What % Body Fat Do I Need to Avoid Liposuction During a Body Lift?

I do a lot of Body Lift operations and i think about this as a sculpting or shaping session.  i will use whatever modality necessary to create the shape that the patient wants.  Sometimes that means liposuction even for very slender people.

For instance (and this is a common occurrence for me), the fat pad in the lower back or flank region is quite resistant and difficult to lose even after gastric bypass surgery.  if i am trying to give someone a nice silhouette, it may be in our best interest to suction that area in order to achieve that result. 

i have also seen many people who are very thin all around except, perhaps, for their knees.  For some it's the inner thgihs, but it could be anywhere.

So, don't be so fixated on your body fat analysis.  Lose what you can in a healthy manner.  Then when your weight is stable, come to see one of us for body contouring.

It's not unusual to develop loose, saggy skin after massive weight loss. When this situation arises, your body fat percentage is far less important than the amount of loose skin and it's location.Your pictures suggest that you would benefit from a lower body lift. This could be followed at a later date by an upper body lift combined with breast reduction surgery. Despite your best efforts to optimize your condition preoperatively, many patients still need fine tuning with liposuction.If you're considering massive weight loss surgery, it's important to consult a board certified plastic surgeon. This surgeon should be able to formulate a treatment plan that addresses your anatomic findings and achieves your aesthetic goals.

Dear Chase,
Congratulations on your weight loss!  Great job!  Typically, plastic surgeons do not operate on numbers or specific body fat percentages; we operate on body areas that need to be restored.  To obtain the best possible result from your 360 body lift, I would suggest appropriate diet, exercise and have a stable weight for 4 months.  These factors are far more important than percentage body fat.  Most of my 360 body lift patients do not need liposuction during their procedure.  Typically, rather than use liposuction, I excise areas of fat.  Good luck with your weight loss journey.  Sincerely, Dr. Katzen

Hi,

Congratulate on your weight loss.Liposuction is not so much dependent on the percentage of body fact that you have, rather it is where the fat is located. I see many patients in my practice who are at their ideal body weight, but nevertheless have localized areas of excess adiposity. An example of this would be the lateral thigh saddlebag present in some women.I agree with some of the above comments stating that you probably do not need a great deal of liposuction. Nevertheless, I recommend that you drop your weight to what you feel is a reasonable goal and one  that you can maintain for the long term. Whenever I perform this type of surgery, I invariably perform at least a small amount of liposuction to better contour the waist. I hope this helps.

Regards,

Daniel A. Medalie M.D.

First,
congratulations on your weight loss.  Dropping your body fat percentage significantly is quite an
accomplishment but is still not a guarantee that you will not need liposuction
during your body lift.  Lowering your
body fat percentage means that the overall amount of fat in your body has been
reduced.  That does not mean that the fat
that has been lost was lost in equal amounts in all areas of your body.  Even with diet and exercise most people still
retain stubborn fat deposits that just won’t go away no matter how hard they
workout.  A body lift will address any
sagging and excess skin of the abdomen, buttocks, and outer thighs.  Liposuction is
the only procedure that can be used to remove the fatty deposits that can
remain after excess sagging is removed.  While dropping your body fat percentage, you have also brought your BMI
from 44.8 down to 33.2 which in my opinion is healthy enough for an elective
cosmetic procedure.  However, you need to
schedule a consultation with a board certified plastic surgeon for a thorough
physical exam to confirm that you are a good candidate for a body lift.  Be sure to research for board certified
plastic surgeons that have experience in working with massive weight loss
patients.Be well and
good luck!@norrisplastic

Congratulations on your successful weight loss.

As you know, the best time to have the plastic surgical procedures done is when you are at a long-term stable weight. Most plastic surgeons do not use body fat percentage as a criteria for timing surgery. Most likely, liposuction  may not even be necessary given that your main issue seems to be redundant skin.

Based on your pictures you will benefit from  both upper and lower body lifting.

I hope this helps.

 

I perform a lot of body lift surgery, and I usually do not combine liposuction at the same times as a body lift. I think it increases the risk of seroma formation and therefore complications.  I would recommend getting down to your goal weight before undergoing the body lift.  Good luck.

You are to be congratulated for losing the weight.  Your question does not realy come into play when a plastic surgeon is evaluating you for body contouring surgery.  The best time to have body contouring after massive weight loss is when your weight loss has stabilized at a point where you are comfortable and not while doing heroic things to reach a particular weight.  The reason for that is if you are doing heroic things to reach a particular weight, you are not likely to be able to maintain that for the rest of your life.  So at some point you would stop doing those heroic things, and even if you have had plastic surgery, the weight would go back on.  Most people will reach a certain weight and they can not drop any more.  Once that weight is reached, and the patient is able to maintain that weight without a tremendous effort, that is when I operate on them.  Now whether I will use liposuction to help refine the body lift or not, really is not that important.  From your pictures, you look like you don't need liposuction anyways, but I don't have all the angles that I would want.  Also, you have a lot of upper body issues, which would require an "upper body lift" to take care of not just a body lift.   Good luck. 

Your ideal weight is from 150-184 lb.

Once you reach your ideal body weight, re-evaluate the body and where are the persisiting fat pockets that need improvement.

Continue your diet and excercise, you are doing great.

Remember as you build muscle your weight might be nearer to 180 lb.

You are to be congratulated on your impressive weight reduction.  It is likely that you are at an appropriate amount of weight loss to underake your body lift. It is important that you be fit nutritionally as well as psychologically when you have this important surgery.  There will be no magic weight or body fat per centage that should govern what surgery you have, but it is unlikely that you will need liposuction for your best possible result. Find your self a surgeon with experience that you can communicate well with.  Develop a plan that is individualized to your body and your goals,  Good luck.