Breast Augmentation and Exercise ~ the One Day Recovery Augmentation Effect

Deciding to have breast implants means deciding to have surgery.  When you have surgery, there will be a few things that you cannot do as you would usually do for a little while and sometimes there will be things that change forever and therefore your life must change too.  The degree to which your routine has to be altered and for how long will depend on the surgeon you choose.  Dr. Epstein uses advanced surgical techniques that truly allow you to return to full normal activity the day of surgery; however, there are some limits especially when it comes to exercise.  Here’s what you need to know so you can plan your activities around your breast augmentation:

1. No cardio vascular activity for 2 weeks. Anything that increases your heart rate can cause post-operative bleeding or a hematoma.
2. No lifting above 35 pounds for 3 weeks. Lifting heavy objects can tear at thin fragile tissue around the implant and also produce a hematoma.
3. Do not return to heavy chest workouts for 6 weeks. This means push-ups and pull ups and bench presses. Remember, a thick pec is NOT a breast and doesn’t look like a breast. Stay toned but do not build a thick pec – leave that to the boys! And remember, most women need partial pectoralis coverage over the breast implant because they are very thin. Some complain after implants because when they flex a certain way, they can see a distortion of the muscle over the implant. My response to that is “would you rather see a distortion when you flex in front of the mirror at the gym once a week or see the implant edges ALL the time?”. Or another favorite response is simply “stop flexing – who does that anyway??”.
4. Allow 6 weeks before returning to extremely competitive workouts like kick boxing, cross fit, boot camps, tennis circuits and horseback riding.

When you can return to cardio at 2 weeks, wear two seamless sports bras to really lock down your new implants so you can enjoy your work out and so that you don’t let gravity take too much of a toll on them.  It is always a good idea to support the weight in your breasts during any vigorous activity.

If a postoperative bleed occurs, one breast will usually be significantly larger than the other breast.  It will be instantly bigger and be extremely painful.  It will also put you back in the operating room so please heed these warnings and restrictions carefully.  A hematoma can be fixed, but no one wants to go back into surgery if they don’t have to and after there has been blood in the tissue, there is always more risk of capsular contracture.

If you can use Dr. Epstein’s One Day Recovery Breast Augmentation ™ procedure to return to normal the day of surgery, it will make putting your exercise routine on hold a lot easier!  Besides, when was the last time you had a doctor’s excuse NOT to work  out?!?

IF YOU WOULD LIKE MORE INFORMATION ABOUT BREAST AUGMENTATION And One Day Recovery, CONTACT DR. MARK EPSTEIN

To schedule a consultation with Dr. Mark Epstein please contact our Stony Brook office at 631-689-1100, or request information here.