Guide:
- Types of Breast Reduction Procedures
- What Happens If I Lose Weight After Breast Reduction?
- Tips For Losing Weight Before Breast Reduction
- How Much Weight Is Too Much To Lose After Breast Reduction?
- How To Maintain Breast Reduction Results
If your breasts are saggy, overly large, or both, you may be experiencing the following:
- Discomfort in your shoulders, neck, and back from carrying the weight of your breasts
- Difficulty with posture
- Skin irritation and infections
- Difficulty participating in an active lifestyle
- Insecurities over the size and appearance of your breasts in proportion to the rest of your body
Multiple breast reduction treatments are available for women and men who may feel embarrassment over their breast size or need the added weight off their back, neck, and shoulders to feel comfortable doing their daily activities again.
Types of Breast Reduction Procedures
If you visit Dr. David Liland for Dallas Breast Reduction, he will listen to your concerns, assess your condition, and work with you to develop a plan following one of these various techniques:
The Anchor Reduction – This technique is ideal for extremely large or sagging breasts and can involve removing and repositioning the nipple.
The Circumareolar Reduction – This procedure is more suitable if your breasts are slightly smaller than those suited for the anchor reduction.
The Vertical Pattern Reduction – This is best if you’re aiming to remove minimal excess breast tissue and can also address a single breast where appropriate.
Breast Liposuction – If you have a high-fat ratio in your breasts, you may be a candidate for breast reduction using liposuction.
Breast Lift & Reduction – As a breast reduction will only address the size of the breasts, it’s often combined with a breast lift (mastopexy) to lift the position of the breasts and improve the overall contour. If your breasts are large and drooping, this may be the best fit for you.
Learn more about the various breast reduction types as well as the average cost of each of them on our blog, Breast Reduction Dallas, TX: Cost, Process & More.
Breast reduction can be a life-changing procedure for removing lingering excess skin and tissue in the breasts after substantial weight loss, as it improves confidence and comfort. If you’re considering breast reduction, you must have already reached your sustainable goal weight.
Breast reduction removes excess skin and tissue from the breasts and repositions them. Losing weight after this surgery can cause skin laxity, which may eventually cause the breasts to sag when paired with the effects of gravity. According to the Mayo Clinic, if you plan to lose weight or have children, it’s best to postpone your breast reduction surgery.
What Happens If I Lose Weight After Breast Reduction?
We always want patients to protect their investment when they have a cosmetic procedure. If you lose substantial weight after your breast reduction surgery, you risk ruining the results you worked so hard to afford and spent the time recovering from.
Losing weight can cause excess, weak skin, leaving weakened breast tissue and sagging breasts. If you lose this weight before your breast reduction, your surgeon can remove this excess skin and other tissue that causes your breasts to feel heavy and appear disproportionate.
A board-certified plastic surgeon can reshape your breasts after losing weight to give you a more desirable contour, but if you wait until after your breast reduction to lose weight, the shape of your breasts can change for the worse.
Your breasts may also become smaller with weight loss, and if your breasts shrink after your surgery, you risk developing a new insecurity: having breasts that are too small for your frame and liking.
Aside from maintaining aesthetically pleasing results, another reason to lose weight before your breast reduction is to avoid complications associated with being overweight while undergoing surgery. Dr. Liland does not recommend patients above a certain BMI undergo cosmetic surgery. Obesity can cause problems with anesthesia, lengthen recovery time, and increase the risk of infection during recovery.
Tips For Losing Weight Before Breast Reduction
If you’re seeking breast reduction, you have tried everything and cannot lose the extra volume in your breasts. According to RealSelf, many people who undergo breast reduction hear comments that they look like they lost overall body weight because their breasts were so disproportionately large that they made a massive impact on their frame.
Here are our tips for losing overall body weight naturally so you can undergo the procedure safely and achieve results that last:
Healthy Diet You Can Follow Long-Term
Diet fads come and go and are often too restrictive for most people to reasonably follow long-term. Meet with a nutritionist or research reliable online sources to find healthy foods to include in your diet and unhealthy foods to avoid for weight loss. The seven essential factors for a balanced diet are:
- Carbs
- Protein
- Fat
- Fiber
- Vitamins
- Minerals
- Water
To ensure you’re getting the right portions of each of these factors, we recommend making sure you’re getting each of your food groups a day. According to the Harvard School of Public Health, fruits and vegetables should make up ½ of your plate, whole grains such as wheat should make up ¼, and protein such as meat, beans, or nuts should make up ¼. Drinking water, coffee, or tea instead of sugary, empty, calorie-packed drinks can aid weight loss exponentially.
An Exercise Routine That Works For You
Everyone has their preferences when it comes to the best exercise plan. Some need rigorous daily regimens to feel their best and see results, while others work better with light movements a few days a week to achieve their goals more slowly. Find something that works for your comfort and schedule, and stick with it.
Semaglutide Weight Loss Medications
The hot new weight management treatment on the radar is semaglutide medication, taken orally or injected once a week. This treatment includes the hormone GLP-1 (glucagon-like peptide-1), which makes you feel fuller longer and prevents you from overeating.
To see if you’re a candidate for semaglutide injections, you can speak with a physician who specializes in the medication and offers it for weight loss purposes and who will develop a plan customized to your body, health, and goals. As great as the treatment sounds, you should combine this with healthy eating habits and an active lifestyle to see results.
Work With Your Doctor
Visiting your primary care physician to discuss your weight loss goals is always a great idea. This way, you can get regular tests and have medical supervision to prevent diabetes and other weight-related health conditions.
How Much Weight Is Too Much To Lose After Breast Reduction?
If you’re concerned you’ll lose too much weight after breast reduction and impact your results, try to avoid losing more than 25-30lbs. If patients plan on losing more than this, we typically recommend losing this weight before surgery to reduce the risk of damaging your investment.
How To Maintain Breast Reduction Results
Once you have the surgery, please be responsible for ensuring your results last. Here are our recommendations for maintaining your breast reduction results:
- Follow your doctor’s aftercare instructions closely
- Wear a supportive, fitted bra to prevent future sagging
- Take care of your incision scars for natural-looking results
- Sleep on your back to avoid straining your breasts
- Take care of your skin with proper sun protection and hydration to ensure it stays supple and doesn’t stretch
- Maintain a healthy weight
- Avoid smoking
- Exercise regularly
Dr. David Liland in Dallas, TX, is known near and far for his over 30 years of experience delivering exceptional breast surgery results that patients enjoy long-term. If you want to see results by Dr. Liland that have left patients feeling happy, comfortable, and confident, view our breast reduction gallery of before and after photos.
If you want to discuss breast reduction with Dr. Liland, please book a consultation on our Contact Page or call us at (214) 692-6500.