5 Body Contouring Procedures to Help You Get Ready for Summer
Whether you’re preparing for boating on Possum Kingdom, relaxing by the pool, or a beach getaway, we know you want to look your best this summer. Spring is a great season for body contouring, as you can see results in time for the warmer months. To help you slim down and shape up, we’ve compiled a list of our 5 favorite body contouring procedures to start right now.
1. Liposuction: Remove stubborn fat pockets
About the procedure
Liposuction allows a plastic surgeon to directly remove excess fat and sculpt the body in detail, helping you enjoy a slimmer, more contoured look. Incisions are small, and liposuction can be performed nearly anywhere that you have diet- and exercise-resistant fat, including the waist, hips, thighs, abdomen, back, and arms. Once targeted fat cells are removed from an area with liposuction, they will not return, meaning your improved proportions should last as long as you maintain a stable body weight and healthy lifestyle.
Liposuction can be performed anywhere you have diet- and exercise-resistant fat, helping you enjoy a slimmer, more contoured appearance.
When to have it
It is best to have liposuction at least 6 weeks before wearing a swimsuit. Though you may still have some residual swelling, your incisions should be mostly healed, and targeted areas of your body will look and feel slimmer.
Tip: Remember to apply a broad-spectrum sunscreen to your incision sites for one full year, as UV exposure can permanently discolor healing scars.
2. Tummy tuck: Tighten your core and slim your abdomen
About the procedure
A tummy tuck, or abdominoplasty, is a surgical procedure that removes excess skin and fat from the abdominal wall. Abdominoplasty also corrects diastasis recti, a condition in which the abdominal muscles become separated due to weight gain, pregnancy, or poor exercise form. Women from all over Fort Worth seek tummy tuck surgery to regain their core strength, cinch their waistline, and flatten their bellies.
A traditional tummy tuck requires two incisions: one around the belly button and one running along the lower abdomen hip to hip, just above the pubic bone. If you are mainly concerned with your lower abdomen, you may be a good candidate for a mini tummy tuck, which may require just a shorter version of the lower incision.
When to have it
To contour your torso in time for summer, schedule your tummy tuck surgery as soon as possible. Timing is critical because you will need to avoid vigorous physical activity for at least 6 weeks after this procedure. Additionally, you will be unable to swim while incisions are healing, for about 3 weeks, so consider whether your summer plans require jumping in the ocean or pool—if so, have a detailed talk with your surgeon about timing.
If you are content lounging poolside without jumping in the water, you will have less to worry about: your belly button scar will be hidden in your natural belly button contours, and your low abdomen incision will be concealed within your swimsuit bottom.
Tip: Scar care is particularly important after a tummy tuck. At Kirby Plastic Surgery, we offer Embrace® scar therapy strips to protect incisions and improve scar healing.
3. BBL: Increase volume and accentuate your curves
About the procedure
From Kim Kardashian to Megan Fox, full, shapely buttocks are en vogue. If you want to accentuate your backside this summer, a Brazilian butt lift, or BBL, can help. During this procedure, your plastic surgeon removes fat from your belly, thighs, or hips using liposuction, gently prepares it, and then strategically injects it back into your buttocks. The result is a curvier, more pronounced derrière. Your results should be long-lasting, assuming you maintain a stable weight.
When to have it
If you want to fill out your bikini bottom in time for summer, aim to have your BBL at least 6 weeks prior to any scheduled trips or social engagements. One of the benefits of a BBL is that you will not have any visible incisions on your bottom to worry about hiding. (You will, however, have small incisions at your liposuction sites.)
To fill out your bikini bottom in time for summer, aim to have your BBL at least 6 weeks prior to any scheduled trips.
4. Mommy makeover: Restore your pre-pregnancy body
About the procedure
If you have multiple areas of your body you would like to enhance, look no further than a mommy makeover. This set of procedures is designed to restore your body after childbirth, weight fluctuations, or the natural aging process. A mommy makeover includes your customized combination of breast surgery and abdominal surgery, often including breast augmentation, breast lift, breast reduction, tummy tuck, and/or liposuction to help accentuate your curves and tone your physique. A mommy makeover may also include non-surgical cosmetic enhancements, such as dermal fillers or Botox®.
When to have it
Because a mommy makeover typically involves two or more transformative procedures, you may have more post-procedure activity restrictions. However, because you can have multiple surgical procedures performed during the same operation, you simply have to plan your summer around the procedure with the longest recovery time.
When a tummy tuck is part of your procedure plan, plan to wait at least 8-12 weeks before enjoying a beach getaway. Can’t wait that long? Breast surgery combined with liposuction or non-surgical body contouring may allow you to enjoy some of the benefits of a mommy makeover closer to summer.
5. CoolSculpting: Freeze away fat without surgery or downtime
About the treatment
Chances are, you have heard about CoolSculpting, one of the world’s most popular body contouring technologies. CoolSculpting works by freezing stubborn pockets of fat (a process known as cryolipolysis), which are then gradually eliminated by your body’s lymphatic system. Unlike the other procedures listed above, CoolSculpting is 100% non-surgical, meaning there are no incisions, needles, or downtime required. Treatments are performed in as little as 35 minutes, and patients can lose up to 25% of body fat in treated areas with just one session.
Most patients lose up to 25% of their treated body fat in just one CoolSculpting session.
When to have it
Because CoolSculpting treatments are progressive, you can have the procedure anytime and (provided you don’t gain weight) keep looking better every time you put on your swimsuit. Patients love feeling like they are naturally losing weight exactly where they most want to shed fat!
Since it takes about 12 to 16 weeks to see full CoolSculpting results, if you want to see peak results over the summer, start now. If you desire multiple treatments, as many patients do, you can schedule an additional session anytime and continue seeing progress throughout the season and into fall.
Get ready for summer with Fort Worth plastic surgeon Dr. Emily Kirby
Achieve your body contouring goals this summer with Board Certified Plastic Surgeon Dr. Emily J. Kirby. As the owner and Director of both Kirby Plastic Surgery and Kalos Medical Spa, Dr. Kirby offers a full array of surgical and non-surgical body sculpting procedures that can be tailored just for you. If you are in the Fort Worth area, call or text (817) 292-4200 or contact us online to discuss your treatment options with Dr. Kirby.
