The REAL lowdown on prepping for your glow-up

OP. DR. YUNUS DOĞAN

Time to thrive in 2025

The holiday leftovers are long gone and digested. Family members have retreated back to their homes and decorations have been stored for another year. You’re still reprogramming your hand to write the new year and it’s probably time to start rewiring yourself. Get to working on those resolutions!

If one of yours involves plastic surgery, don’t you want to maximize your results? Get the most bang for your buck. Extend your euros the extra kilometer. Let your lira live a little longer. A little prep work now can make a big difference later, both in terms of how you feel and heal from surgery as well as the lifespan of your results.

Consider yourself The Total Package

First, you need to open your eyes, even if you’re not planning a blepharoplasty. While your specific plastic surgery procedure may enhance a targeted body part, you need to look at yourself from top to tail. We are not judging your current size when we suggest viewing yourself through a metaphorical wider lens.

Your Brazilian butt lift (BBL) will make your booty pop, but for how long? That face lift might increase your face value but look past the parts and consider the whole. Think about several aspects of your life, like:

• Reducing some elements of your diet,
• Increasing other menu options,
• Pressing pause on certain medications/supplements,
• Maintaining a healthy level of activity,
• Curbing unhealthy habits like smoking/drinking, and
• Wrapping your head around everything.

Reducing some elements of your diet

About a month prior to your scheduled surgery, try to cut down on refined carbs, salt, sugar, greasy food. While they may taste so, so tummy, they are extremely inflammatory and do nothing for your body except harm. Weaning yourself off and cutting these foods out will improve your immune system and reduce any extra uncomfortable swelling.

Limit foods rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, including red meat and tuna. Yes, Omega-3 is a wonderful fat when included - in moderation - in your daily diet, but when you’re planning on plastic surgery, having an abundance of Omega-3 in your system could lead to excessive blood loss.

Increasing other menu options

If cutting out salty, fried food leaves you with a void, fill it with the REAL good good like leafy greens. Kale, spinach and broccoli will fortify your immune system and their Vitamin K will help your blood coagulate.

Missing the refined carbs in cakes and cookies? Try Nature’s candy! Bananas, oranges and apples can taste just as sweet as over-processed indulgences and they also aid in digestion with natural fiber. You can also munch on low-sodium whole grain breads if you need carbohydrates.

Our bodies need protein, so go hunt up the lean meats: chicken, fish and/or lean pork. Vegetarian and vegan folk will want to prepare their tofu with turmeric and other low-sodium spices. Just be mindful of the amount of turmeric used: it’s an anti-inflammatory but can also thin the blood if consumed excessively.

Tell your whole milk to moooove over and opt for the low-fat version if you’re into cow’s milk. Also choose low-sodium cheeses because too much salt can make your healing halt.

Everyone knows they need to drink water. We hear it every day. Aim to drink half your body weight in ounces. For example, a 180 lb woman should drink 90 ounces of water each day for optimal hydration. (This converts to an 82 kg woman drinking 2.6 liters each day. The British Nutrition Foundation has a great article about ways to stay hydrated here.)

Obviously, you can’t make up for lost time and chug water as you’re being wheeled into surgery. A well-hydrated body must start weeks before you even get on the plane.

Pressing pause on certain medications/supplements

As mentioned previously, an overload of Omega-3 can thin your blood, resulting in excessive bleeding during and after surgery. Some of your prescription medications may have a similar result. Check out the extensive list of medications published by the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA.)

There are natural supplements whose positive attributes can ironically lead to negative contributions. For example, cayenne can lower blood pressure and body temp. Echinacea can affect the liver. Garlic can enhance blood-thinner meds. Kava kava can intensify anesthesia. Licorice root can cause high blood pressure, lower potassium and enhance tissue swelling.

Don’t discontinue anything based on what we say. Always consult your amazing, charming and completely capable plastic surgeon. Did we help you find him?

Maintaining a healthy level of activity

A strong, mobile body will bounce back more quickly and with less pain than an out-of-shape one. If you’re relatively fit and healthy, your body may withstand the physical stress of surgery in a more efficient way, resulting in an easier recovery time for you.

As the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons recommends, even just 30 minutes of moderate exercise five times a week can prepare your body for surgery. The Aussies also suggest two resistance training sessions but if you’re new to fitness, do what you can. Commit to an exercise program that’s fun and sustainable. There’s a whole new world of activity out there, even if you have no desire to be a gym rat.

Curbing unhealthy habits like smoking/drinking

Will 2025 be the year you finally stop smoking or vaping? Your lungs will thank you. And if you’re having plastic surgery this year, the rest of your body will appreciate your effort to quit too. Smoking damages all your healthy tissue, inside and out. We mentioned it in our shorter version of pre-op prep. Smoking will delay recovery, increase the severity of scars and decrease your skin’s elasticity. It will undo anything your plastic surgeon has done.

Alcohol lowers inhibitions and thins your blood, so while it may make you a better singer, dancer and pool player, it may also make you bleed more during and after surgery. Leave the bottle on the shelf at least two weeks prior to surgery.

Wrapping your head around everything

We’ve covered what you’re putting in your body and how you should move it. There’s one more body part you need to exercise: your mind. Sit and really ponder if you’re ready for plastic surgery. Fully research your chosen procedures. Talk to friends and family. Ask your surgeon if you can speak to past patients.

The American Society of Plastic Surgeons published a helpful guide to guard your sanity throughout your plastic surgery journey. It gives you an idea about what to expect at every stage of the process, from researching to recuperating. If you want your body tight, first get your mind right.

The last stitch

Having plastic surgery can be an amazing step to unlocking who you really are or discovering the person you want to be. You are more than just the sum of your freshly lipo-ed thighs, implanted breasts and newly lifted arms. Those procedures can only take you so far: it’s up to you to come alive in 2025. Get what you want and make the most of what you have.