In the postoperative and rehabilitation periods, physical activity and sports are limited. Women who were actively involved in sports before surgery are concerned about the question: when to resume training and what are the risks of sports activities during rehabilitation? What restrictions exist after breast surgery?
When can you start playing sports after mammoplasty?
The gym is visited no earlier than 2 months after the intervention. Classes begin with light physical activity. Limit training to the upper shoulder girdle. Lifting barbells and dumbbells weighing more than 2 kg is prohibited. The main load is placed on the legs - squats, lunges, abs. Then they do athletics, lifting dumbbells from a lying position.
They return to full-fledged sports activities no earlier than 6 months after the operation.
The Butko Plastic clinic has been successfully performing mammoplasty operations for many years. The intervention is carried out by a reputable surgeon Igor Aleksandrovich Butko, a doctor with twenty years of experience. The doctor explains in detail what can be done in the postoperative period, what exercises are allowed, and talks about the consequences of non-compliance with the regime. Accurate implementation of all recommendations guarantees an excellent result of the intervention.
Stages of return to classes:
- The first 3-4 days - rest and bed rest.
- In the first two weeks - walking at a leisurely pace.
- Up to two months of light physical exercise for the body, with the exception of the shoulder girdle and chest.
- After 2 months of rehabilitation - light physical activity in the gym. Over time, running and athletics exercises are allowed, but only after medical consultation.
What exercises can you do after surgery?
- For the first 2–3 weeks, only walking is allowed. It is prohibited to lift any weights.
- At 4–6 weeks, a woman can slowly raise her arms up. The shoulder girdle is being developed.
- After 2–2.5 months, lifting dumbbells weighing up to 2 kg is allowed.
- 2.5 months after the operation, short distance swimming is allowed.
- After 3 months, you can pump up your abs, do stretching, and raise your arms above your shoulders.
- After 6 months, push-ups and stretching of the chest muscles are performed. Only after medical consultation.
- Tennis, kickboxing or mountaineering are allowed to be practiced one year after the intervention.
In patients who are professionally involved in sports, the gland as such is either almost absent or very small. Drying affects adipose tissue - fatty tissue decreases in volume, leaving iron behind.
Choosing a method for installing implants
There is no ideal method for breast enlargement. Each method of installing implants has its pros and cons.
When we place implants under the muscle, the shape of the breast changes slightly as the muscle tightens. When we place it under the gland, with tension in the arms, the shape of the breast remains more natural, but the likelihood of contractures and subsequent contouring of the implant is still higher.
If we determine that the thickness of the mammary gland is more than 3 cm, we can place it under the gland. I have been practicing plastic surgery for 23 years. Previously, we mainly installed implants under the gland. Why? Previously, patients had more glandular tissue and we installed implants of 180, 200, 220, 240 ml. 240 ml was already considered a lot. If you remember, our grandmothers, as a rule, did not have the issue of breast enlargement. Unlike modern youth, for some reason they had more glandular tissue.
Nowadays, on average, we install implants of 280, 300, 330 ml. The implants have become larger, the gland has become smaller, and if you install it under the gland, the implant will quickly begin to contour. That is why we are now trying to install the implant as deep as possible in order to avoid contracture as much as possible.
If an athlete gets an implant under the gland, the implant begins to put pressure on this already very thin gland.
Atrophy occurs and the implant is visible to the naked eye. Therefore, the implant is placed under the muscle.
However, even when we place implants under the muscle, atrophy of the gland still occurs over time. Depending on the size of the implant and the patient’s tissues. Let’s say a thin patient has breast size 1, but she wants 3-3.5, that is, a large implant. I always explain that if the implant is large, at the beginning everything will be fine, but in the future, and quite quickly, contouring will occur. The implant rests on the ribs, and in front of it there are softer structures - muscle, gland, skin. The implant puts pressure on the gland from the inside and the gland atrophies, becomes thinner, and therefore the implant begins to contour and be palpated.
Photo from Jodie Marsh's Instagram
Installation under the muscle is still only suitable for girls who simply keep in shape through sports and do not intend to set records.
Because when we place an implant under the muscle, a shell is formed around the implant - a capsule. And if the muscle is strained, this shell with the implant can rupture.
I had a case when, 3 years after the operation, a patient at the airport, removing a heavy suitcase from the conveyor belt, sharply pulled it. The pectoralis major muscle, which is fused to the capsule, became tense, and the capsule ruptured and the implant shell ruptured, since it was also fused to this capsule from the inside.
A breast enlarged with an implant is one of the weak points for the rest of your life. And this chest cannot be injured, so it is necessary to exclude impacts and sudden heavy physical exertion, sudden movements (for example, lifting a barbell). But those of my patients who do yoga, Pilates and similar types of physical activity did not come to me with ruptured implants. As a rule, when an exercise is performed slowly, the pain syndrome turns on and this also controls the movement.
Sports in the postoperative period
After breast augmentation surgery, you need to take care of yourself. How to take care - no one will give a clear recipe, everyone has their own.
The load on the pectoral muscles can be given no earlier than 1.5 months after the operation, and then the load should be very light. Loads such as a barbell - in about 3 months. We need to choose - either we lift the barbell and don’t look at whether the implant will rupture, or we still take care of our chest and take a moderate approach to these types of sports loads.
When you can play sports at full strength is decided individually, since everyone’s physical fitness is different. The patient himself must determine that he is comfortable and that the exercises do not cause excessive stress and discomfort.
Possible side effects during exercise and sports
Surgery is not an exact science. If everything goes well for one patient, complications may arise for another. For example, a seroma forms. In my practice there were 3 similar cases. The cause is usually inflammatory diseases. And one girl had an injury. She was on holiday in Turkey and jumped off a pier hand in hand with her children. When my chest hit the water, I felt a slight crunch. Then I returned home and caught a cold due to the climate change, after which seroma appeared. I had to puncture and remove this liquid.
The implant can turn over due to sports stress, which is important when using an anatomist. But after surgery, I always install drains through which excess fluid comes out. Therefore, the implant is located in a dry cavity, fixes and grows very quickly. And then the likelihood of its displacement is minimized.
A lot can happen after surgery. In the human body it is easier to remove something, and it will generally cope, than to build it up. But, unfortunately, today humanity has not come up with anything better than implants for breast enlargement.
To communicate with patients who have undergone breast augmentation, lifting or reduction, come to our forum in the Mammoplasty
Optimal conditions during the rehabilitation period:
- Compression garments are worn for 6 weeks after the intervention.
- For another month it is worn only at night. During the day, wear a bra without wires.
- After three months, a bra with underwire is worn.
- For the first three weeks after surgery, you should not actively swing your arms, spread them to the sides, or drive a car.
- The first month you are allowed to sleep only on your back, then on your side.
- After 2 months you can lie on your stomach.
- Baths, saunas, and solariums are prohibited for three months after surgery.
- The beach is not visited for 6 months.
- Intimate relationships are prohibited for 4 weeks after surgery.
Regular examinations
The first diagnostic examination is carried out one year after the operation. It allows not only to assess the condition of the implants, but also to identify whether there are neoplasms or other pathological processes. It is important to promptly seek professional medical help if the following symptoms occur:
- implant deformation;
- swelling of the mammary gland;
- lump in the chest;
- hyperemia (redness of the skin);
- pain symptoms.
FAQ
What to do with training if pain occurs?
You can continue to exercise, but exercises that cause pain should be avoided for a while.
If sharp painful sensations or significant discomfort appear, you need to stop all training and see a doctor.
Chest discomfort during exercise, what is the reason?
During the first 2-3 weeks, discomfort is acceptable. It is especially pronounced if a larger implant is inserted. The surgeon inserts it under the large chest muscle, where there is not enough room. The implant puts pressure on the surrounding tissue, stretching it. Over time, adaptation occurs.
To get the breasts of your dreams, work with reputable plastic surgeons. Butko Plastic will conduct an examination and the doctor will select implants. We use safe anesthesia and modern equipment. We use only proven developments. Call and make an appointment with Igor Butko now. Take the first step towards the breasts of your dreams.
What should you not do the first time after breast augmentation surgery?
The first two weeks are the first recovery period, which is the most difficult. During it, even everyday stress that has nothing to do with sports can negatively affect recovery and the position of the implants. You need to carefully monitor the load on the pectoral muscles - do not lift anything heavy, do not get out of bed leaning on your hands, do not open heavy doors, and do not even pull clothes out of the washing machine. All these seemingly simple things can have undesirable consequences, such as displacement of the implant or bleeding from the wound.
It is important to follow all the instructions of your surgeon, and try not to overexert your body for the sake of a better result.
You can learn more about this operation from the “Breast Augmentation” section.
Psychological aspects
Recommendations for patients on how to get in shape after breast augmentation
When talking about life after mammoplasty, one cannot fail to mention the psychological consequences. Most often, having seen the first results that suit her, a woman experiences a serious emotional upsurge, after which she can fall into one of two extremes. One of them is the “goddess complex”, absolutely confident in its irresistibility. It can manifest itself in excessive sensitivity to any influence on the “new” breast and a prohibition on touching it even by a loved one or spouse. Another manifestation is the performance of actions that allow you to focus attention on the chest.
In this case, the style of clothing changes completely, dresses and blouses become tight and very open. The second extreme is that a woman, on the contrary, becomes very shy and withdraws into herself. This often happens if the environment has a negative attitude towards plastic surgery to enlarge the bust, but it also happens that a woman or girl is shy by nature. In order to minimize the risk of such psychological problems, an experienced plastic surgeon will refer a patient predisposed to such manifestations to a consultation with a psychologist.
