At Northstate Plastic Surgery Associates in Chico, CA, we know that you may want washboard abs, but achieving them on your own can be difficult, to say the least. However, we can help you achieve your dream stomach with a tummy tuck, a procedure that will remove excess fat and loose skin from your midsection to create a tighter, toned, and flatter-looking abdomen in just one procedure.
Can You Regain Belly Fat After a Tummy Tuck?
The results from a tummy tuck are intended to be permanent. One of the goals of this procedure is to remove excess fat from the abdominal area, typically through liposuction. Once removed, you will be permanently rid of these fat cells, and the total fat volume in your midsection will be dramatically reduced.
Adults cannot grow new fat cells. There will still be fat cells in your abdomen post-op, but the total number will be drastically reduced. If you do gain weight post-op, the remaining fat cells may expand, which will negatively impact your tummy tuck results. You cannot grow new fat cells in the area, but the remaining ones can expand, which can cause you to appear as though you’ve gained weight in your midsection.
How to Prevent Weight Gain Post-Procedure
Before undergoing this procedure, you must understand that while the results are intended to be permanent, you are responsible for maintaining your results, especially in regards to avoiding weight gain, which will result in the expansion of the remaining fat cells in your abdomen. Most patients who schedule this procedure are committed to living a healthy lifestyle.
When you know that your results are in your hands, you will take every measure necessary to make sure you maintain them. There are some easy ways that you can ensure that you maintain your flat, tight stomach after your procedure. All it takes is planning, strategic exercise and eating, and discipline, and you will be able to enjoy your tummy tuck results forever.
Exercise
Exercise is an important way to help you maintain your results after your procedure. However, there are ways to exercise that will help promote fat burning, not just calorie burning. For example, high-intensity interval training is a type of cardiovascular exercise that will help promote fat loss so that you can maintain your results. Performing HIIT three days a week can make a big difference in helping you maintain your goals and reach new ones.
This type of cardio involves performing thirty seconds to one minute of high-intensity exercise followed by a thirty-second rest, followed by another minute of intensity. Repeat this process for 20 minutes max to increase your body’s fat-burning abilities and keep your metabolism for the rest of the day. You can perform this type of cardio on an elliptical, a bike, with plyometric exercises, on a step mill, a treadmill, or even outside.
Strength Training
Another way to help maintain your results to exercise is by incorporating strength training into your workout schedule. When you strength train, push yourself and lift weights that are heavy enough to challenge you. Doing so will help you but fat and build lean muscle so that even when your body is at rest, your metabolism will keep working.
Focus on Your Diet
One of the most important ways to maintain your results is to eat to promote lean muscle mass and healthy body fat. Avoiding starchy carbohydrates, front-loading your calories, and refraining from eating after seven can help prevent weight gain.
Eat a variety of lean proteins, leafy green vegetables, healthy fats, and a low percentage of carbohydrates. The body turns excess, unused carbohydrates into sugars which can lead to excess belly fat over time. Limiting your sugar is one of the best ways to avoid weight gain.
Drink in Moderation
Alcoholic beverages can contain a lot of sugars and excess calories. To help maintain your results, drink in moderation and avoid high sugar drinks. Choosing drinks like sodas and tonics will help you avoid excess sugar. Also, be aware of how much wine you drink each week since each glass contains a lot of sugar. Most people drink wine at night, which can lead to weight gain, especially when drinking multiple glasses before bed.
Hydrate
The relationship between hydration and body fat percentage is highly underrated, but the amount of water you drink plays a significant role in your body composition. Drinking enough water each day for your activity level can make all the difference in helping you avoid weight gain.
Sometimes hunger pains are mistaken for thirst, and eating when you need to drink more water can lead to excess calorie consumption. Adequate hydration will help you maintain your results long-term.
Learn More
If you want to achieve the midsection of your dreams, a tummy tuck will deliver the kind of results you may have never thought possible. We can help you get a tighter, flatter, and toned midsection. By living a healthy lifestyle and developing some discipline, you can enjoy your results permanently. Contact us today at Northstate Plastic Surgery Associates in Chico, CA to schedule your initial consultation to determine if this procedure is right for you.