Tummy tuck Vs diet and exercise

   Aflat and shapely abdomen tells a lot about you — that you take care of yourself, that your overall health is sound and most importantly, you officially get the stamp of 'droolworthy' on you! It is said that a tummy tuck is a shortcut to sexy, flat abs. But plastic surgeons and cosmetologists say that with the help of exercises and a good diet, one can do even better. 

BENEFITS OF EXERCISE ARE MULTIFARIOUS 
"The benefits of a healthy diet and exercise are multifarious. Besides improving your general well-being, these two are very good ways to beat a tummy tuck," says Dr Swati Srivastava, dermatologist. 
    A senior cosmetic surgeon, Dr Mohan Thomas, believes that a flat abdomen means you are healthy. He says, "This not only indicates optimal strength and endurance of the person, but also his nutritional choices and a healthy lifestyle. So, if diet and exercise are taken care of from a very early stage in one's life, the chances for a surgical tummy tuck are considerably low." 
    Dr Sunita More, plastic surgeon, states that diet and exercise can beat a tummy tuck in unmarried women with a good skin tone and less body fat in the tummy region. 
HEALTHY DIET CAN WORK WONDERS, THOUGH IT TAKES TIME 
A healthy diet, combined with the right exercise, is a sure-shot way to a flatter tummy, say experts. However, one needs to be focused and knowledgeable. Dr Srivastava says, "Reduced calorie and fat intake in diet will make your body use its reserves of stored fat. Exercising daily will increase the body's metabolism and strengthen the core muscles of the abdomen. For this, you should do more of cardio workouts and abdomenstrengthening exercises. Crunches will definitely help in achieving a flat tummy." Dr Thomas adds, "Changing your eating and exercise habits will also shrink your stomach, though it will take more time." 
TUMMY TUCK NEEDS MAINTENANCE WITH EXERCISE AND DIET 
Even if you opt for a tummy tuck, to maintain the results of the surgery, you would need to do regular exercises and eat a proper, nutritious diet, keeping in mind your calorie intake. Dr Srivastava asserts, "When abdomen and back-strengthening exercises are done synergistically along with a wellbalanced diet, a good tucked-in tummy can be achieved." 
UGLY FOLDS AND 
PREGNANCY 
Lifestyle, a technically advanced society and added stress levels have lead to an obesity epidemic. Once the weight gain has occurred, it is possible to reduce it through exercise and diet, say experts. "But this leaves an oversized envelope of skin, which had covered a fatter you. The skin, too, can remodel to some extent, but then it will leave some ugly folds," states Dr Thomas. 
This is a problem particularly in females who tend to get fat deposits around the lower abdomen, post pregnancy. During pregnancy, there is a phenomenal increase in the girth of the abdomen because of the growing foetus. After delivery, however, there is significant recoil. Nonetheless, there is a fair chance of those loose folds of skin and muscle, which once covered the pregnant abdomen, remaining. With diet and exercise, only the fat issue can be addressed. Minor muscle abnormalities may also get toned up in some. "However, in vast majority, the lower abdomen is never the same as it was in their prepregnant state," he adds. 
NON-SURGICAL TUCKS? 
There are multiple advertisements about non-surgical tucks — made more tempting 
    with fantastic before-after 
    images — that make people 
    hopeful. Dr Thomas says, 
    "Such promises need to 
    be taken with a pinch of 
    salt. Many give forged 
    results or show someone who never got a 
    tummy tuck done." 
    WHAT DOES A 
    TUMMY TUCK 
    SURGERY DO? 
    A tummy tuck surgery flattens the 
    abdomen, tightens stomach muscles, and smoothens the skin, all in one go. But, even after the surgery, one needs to follow a strict regimen of diet and exercise to keep away excess fat. So, surgery is not a substitute for diet and exercise. Neither are diet and exercise a substitute for surgery. What matters is a proper balance of the two. 
Dr More, explains, "Following pregnancy, or in persons with large fat deposits, diet and exercise will alone not help. Once the weight is lost, the skin will become loose and flabby. This is unsightly and therefore, a tummy tuck is necessary. It not only gets rid of loose, flabby skin, but also erases the stretch marks. It gives you that flat, washboard tummy without bulges. Nothing can replace tummy tuck in people with large abdomen." 
    debarati.sen@timesgroup.com 

Crunches will definitely help in achieving a flat tummy

WASHBOARD ABS? Exercise combined with the right diet can give you flat abs