Tummy Tuck: Prices, Photos, Reviews, Info, Q&A

The amount of skin and fatty tissue removed with a tummy tuck typically weights anywhere from 2 to 10 pounds. It is important to remember that plastic surgery will contour and shape problem areas beautifully, but is not meant to be a method of weight reduction. I wish you a safe and healthy recovery.

Weight loss after a tummy tuck is usually very small, in the order of not more than 5 lbs. The real goal of the procedure is contouring, and removing excess skin. The patient will have improved flatter tummy and a more accentuated waist. Patients usually end up fitting in clothes better, and enjoy form fitting outfits.

We usually don’t measure by weight but you can lose up to 10lbs after the excess of tissue is removed. The skin and fat that is removed during a tummy tuck usually only weighs several pounds. However, the change is appearance and contour is often dramatic.

Calories in/Calories out: If you decrease your calorie intake (decrease the number of calories you eat) or increase your calorie output (exercise activity) you can actually preserve the weight loss you had after surgery and even continue to improve your result.
Shape Change: The things that change the shape of your belly are liposuction of your love handles and tightening of your abdomen muscles. See video below. Your shape change is long lasting if both are combined.
Emotional boost: I find that some patients get motivated after the surgery and begin to take more pride in their appearance, but this work best when both surgeon and patient have a good discussion beforehand about the goals of surgery and the plan for action after surgery.

The purpose of a tummy tuck is not really to lose weight, rather it is a contouring procedure. I tell my patients that we will judge our results with a measuring tape instead of a scale. This is because the tissues really aren’t as dense as they look, and the actual weight removed is always less than we think it is. In fact, we always weigh our removed tissue, and we are more often surprised at how light the amount removed is. You will always look like you’ve lost more weight than you really do.

I tell you this to set expectations, but having said that I can also say that depending upon your size and the amount of excess tissue you have, for instance if you have already lost a significant amount of weight, the removed tissue may still be an appreciable amount.

As we are removing something, that something will have some weight. More often than not we remove < 5 pounds, but in cases of massive weight loss, I have removed 15 – 20 pounds or more.

The actual skin and fat removed from a tummy tuck weighs around 5-7 pounds. A tummy tuck is not a weight loss procedure like a gastric bypass is. The big result comes from the improved shape and contour of the abdomen and hips. I do find that a lot of patients will lose more weight after the tummy tuck surgery since they are more motivated and find it easier to exercise without the stomach rolls and excess skin.

Tummy tuck for weight loss should be considered as an operation to contour the body rather than a weight loss operation. Patients who are misinformed and go through a TT for the sake of weight loss are sorely disappointed. Typically you will lose the weight of the excess skin and fat that is removed. On average about 2- 3 kg or 5-6 lbs.

There is not a significant amount of weight loss from a Tummy Tuck. The average weight loss with my patients is 3-5 lbs. This operations is designed for removing excess skin and a small amount of fat. The results of a Tummy Tuck will not change the scales significantly, but will shape your midrift area to be able to wear those form fitting dresses and pants/jeans.

The amount of weight lost from a tummy tuck varies greatly from patient to patient. This amount depends on the degree of fat of the lower belly that is removed during the tummy tuck and whether or not liposuction is included in the procedure.

It is important to remember that a tummy tuck for weight loss is a contouring procedure that results in a flat and well shaped belly. Immediately after surgery, your weight will briefly rise, as you will retain fluid throughout your body.

After 2-3 weeks as this fluid is mobilized, your weight will stabilize at its new lower number. How much lower this number is is not as important as how much better you look, which the tummy tuck will provide. Your clothes will fit better, and you will feel better about your new shape.

Best of luck wit your tummy tuck for weight loss.

As a rule, body contouring procedures are not weight loss procedures and should never be construed as such. The amount of weight of the tissue removed varies with the amount of weight loss and the degree of excess tissue coupled with the excisional patern. ie, circumferential procedures will cut off more tissue

than anterior procedures alone. No matter what the procedure, as a patient, you have to be able to manage your weight and your weight should be stable. When we as plastic surgeon perform contouring procedures, we remove skin and fat. You still have fat left behind in your body. If you are in a position where your weight fluctuates, if you consume more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. Often times, the areas that we excise are the areas on your body that excess weight goes. After these areas are excised, if you have weight gain, it will go to other areas.

The main concept is that before you go for body contouring procedures you need to optimize your lifestyle so that your results from surgery are long lasting.

How much weight can you lose from tummy tuck? It all depends on how much extra skin and fat you have. In general it is possible to lose anywhere from 2-15 lbs from tummy tuck.

The real benefit of course is the reduction in size and improvement in contour. Usually one can drop 1-4 pant sizes, depending on how much skin and fat are removed.

The amount you lose depends on how much tissue you have on your lower abdomen. The tummy tuck is not a great weight loss method but is a good way to lose weight. You will get a better result from your surgery if you lose weight before surgery.

For Tummy Tuck Surgery in San Antonio, I try to get patients to reduce their weight so that their BMI<30. I think the heaviest amount of tissue that I have removed is about 8 pounds from just a Tummy Tuck, but I have removed as much as 45 pounds on an extreme panniculectomy! A tummy tuck or abdominoplasty is not a weight reduction technique. Many times liposuction is done concurrently with the tummy tuck. Not much weight is usually removed but excess skin is removed and tightening occurs to reshape the body.