#lookmaxx

6 months post op

Well ladies and gentlemen, we made it. Six. Months. Post. Op. Wow. What a journey it has been. I feel like I’ve lived 3 different lives.

This new body has given me what I always knew I had, shape. Real feminine shape that makes clothes actually fit my body. It’s crazy to think how diet and exercise truly couldn’t give me this body. I feel like I’m a butterfly floating through life. My jean size is smaller than what I wore in high school (granted I do think sizes are “bigger” nowadays.)

It’s peak* week for me because next week I’m leaving for vacation but I’m already thinking about what I’m going to do when I come home. For the past decade, every winter no matter how hard I try I always gain 10 lbs lol then I spend the spring and summer trying to lose it. Rinse and repeat. This year will obviously be different. I have a plan. When I come back I’ll be wearing my faja 12 hrs a day (basically to curb my appetite from the compression.) I will up my personal training 2x a week. I want to do private Pilates classes 2x a week. I bought a walking pad so no excuses to not get 10k steps but in the winter I want to aim for 20k steps a day. Half inside half outside. After that is my meal plan. Prioritizing protein and water intake. I’ve been slacking as per usual lol my lack of protein amps up my sugar addiction to supplement for my hunger lol I know it’s not funny and actually fucked up. I blame my mother for not cooking when I was younger and subsequently not teaching me.

In addition to fitness and nutrition I need to unclutter my mind. I have wayyyy too much stuff. Clothes, shoes, bags. I’m going to do a fall cleaning and donate everything. Even the designer stuff. I have to make a promise to myself; no more secondhand shopping. I get it, trust me, more than anyone how “good” it is for the environment. But I do believe there is a spiritual aspect to it that is negative. Bringing someone’s thrown away trash (essentially) into your scared space, onto your body. It’s bad. I’ve been thrifting / vintage shopping since 2011 and let me tell you I’ve accumulated so much shit lol it’s just not fun. Yeah you’re saving a buck but who gives a fuck? lol in the grand scheme of things when you get older you won’t want another person’s trash. Trust me. There’s a reason why rich people always remodel the homes they buy.

Beauty maintenance also starts in the winter. Stringent morning and nighttime routines. Red light therapy. Facials. Chemical peels. Micro-needling. Lasers. Lymphatic massages. I really want an eyebrow lift. I was thinking about getting an eyebrow transplant but I think an eyebrow lift is the way to go. Investing in your body > clothes/bags. Trust me

To circle back, this new body has changed my life. My job is to now maintain it and make sure it only gets better. You work out in the winter to show off in the summer. Next summer I want to be on a super yacht off the coast of Italy in the tiniest Brazilian bikini known to man. I want to take a photo 1 year post op and see how much I’ve changed. I want to lose 10lbs and then I truly think I’ll be happy (I swear I’m not crazy)

It’s so wild going from a size 6/8 to a 2/4 lol plastic surgery is so worth it if you do it slow, go to the best, and make tweaks

*peak week entails

Mani + pedi

Hair Botox

Brazilian wax (will get laser when I get back)

Eyelash extensions

Facial

15w5dpo

I’ve been slacking ~shocker~ I know. It’s hard I can’t lie. The summer is all about iced coffee and ice cream, sweet little treats, patio season. It’s hard to resist. I’m trying not to break my own balls and remind myself that life is about “balance” but fuck it’s hard. I remind myself that I didn’t spend thousands of dollars to fuck up my progress by stuffing my face. The problem is where I live has been a catastrophic heat wave. It’s so hot that just by being outside for 5 minutes will leave you drenched. I have to think about a lot. Not just my body but my skin. It’s easier to just be a fat couch potato than go outside.

But that all changes this new week.

It’s a big week for me. On Tuesday I get IPR done to my teeth. I’ve been waiting 16 years for this. IPR is where they shave your teeth on the sides. Can’t wait to actually have straight teeth. My teeth are the one feature that I constantly get complimented on. Invisalign is taking it to another level. I also want to start a meal plan that I used back in 2019. I used to go to the gym 6x a week and eat 100% clean with this meal plan. I was absolutely tiny. It’s wild for me because I remember at the time I still thought I was fat lol my problem is having sweets in the house. If it’s outside the house I’m good. But once I have cookies or ice cream in the house I will devour it. The reason I’m restarting this meal plan is because portion sizing is killing me. I’m going to have to start measuring my meals again. I’m doing this because I’m going on vacation in September and I want to not only be in the best shape of life but I want to eat everythingggggg. This is a country where culinary arts are top tier.

I wear the faja overnight. I took a two week break from wearing it about 2.5 months post op. I know I should wear it more just for the curbing of the appetite aspect but with this heat it just makes it hard to breath. Pro tip: don’t get your surgery in the summer lol

This is my last week of “club Pilates” and my personal trainer on vacation. I’m ready to join a real Pilates studio or better yet start doing privates. I still get lymphatic drainage massages once I week. I really like the girl who does them so I’ll just continue for her.

3 months post op!

We made it! 3 months post op. I pretty much stopped wear my faja for almost 2 weeks at this point (I’m writing this on 6/10 since I’ve been on vacation.) Unfortunately since I’ve been out of town I haven’t been able to measure myself nor weigh myself. I’ve been very indulgent on vacation. Wine pairing with every meal, never saying no to dessert lol but I’m home now and home is where we have a routine. I’m going to Whole Foods tomorrow because I have no food at home. I need to start ordering delivery for when I come home but I just don’t trust the people picking the food lol are they checking dates? Are they making sure the food is fresh? A pro tip for traveling is to make sure you have something to heat up at home when you get back.

I am extremely happy with my results. They are very natural. Someone who doesn’t know me intimately can absolutely surmise that I worked at the gym and achieved this body desire you and I knowing this isn’t true. I’ve been looking at old photos from years ago when I was at my leanest and even then I didn’t have a flat flat stomach. Surgery has given me my youth again. The photo on the left was taken before I got coolsculpting done. It was 2023 in the summer. I had two rounds, 8 applicators total. It was very painful. I’ll probably make another post about that with before and afters. I do not recommend it unless you like wasting thousands of dollars.

I want to lose 20 pounds. I have a serious trip coming up on September and I want to look my very best. This means absolutely no sweets or drinks other than water. I need to up my protein. But most importantly I need to exercise. I have my 30 min personal training session once a week but that’s not enough. I want to incorporate Pilates and 10 steps. It’s hard but I’m taking baby steps

I’m going to post how many steps I take a day for accountability purposes.

12w2dpo

I just spent the last 60 hours sans faja. I worked out tuesday, then got a spray tan. Went to the airport and flew to Florida. It was insanely hot yesterday. Today was a shopping day and the weather was perfect. I went to the Cheesecake Factory and take pot stickers, crap rangoon and an Oreo cheesecake. It’s the first time in 3 months I’ve eaten like complete shit. I felt like throwing up the rest of the day. I rarely go to the Cheesecake Factory, I think I’ve only been twice (counting this time) and the food is just nasty. On par with Olive Garden or Applebee’s. Yet the restaurant was packed. Actually had to wait 20 minutes to eat lol I know I’m technically on vacation and should give myself grace but I still feel bad about it. At least I walked around a lot. Shopping burns calories. I got back to the item end immediately put my faja back on lol my safety net. I have an event to go to tomorrow and need to make sure my waist is absolutely snatched.

My body is looking great. I’m going to try to take some photos but I’m pretty busy on this trip so idk when I’ll have the time. Regardless I’m about to be 3 months post op so I want to do a before and after.

I really want to get thigh/knee/ankle lipo. It’s hard to find a surgeon because most of the people who get leg lipo have hideous legs lol mine are just really thick in a bad way. I’m pretty sure I have cankles. And no this isn’t me having body dysmorphia. This is me coming to the realization that my model legs aren’t attainable unless I get some surgical help. The pressures to look good are staggering. There are so many beautiful women in the world. I know that getting a boob job will put me in another league altogether but that’s the one surgery I’m not too keen on getting.

Pros;

Filling out clothes

Being proportional

Looking more feminine

Cons;

Breast implant illness

Artificial substance permanently lodged into my body

Looking fat in clothes

Ugly scars

Complications

Looking older than I am

11wpo

New body, old clothes

I know I said I wouldn’t be updating weekly but I felt like this was important. I went out today in a vintage dress that before couldn’t be zipped up, but now I’m floating around in it. I have soooooo many pieces of clothing I now have to go through. Consignment stores around me suck. Online reselling is a full time job. In my area there are a lot of resellers so fuck them I’m not gonna donate clothes for free so they can get them for penny’s then resell them so I’m stuck (or stubborn.) I now have to try on all my clothes without my faja to see what fits my new body. It’s a champagne problem I know but still.

It’s so crazy how tiny I feel without my faja. This surgery has been life changing.

Everyday is a new day trying to get used to my new body. When I wrote the above I was having a good body day. Today I’m having a bad body day where I feel like my arms are getting flabby….im contacting a personal trainer tomorrow. Group Pilates classes isn’t enough for me. I want private Pilates classes.

I can no longer wear double compression; meaning I can no longer wear a bodysuit shaper with my faja…which is a problem because I hate wearing the faja on my bare skin. I bought 7 different “seamless” tank tops on amazon and they all suck. I really think I have a shirt torso and that’s why none of the tank tops work. First personal training session is on Friday. My last two Lympatic massages are this week. I’m considering getting them done once a week just for drainage purposes but I haven’t decided yet. I’m going to Florida next week so I want to do a cleanse, get a spray tan, pedicure and my hair done. I’ve been taking a break from all beauty treatments and focusing on my healing. I must say I LOVE not having my nails done. I hate getting them done. There’s something hot about being all put together and not having your nails done, not even polish. But Miami is a different beast and you have to look your best.

Wearing a faja is getting on my last nerve. I hate it. It doesn’t help with shaping (your surgeon has to do that) but I will say it helps curb your appetite lol you’re squeezed so tight you don’t want to eat lol that’s why you hear all these girls claiming to wear your faja for a year plus, it’s so you don’t gain too much weight.

2 months post op

What a mind fuck. 2 months post op. Tomorrow is my last day of physical therapy. I finally have my arm mobility restored! I even went back to Pilates the other day, I’m so sore but it’s a good sore. I have 3 more lymphatic drainage massages left then I’m done. TBH I don’t think they’ve really don’t anything for me post op. They’re important that first week to get the tumescent fluid out but if you are at your goal weight and barely swelled I don’t think it makes that big of difference. In the same breath I fit better into my faja than I did 2 weeks ago but I think that’s the vaser lipo working.

I have been lazy with my vitamins (what else is new?) it’s just I have too many. I start Invisalign on Tuesday so I’m hoping that’ll be the kick start to my 30 days no sugar. I just need a detox from it. Had ice cream today from a local place I used to be obsessed with and it just didn’t taste the same. It’s sad but I swear I don’t have those sugar cravings anymore. They used to be so intense that I would leave the house in the middle of the night to buy something sweet. Now I have a homemade chocolate covered banana slice and I’m good.

It’s so crazy looking at old photos and seeing how my natural body could never become my post surgical body. No amount of gym could give my body an hourglass figure. People get so mad that others can just pay for a perfect body lol

I need to call a medspa and start scheduling facial treatments. I need a chemical peel and a facial. Since I’m not longer spending money on physical therapy and massages I can focus on my face. I want to get spray tans as well but I can’t stand the transfer. What is the solution? I’m so pasty, specially my legs.

I stopped wearing shape wear under my faja and I feel soooooooo much better. I swear shape wear snatches you better than a faja. I don’t see myself spending $200+ on a faja ever again. Amazon has some really good ones if I need an extra unf underneath my body con dresses (yes that’s allllll I’m wearing this summer).

Invisalign: ✅ 4/22/24 $2850. Got my x-ray done today. I get my trays in 2 weeks

Laser hair removal (legs, Brazilian, pits): still doing research on lasers but will probably make an appointment in may

Eyebrow transplant: found a place in nyc and Beverly hills (lol) will probably do this in the late fall early winter

Bbl laser: winter but I want this done by either a dermatologist or at a plastic surgery office. No medspa

4 weeks post op!!!

We made it!!!! I remember dreaming of this day 1dpo lol and now we are here. I developed axillary web syndrome better known as “cording” under my left armpit. I haven’t seen anyone in the surgery community talk about this. Essentially I can’t lift my arm over my head without a pain or tightness in my underarm area. What’s crazy is that less than 10% of patient develop this issue. It’s typically seen in post breast cancer surgeries.

But of course I had to develop it as well. My surgeon wanted to do a good job and give me thin, sexy arms haha I went to a physical therapist who has been giving me “scraping” as a treatment. I either lay down or sit on a chair laying on a wedge pillow and the pt uses a metal gua sha (best way to describe it) to break down the scar tissue. The first time I had it done I felt great relief. The second time was pure agony lol this third time was fine but I felt like the pt wasn’t really hitting the affected area and for $40 a 15 min session, it’s a lot of money. I say my doctor today who said that this is common with arm lipo patients but that it takes months, yes, months for it to go away. I knew recovery was going to take a while but I didn’t expect this. My surgeon didn’t disclose to me that this could even occur so I’m pissed. On Friday I’ll be seeing a physical therapist that specializes in post breast cancer patients so I’m hoping to expedite this healing process.

All and all surgery is not for the weak. It’s mentally draining. Everyday is different. One day you look and see snatched, the next you see all the issues. It’s weird. It’s like you are getting reacquainted with the only body you’ve known your whole life. Especially for me who has suffered from body dysmorphia my whole life.

I ordered 3 stage 2 fajas from a Colombian faja company called Tributo. All of them have sleeves, with shorts, light compression on the hips and butt, and zipper flap. One of them has extra fupa compression. All without rods. I apparently wear these until I’m 3-4 months post op. We will see. They should arrive in less than 2 weeks.