Shedding weight before liposuction

Should one lose excess weight before a body contouring surgery? Or should it be postponed to sometime after the surgery? Many of the patients I come across seem to have this dilemma. It is common for individuals to delay losing any excess weight until after the surgery.

Does it make any difference if the excess weight is reduced before or after liposuction? It does make a difference. It is better to lose excess weight before rather than after the surgery. This is best achieved with a healthy lifestyle. Both exercise and adequate diet play an important role. 

What are the reasons? A few of them would be as follows,

1. Simpler surgery. The surgery becomes easier to perform in an individual who is near his or her ideal body weight. Less time is spent on the removal of the excess fat. This means lesser costs and faster recovery following the procedure. 
2. Reduced complications. Increased body weight or obesity is associated with more wound-related complications like infection and delayed healing. These get reduced when the bodyweight is near ideal. Thus the surgery becomes safer.   
3. Better outcomes. As we put on weight, the overlying skin stretches to accommodate an increased volume of the body. This tends to get reversed as we lose weight. However, the recoil may take many months and may be incomplete. Losing excess weight allows more time for the skin to recoil. The skin drapes better over the underlying tissues and this is associated with better outcomes.
   

Hence, it is better to bring the bodyweight close to ideal before undergoing a fat reduction procedure. Liposuction or lipoplasty can then help target resistant fat.

To summarise, should one lose excess weight before a body contouring procedure? Yes. It has its benefits. Ideally, weight loss is attained using sustainable lifestyle modifications. It is associated with better outcomes and lesser complications. They continue to reap the benefits of the procedure long after the surgery.