30 Yr Old Athletic Male's Lipo Experience from May 30 2013 - Palm Desert, CA

It's been a few weeks since I've last updated this, and a lot has happened! My last update was at the one week mark, so I'll run through the play by play of each week:

Week 2 mark-
During this last week I've noticed a lot of the "flabbiness" has gone away. Also the swelling has drastically reduced. I would say the swelling peaked around the 1-week mark and got better from there. While it's nice to have the loose skin tightening up, it's been replaced by a "hardness", which is not so fun. In general it is all over, focused mainly horizontally along my bellybutton, kind of like a wide, thick belt. I would say the hardness peaked at around the 11-day mark, during which I felt like I had a brick in my stomach. I've also noticed some light bruising around my bellybutton, and random sharp pains all over. I've started working out at the gym, but just light arm workouts, twice during the week. I'm continuing to take the Arnica pills, and using the Arnica gel as well. I've read that beyond controlling bruising, there's really no scientific data to back up any claims about reducing swelling or speeding up recovery with Arnica gel. However, it gives me an excuse to massage around my stomach, so I'm still using it about 3 times a day. Also I've taken motrin after my workouts to help reduce swelling. It's worse after exercise, and a long day at work!

Week 3-
So during this week I no longer wore my "suit" 24/7. Thank goodness! Anyone who says they enjoyed being in that thing is out of their mind lol. I wear it at work, and during my workouts. Once I am home, it's kind of off and on, depending on what I have going on. Romantic time is a lot easier without that thing haha. The suit does seem to be a little looser in the morning. Still having some random pains, and my skin feels like there is a light sunburn underneath. I'm still using the pills, but only using the gel about twice a day. I've worked out a little more this week, increasing the weight and repetitions. I've gone to the gym three times, did a light 20 min bike workout, and went on a slow (11 min pace) 2-mile run. I've noticed a little more muscle definition on my upper abs, but more so in the morning. Swelling is still worse after workouts and after work. I've noticed the hardness and uneven spots has started to go down some. As far as my "size", I'd say I'm now about at what I was before the op. I have a 4th of July camping trip coming up, and a trip to Finland the next week, so I hope everything gets a lot better over the next week!

Week 4-
It's getting to be crunch time with my trips coming up, so I'm pushing myself harder with my workouts. 3 gym days, 2 run days. I've also started doing some ab workouts (planks), but nothing too crazy. I've noticed no ill effects from my workouts (to include ab workouts), aside from the increase in swelling. Other than that and sore arms, I feel great! The swelling has gone down some, as well as the hardness. But they are both still there. It actually makes me happy in a way, because I know that I'm going to keep getting smaller! My wife says some clothes already look looser on me. I've stopped taking the pills, and I've stopped wearing that torture suit. I'm down to about once a day for the Arnica gel. I had kind of hoped that I would be "beach-ready" by this point, but I'm not quite there yet. I look normal in t-shirts, to include some of the more "form-fitting" ones, but topless I can still see some indentations and swelling. Close, but no cigar. I've noticed that everything is very tight around my stomach. It's hard to stretch, and laying flat on my back can be uncomfortable after I've been sitting for a while. I'm not sure what's up with that, any ideas? The sunburn feeling is still there, but it's nothing more than a minor distraction. Working out and running have been fine as well, though it's been tough to motivate myself since I've been so lazy the past few weeks lol!

So here I am, somewhere around the 1-month mark. Still have some swelling, still have some hardness, but not a lot. I'm not 100% happy with the procedure, but I'd say I'm about 85% happy. We'll see if that changes, there's still some waiting to do. I've gotten back completely into my workouts, to include multiple ab workouts, and runs. I've had no issues with either, and my wife has said she can see some definition from my muscles now that I've been doing more exercises. Turns out there were muscles hiding under that fat! FYI, for ab workouts planks are the best. Just saying. So no suit, no pills, no gel, just back to my normal life. The pains are gone, but the sunburn feeling is still there. In the morning I look great, in the evening I look good. I'm heading out to the mountains tomorrow for the 4th, and I'll be doing some swimming and running around topless. I don't think I'm going to be dropping any jaws just yet, but I won't look like a freak at least lol.

So I've learned a lot about fat and lipo during this whole process. One of the things I've learned about, is intra-abdominal/visceral fat. This is fat that wraps around your organs, and is behind your abs. Meaning lipo doesn't get it out. As it turns out, sleep deprivation and stress can cause an increase in visceral fat. Lucky me, being in the military means I get both! One of my concerns was getting rid of the "pot belly" that I seem to have when I relax my stomach. At this point I would say it's pretty clear that lipo did NOT have any effect on this. Sure, when I tighten my abs I notice a pretty big difference, but behind those muscles, I still have fat. Before you throw down all kinds of money on a procedure like this, do some research, talk to some doctors, and make sure that your issue is good old fashioned belly fat.I'm happy with losing the 2 or so pounds out of my stomach, but my fat loss journey is not complete. Only cure for visceral fat is exercise and diet. But I'm a little trimmer around the edges, and I'm not going to gain weight around there as much, so it's still a positive experience for me! Also I've been VERY motivated to do ab workouts, and start showing off those muscles. Anyone who tells you to wait months before doing an ab workout is high on LSD. I've noticed no problems, and I can see the results already!

I'll try to post pictures after I get back this weekend. I have a follow-up with Dr Greenberg at my 2-month mark, so I'll also try to remember to do one last update here then. In the meantime for anyone thinking about lipo, all I have to say is while there are some risks, it's been a great experience for me. The key though is research research research! Know everything about the different types of procedures, talk to multiple doctors, and don't let them fool you. They ARE in this to make money after all. But if you come in prepared and do your homework, you won't be disappointed. Happy 4th of July everyone!