I had plastic surgery.
Yep. After having 3 babies and finally sitting at a healthy weight (which is over 50 pounds lighter than I was in college), I had a lot of loose skin. My boobs were also, well, barely hanging in there lol
This blog is long overdue, but I still get asked several times/week about my tummy tuck journey and how I prepared for it so here we go!
First off, let’s start with what exactly I got done.
Extended tummy tuck (my incision wraps around my hips because I had a lot of loose skin on my back)
Muscle repair (to fix my diastasis recti)
Breast lift
Fat transfer to breasts (if you have a history of autoimmune disease, implants should be avoided)
This is a huge surgery, and I wanted to make sure I had some ducks in a row to ensure that I didn’t just heal well, but that I healed optimally. Here are things I considered while creating my protocol for nutrition and workouts leading up to my big day:
This surgery will limit all exercise for at least 6 weeks post op. It made zero sense to continue hitting cardio/training hard knowing that my metabolism was adapted to that energy “output”. I didn’t want to gain weight post op, so I slowly tapered back on my exercise so that it wasn’t such a shock to my body when I was a bump on a log post op.
Food holds medicinal benefits and you won’t heal optimally if you’re under eating. I wasn’t under-eating prior to surgery, but I also wasn’t eating quite at maintenance either. I knew I needed to add more calories to my intake week over week to help give my metabolism a boost and show my body that it was “safe”.
What supplements did I need to make sure I had on hand to help aid healing? I slowly upped my tolerance to vitamin C so that I could high dose it post op. I also made sure I was taking methylated folate, magnesium glycinate, organic arnica tea, collagen, bone broth (and lots of it), and a high quality fish oil (for post op…you cannot take this prior to surgery). Pro tip: make smoothies with collagen and protein powder and add in pineapple for additional anti-inflammatory benefits!
As far as supplies for post op, we did invest in a lift recliner which I lived in for the first few weeks…it was a life saver. I did not use a full faja - I instead opted for a Vanna Belt waist trainer and I had a medium and small on hand. I did not need boards, or the standing pee funnel (thank God LOL). I also didn’t need compression socks or much else that you’ll see promoted as “necessities”. I did buy a drain lanyard for when I showered, and that was helpful!
My last big investment with this surgery…..lymphatic massage! OMG this made such a difference with my results!! I hired a lady to come to my house starting at 4 days post op and she came every few days to give me my lymphatic massages. A lot of surgeons say this is unnecessary and “woo woo”, but listen….this surgery wreaks havoc on your lymphatic system and things don’t just “work” like they should post op. You need to help your body out! I continued manual lymphatic massage on myself once my sessions with her were over.
If you can invest in red light therapy, that will help with healing & scar quality as well. I use this one and code “teamarod” will save you money!
Taking some of these extra steps helped me have a phenomenal recovery and amazing results. Having a good surgeon helped as well - you get what you pay for!! Do not bargain shop this procedure! If you’re in Dallas, I recommend Dr Yash!
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