Losing weight can prove to be an incredibly difficult feat. It takes hard work, perseverance, and discipline to stick to a balanced diet, an exercise routine, and an overall healthy lifestyle. And despite these, it can take some time to notice results.
Several people want to lose weight. But it’s a long commitment that many are not prepared to make. They want to see results fast. And from this rose all these trending weight loss hacks, diets, and seven-minute exercise routines. Others also resort to medical procedures such as liposuction, an invasive surgical procedure that eliminates excess body fat.
While liposuction sounds like a good option, it does have drawbacks — the biggest one being its invasiveness. Liposuction is done by licensed surgeons who cut through the skin to remove excess fat. As a procedure that requires surgery it can cause certain complications and more so requires a long recovery period and not to mention a large investment.
For those who are not ready to go under the knife and invest in a highly invasive weight loss procedure, the good news is that there are other options. Liposuction has its alternatives that are less invasive, less expensive, and similarly as effective.
Alternatives to Liposuction
There are three less invasive procedures that can yield relatively the same results as liposuction. These include cool sculpting, lipo laser, and strawberry lipo laser.
Cool Sculpting
Cool sculpting is a good alternative to liposuction that does not involve surgery. In fact, it is non-invasive and safe, taking only 35 minutes per session. The procedure is done by a doctor, who uses a patented CoolSculpting applicator to swipe through target areas, such as the tummy, legs, arms, or even jaw.
From its name, it’s pretty obvious that the applicator will be cold. Its purpose is to freeze fat cells and kill them for your body to process out later on. Because your body will need time to eliminate dead fat cells from your system, cool sculpting can take a while before the results show. Generally, you’ll lose weight a few weeks up to two months after the treatment.
However, that’s not to say that it’s not effective. Cool sculpting has been shown to eliminate up to 23% of body fat after every session. With its proven effectiveness, short procedure time, and non-invasiveness, it’s a good option for those who want to lose fat easily. However, it may not be recommended for people with skin conditions or disorders that cause blood clots. Learn more about the differences between cool sculpting vs strawberry lipo laser.
Lipo Laser
While lipo laser does involve a certain level of invasiveness, it’s very minimal and requires only a local anesthetic. The recovery time is also short, taking only a couple of days for the incision to heal. But to be safe, strenuous physical activity is discouraged for about 3 to 4 weeks after the procedure.
When you undergo a lipo laser treatment, a doctor will numb the target area where you want to lose fat with anesthesia. They will then make small incisions on the skin and insert a laser, which will liquefy the fat. Then, a cannula will be inserted into the incision to suck the fat out. Because of its minimal invasiveness, there can be minor adverse effects, such as swelling or bruising.
Although this sounds a little scary at first, lipo lasers are much safer compared to liposuction, as long as it’s done by a licensed and experienced doctor.
Strawberry Lipo Laser
If you’re still concerned about the invasiveness of a regular lipo laser and aren’t keen on trying the cool sculpting procedure, there’s still the strawberry lipo laser treatment option. Unlike its general counterpart, this FDA-approved treatment does not require making incisions on the skin.
Instead, a stronger but safe laser is used above the skin’s surface, targeting the areas where you want to reduce fat. The laser hits fat cells and opens up the skin’s pores, allowing your body to release stored fluids, such as water, glycerol, and fatty acids. Without these fluids, fat cells beneath the skin will shrink, an effect that you will notice almost immediately after the treatment.
It’s recommended, however, that you complete about eight sessions of strawberry lipo laser to get a significant reduction of fat cell size. But because it is non-invasive, does not have side effects, and requires no downtime, the frequency of treatments should not be a cause of concern.
The only limitations are for pregnant women, people with pacemakers, tattoos in the targeted areas, hypertension, kidney or liver disorders, and cancer.
Lose Weight Fast and Safely
There are a lot of weight loss hacks and diets surfacing, however, not all of them are guaranteed safe and effective. The best way to lose excess fat is to turn to professionals. Get medical advice and ask our doctors about liposuction or its alternatives today.