CoolSculpting® is the number one non-surgical body contouring treatment offered today. Many people who were considering using a surgical body contouring option like liposuction opted for this non-surgical treatment when they heard about how effective it was and that it does not have the same negative side effects that can be associated with a surgical form of body contouring.
Some people mistakenly believe that body contouring treatments are designed to be a shortcut to weight loss. They feel that if they use a body contouring treatment, they will get the body of their dreams without needing to diet, without needing exercise, and without going through the weight loss process. This is a misconception. Body contouring treatments are not designed for extreme weight loss. In order for you to get the most benefit from your CoolSculpting® treatment, it is important for you to understand the difference between weight loss and fat reduction and how it impacts the treatment you will receive.
Body Contouring Versus Weight Loss
Body contouring treatments like CoolSculpting® work because you have a set number of fat cells in your body. They are part of your overall makeup. When you put on weight, you are not getting more fat cells. What’s happening is that the fat cells you already have in your body are just getting bigger. When you lose weight, you are not losing fat cells. Instead, the fat cells that you have in your body are just getting smaller.
With a body contouring treatment, the fat cells in your body are removed or destroyed. Once fat cells are destroyed, your body does not regenerate or replace them. This doesn’t mean that the leftover fat cells in your body are unable to get larger or smaller. You can still put on weight and lose weight. However, by removing stubborn pockets of fat in areas like your midsection, body contouring treatments are able to sculpt your body. You may look thinner after the treatment, but it’s not because you have lost weight. In most cases, a person may lose a pound or two at the most after a body contouring treatment. You look skinnier because you have fewer fat cells.
Understanding how this treatment works makes it clear why body contouring treatments are not designed for individuals looking for extreme weight loss. There are only so many fat cells that can be safely destroyed and removed from your body at one time. Body contouring treatments are designed to shape an area of your body. Before having these treatments, it is usually required that you are at or close to your target weight.
As you can see, there is a lot more to body contouring than just losing weight. Also, simply having a body contouring treatment does not mean that you can’t get bigger. If you don’t have a healthy lifestyle and if you don’t stick to a diet and exercise routine, your remaining fat cells can grow.
Body contouring treatments like CoolSculpting® are designed to produce an aesthetic difference. They are not designed to change your health in the same way that diet and exercise can. That being said, body contouring treatments are able to get rid of fat from localized areas in a way that diet and exercise cannot.
In fact, this is something you’ve likely seen for yourself. You’re going to the gym, you’re eating healthy, and you’re losing weight. However, you’re not losing fat in the areas where you want to. You cannot localize or force your body to make particular fat cells smaller. In fact, as you diet and exercise, your body is rebelling against you by trying to hold onto fat in the very areas where you want the fat to go away.
Now that we have discussed the difference between weight loss and fat removal, let’s focus on the process that is at work when you have CoolSculpting® treatments.
How Does Cold Kill Fat?
Cryolipolysis is the process of using controlled cooling to remove fat from specific areas in the body. This is a non-invasive treatment. As such, it does not involve surgery or cuts. This is why people are attracted to it.
Your fat cells are designed to be more susceptible to colder temperatures than the other tissue in your body. You can kind of think about it like taking a piece of meat and putting it in the refrigerator. What happens? Any fat or grease on the meat congeals. However, the meat itself is not affected in the same way. Something similar happens in your body.
Fat cells die at temperatures that the rest of your body tissue can tolerate. This is why when a person goes through the cryolipolysis process during CoolSculpting®, their skin and underlying tissues are left unharmed. Once your cells die and release their fatty content, your body views the cellular debris and the fatty content as an invader. As a result, your lymphatic system kicks into gear. The destroyed fat cells are removed from your body along with the fat through your body’s natural waste removal process.
During the CoolSculpting® treatment, the practitioner will use a special device to suction the skin above the area of the fatty tissue that is going to be treated. The fat cells that are in the applicator are brought down to a cold temperature. At the outset, you likely are going to feel a cold sensation. But the nice thing about cold is that it numbs you. So within minutes, the treated area is going to become completely numb.
The entire process is performed in the comfort of our office. Since this is a non-surgical treatment and none of your skin or tissue is damaged, there is no need for recovery time.
You will not see results immediately. Your body needs to go through the process of destroying the fat cells and removing them before you see the results. Most people see the full results in the months that follow the treatment. The gradual nature of the results helps them to look natural.
How Did This Idea Come About?
This is not an idea that some crazy person came up with. It was actually the result of an unintentional observation that two doctors, one from Massachusetts General Hospital and the other from Harvard Medical School, accidentally stumbled across.
These two doctors were monitoring children in the hospital. Over time, they realized that certain children were developing dimples in their cheeks. On seeing this, the doctors were understandably concerned. So they monitored these children to see what it was that was leading to the formation of dimples in their cheeks. Soon, it became apparent that children who sucked on popsicles were the ones who were developing these dimples.
They realized that eating popsicles was causing the fat cells in the children’s mouths to become inflamed and then eventually die. This unintentional discovery led to the creation of cryolipolysis and eventually CoolSculpting®.
In 2009, these doctors reported their first clinical success using this treatment to help patients with excess fat on their love handles. From there, they began to seek approval from the FDA. By 2010, the FDA approved cryolipolysis as a non-invasive way to sculpt the love handles. Then CoolSculpting® machines started to be sold in clinics around the United States.
By 2011, this treatment had been approved for use on stubborn pockets of fat in more than 46 countries around the world. By 2012, more than 150,000 successful treatments were performed around the United States. In that same year, the FDA approved the use of this treatment on other parts of the body.
By 2014, the technology had advanced to the point where it could be used as a treatment on the thighs and eventually was approved for use on those dealing with submental fat. By 2017, cryolipolysis was a recognized and respected treatment that was used by millions of people around the world as a way to sculpt their body.
As you can see, far from being a fad, a scam, or a scheme, CoolSculpting® has an impressive history. It began with research by respected medical professionals, and then it went through a battery of testing by regulatory agencies around the world. And only after it was proven to be safe and effective did it gain the recognition that it currently has.
CoolSculpting® is one of the most comfortable forms of body contouring on the market today. When you talk to people who have had this treatment done, they will tell you that they are comfortable and relaxed throughout the entire process.
Cryolipolysis is a treatment that can be individualized to meet your needs. There are a number of applicators that can be used, depending on the part of your body that you want to treat. During your initial consultation with us, we are going to talk to you about your plans, your goals, as well as your budget. We will be able to use these things to tailor a treatment plan that’s right for you.
Am I a Good Candidate for This Treatment?
CoolSculpting® is a treatment for individuals who want to get rid of bulges fat from specific areas on their body. It is perfect for those who are looking for a non-surgical alternative to liposuction.
In order to be a good candidate for this treatment, you actually need to have enough fat to be treated. The best way to judge this is to try to pinch the fat in the area that you want to treat. If you can pinch at least an inch of fat, then you are likely a good candidate for this treatment.
You need to be in generally good health. During your initial consultation with us, we will review any health challenges that you have with the goal of making sure that this treatment is what will work best for you.
It’s very important that you have a realistic view of what this treatment is. If you have a realistic understanding of what the treatment can do, you will likely be happy with the treatment. We encourage you to use your consultation session with us as a time to ask questions. If there’s something that you don’t understand or something that you want to have clarified, we look forward to answering those questions for you.
Here at Rejuvenate Med Spa, we love seeing the way that CoolSculpting® has helped so many of our clients improve the way they look. Are you interested in learning more about the powerful effects of this non-surgical body contouring treatment? If so, book an appointment at our office in Oak Brook. You can also check out our Rejuvenate Med Spa Reviews page. Contact us today to schedule your consultation and get started!