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CoolSculpting® Blog
Learn More About the Procedure from the Specialists at Germain Dermatology
As the top CoolSculpting® provider in the state, Germain Dermatology is committed to keeping patients informed about the latest trends related to the procedure. Explore our blog to learn more.
4 Post-CoolSculpting® Fashion Tips: What to Wear After
CoolSculpting® can freeze away fat from almost anywhere on the body—generally provided that there’s enough excess bulk to grab onto. While the results take anywhere from weeks to months to be seen, you can lose up to 20 to 25 percent of the volume in a specific area. Finally minimizing that stubborn fat on your thighs, or belly, or double chin can be a major confidence boost. Naturally, you’ll be ready to show off your slimmer, more shapely form as soon as you can. Check out these fun outfit ideas for Germain Dermatology patients who have had this fat freezing treatment at their Charleston practice—or anyone else who can’t wait to go shopping after CoolSculpting®.
Wear Clothes That Flatter
You generally don’t lose much overall body weight with CoolSculpting® and clothing sizes won’t usually go down, but this method of body contouring is great for making fat disappear from isolated problem areas. The end result may be more balanced proportions and a more toned, youthful appearance.
Your overall body type may look slightly different once your results are visible. After CoolSculpting®, you can toss out baggy clothes and opt for tighter options, such as belted dresses that accentuate your smaller waist, slim-fitting shirts for a flatter abdomen, or skinny jeans to highlight your thigh gap.
Try More Revealing Shirts
Instead of constantly hiding your arms in long sleeves, you can now flaunt them in sleeveless tops, thin straps, or tight sleeves after having CoolSculpting® to reduce back fat or upper arm fat.
Be Adventurous with Colors
As we all know, black makes you look slimmer. Many people who feel self conscious about their body wear darker, neutral, or more drab tones. Now that you’ve slimmed down that one trouble zone, try lighter shades like white, pastels, or patterns to bring attention to your frame.
Have Your Old Clothes Altered
There’s no reason to get rid of all your old favorites. You can have particular pieces professionally altered to fit your new frame. It’s the best of both worlds!
Discuss all the details of your fat-freezing treatment with the team at CoolSculpting® Charleston. Our experienced providers are available to answer any questions you may have and help you look amazing just in time for warmer weather. Call us at 1-844-SC-CHILL or write to us today.
Cryolipolysis and COVID-19
While COVID-19 has changed the way the country works—sheltering millions of Americans in their homes and disrupting daily life on virtually every level—it has not changed how cryolipolysis works. Charleston’s Germain Dermatology wants to remind anyone who has come in recently for a CoolSculpting® session that their body is not taking a break from breaking down unwanted fat cells during this down time.
That means even if you were hoping to come in for another session in the coming days, but are now practicing social distancing and postponing every outing except for the most critical, you’re still getting the benefits of your last treatment—even if that treatment was months ago.
The cold of a CoolSculpting® session is merely the first step in nonsurgical body contouring. It starts the process, but then your body takes over and works for weeks and months to clear away fat cells damaged by the treatment’s low temperatures. This is a natural reaction, and it happens no matter what else you are doing: reading, bingeing a show, jogging a minimum distance of 6 feet away from someone else, working remotely, planting a garden … whatever!
Visible changes can take one to three months to appear, with the most ideal results appearing at around six months. Best of all? Those results are due to fat cells leaving the body, not shrinking. Scheduling a follow-up visit a little later than you would have hoped is not going to “undo” the slimming effects of your most recent visit. In fact, since the effects are cumulative, you now have time to enjoy your initial fat reduction and look forward to your next appointment when life gets back to more of a normal routine.
It’s understandable to have concerns during this time. That’s why our team is available to answer any questions you may have about your prior treatments, previously scheduled upcoming appointments, and what to do next. Call us at 1-844-SC-CHILL or send us a message online to get answers.
Work Toward Your New Year’s Fitness Resolutions with CoolSculpting®
Each year, losing weight and “getting healthy” are among the most common New Year’s resolutions made by men and women in the United States. However, it can be difficult to break lifelong bad habits, and by the time February rolls around, most of us have forgotten our fitness goals. The excuses are endless: We tell ourselves we’re too busy, or we’ll start tomorrow, or we deserve a “cheat day” … that turns into a “cheat week” or “cheat month.” While CoolSculpting® is not a weight loss tool or substitute for healthy living, the treatment can put you on the right track for visible results, helping you to shift your mindset and find the motivation you need to reach your body goals. Nonsurgical fat reduction from Charleston’s Germain Dermatology can be exactly the incentive you need to finally kickstart the long-term weight loss and healthy eating plan you’ve been putting off.
Psychological factors play a major role when it comes to weight loss. It’s simple, really: Looking your best makes you feel better. Seeing physical results can also let your body know that your efforts are “paying off,” further motivating you to keep up with lifestyle changes.
Choosing CoolSculpting® to minimize love handles, a bulging belly, a double chin, or some other diet-resistant, flabby area can make you feel good about yourself, happier, and confident about attaining your exercise, diet, or other goals.
It also helps that the early, cooler months of the year are the perfect time to get a body-slimming procedure done before bikini season finally arrives. Experts recommend combining CoolSculpting® with standard workouts to maximize the effects of both.
Be aware, however, that this treatment won’t stop you from gaining more weight in the future if you go back to a sedentary lifestyle and poor diet. Regardless, people who are satisfied with the way they look after CoolSculpting® can be inspired to continue working on their body to better maintain their results. After putting time and money into the procedure, it’s natural to want to protect your investment.
Turn your fitness goals into action today with help from Germain Dermatology in Charleston. Have questions about CoolSculpting®? To initiate a consultation request, call 1-844-SC-CHILL, or send a message online.
CoolSculpting® to Reduce Belly Fat
We all have parts of our body we may not be totally happy with, be it some extra flab on the backs of our arms, obvious love handles, an annoying double chin, or perhaps a protruding belly. Of course, you can learn to love these flaws and accept them—but if you’re just within reach of achieving an overall slimmer figure, why let any resistant rolls or bulges hold you back? For patients in the Charleston area considering fat reduction, board-certified dermatologist Dr. Marguerite Germain and her team advise scheduling a consultation to determine whether CoolSculpting® is right for your needs.
When CoolSculpting® is applied to a specific area, some of the fat cells under the skin are frozen and ultimately broken down, leaving behind leaner contours. This can be thought of as a nonsurgical alternative to traditional liposuction surgery—though it may not provide as dramatic results as a surgical procedure would. CoolSculpting® isn’t a substitute for weight-loss surgery for obese patients, but can target smaller areas of subcutaneous belly fat. The applicator that is used on the stomach is designed to be especially effective on that specific region. To help the body process and flush out the dead fat cells, your provider will gently massage the abdominal area at the end of the session.
If you’ve recently noticed that you’re carrying extra weight around the middle, or perhaps you’ve always had a slight beer gut, there could be many reasons for the bulge. It’s a no-brainer that having a less-than-stellar diet and an inactive lifestyle are contributors to the problem of excess fat. Aging, stress, inadequate sleep, smoking, and excessive alcohol consumption might also play a role.
Some people may be genetically predisposed to having an apple-shaped body because of the way their body fat is distributed. Gender also comes into play, as men are prone to having more of a paunch, while women usually store fat on the lower body around the hips, thighs, and butt. Hormonal changes as women approach middle age can also cause a wider waist.
While CoolSculpting® can’t repair stretched-out skin and muscles, it can be beneficial for women who hope to restore their stomach to a look of pre-pregnancy contours.
Germain Dermatology in Charleston offers a wide range of cosmetic procedures, including CoolSculpting®. Talk to someone about fat reduction today by visiting the practice, phoning 1-844-SC-CHILL, or submitting a contact form.
Post-Holiday CoolSculpting®
The colder winter months are the time when many people prefer to have cosmetic treatments, because “stay-home days”—perfect for anyone looking to have a little post-session down time—are built in to the weather. Coincidentally, it’s also the part of the year when we celebrate by indulging in elaborate feasts, alcohol, and sugary snacks. Now is the chance to cut yourself some slack, veg on the couch, and finally relax after a long, busy year. Sadly, all of this sometimes culminates in a dreaded holiday weight gain and “box-set skin”—not to mention the residual stress from searching for presents for everyone on your list.
Anyone looking to lose some of this excess winter fat can contact Germain Dermatology in Charleston, known for CoolSculpting® (and helping patients to de-stress).
Want to look great for the New Year? Get going on your resolutions with the popular non-invasive fat-reduction method. This is the ideal choice for anyone who has committed to making some changes in 2020, since a visible sign of progress—such as a smaller waistline—can provide motivation to keep moving toward other, less-tangible lifestyle achievements. Some patients find that the little “push” they get from CoolSculpting® serves as a catalyst to overhaul their diet, their activity levels, and even their long-term goals. The ultimate result is not just a slimmer-looking body, but healthier living and a more confident outlook.
CoolSculpting® is a scientifically backed treatment that relies on cooling technology to get rid of fat cells. As the weeks and months pass after a session, the treated area gradually takes on a leaner appearance. The process triggers the body to metabolize fat cells from areas where you don’t want them, like the thighs, stomach, under the chin, back, bra areas, under the butt, upper arms, or on the waist or flanks. A single treatment session is a fast, convenient method of sending fat packing from trouble zones, though multiple sessions are often recommended in order to reduce volume down to desired amounts.
Starting these treatments in the winter also has another advantage: By the time warm weather returns, you’ll be ready to show off your new contours in more summer-appropriate outfits.
Have questions or concerns about the CoolSculpting® procedure? Germain Dermatology is here to help you get started. Talk to the Charleston-area team today by calling 1-844-SC-CHILL or filling out a contact form.
Combine CoolSculpting® with Exercise for Enhanced Body Sculpting
When it comes to those resistant rolls of fat you can’t seem to get rid of (like love handles, a beer gut, or a double chin), there’s a highly effective cosmetic treatment at your disposal: cryolipolysis. The Charleston-based Germain Dermatology team recommends that patients who want to not only enjoy the “fat-blasting” results of the treatment known as CoolSculpting®, but also to prolong them, should be prepared to hit the gym.
During a CoolSculpting® session, pesky fat cells in select areas are cooled to a temperature that crystallizes and kills them, while the skin, fat, and structures around them remain unaffected. On average, up to 20 percent of fat volume in the area is reduced over the months after a treatment.
Unfortunately, this result doesn’t mean patients can eat whatever and whenever they want. While regular exercise isn’t a strict requirement for CoolSculpting® patients, it is the best way to preserve a desired slim look.
If you do gain additional pounds after CoolSculpting®, the fat can be distributed to other areas of the body, and the cells that are left over in the treatment site are likely to expand as well—which is the last thing you want. CoolSculpting® can give you an boost to take your body to the next level in terms of sleek contours, but staying healthy and active is the only way to maintain that newly lean figure in the long-term. Additionally, if you want to undergo additional CoolSculpting® sessions in the future, you’ll need to maintain a stable weight.
Unlike major surgical procedures like liposuction or body lifts, there are no incisions, needles, or stitches involved in cryolipolysis. That means you won’t have to prepare for weeks of downtime, and there’s no need to hold off on exercising or physical exertion for months while you recuperate. Patients who have just received CoolSculpting® can go right back to their normal activities practically right away. Many are inspired and encouraged by the significant fat reduction results from CoolSculpting® and take even better care of themselves after their treatment.
Curious about what CoolSculpting® can do for you? The Germain Dermatology team is happy to answer any questions or concerns you may have. Contact the Charleston-based practice by calling 1-844-SC-CHILL or request a personal consultation online.
A Closer Look at Post-Pregnancy CoolSculpting®
It’s only natural that in the aftermath of carrying a small, growing human for nine months, a woman’s body will experience dramatic changes. Your bone structure is altered, your center of gravity shifts, your weight changes, and even your hair and skin are affected.
When it comes to body contours, there is a way for women to restore their pre-baby appearance without surgery, if that’s what they’re after. The Germain Dermatology team helps patients reduce isolated fat bulges for a leaner look with CoolSculpting® treatments. The Charleston-based practice explains that CoolSculpting®, also referred to as cryolipolysis, can boost confidence without the need for major surgery or injections.
Many women develop a “belly bump” or “postpartum pooch” as fat accumulates around the lower stomach area. The abdominal muscles, or sit up muscles, often become separated and weakened as a result of pregnancy. After expanding to accommodate the growing baby, skin may become lax and saggy, while connective tissues stretch. It’s normal to gain around 25 to 35 pounds, and this weight often goes to the lower body, around the thighs, hips, and butt. As your body continues to adjust after childbirth and breastfeeding, it can sometimes be a struggle to shed baby weight and maintain a positive body image.
Wherever your “problem areas” are—from the upper arms, to the flanks, belly, or butt—chances are good that non-invasive fat reduction can significantly reduce the volume there. The CoolSculpting® device sits directly against grabbable pockets of fat and cools the fat cells down to a temperature that crystallizes and kills them, while leaving the surrounding tissues and skin unharmed.
The fat cells are then processed out of the body, as opposed to lifestyle-based fat-reduction methods that simply shrink cells by reducing some of their fat content. And even better, you’ll be back on your feet almost right away with little to no discomfort, which makes CoolSculpting® ideal for busy moms. The results continue to gradually improve over the course of 12 to 14 weeks, by which time the full extent of the changes will be noticeable. This technique is best on moms who are already slimmer, with a BMI of less than 25 percent and who simply want to reduce a small amount of pinchable fat.
Interested in learning more about post-pregnancy CoolSculpting®? Germain Dermatology in Charleston, SC, can help you find the personalized solution you need. Fill out a contact form or call 1-844-SC-CHILL for more details.
Who Are the Best Candidates for CoolSculpting®?
CoolSculpting® is a unique body contouring method that can help restore confidence in your appearance and contribute towards a slimmer waist, flatter stomach, sculpted legs, or other body goals you’ve set for yourself. But how do you know if the procedure is right for you? A full consultation with a qualified provider can help you make the final decision. Germain Dermatology is home to our certified, highly experienced CoolSculpting® specialists. When it comes to CoolSculpting® in Charleston, SC, we uphold to ensure each patient receives the best possible care.
That means every patient works directly with our CoolSculpting® specialists to develop a customized treatment plan and discuss realistic expectations.
If you are clinically overweight or more than 30 pounds from your goal weight, CoolSculpting may not be the best choice for you. It is intended to reduce small pockets, resistant pockets of fat, rather than large volumes. Unlike gastric bypass surgery, it’s not a weight loss solution. It’s also not an alternative to healthy eating and exercise.
The treatment works best for people who are in good overall shape, with just a few small bulges of pinchable fat, perhaps due to aging, pregnancy, or weight fluctuations. CoolSculpting® is good for addressing bra fat, belly fat, love handles, double chin, thigh fat, arms, and knees.
Skin quality should also be considered. If you’re hoping to improve the appearance of moderate to severely lax or excess skin, CoolSculpting® may not be the most beneficial treatment.
The CoolSculpting® applicator allows fat cells to be cooled in a precise, controlled manner, while leaving surrounding skin, tissue, and muscle unscathed. This frozen fat is flushed out for good through the lymphatic system in the following months. Adding to that, there are a number of other perks to CoolSculpting®. There is little to no downtime involved, the treatment is virtually painless, and there are fewer risks associated with CoolSculpting® when compared to traditional fat reduction surgeries like liposuction.
Germain Dermatology has administered more than 5,000 CoolSculpting® treatments to date, earning the title of No. 1 practice in South Carolina from manufacturer Zeltiq. To find out more about CoolSculpting® in the Charleston area, call 1-844-SC-CHILL to reach us directly or request a consultation online.
Summertime CoolSculpting®
Summer is still in full swing, which (hopefully!) means pool parties, barbecues, exotic vacations, and long days at the beach. In this time of fun and excitement, the last thing most of us want to be feeling is self-conscious about our body shape. Chances are, when most people picture the perfect bathing suit body, they don’t think of thick arms, love handles, and pot bellies, yet most of us will admit to having at least one area of our body we wouldn’t mind slimming down.
Looking your most beach-ready is often more than simply being skinny. A symmetrical, proportional frame with fat in the “right” places is often viewed as an enviable form. Beauty magazines and fitness experts offer plenty of tips for getting that much desired, toned, slender physique with balanced proportions. But as most people who have tried to get into shape can attest, cutting down on sugary snacks and hitting the gym won’t necessarily take fat away from tricky areas, like a double chin or muffin top.
If working out and dieting aren’t zapping that one persistent deposit of fat, CoolSculpting® can help. The secret to this treatment’s success lies in its method of directly destroying fat cells, which are the root of the surplus volume issue. Weight loss practices shrink fat cells by burning calories, but these fat cells continue to store lipids and can expand again if weight is gained back. With CoolSculpting®, the device physically causes the cells themselves to break down, leaving nothing behind to potentially expand in the future. Cells crystallized via CoolSculpting® are then eliminated from the body through natural metabolic processes.
For women looking to show off skin invisible under more layers during colder months, CoolSculpting® can address stubborn bra fat, saddlebags around the inner and outer thighs, “banana fold” beneath the buttocks, love handles, and belly fat. Men, whose problem areas tend to be located around the stomach where fat is stored most abundantly, can slim down their torso for a more chiselled physique.
Remember, since the fat-destruction process is gradual, results take time. That means there’s no time like the present to get started.
Germain Dermatology is here to assist women and men in Charleston with any CoolSculpting-related questions. If you’re interested in booking an appointment, send a message or call 1-844-SC-CHILL for more details.