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

Thank you for your question.
With a breast augmentation, it is best to wait at least 4-6 weeks prior to doing any upper body intensive activities such as horse back riding. When you do begin, make sure you are wearing a tight, compressive bra to minimize the discomfort. I recommend speaking with a board certified plastic surgeon to discuss your options.

There are a lot of ways to think about safety. Most patients will have very little pain the majority of the swelling will be gone at around 4-6 weeks after breast augmentation. Therefore if the patient felt that they were strong enough and capable of handling the animal, they would likely be able to safely ride. With this being said, you're right that there are a lot of jostling of the tissues while riding and the internal healing after the procedure will continue for a whole year. Therefore while most patients would be able to physically handle a horse safely, some surgeons may recommend that the patient wait until a little further in their healing so that the result is not impacted by the horseback riding.

Hi & thanks for your question.
This question should be addressed by your surgeon. Every physician has a different protocol they follow. Reach out to your surgeon for his or hers guidance on this. Best wishes!

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.

Hi Digitalunicorn,The best person to make this recommendation will be your board-certified plastic surgeon. Personally, I would recommend at least 6 weeks and to continue good breast support. However, prior to clear you to go back riding, I would perform an exam to determine if additional time is needed. The fear is that you could accidentally fall and injure your surgery site.

6 weeks minimum and I recommend 3 months. In short, that's the best plan. These are general principles of surgery but I don't know of any carefully structured studies to support that. Best Wishes!!

There are all sorts of activities that we wish to resume after breast augmentation, work related, exercising and sports. Although there is not one right answer, several things can guide us. It is wise in the first few days, and possibly up to three weeks, to avoid activities that could result in bleeding. Most bleeding would occur in the first 72 hours although this does extend up to about three weeks post surgery. We also wish to protect the implant pocket and also the incision for placing the implants. There is not a lot of strength to the implant pocket or incision in the first three weeks. The strength of healing occurs mostly in week 45 and six. Usually by five weeks the pocket is quite strong. The size of the implant and also the garment support play a big role in resuming activities. Competitive horseback riding presents a challenge as there is the up down bouncing in addition to the possibility of being thrown or kicked in the chest. It would probably be wise to take at least a month off from heavy duty horseback riding activities. I would have my patients start low level activity long before that as long as they had good support.

Hi there! If you have no complications or issues, I would say 4-6 weeks would be a good estimate. It will depend on your pain tolerance and how they are feeling. Your plastic surgeon should clear you at post-op visit once you have fully healed.

I feel it's safe for bouncing and competitive horse riding at 3 months. Dr. Ted Eisenberg, Board Certified Plastic Surgeon and Author. RealSelf Distinguished Hall of Fame Inductee. Philadelphia, Pa., USA

You will likely get a whole range of answers but the only one that you should listen to on this is your surgeon. I’m sure your surgeon will tell you when it’s okay