A Lean, Mean, Cellulite-Crushing Machine

As almost every woman knows, cellulite is a non-discriminatory predator. Young, old, fat, thin - even women who weigh and measure their food and spend hours every week doing cardio and weight training can wake up one morning to discover the dreaded "cottage cheese" has made a home on the back of their thighs. What's a bikini-loving girl to do?

There is a new weapon in the anti-cellulite arsenal these days; it's called VelaShape and it's a machine that's been approved by the FDA to treat cellulite. Non-surgical in it's approach, it supposedly it treats both the deeper tissue and the upper layers of the skin.

According to their publicity material, "This results in a measurable reduction in fat layers, circumference and the appearance of cellulite. VelaShape offers a non-surgical, no downtime and virtually painless treatment for the Body Reshaping and Cellulite Treatment market, with proven results in as few as four treatment sessions. Results vary but most patients see results for at least a year if not more. Maintenance treatments are recommended as necessary."

Each treatment costs approximately $500. At least four treatments are usually necessary to see the maximum impact and each session lasts about 20 minutes.

Dr. Neil Sadick and volunteer guinea pig Maria DiPietro were on hand to put the VelaShape through its paces. "It looks like the super-duper mother of all vacuum cleaners," noted Julie Chen.

"This is really actually one of the advanced new technologies for treatment of cellulite," said Dr. Sadick. "And it combines light, heat, massage and suction with rollers to actually shrink fat cells. It's the first technology that's effective in producing" a noticeable shrinkage of the skin on the back of her thighs.

DiPietro lay face-down on a massage table as Dr. Sadick ran the VelaShape over the back of her legs, which had been covered with a gel. She compared the feeling to "getting a spa treatment" - a warm, vibrating sensation that was "very comfortable."

The results are subjective: after the treatment, DiPietro was pleased with the results and said she'd probably go back for the rest of the treatments in the series. To the untrained eye, there didn't seem to be a huge difference between the pre-and post-treatment thighs.

But since the battle of the bulge will be won by inches - even half-inches - then DiPietro scored a victory.