Curves, love handles, and Brazilian Butts
I have been doing a lot of brazilian butt lifts. It continues to amaze me how good this procedure is. It is perfectly suited to how the body handles fat, and the different components of the procedure enhance each other. Although the procedure is called Brazilian Butt Lift, what makes it great is the way the love handles are reshaped and create a nice curve between the butt and the waist.
The most important thing in this procedure is not to get the “biggest butt”, but to create the best looking waist-hips-butt area. When patients bring in pictures of what they want to look like, invariably the models shown have small waists and a curvy transition between the lower back and butt. The butt doesn’t have to be that large as long as that transition area has a nice looking curve. As a matter of fact, I have several patients from years past who look like they had a butt augmentation when all they had was liposuction to the flanks. The increased contrast between the lower back and the buttock itself, as well as the curvy transition between them, enhance the appearance of the buttock.
If you then augment the buttock with fat taken from the love handles area, the results can be spectacular.
Ricardo L Rodriguez, MD

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61 Comments
February 19, 2010 at 2:25 pm
Judy:
To properly answer this question, I would need to see pictures and get more details, such as your weight, how long have you been at your present weight, etc.
As a general rule, liposuction surgery is body contouring surgery, not weight reduction surgery. Your body will change shape, but your weight will vary little, if any.
If you are interested in a consultation, contact Kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net
February 11, 2010 at 5:51 pm
Hi Dr.Rodriguez, I am 20 years old and over weight i want the surgery as a way to improve my health but i feel it will not work since i am over weight. Advice plz ?
Thank You, Judy
February 5, 2010 at 2:53 pm
Aurora:
Wait 4 months after the C-Section until you are fully recovered. By that time the abdominal muscles are fully healed and any fat redistribution after the baby is born is well on its way.
We’d love to hear from you!
Call kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net
February 1, 2010 at 12:30 pm
hi i just want to know if i can get a brazilian butt lift i just got a c-section.what is the recommended time to wait.
January 17, 2010 at 5:17 pm
Chantell:
As a rule, I tell my patients they should come to surgery at a weight they fell comfortable in. The reason is that the result is the most predictable when the patient does not have any weight changes after surgery.
You are correct, the fat from the belly is placed in the buttocks.
As for the healing process, it takes 3 weeks for the fat to become fully integrated, so I don’t want patients to sit for three weeks after surgery.
Some people think this is too long and other people may tell you you can go back to work before that, but consider this: In 5 years I have yet to bring somebody back because the fat grafts did not take.
We’re delighted to hear from you Kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net will be happy to help you.
January 12, 2010 at 4:56 am
Hi Dr. Rodriguez, I am a 19 year old who is very interested in getting the Brazilian butt lift. I am fairly petite but I do have quite a bit of fat on my stomach I would love to get rid of. So I was wondering, should I try and lose some of the fat in my belly before I get the surgery or would this procedure actually benefit from the belly fat? Seeing as how the fat would go to my rear? Also I was wondering what is the healing process like? How long before I can actually go back to work and continue with my regular day-to-day?
January 11, 2010 at 7:36 am
Hi Cynthia, thanks for the interest.
Generally, I like to do surgery when people are at their stable weight, that is a weight they know they can keep. The trouble when people say “I’ll lose another 20-30 pounds” is that they may or may not lose the weight. If they do, great, but if they don’t, they can get very discouraged and then not do the surgery either. They miss out on an opportunity to improve their look a lot, even if it’s not “perfect”. If they have the surgery, it can serve as a stimulus to stay in control, as they are now much more invested and have positive results to keep.
Having said that, I’d have to look at your pictures to better know where we’re standing. I think you should call Kelly (or email at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net) so we can set up a virtual consultation over the phone.
I’d love to see you, let’s talk over the phone with your pictures on file and I’ll be able to suggest a plan of action, whether you have surgery or not.
Happy New Year!
January 9, 2010 at 9:50 pm
I am a 49 years old woman who is seriously contemplating getting a body-lift this summer. My lower abs has no elasticity, my thighs have fat pockets and my butt needs some shape…exercising has not given me the results I desire. In addition, I am a curvy woman who needs to lose 20 to 30 pounds. Should I lose weight before the surgery? Because I live two hours from your office, should I prepare to stay in MD for a week? How do I position my body after the body-lift procedure if I cannot sit or lie on my stomach?
December 30, 2009 at 10:08 pm
Brazilian Butt Lift is outpatient surgery, but that does not mean you go on with your life as if nothing had happened. As a matter of fact, you have to recover from the surgery and make sure you do not sit for 3 weeks. That takes a level of commitment.
At age 31 you are still young and could get a long lasting benefit, but you would have to figure out who would take care of the kids.
We have lots of out of town patients, but they stay here 7 to 10 days to make sure everything is alright.
Happy New Year!
December 30, 2009 at 1:20 pm
I am very interested in getting the Butt Augmentation. I am 31 yrs old and have 3 children. I have never been happy with my butt all my life, and now after kids I am not happy with my abdomen and butt area. I reside in Columbus, OH. I would not have a problem coming to your practice, but I dont think I would be able to stay no more than a day after surgery. What would you suggest?
December 29, 2009 at 8:13 pm
Shanice:
For pricing info, talk to Kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net.
The decision to get a butt lift or not depends on several things. Is your skin too loose? in that case, liposuction might not be such a great idea.
Sometimes if you have a lot of fat in the lower back and love handles area, doing lipo to your midsection might really enhance your butt.
As far as breast reduction, I do breast reduction with a single scar. You might want to check out our procedure gallery
Thanks for checking us out, and we’re looking forward to hearing from you!
Happy new year!
December 28, 2009 at 7:46 am
I am a 22year old woman. I just had my first baby! Oct16, I had a c-section. I want toget a butt lift but I don’t know if I need liposuction or just a butt lift. I would like to see what u think. I live in pittsburgh pa,and I have big breast. I wanted toget them down to a D or a full C. And can u tell me what type prices range I’m looking at? Thank u!
December 17, 2009 at 8:48 am
Meme:
We will get Kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net to contact you.
Thanks for checking out our site!
Happy Holidays!
December 15, 2009 at 10:07 pm
How much
November 24, 2009 at 9:54 pm
Princess C or is it just C?
Great question.
You are right, a bony prominence with very little soft tissue cover can be painful. In your particular case, you bring up the possibility of sciatic nerve compression, and that would require examination by an orthopedic surgeon or neurologist to rule out.
As for your blood pressure and blood sugar, all you need is clearance by a Medical Doctor, such as your family physician, that you are fit for surgery.
Finally, we can definitely gear the procedure to fit your need for comfort. I have injected fat in areas I would have never thought possible, such as the feet, outer hips, etc.
We do a lot of fat injections in our clinic, and we’d love3 to help you.
Contact Kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net
November 24, 2009 at 7:04 pm
So far I’ve seen a lot of emphasis placed on looks - but what if you’re someone with an extremely flat buttock area? So flat that you have pain when you sit down for periods longer than five or six minutes and when sitting you can feel your bones digging into the chair. I’m currently wondering if some pain I have is sciatic nerve pain based on my extreme lack of buttocks.
I’ve thought for years that my stomach and butt got confused about who was supposed to store the fat. If a friend had not mentioned this procedure was real, I’d have thought it frantic daydreaming imaginings that could never be fulfilled.
Is it possible to have such a procedure done with the focus on comfort of sitting vs perky looks?
And how low does one’s blood pressure and blood sugar have to be to promote good healing?
October 27, 2009 at 5:36 pm
Rob:
It is very hard to give opinions without knowing more details. For example; what are you trying to accomplish? Pictures also help.
If you are interested, contact Kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net
We’d love to hear from you!
October 27, 2009 at 2:31 pm
I workout and don’t have muck fat except for a tiny bit in my mid stomach area and my butt won’t react to my workout. I am a male 51 years. What do you suggest?
October 26, 2009 at 3:50 pm
I want to get butt injection. But I want most of the fat to come from my side and inner tights. My kids left my body all out of shape. I need help
October 21, 2009 at 9:00 pm
After pregnancy and weight loss the skin can get stretched.
After pregnancy, the abdominal muscles can get separated (see my post on abdominal muscles).
In your particular case we would have to see pictures in order to best plan what needs to be done. It could be just lipo and fat transfer to the butt, or tummy tuck plus lipo plus fat transfer to the butt.
If you are healthy, you sound like a great candidate. We’d love to hear from you. Drop Kelly a line at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net
October 21, 2009 at 12:44 am
I am interested in getting liposuction to my saddlebags, stomach, arms and back. I would like to get the fat injected into my buttocks as well as a brazilain butt lift. I have 2 children and with the rapid weight loss, I have lost my butt and thighs and no longer like the way I fill clothes out. With all the weight loss, I still have a belly, big arms and a rolly back. What would be my best options since working out hasn’t helped much.
October 11, 2009 at 1:33 pm
We do harvest a lot of fat from other areas.
Basically, the procedure is a redistribution of fat, so we go take the fat from wherever we can find it.
Fell free to ask Kelly at kelly@cosmeticsurg.net for more info.
October 8, 2009 at 11:52 pm
I hear that the majority of the fat is taken from the abdomen and thighs. Would it also be possible for you to take out fat from the arms, back and maybe a bit from the neck/jaw area? (if there was enough fat, of course)
September 16, 2009 at 5:47 pm
Cutting the fat out would leave big scars.
Then you would have the problem of how to put it into small enough particles to fit it through a very small cannula.
Besides, the lipo is just as important a part of the process as it helps reshape the other parts of the body, to create the curves that lead nicely into the butt.
Thanks for your interest!
September 15, 2009 at 11:48 pm
can you do the brizilian butt lift without lipo , can you just cut the fat out?
September 7, 2009 at 8:49 pm
Knowing you are a teenager I was going to suggest just losing a little more weight.
Then I decided to look at the link. I have been around for a while and can tell you every 2-3 years a new latest and greatest cellulite treatment comes around. They never last because they don’t work.
If you look at those two girls pictures carefully, you will see they both are 1- Young, and 2- Lost weight.
Don’t waste your money on fly by night creams.
September 2, 2009 at 9:16 pm
I’m a teenager and not over wieght but I can’t seem to get rid of the cellulite on the back of my legs?
Are there any specific workouts that target that area. I need to know how to get rid of cellulite on thighs explained here.
thanks
August 14, 2009 at 5:12 pm
Thanks for the reminder!
There area few issues here.
The first is “pressure”-
On the one hand, you want to have enough pressure to prevent swelling. Swelling happens as the healing process makes blood vessels leaky to allow healing cells and proteins to get to the surgical field. If you have too much fluid buildup it impairs transport of healing contents and can even increase risk of infection. The pressure needed to drive that excess fluid back into the veins and lymphatic channels is relatively low, and compression garments are designed to deliver this kind of pressure.
That is why butt out garments are NOT good. They allow for fluid buildup in the surgical area. See this post about swelling.
On the other hand, too much pressure occludes the arteries that deliver nutrients to the tissues. These pressures are about 10-12 times greater than the pressures delivered by a compression garment. They are generated by sitting or laying on your butt. During the early period of establishment of blood supply to the grafted fat cells this can be fatal to the cells. That is why sitting is not recommended for 3 weeks after surgery.
The second issue is “shear stress”-
Shear stress occurs when one plane of tissue moves against another. Imagine two strands of tissue held together by very thin threads. If you move the fabric layers against each other, the threads will break and the tissues will separate. If, on the other hand, they are held by velcro, the two strands of tissue will hold very well.
In the buttocks tissue the same situation exists between the layers of fatty tissue, muscle and skin. A lot of motion or sliding of layers relative to each other can disrupt the “thin threads” (blood vessels) aNd again impair circulation. For these reasons a lot of stretching or motion is not ideal either.
August 12, 2009 at 4:16 pm
Dr Rodriquez never ansered the question about kneeling, streching after the brazilian butt lift, and whether or not the butt out compression garments are ok after the fat injection procedure. Thanks
July 22, 2009 at 9:51 pm
At some point, if you lose enough body fat, you will lose whatever gains you had. The trick is to plan to take fat cells from areas where you find it hardest to lose weight and place those hard to lose cells in the butt. Even if you lose weight in those cells, they are still alive, so if you gain weight again you will see the first effects in the butt. When a Brazilian Butt Lift is planned correctly, the butt is the last place you will lose fat from, and the first place to gain it.
July 22, 2009 at 5:42 pm
Dr. Rodriguez:
I’m interested in the Brazilin butt lift, but question to you is if I were to do this procedure and later down the line i had lose some weight will I lose my new butt…
June 22, 2009 at 12:09 pm
Dear Mona:
Thank you for writing, and you are blessed for living in such an exciting place.
I will try to answer your questions in an orderly way by referring to the same numbering of your questions.
Brazilian butt lift:
1 The “bloating” you are referring to is the process of fat redistribution. As the fat cells are taken from one area (thighs), the body will store excess fat in other areas. Sometimes it is concentrated in just one place, as you alluded to, in the abdominal area. Other times it can be in the buttocks or anterior and posterior thigh.
2 The Brazilian Butt lift does make the butt larger, that is because you inject fat into it. If that is your concern, you might consider the “B’more Butt Lift” which relies more on sculpting the areas surrounding the buttocks and allowing the process of fat redistribution to work on your favor and create a perkier bottom.
3 Yes, you will be able to get pregnant.
Breast lift
1 There is absolutely NO evidence that breast procedures increase risk of cancer. As a matter of fact in the early routine screening before we do surgery, we have uncovered in a few cases very early stages of cancer that have been treated successfully. These women would probably not have discovered their cancer until it was too late.
2 A breast lift can be planned in such a way that it does not affect breast feeding. Of course, we would have to examine each case individually but if we are not reducing tissue, the gland and part of the areola can be kept intact for breast feeding.
I hope this helps you make your decision.
June 22, 2009 at 5:23 am
Dear Dr. Ricardo,
My name is Mona I am 26 years old married and have a son 3 years old and I am from Dubai, United Arab Emirates and I heard about you from a freind of mine also from a plastic surgery program they once broadcasted on E about plastic surgery.
I have been wanting to do the Brazilian butt lift for soo long and a breast lift without implants. I have a couple of questions that I would like to ask in regards to the 2 procedures
Brazilian butt lift:
1) when you do the lipsuction procedure to remove the fat (which I am dreaming off) from my inner thigh and outer in longterm would that create bloating of the fat in the abdominal area?
2) Does the brazilian butt lift make the butt look larger (cause I dont want that, I just want it to look lifted and perky.
3) will I be able to get pregnant again?
Breast lift :
1) Plastic surgery here in the UAE is the worst ever and the Dr’s here are not really that qualified because there is no strong healthcare law here. so my freind did a freind lift and smaller at the same time, but when I saw her breast they were totally out of propotion and that really scared me. Also please forgive my ignorance but is it true that any breast procedure could risk high chances of breast cancer?
2) Last but not least if I do the breast lift will that affect me breast feeding?
Thank you sooo much Dr for your time and efforts to answer my questions,
Waiting to hear from you soon
Kind Regards
Mona
June 18, 2009 at 1:51 pm
I am interested in the brazilian butt lift can you please email me more information such as do u have to stay over night in the hospital fo this procedure.
Thank you
June 17, 2009 at 3:18 pm
I wanna know how much does the procedure cost? How long has the dorctor been doing the injections? How long does it usually take to heal? How many time do you have to go throught the procedure? Is there a payment plan?
May 13, 2009 at 11:14 am
“Could you harvest from my arms, abdomen, flanks, and I have a tiny amount in the saddlebag area.”
The short answer is yes, the long one is that I would have to see pictures, etc and talk to you to get a more specific idea of what is possible. The best way to do that is with a virtual consultation.
May 11, 2009 at 4:54 pm
Without looking at a patient, or pictures of the patient, it is impossible to guess whether they will have enough fat for a Brazilian Butt Lift. Another issue is what the patient expects. In other words, the amount of augmentation depends on what the patient has. If the patient is slender, but wants only a proportional enhancement, then it is possible to fulfill her expectations. If the patient is slender but is expecting Kim Kardashian look, she will probably be disappointed.
May 10, 2009 at 1:26 pm
I am 5′7″ and weigh 136, I am 42 yrs old. No children. I just had a consultation and he said I didn’t have enough fat. He may have been concerned about the ability of my skin to contract back due to my age. Could you harvest from my arms, abdomen, flanks, and I have a tiny amount in the saddlebag area. I could also gain about 4 lbs. I have seen some before and after pictures and the women looked as slender as me in their before photos.
May 3, 2009 at 9:54 pm
What is the cost for a brazillian butt. And do you have to take time off of work. I drive about 2 hrs a day 1 in the morning and 1 going home will that affect the surgery. Also where is your office located.
May 3, 2009 at 3:48 am
Thank you very much for your answer.
May 2, 2009 at 1:58 pm
I have not heard any of my patients complain about cellulite after Brazilian Butt Lift.
Remember, we harvest cells from the areas you find it hardest to lose weight from and then those cells are put on your buttocks. You will tend to lose weight from other areas before you lose it from the transplanted cells in your buttocks.
We find most patients look even better after a year.
May 1, 2009 at 11:19 pm
Hello,
I want to know if with the brazilian butt I can get cellulite, and if I excercise if it can fade away.
April 26, 2009 at 1:29 pm
I have always been very insecure about my butt. I was teased growing up about having a flat butt. I am 30yrs old, and I interesting in learning more about butt injections. I do not feel comfortable going out in public when everyone around has a nice butt, and I don’t. I feel ashamed and less like a woman when I don’t have the curves.
April 24, 2009 at 10:03 pm
I honestly don’t know who has experience in your area. My only advice is to use google, make phone calls and ask questions.
Many people are advertising the procedure. Make sure the surgeon uses a syringe technique of extraction, which minimizes trauma to the cells. The surgeon should also centrifuge the cells, and do a microinjection technique.
April 20, 2009 at 1:20 am
I am VERY interested in the brazilian buttock surgery. This is an area that ive always struggled with and was even teased about growing up. I have done exercises but it seems like nothing has helped. The only problem is that I live in Washington state and have no desire in traveling for the procedure. Are there any doctors in this area that has the same knowledge and experience with this surgery? Another question is if i where to get breast implants, which procedure would be the best to do first?
March 30, 2009 at 9:21 am
As long as your Blood Pressure is monitored by your physician and well controlled there should be no problem with surgery.
March 30, 2009 at 5:22 am
i am very interested in the butt lift i am in my mid thirties i have three children since giving birth to my second child i have been diagnoised with having very high blood pressure will this pose as a threat to me having such a procedure done.
March 29, 2009 at 2:52 pm
You need to get on a medically supervised weight loss program before you contemplate surgery. After your weight is stable for a few months then we can have a concrete idea as to wether you need a lift or lipo or whatever.
If you are going to do something now I would recommend the breast reduction, as it would make you feel better and decrease neck pain and back pain. It will also help you do excercise better.
March 26, 2009 at 8:19 am
Well doc, I’m 30 years old and I’m overweight I weight 232lbs. I have huge breast they are 46DD, my stomach looks like I’m about 7-8 months pregnant. I have lost weight before and starting to lost weight now. My first question: Is it best to lose weight before I get the butt lift and Can you take the fat from my breast and stomach to do the butt lift. The second question:If I would to lose the weight with the butt lift will my butt go to when I reach my goal weight.
March 16, 2009 at 9:16 am
The scars are very minimal. We’re talking up to 1/4 inch at the most, and in well hidden places, like the belly button, mons pubis, and buttocks creases.
BTW, if you think our site is helpful, spread the word!
March 15, 2009 at 10:42 pm
I’ve always wondered that if I were to get the Brazilian Butt Lift done, and by getting the liposuction, does it leave any type of scarring on the abdomen from where you take the fat? Also, injecting it into the buttocks does that leave any scarring? If there is any scarring at all, how bad is it? Thanks for your help!! This site is VERY helpful!
February 1, 2009 at 11:30 am
Andrene,
These are all excellent questions and I will devote an entire post to the answers. Thank you for your contribution.
January 31, 2009 at 8:38 pm
My questions have to do with the two to three week recovery period after the Brazilian Butt Lift. If you cannot sit directly on your butt, will bending over, squatting and stretching your butt damage the fat injections? Or if you kneel down and then lightly rest your butt on your heels (with the majority of your weight on your knees) will that also cause indentations in the new fat? Won’t the compression garments flatten out the “new” and improved butt? Or should you wear one of those garments that have the butt cut out and missing? thanks so much.
January 31, 2009 at 11:26 am
hello Sherice,
The brazilian butt lift uses the fat removed in liposuction to plump out your buttocks. Therefore, liposuction is required for the procedure. Using your own fat is the most natural way to enhance your buttocks and gives the best results. I only use fat injections (your own) , as opposed to other types of fillers. Please read more about the brazilian butt lift procedure and how it offers the most long lasting results. You can find costs on that page or call Kelly, our Patient Coordinator.
January 31, 2009 at 1:54 am
i would like to know how much does it costs for the butt injections without liposuctions and also what kind of payment methods are available. i am 5′7 38dd with a 34 waist my backside needs some plumpin up like yesterday help.
May 9, 2007 at 7:44 pm
This site has been the most detailed. I really appreciated that.
December 12, 2006 at 5:39 pm
Susan,
Thank you for your question about how long fat injections last. That is a great question and I have written an in depth explanation in my post How long do fat injections last?
December 5, 2006 at 6:19 pm
I have been researching this procedure for over two years now, trying to find a doctor who will give me the results I desire. I have found that though many doctor’s perform this procedure, they can not gaurantee lasting results and patients have to have the procedure done more than once in order to maintain the fat in the buttocks area. In your experiences doctor, have your patients lost a significant amount of fat that was injected into the buttocks?
November 10, 2006 at 3:48 pm
I read that sometimes the fat injections don’t take/work is that true? I was wondering if this procedure will help my get more of a hour glass shape. I have the perfect box shape 36-33-40. Barely a “B”. I am 30 and somewhat like the size of my legs and arms but my mid section is trifling. I am 5′4″ and about 145. Oh, did I mention I don’t have a butt? I have not had any kids yet and I also wanted to know if this procedure or any other procedure will increase my chances of getting stretch marks.
November 2, 2006 at 10:35 pm
Hello Yonce,
In order to transfer fat to the buttocks, you must have enough fat donation. Taking fat just from the abdomen is barely enough to augment the butt. However, you would have to be evaluated to know for sure. Also, it is important to lipo the flanks because it adds contour to the buttocks. Liposuction of just two areas may not yield enough fat for fat donation to two areas (butt and thighs). However, we would be able to tell you more with photos. Please call the office to find out more.
Ricardo L Rodriguez, MD
October 25, 2006 at 5:54 pm
I read the blog about the Brazilian butt lift goal and my goal is to have a bigger butt simmilar to Jennifer Lopez. I do not want to get lipo on my legs because I actually feel I am too skinny so I don’t want to lose the fat in my thighs can the fat in my abdomen be enough to make transfer the fat injections to the glutes? Is it actually possible that I can add more inches to my glutes with this procedure and can I also add fat to my thighs? My ultimate goal is to look more curvier and voluptuous!