Bras lift and support the breasts, creating a smooth and attractive silhouette under clothing. While bras can do great things to the front of your body, there’s one problem that they can cause in the back or near the underarms. If you’re like most women, it’s probably happened to you. Skin and fat can push out from underneath the band or straps of your bra, creating an uneven surface and an effect called the “bra bulge.”
Bra bulge can be unsightly and can make you feel self-conscious about your appearance. Fortunately, there are ways to cope with it or even eliminate it.
What Causes Bra Bulge?
A few things can cause or contribute to bra bulge. Some of these factors are easy enough to fix, others might require more time and effort to correct.
You’re probably well aware of the importance of wearing a bra that fits. Poorly fitting bras don’t give you the support you need and can cause extreme discomfort. A bra that’s too tight can also cause bra bulge. A too-tight band will push skin and fat outward, creating lumps and bumps under your top.
There are cases when even a well-fitted bra can lead to bulging skin and fat. If you have fatty deposits near the breasts or on the upper back, they are likely to push out when you wrap a bra around them. The same is true if you have loose or sagging skin in the upper body.
Can Diet and Exercise Help?
You’re probably well aware of the fact that you can’t “spot tone” or target your fat-burning efforts in one specific area of your body. But that doesn’t mean that diet and exercise can’t help improve bra bulge in some cases. If you have unwanted excess fat, weight loss may help reduce the amount of fat on your upper back.
Exercises
Exercises that focus on toning the muscles of the back, such as the latissimus dorsi, can also help to reduce bulges and lumps under the bra band. Key exercises include:
- Bent Over Dumbbell Rows: This exercise targets the back muscles and can reduce the sagging skin.
- Push-Ups with a Twist: Strengthens the core, upper arms, and back.
- Standing T-Raises: Excellent for shoulder stabilization and toning the upper back.
- Lateral Plank Walks: Boosts core strength and targets muscles near the bra line.
- Reverse Flys: Focuses on the shoulder blades, toning muscles contributing to the bra bulge.
- One-arm Lat Row and Lat Pulldown & Reverse Fly with Band: These exercises work on the major muscles of the back and shoulders.
- Pullups: One of the most challenging exercises that works the entire back.
- Cardiovascular Workouts: Engage in activities like swimming, jogging, or cycling. These exercises help in overall fat reduction, which can indirectly affect the bra bulge area.
The more toned your back is, the less fat you’ll have there and the less likely the skin and fat are to push out from under your bra.
Dietary Adjustments
- Balanced Diet: Emphasize a diet rich in lean proteins, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Reducing the intake of processed foods and sugars can help in overall weight management.
- Hydration: Increase water intake to help flush out toxins and improve skin elasticity, which can reduce the appearance of bulges.
What Procedures Can Reduce Bra Bulge?
If exercise and diet don’t seem to help reduce bulges, certain surgical procedures or minimally invasive treatments can help.
CoolSculpting
Coolsculpting can be an option if you want to minimize the fat on your back and are looking for a non-surgical option. The treatment works by freezing the fat, a process that destroys the cells. Your body then flushes the dead cells out over a period of about 16 weeks. Coolsculpting takes less than an hour to perform and doesn’t require any downtime.
Liposuction
Depending on the amount of fat you have on your back, liposuction might be a more appropriate option. Like Coolsculpting, liposuction removes unwanted, excess fat from the body. It is a surgical procedure, so it does require some recovery and downtime afterward. Usually, liposuction can eliminate more fat from an area at once than non-surgical fat removal options.
Back Lift
If extra fat and skin are responsible for bra bulge, a surgery known as a back lift might be the best option for you. During a back lift, a surgeon performs liposuction to remove excess fat from the area. He will also cut away loose or excess skin. The result is a more defined and smooth back contour.
A back lift can be performed on either the upper area of the back, near the bra line, or on the lower back. It can be combined with other body lift procedures, such as a lower body lift, if necessary.
Recovery after a back lift usually takes about a week or two. Once you’ve gone back to work and other light activities, you’ll still want to avoid strenuous activities for another month or so.
Address Bra Bulge with Expert Care
Dr. Paul Vitenas, a board-certified plastic surgeon in Houston, Texas, offers over 30 years of expertise in advanced body sculpting. Renowned for his artistic vision and surgical precision, Dr. Vitenas specializes in effective body contouring techniques, ensuring personalized and natural-looking results. Operating in his accredited Houston Surgery Center, he is known for exceptional patient care throughout the treatment process. If you’re seeking a solution for bra bulge, contact Dr. Vitenas at 281-484-0088 for a consultation towards a smoother silhouette.