Getting In-Shape
For The Summer
It’s summer! Tina checked her three sets of bikinis – red, yellow, and
floral – as she packed for the beach. She put on a set, watched herself on
the mirror, touched her tummy, looked at her thighs, and checked for any
flabs. She was pleased! Her months of exercise and strict diet have paid
off. Tina joined her friends as they showed more skin, on their bikinis or
board shorts sans the tank tops.
The heat of summer always brings a season of reckoning – of how much effort
we have invested to be in shape as we shed more clothes. Unlike a race where
everyone starts at a common line, the beginning of the journey to be in our
optimal shape starts from different levels, respective of our initial
physique. And true, others are genetically gifted of a higher metabolism,
lesser fat stores, and a more proportioned muscle mass than the rest. They
require lesser exercise and a more lenient diet for the same optimal result.
What about for most of us who are not in the ideal shape, and exercising and
dieting seem not to work anymore, will it always be a tragic summer? It can
really be frustrating! Is body contouring surgery the panacea?
Liposuction and tummy tuck (abdominoplasty) are the most common forms of
body contouring surgery. Each procedure has specific indications, and
subsequent advantages and disadvantages (including possible complications).
The indications largely depend on the patient’s age, amount of fat, and
laxity of the muscles. However, like exercise and diet, the result of
surgery depends on the initial raw material, so to speak. It can be
frustrating for a patient whose expectations are unrealistic. We do not
expect a relatively fat individual to be happy on a bikini after going
through the operation. (Body contouring operations are not treatments for
obesity). In fact, the limits of body contouring surgery are individualized.
And body contouring operations do not negate the further need of exercise
and the right food intake.
The optimal long-term result of body contouring surgery is attained with
lifestyle changes, diet, and exercise. There are no short cuts. There are no
quantum leaps. The combination of these complimentary factors offers the
best outcome for each patient. Many are misled because they underwent the
operation, they now have the leeway to slumber and binge. Exercise should
tone the muscles which the contouring operation may not be able to correct.
Proper diet will avoid fat deposition or accumulation. For those who are
less gifted than others, it may even be a cycle of surgery, healthy
lifestyle, diet, exercise, and repeated or additional operation.
Tina is twenty seven years old. She continues to go to the gym and plays
badminton three times each week. She takes a balanced diet and a healthy
lifestyle. Despite that, she used to complain of stubborn fat bulges over
her lower abdomen and lateral thighs. Not anymore. Yes, Tina was discrete
about her liposuction six months before summer! |