How do you get fuller buttocks? Training, nutrition or buttock augmentation
With a growing number of people striving for curvy curves and increased self-confidence, the trend of having beautiful full buttocks is becoming more prominent. Especially among younger generations, having a nice behind is a growing desire. Through social media and reality TV shows, among others, they are often frequently confronted with women with the perfect buttocks. The buttocks are almost the only place on the body where women usually do not want to lose weight, but rather gain it. In this article, we talk with plastic surgeon Darren Booi about having full buttocks and buttock augmentation, or surgery.
The (negative) role of social media
Social media plays a big role in the rise of buttock augmentations. This is dangerous because many people are not properly educated about the risks and are blinded by a result in someone else. Good to know is that influencers often get surgery for free in exchange for promotion through Instagram, TikTok etc. Influencers do their best to tout the treatment and may mislead you with insane before and after photos. If before and after photos involve different posture, stature or lighting, this can greatly affect the results.
What many people also don’t understand is that 80% of the results come from liposuction alone. When liposuction is done properly in the flanks, lower back, hips and legs, your buttocks appear fuller because the rest of your body is slimmer. The result can then be further improved by applying lipofilling (fat transfer) to the buttocks. But this is not without risks.
What are the risks of buttock augmentation?
In addition to proper indication and technique, the total volume of liposuction is important. The more fat removed, the greater the risk of complications. Putting your own body fat back into the buttocks is known as the Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL) and is the most dangerous plastic surgery, with the highest mortality rate. When this technique was newly adopted, there were studies that showed that 1 in 3,000 patients died due to fat embolisms. Some countries have even temporarily banned the Brazilian Butt Lift.
Research has shown that putting fat back into the muscle layer of the buttocks is dangerous because there are large blood vessels that can be damaged during lipofilling, leading to fat embolisms. When the fat enters the blood vessels, it goes directly to your heart and lungs and you can die very quickly. Equipment to pressurize and vibrate the fat (expansion vibration lipofilling) is also not my preference because of this and we do not do it.
Nowadays, lipofilling in the buttocks is again becoming more common and popular. Superficial lipofilling, only in superficial fatty tissue in the buttocks is now considered relatively safe and new research shows that the mortality rate has dropped to 1-12 to 20,000 people as long as the procedure is performed safely. However, at MOOI Clinic, we do not perform Brazilian Butt Lifts because despite the extra safety measures and studies, it is still the plastic surgery with the highest mortality and complications. We do not support that. For the superficial lipofilling and conservative technique, however, you can come to us.
Are buttock implants safe?
I myself am not in favor of buttock implants. The implants have a firmer shape and less chance of leaking, but they can twist/displace and they also generally cause more symptoms than breast implants, for example. This is because you often sit or lie on the buttock implants.
If I don’t want buttock implants, what are my options?
Even if you don’t want buttock implants, there are ways to enlarge your buttocks or make them look bigger. As mentioned earlier, you can also augment buttocks with your own body fat (lipofilling), but proper liposuction is very important and putting back fat is done in a very conservative and superficial way to avoid risks.
Just don’t rule out liposuction as an option. Shrinking certain body parts, such as the flanks (often called muffin top, or the rolls of fat above your pants) and belly, accentuates your hips and buttocks more. As a result, your buttocks are not larger, but they appear larger because the proportions of your body have changed.
What is the best way to get fuller buttocks?
Roughly speaking, there are two ways to get fuller buttocks: The best, most natural and healthiest way is without surgery by training your glutes and adjusting nutrition. Not only will you gain more muscle mass but your buttocks will also become firmer and stronger. If you are already doing this and are not quite managing to achieve the desired results due to stubborn fat deposits, plastic surgery is a way to get the desired results faster. A combination of sports and surgery will always work better than surgery alone.
Sports and nutrition
Targeted strength training, focusing on exercises such as squats, lunges and especially hip thrusts (with extra weight), effectively activate and stimulate the glutes. In addition to training the right muscles, nutrition is essential for getting full buttocks. Protein is important for building and maintaining muscle mass. But other nutrients should not be missing from your meals, because your body also needs fuel. Also consider healthy carbohydrates and fats in limited amounts.
Like breasts, each woman’s buttocks are also unique. Some have naturally larger buttocks than others. This can be in fat distribution but also in muscle mass. Hereditary predisposition also plays a big role here. Not only the muscle mass but also the laxity/quality of the skin and fat over the buttocks is important. This especially plays a role in people who have lost an extreme amount of weight such as after gastric bypass. In these cases, slackness of the skin must also be taken into account. It is also important to be patient, because building muscle and getting results happens gradually. However, not everyone is satisfied with the results of a lot of exercise and a high-protein diet.
Liposuction and contour enhancement
At MOOI Clinic, unfortunately, you cannot go for Brazilian buttock augmentation with your own fat or buttock implants, given the risks. However, our experienced plastic surgeons can help you improve your body contours (liposuction) to make your buttocks look more beautiful in combination with superficial lipofilling.
What do you think about many women going abroad to enlarge their buttocks?
People’s motivation for going abroad for buttock augmentation is often twofold. Abroad, it is often cheaper. It is often cheaper there because there are other rules regarding quality and safety. This brings additional risks and it is incomprehensible that people dare to take this risk. In the Netherlands, there are laws surrounding plastic surgery. Unlike the Netherlands, where the NVPC has had a strict quality policy for all member plastic surgeons for many years, other countries such as Turkey or Thailand often have lower quality standards. Consider the training of the doctors, the materials used such as buttock and breast implants, hygiene protocols and certainly aftercare (which is often not there). In the meantime, I often have second opinions on clients who have been abroad. They are not satisfied with the result or have complications. My fellow plastic surgeon Michelle Feijen previously wrote a blog about plastic surgery abroad and its risks. This does not mean that there are not good plastic surgeons and clinics abroad. The better clinics are often as expensive or sometimes even more expensive than in the Netherlands.
