It’s an unfortunate fact of life that a lot of people struggle when it comes to losing body fat. Diet and exercise can help, but sometimes it’s just not enough. Whether you have a slow metabolism, a condition that makes fat loss difficult, or simply have fat deposits that won’t go away no matter how hard you try, the quest for a slimmer body is not always as easy as we’d like.
Still, options such as liposuction can help you reduce fat and have a slimmer, sleeker body without the hassle. But is liposuction better than a modified diet and exercise plan? The truth is, both have pros and cons, but both can be highly effective in giving you the look you want.
Whether you’re considering liposuction already or haven’t even considered it as an option, here are a few benefits and drawbacks for both liposuction and modified diet and exercise that you may not have considered.
The Benefits of Liposuction
The Pros of Liposuction
In addition to being extremely effective at targeting stubborn fat deposits on the back, upper arms, abdomen, chin, thighs and buttocks, liposuction is a fast solution to losing fat. While recovery from can take several weeks and requires special care, once your healing is complete, you will be left with beautiful results that may have proven difficult to achieve through diet and exercise alone.
Liposuction can target fat removal precisely, so there’s no need to do exercises targeting “problem areas” on the body or worry about losing body fat from places you don’t want to lose fat from.
Liposuction also generally requires only one session, although in some cases, you may need more than one treatment. Each treatment can safely remove up to 15 pounds.
We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention another fabulous benefit of liposuction: improved confidence and self-esteem! Imagine being confident enough to wear the clothing you’ve always dreamed of without feeling insecure about lumps or bumps. Liposuction makes you look and feel better naked and in your skin.
The Cons of Liposuction
Though they are few, there are still some downsides to liposuction that you need to consider before booking your procedure. For starters, liposuction is a surgical procedure, and as a result, some inherent risks are involved. This can include infection, scarring and complications from anesthesia. Though these issues are rare, patients must understand they are possible before undergoing liposuction.
As with any surgical procedure, liposuction also does require some downtime to recover. Recovery could take several weeks and cause discomfort, swelling and bruising. Thankfully, these side effects are temporary.
Unfortunately, another con of liposuction is that it’s not a substitute for weight loss. If you need to lose overall body weight, it is still recommended that you begin a diet and exercise program. Liposuction is only designed to treat fat deposits in localized areas and for body contouring.
Though they rarely occur, there are also risks of complications with any liposuction procedure, such as uneven fat removal, irregularities to the skin and changes in the sensation of the skin.
The Benefits of Diet and Exercise
The Pros of Diet and Exercise
Of course, there are many pros to eating a healthy diet and getting plenty of exercise. These include lowered risk of chronic illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease, improved energy, lower body weight, stronger bones, and improved mental health. These benefits make it worth investing in a good diet and plenty of exercise. Even if you still undergo a liposuction procedure, you should maintain a healthy diet and exercise routine.
Diet and exercise is also a sustainable form of weight management. As long as you do the work, you’ll be able to see results and maintain those results. Still, sometimes, despite exercising regularly and eating a well-balanced diet, stubborn fat deposits on the body may not go away on their own.
Another pro to diet and exercise is that no surgeries are involved, which means no downtime, complications and relatively low risks. Furthermore, diet and exercise are more affordable than liposuction. Minimal costs are involved beyond healthy food and a gym membership. Even still, low-cost foods and free activities like walking or jogging are options for those on a tight budget.
Finally, when you exercise and eat right, you have more stamina for physical activities or to power you through your day!
The Cons of Diet and Exercise
While having a proper diet and getting plenty of exercise has no downsides, it still is more challenging. For starters, it takes time to exercise, which, in today’s world, many people don’t have. Between work, family and social obligations, fitting in the time and energy to work out can be difficult. Furthermore, seeing your hard work pay off can take a long time, which may be frustrating for some people.
Weight loss through diet and exercise also requires discipline. Whether you need to push yourself to get up early to run on the treadmill or to stop consuming foods high in carbs and sugar, willpower is essential in losing weight the old-fashioned way!
Another frustrating aspect of weight loss through diet and exercise is hitting that dreaded plateau. Sometimes, after successfully losing weight, our diet and exercise routine stops yielding results, and further adjustments to the program need to be made.
Diet and exercise also can’t target specific body areas like liposuction. You can tone up your muscles by lifting weights and doing strength training, but you may still need to remove the fat deposits covering those muscles, so you’ll never really see the results you want.
Finally, sometimes, we have physical limitations that prevent us from being able to do physical activities like weight lifting, jogging or other cardio.
Liposuction Vs. Diet And Exercise: The Final Word
Whether you’ve tried diet and exercise to no avail or have no problem maintaining a healthy weight but still have accumulated unwanted fat in specific areas, losing body fat through liposuction is a safe and effective solution for helping you achieve the body you want.
While it is always recommended that you maintain a healthy weight, exercise and eat right, a liposuction procedure from Dr. Jack Peterson can help you achieve your body goals!
