic fluid and makes it move less freely. Just like being well hydrated keeps our blood volume healthy and encourages healthy blood flow, the same is true for our lymphatic flow. In fact, because our body has more than twice the volume of lymph fluid as it does blood, drinking water to keep our lymphatic system flowing is actually even more crucial to our lymph flow as it is to our blood circulation!
Making sure to drink plenty of fresh filtered water (this is the water filter I use in my own home) is one of the easiest and most immediate things you can do to maintain healthy lymphatic flow. Avoid drinking water from plastic bottles… more on this in an upcoming blog post but microplastic has been found in all major organ systems and one of the top culprits is drinking bottled water (another one is eating from plastic containers that have been microwaved… more on this soon!)
Avoiding bottled water and avoiding unfiltered tap water are why filtering my drinking water is not only one of the most eco friendly things I do each day, but honestly one of the things I believe protects my health the most. After a few weeks of drinking this filtered water, if you taste unfiltered water again it will shock you how much it tastes (and smells!) like a public swimming pool full of chlorine, chemicals and contaminants. If you wouldn’t drink public pool water you definitely should consider not drinking water straight from the tap either, here’s how.
8. Compressive clothing.
Gradient compression clothing can be worn to boost the return of lymphatic fluid in our limbs and decrease swelling, and there are compressive socks, stockings, leggings, gloves and sleeves available to support your health.
A study published in 2017 in Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice found that even mildly compressive socks significantly and effectively decrease the swelling of the foot and ankle of diabetic patients.
Here are the knee high 
compression stockings I carry in my shop, and they are super unique because they are also conductive, which means you can ground right through them!
That way you can be getting the circulatory and lymphatic support of a compression stocking while resting your legs on an indoor grounding tool and/or standing directly on the earth outside (or using in conjunction with grounding shoe stickers like these if you like to keep your shoes on outside!)
9. Compressive devices.
Medical grade devices that boost lymphatic flow are available not only in a hospital setting (commonly used to prevent blood clots for non-ambulating patients like those recovering from surgery) but also in outpatient clinics as well devices geared towards at home use. Called intermittent pneumatic compression (IPC) — compression boots and sleeves are easy to use even in a home setting and truly do make a measurable difference in limb swelling.
Simply sitting for 20 minutes a garment that inflates (similar to a large blood pressure cuff) on and off, forcing blood and lymphatic fluids up the limbs will do the trick, and feels phenomenal, like a deeply therapeutic massage. I find it incredibly relaxing and restorative. If you are someone who likes physical touch, an at home IPC device might be a very welcome addition to your daily health routines.
Medical studies back this up, such as one study published in 2018 in the Journal of Vascular Surgery, Venous and Lymphatic Disorders that found that at home IPC significantly reduced swelling of the legs when compared to controls — I go over this study and also share a video where I am trying these compression boots for you myself (and loving it!) right here:
10. Tape Your Skin.
Have you ever seen an athlete wearing tape on their skin during a sporting event? Using kinesiology tape (sometimes called KT tape) is a therapy that started in physical therapy offices but is now commonly used amoung athletes to support muscle and joint health.
KT tape has been shown to work in a similar way to IPC, and can be worn for long periods of time, is inexpensive, and discrete. No more sitting imobilized for long periods of time anchored to a machine, KT tape allows you to get up and go, wearing the support without anyone even knowing you are.
This study — just published on Sept 9, 2019 in Clinical Rehabilitation, looked at using KT tape in breast cancer patients who had lymph nodes removed, and researchers found that KT tape was superior to IPC therapy in that it decreased swelling while at the same time enhancing range of motion in a way that IPC was not able to do.
It’s inexpensive too, so is a great place to start when trying out different healing modalities to support lymph movement. You can easily find KT tape in wellness stores and online, as well as endless tutorials and simple instructions to apply it to almost any body part.
11. Stop wearing underwire bras.
Breasts have a large concentration of lymphatic tissue, such as a network of lymph nodes around the breast, throughout the axilla and along the chest wall, so the severe compression from a wire pressed firmly around the rib cage and breast tissue can compromise lymph flow. Compressive clothing on our limbs can be helpful, but wired bras are altogether too compressive and can stop lymph flow altogether. Ditch the underwire and select wire-free bras, or go braless entirely.
12. Swim.
The gentle pressure from being in a body of water acts as a gentle, all natural, full body compression garment, and the movement of water along your body simulates a gentle lymphatic massage. One of the most gentle forms of exercise, spending time moving in water is a fabulous way to encourage lymphatic flow and is a particularly good option for anyone with mobility issues or joint pain.
As a bonus, almost every way you can possibly swim is grounded, giving you two therapy modalities in one! Pools, even indoor pools, are generally grounded through their water filtration unit (which is required to be grounded by law) and of course all natural bodies of water you might swim in like lakes, rivers and oceans are likewise grounded.
We hear a lot about boosting circulation and blood flow and how important good circulation is for our health, but relatively little about how to support healthy lymphatic flow.
Given the large volume of lymph fluid, the immense network of lymphatic vessels found throughout our body, as well as how necessary lymph flow is to maintaining healthy fluid balance, how crucial lymph is in absorbing fat soluble vitamins, and how critical our lymphatic system is for optimal immune function, and I hope you will feel inspired to pick a new way to support your health from the list above and work it into your daily routines.
Xoxoxo,
Laura Koniver MD
