7 Things You Should Know About Love Handle Liposuction

The popularity of liposuction, and plastic surgery as a whole, has surged in recent years. People are increasingly concerned with how stubborn fat affects their health, along with their self-image and appearance.

Slimming down small, diet-resistant areas of the body isn't easy, however. Love handles, the flaps of fat surrounding the waist, are frustrating for people struggling to lose weight and those close to their ideal weight. The problematic nature of reducing these stubborn pockets of fat can be attributed to the underlying causes of love handles, which often fall outside the realm of diet and exercise.

Our bodies have the genetic tendency to keep fat around our lower section to serve as an energy reserve. If you've lost some pounds but want to make the final step to securing a toned midsection, then love handle liposuction may be your solution.

Here are seven things you should know about the procedure and popular alternatives:

1. Understanding How Love Handle Liposuction Works

Traditional liposuction is a surgical procedure that breaks down and removes fat from the body using a cannula, a device that uses suction to extract fat cells. Almost all liposuction versions involve a numbing tumescent solution composed of lidocaine and epinephrine, which is injected into the target area of the body through small incisions.

Different types of liposuction may also apply unique energy modalities like radiofrequency, ultrasound, or laser to liquefy the fat before removal. While these approaches do offer some benefits, laser liposuction specifically comes with the risks of thermal burns and also precludes patients from using their fat for a transfer.

It is essential to differentiate liposuction from nonsurgical options that indirectly affect fat without puncturing the skin. These treatments are less taxing on the body but usually provide modest results at most.

2. Ideal Candidates For Love Handle Liposuction

Candidates for liposuction are close to their target weight and are non-smokers. They may also have pockets of fat resistant to a healthy lifestyle that they want to get rid of for good.

The goals of liposuction surgery are to deliver subtle refinements to help patients look better in certain clothes, improve shape, and contour new curves. Liposuction is not a skin-tightening solution, so patients should have moderate to good skin elasticity. That said, advanced liposuction techniques like AirSculpt offer fat removal with skin-tightening add-ons to help patients achieve their desired transformation in one wide-awake, minimally invasive treatment.

3. Liposuction Isn't A Weight-Loss Method

Liposuction isn't a weight-loss method; it's solely designed to contour areas of the body by removing fat. Even in cases of large-volume liposuction, where up to five liters of fat are removed, the weight-loss effects of the procedure are subtle at best.

As cosmetic surgeon Dr. Aaron Rollins explains, fat cells do not return once removed. Hence, liposuction permanently reduces the number of fat cells in the love handles. If a patient does gain weight after their procedure, fat will first appear everywhere except the flanks. Of course, the remaining love handle fat cells can still expand, but newly achieved proportions tend to be preserved.

Although liposuction is not explicitly a weight-loss solution, patients often adopt healthy habits, encouraged by their results. Some opt for body contouring after weight loss to put the finishing touches on their perfect figures, while others use lipo as a springboard to a new lifestyle.

4. Preparation Is Key

Your surgeon will provide instructions for the days leading up to your surgery. It's recommended that you have a family member or close friend who can drive you to and from the surgical center and help you with post-operative care.

With minimally invasive love-handle liposuction treatments, patients should prepare for up to 48 hours of bed rest post-op. Daily walks can and should be taken as soon as possible to encourage healthy circulation and drainage, but strenuous exercise must be avoided for about two weeks.

5. Scarring Can Be Minimized With Advanced Techniques and Skills

Scarring is inevitable with any procedure that requires incisions in the skin. The more areas of the body addressed, the more apparent the scarring tends to be.

Nevertheless, skilled surgeons will strategically place the incisions in folds and crevices to minimize their appearance. Additionally, new fat removal techniques like AirSculpt require only a minuscule, two-millimeter-wide entry point to remove fat, a far cry from the large incisions made during most conventional lipo procedures. At worst, patients wind up with freckle-like blemishes where these incisions were made.

6. Results Take Time

Your plastic surgeon can help you develop realistic expectations about the results of your love handle removal treatment. After your procedure, you will feel swelling, and your skin may feel loose.

Although many patients experience instantly noticeable changes, the final results will take three to six months to develop fully. This period underscores the importance of having realistic expectations about the procedure.

7. Love Handle Liposuction Can Be Combined With Other Procedures

You can accomplish multiple body goals at once by combining love handle liposuction with other body contouring procedures like a fat transfer!

The featured patient above sculpted a flatter belly and removed her love handles while achieving a perky and round backside six months after her procedure. This seamless transformation was made possible with Love Handle AirSculpt® and the Power BBL™ fat transfer to the buttocks. This minimally invasive process doesn't use a scalpel, needle, or general anesthesia within its liposuction technique, meaning reduced scarring and shorter recovery times. Another popular combination patients opt for is to target their hip dips without a fat transfer by removing love handle and outer thigh fat. Whatever your body goals may be, this customizable procedure offers dramatic results with minimal downtime.

Contact our Beverly Hills AirSculpt office or the body sculpting center nereast you to learn more and schedule your free consultation.