Horseback riding after breast augmentation. How long should I wait before it is safe?

Hi and thank you for your question. It is best to always your plastic surgeon for their recommendations. Having said that, I'm sure you will find different recommendations out there.
A lot of what we know about wound healing and tensile strength of wounds comes from animal models and histological (under the microscope) observations of scars, rather than direct human experiments, which I'm sure you can understand would be difficult to conduct ethically.
It seems like healing skin only gets to about 80% of the tensile strength of "normal," or unwounded skin. Much of the strength comes in the first 6 weeks, as by week 6, the concentration of strong collagen begins to resemble that of normal intact skin. This is why most surgeons say to wait about 6 weeks before any rigorous activity. Over the next 2 months, however, the wound does technically get even stronger, although at a much slower rate. So, waiting about 2-3 months for the most rigorous activity is probably best. Lastly, wounds are fully mature until 1-2 years, but waiting that long seems like overkill will clinically have little if any affect on activity restrictions. Additionally, trauma at any time after surgery can affect the outcome, so best to be careful at all times.
Long answer, but in the end, for the most rigorous activity, about 2-3 months would be best.
Best wishes,Dr. Brandon Elnekaveh

Thank you for your question. You should avoid horseback riding for at least 6 weeks after your surgery. This s what I recommend to my patients. Any activity that includes jarring up and down or side-to-side motion is discouraged as they can cause implants to shift. Good luck with your surgery.