Gyno surgeons - does having less overall body fat make for a better surgery or make it easier for you to sculpt the chest?

It's a good question. Like most procedures in plastic surgery it's best if you reach your goal weight, or baseline, before having the procedure. This will help your surgeon create the most long-lasting result.

As a bodybuilder, I operate on bodybuilders frequently, and muscularity does not impede the ability to perform surgery.
Find a board certified plastic surgeon who performs hundreds of body contouring procedures and male breast reductions each year. Then look at the plastic surgeon's website before and after photo galleries to get a sense of who can deliver the results.
Kenneth Hughes, MD, Board Certified Plastic SurgeonLos Angeles, CA

Dear bigorex,it is always better to have ideal BMI before surgery. It is easier to work with patients which have a lower fat percentage. If you are considering a surgery, I would suggest you to consult a board-certified plastic surgeon. You will get the best recommendations after a thorough examination.Daniel Barrett, MD, MHA, MS 
Certified, American Board of Plastic Surgery  
Member, Am. Society of Plastic Surgery

Generally speaking, the more fit a person is the easier they are to work with body sculpting procedures. When you have a body fat percentage below 14% for men and below 18% for women, you're in an elite league.  At this level of fitness, I'd expect liposuction to be straight forward because there are only certain packets of fat to remove.  I normally tell my liposuction patients that they need to realize that lipo is not a weight loss procedure, it is a procedure that sculpts your body and you still need to diet and exercise.  With people in this body percentage category, they are clearly watching their diet and exercising on a regular basis! Yet body fat percentage is not the main method that I use to determine if someone is appropriate for surgery.  I use BMI (Body Mass Index) to determine if some is a candidate for liposuction.  If their BMI is 30 or below they'll probably do well with liposuction but above that they may want to consider weight loss before getting their procedure.  There are exceptions to this rule as long as the patient and I are on the same page. I don't know what to make of the notes about your plastic surgeon's bodybuilder but every patient is like no other.  When it comes to chest reduction in males, the lower the BMI is the best for getting optimal results.  Bodybuilders have extreme bodies so I wouldn't discount what your surgeon said, but generally the lower the body fat, the better the outcome.  I'm confident you'll do well with your procedure.  With male breast reduction, my patients are ecstatic with their results regardless if they have a body of Arnold Schwarzenegger or Chris Farley.  I wish you the best of luck in your journey.  

The really important thing is to be at a maintainable goal weight. This is what will help ensure the best results. If you haven't already, schedule a consultation with a board certified plastic surgeon to be assessed in person and discuss your best options. Hope this helps.

As long as a patient is not significantly overweight, there is no difference in the surgeon's ability to reduce your breast size through liposuction plus gland removal. The excellence of your result, however, depends upon many factors such as skin tone and the amount of your subcutaneous fat, which is a function of your % body fat. Find a % body fat that you are comfortable with and then have the surgeon perform the procedure. If you want to lean down even more after you see the results after surgery, go right ahead. 

Being fit and at a healthy weight is important for gynecomastia surgery. This will make the surgery less involved if less fat needs to be liposuctioned. Great results can be made in almost all situations, but losing extra fat never hurts and is unlikely to make the surgery more difficult.

Thank you for the question and the more fit the individual for gyno surgery the easier the operation is as the gland is better defined.  I love operating on body builders for that reasonDr Corbin