If you’ve experienced pregnancy or significant weight loss, the resulting loose skin can significantly impact your self-esteem. Excess skin and fat can be effectively removed with a tummy tuck, a popular surgery for addressing this issue. If you’re unhappy with the appearance of your abdomen even after trying dieting and exercise, a tummy tuck may provide the results you want. Here’s what you need to know about tummy tucks so you can consider whether this procedure could be right for you.
A tummy tuck, or abdominoplasty, makes your abdomen look firmer and more toned. It’s not meant to serve as a substitute for regular exercise and a healthy diet but can work well when combined to help you achieve your desired look.
What a Tummy Tuck Can Do
It’s vital to have realistic expectations about what a tummy tuck can accomplish. This procedure can make your stomach firmer while tightening your core muscles. A tummy tuck can also give you slimmer contours and remove stretch marks and excess skin in your lower abdomen.
A tummy tuck combined with liposuction can provide transformative results. Liposuction removes fat, and the tummy tuck removes excess skin. Additional benefits achievable with this procedure include:
- Improved posture and reduced back pain: Part of the tummy tuck procedure involves flattening your abdomen by tightening weak stomach muscles. Since these muscles support the spine, you may notice that you slouch less after the surgery. Those who experience recurring back pain may notice less discomfort as well.
- Better results from exercise: When stomach muscles have been separated after pregnancy, it’s hard to regain your previously toned physique or achieve new goals for health and fitness. Realigning the muscle structure through a tummy tuck creates a more appealing aesthetic and supports healthy exercise.
- Minimize future health risks: Weakened abdominal muscles provide less support to your spine and contribute to other health problems such as ventral hernias. Tummy tucks help prevent this problem from occurring and reduce recovery time if hernia repair is needed by strengthening the abdominal wall.
- Keeping the weight off: If you’re considering a tummy tuck to address cosmetic changes from weight loss, you may worry about what happens if you regain weight after the procedure. However, most people are more likely to keep that weight off due to the effort and time taken to achieve results. Tummy tucks provide improved confidence, which supports your continued plans to keep your weight at a healthy level.
- Comfortable daily physical activity: With the excess skin gone and abdominal muscles strengthened, you’ll find that running and walking exercises are less strenuous. Regular exercise, in turn, will improve your overall health and help keep the weight off.
Types of Tummy Tucks
If you have extra skin or fat in the abdominal area despite diet and exercise and you are in good overall health, you may be a good candidate for tummy tuck surgery. After a comprehensive evaluation, your plastic surgeon will help you determine the best treatment option for you. There are three types of tummy tucks practiced today.
A full tummy tuck, also called a standard tummy tuck, uses an incision below the navel. After removing excess skin from the upper abdomen, the belly button is repositioned. Internal sutures tighten the abdominal muscles before excess skin is removed and pulled down over the stomach.
A mini tummy tuck is a minimally invasive surgery that doesn’t reposition the belly button or remove extra skin in the upper abdominal area. If you only need to flatten certain regions of your stomach, this is the best option.
An extended tummy tuck requires an incision that reaches around the hips. It removes more skin from a wider area than other types of tummy tucks. This procedure is more extensive, and the results are long-lasting.
Experienced Tummy Tucks in Alexandria
Dr. Buenaventura has a great deal of experience performing tummy tuck procedures in Alexandria. She’ll provide individualized, safe care and recommend the best type of treatment to help you achieve your goals. If you’re ready to be free of excess skin and want your stomach to be flat again, a tummy tuck at The Sendi Cosmetic Surgery Center in Alexandria may be the right procedure for you. Call our team to schedule a consultation today!