Can Running Cause Bottoming out of Breast Implants?

Question

Is bottoming out generally caused by your own body's make up, or the way the surgery is performed, or can a runner cause this just by the constant jolting (even with a sports bra?). Im only looking at 250-275cc. but do run a lot and am concerned. Thanks!

Young R. Cho, MD, PhD · Answer

Thank you for your question. You definitely want to follow your own surgeon's post-op activity instructions. This is a general guide I give to my patients:
1)  No heavy lifting or strenuous activity for 6 weeks.
2)  Resume walking at a leisurely pace right after surgery (e.g. 2 mph)
3)  At 2 weeks, you can walk 2 miles at 2mph
4)  At 3 weeks, you can walk 3 miles at 3mph
5)  At 4 weeks, you can walk 4 miles at 4mph
6)  At 5 weeks, you can jog 5 miles at 5mph
7)  At 6 weeks, you can resume all activities, but listen to your body and use discomfort or tightness as a guide so you don't over do it.As you resume more activity, you do want to support the breast to minimize the chance of bottoming out.

Otto Joseph Placik, MD · Answer

Running will generally not cause bottoming out. It may contribute to it if you are prone to this tendency.

Pablo Prichard, MD · Answer

Dear lw,Thank you for your post.  I am very protective of my patients with augmentations who are runners. I recommend that they buy the athleta underwire sports bra with the front adjustable straps. My patients really like this bra for running and find that it holds them very stable. It is cupped instead of compressing the breasts together. Some patients use an additional regular sports bra on top of this for extra security. Some like it for everyday wear in the initial post-operative period. Using a regular sports bra that just compresses the breast together rather than cups that keep their shape can cause flattening of the breasts especially in the early post operative period and wearing a bra that doesn't have enough support, especially when running or any bouncing type activity, can cause bottoming out or stretching of the breasts.Best wishes,Pablo Prichard, MD

Steven Wallach, MD · Answer

Bottoming out occurs as a result of the inframammanry attachments either stretching out or becoming disrupted.  Running with a supprt bra should not be a problem.

Peter A. Aldea, MD · Answer

The Breast is anchored to the chest wall with many interrupted ligaments called Cooper's Ligaments. As they lengthen or tear, the breast loses its support and begins to sag. Bottoming out refers to a specific way of sagging seen with breast implants. As the lower pole of the breast loses its support and integrity, it loses the ability of holding the implant behind the nipple and the implant and lower pole of the breast sag lower resulting in a "Star Gazing" nipple.

	ANY procedure (IE breast fold bread augmentation) or activity (excessive bouncing and unsupported breasts especially with large implant) weaken the lower pole of the breast and contribute to sagging.

	Invest in the best sports support bra you can find and you will do fine.

Peter E. Johnson, MD · Answer

Bottoming out, a breast implant which sits low in the breast and is not centered on the nipple, is caused by the positioning of the implant at the time of surgery. Running, or any other very active sport for that matter will not cause the implants to descend on the breast and chest. We have placed implants in many who are competitive runners without problems, and you too should not worry about implants moving down on your chest as you run. The smaller B-ish cup is a good choice if you are serious about your sport.

	Best of luck,

	peterejohnsonmd

Deason Dunagan, MD (in memoriam) · Answer

In my experience, bottoming out is much less common if the implant is placed in the space above the muscle rather than below the pectoralis muscle; this approach will most likely will give you the best chance of not bottoming over time with your high levels of physical activity and impact. It would be best to address these concerns with your surgeon, who can help you determine how to proceed in a manner that best suit your anatomy and lifestyle. I'd advise you to seek two or three opinions if you are very concerned about this issue.

David B. Reath, MD (retired) · Answer

There are a lot of factors that can lead to bottoming out after breast enlargement.  We will assume that the implants are placed properly to start with, so that this is not a problem. Thus, bottoming out occurs when the lower aspect of the pocket expands allowing the breast implants to move lower on the chest wall.  The issues at play here are your body, and implants themselves.

	In terms of your body, the strength of your own tissues will affect how the implants change the lower pole of your breast.  Some people will have a greater tendency towards stretching or expansion of the lower pocket, and this is related to the inherent characteristics of their tissues.  In some women, there a very loose plane beneath the pectoralis muscles that can allow implants to continue to stretch or open up this area.  This allows the implants to slip further down , and bottom out.  Some people feel that implants on top of the muscles have less of a tendency to bottom out since the connections of the tissues in this plane are better defined than beneath the muscles.

	In terms of the implants, the things that will lead to bottoming our are: larger implants, lack of good support of your breasts/implants with your bras, and saline implants rather than silicone.  Larger implants weight more and will have a greater tendency to stretch the tissues.  Likewise, I believe that silicone implants (since they are a cohesive gel) place lesser stresses on the tissues than saline implants, and tend to bottom out less.

	Sporting activities like running can affect the shape of your breasts if you are not wearing good support in your bra.  Actually, there is sports bra I recommend to my breast augmentation patients.  It's the "Endure" bra made by Under Armour.  This bra gives fabulous support and is a great investment to protect the longevity of your result.

	The implants you are looking at are not excessively large in terms of volume.  So, go ahead and run, but get a good sports bra (i.e. the Endure).

	Good luck,

	David B.

Can Running Cause Bottoming out of Breast Implants?

Answers (8)

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