Facial Injections: Info, Prices, Photos, Reviews, Q&A

Exercise 4 hours after Botox is not detrimental

The standard advice, although there is no clinical study to investigate this to-date, is not to exercise for four hours after Botox.

In addition we suggest not to bend over or lie flat for this time as well.

These recommendations are to minimize the theoretical risk of allowign the Botox to diffuse to other areas.

Once the Botox binds to the neuromuscular junctions, there is no reason that exercise would interfere with its good effect.

If however, you have any unusual reaction, severe swelling or bruising after Botox, which is extremely rare, then you should avoid exercise until after the reaction subsides and discuss this with your doctor. (Ronald Shelton, MD, Manhattan Dermatologic Surgeon)

Exercise and Botox

There is no evidence that the effects of injectable neurotoxins such as Botox and Dysport are diminished if you exercise after being treated. That being said, I ask my patients to wait at least four hours until after the injections to exercise, mostly with the goal of reducing any possibility of migration of the material.

In that four hour period I also recommend that my patients avoid napping and keep their head above their waist, for the same reason. (Channing R. Barnett, MD, Boca Raton Dermatologist)

Exercise after botox

I usually have patients avoid the gym for the day( or at least 4-6 hrs) after injection, and then they can resume all acitivities the next day. (Steven Wallach, MD, New York Plastic Surgeon)

I always tell my patient to avoid leaning forward or lying back for about 3 hours after a Botox, Dysport, or Xeomin treatment. This can disperse the Botox into unwanted areas of the forehead.

That being said, I also recommend no exercise for the remainder of the day following a Botox treatment. Exercise increases blood flow in the body and face and this can lead the Botox to not be as effective or a leave a patient unhappy with their result.

It is always important to have an experienced, certified physician performing your injection treatments for the optimal results (Stephen T. Greenberg, MD, Woodbury Plastic Surgeon)

OK to exercise after Botox

It has never been proven to alter or minimize results if you exercise after Botox. I advise patients to move the injected muscles through facial expressions. Heavy duty exercise is ok after 2-4 hours. Wearing a tight head band can add to a headache which is also a side effect of Botox and dysport. (Promila Banerjee, MD, Chicago Internist)

I recommend that my patients avoid any strenuous activity for at least several hours after treatment. This is largely to reduce the chance of bruising and swelling as Botox’s effects will not be affected. (Nelson Castillo, MD, Atlanta Plastic Surgeon)

Workouts after Botox.

I typically tell my patients to hold off on working out for at least 12-24 hours after Botox injections. I have had patients who have waited a few hours after injections before working out. without any negative affects, however I don’t recommend that practice.

My thought is that if you spent the money for the injections, heed your Doctors advice and layoff the gym for 24 hours. (Kelly DiStefano, MD, Verona Physician)

Doctor’s Orders: Skip the Gym After Botox

Exercising can decrease the results of Botox. Why?Exercise increases circulation in the body. As the blood vessels expand they can carry Botox away from where it was originally placed. This can be a double whammy: decreasing the effect of the Botox where it was injected and producing unwanted effects at other sites in the body.

The same principle applies to any other activities that increase circulation in the body like having sex or relaxing in the steam room. Best to avoid these activities for 24 hours after your injections. (Joseph A. Eviatar, MD, FACS, New York Oculoplastic Surgeon)

Can you exercise after Botox treatment or will it decrease the results?

I would wait four hours after Botox injection before doing any exercises. Just to be safe if you plan to do intense exercising wait a day or two. Exercise does not decrease the results of Botox injections. (Anteneh Roba, MD, Fairfax Physician)

Avoid excess exercise for 48 hours after botox injections

I recommend 48 hours of no excess exercise and avoiding sauna / steam room environments. The results may be effected by these factors. If you must fit in some exercise, make sure you do this before the treatment on the day! (Rupert Critchley, MD, MRCGP, London Physician)

Refrain from Exercise for one day after Botox

Botox is a great injection for facial lines and wrinkles. There are several short rules of injection after Botox. The first rule is to stay upright for four hours after injection. You want to stay upright and not bend forward since you do not want the Botox to shift or move from where it was injected and cause a droop.

For the same reason you do not want to exercise the same day after Botox. You can freely exercise before the procedure but I warn my patients not to exercise the same day after Botox injections.

I also counsel patients not to apply any pressure to the given area for 3 days. These are the simple rules to follow when having Botox injections. (Michele S. Green, MD, New York Dermatologist)

I recommend that my patients wait a minimum of 3-4 hours after Botox injections before exercising. I also recommend waiting until the next day to perform any activities that involve inverting the head or rubbing the face (yoga, getting a facial, laying face down on a massage table, etc).

Restricting activities after Botox injections serves to keep the Botox where it was injected in order to make it more effective and to keep it from spreading to other undesired areas of the face or body. (Matthew Richardson, MD, Frisco Facial Plastic Surgeon)

Exercise after botox/dysport: should I stop?

The original recommendations after Botox injection were:

1. No exercise for 24 hours.
2. Don’t lay down for 4 hours
3. Perform facial exercises after

I have clinically researched my patients and 2, and 3 make no difference. I recommend my patients not exercising immediately after injection, so the increased blood flow does move the neuromodulator out of the treated muscle.

To show that this might be the case, we added lidocaine with epinephrine and bicarbonate and showed it extended the duration of Botox for ten days and dysport 13 days. The hypothesis was that the muscle relaxant stayed in the muscle with a higher concentration. (Robert J. Troell, MD, FACS, Las Vegas Facial Plastic Surgeon)

The Effect Of Exercise After Botox Injection

To my knowledge, no definitive double blind placebo study has been done comparing the efficacy of Botox injected into the muscles of facial expression in patients who have exercised immediately after receiving their injections, and in patients who refrain from exercise.

However, what distinguishes an excellent result of treatment with Botox is the precision of injection, i.e., you want to place the Botox exactly where the patient needs it, and you want it to stay there.

Theoretically, exercise might diminish the effect of Botox injection by mechanically dispersing the Botox over a larger anatomical area due to rapid movement and changes in the position of the head. Exercise may also dramatically increase blood flow to the areas that received the Botox injections, and this might be another mechanism to cause a broader dispersal of the Botox beyond the points of injection.

Since our goal is to optimize the aesthetic results patients can achieve from Botox injection, just to be on the safe side, we advise them to refrain from exercise for the first twenty four hours after injection.

We figure it is better to be safe than sorry. (Peter Lee, MD, FACS, Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon)

Not Recommended to Exercise Immediately After Botox Treatment

I wouldn’t recommend high impact exercise immediately after Botox injections to my patients. I would wait at least 3-6 hours until exercising again. I would also advise my patients to avoid rubbing the injection site, straining and lying down within the first 3 hours after the procedure. (R. Stephen Mulholland, MD, Toronto Plastic Surgeon)

Exercise should be discontinued temporarily after your Botox injections…

While most of my patients tend to have little or no downtime after receiving their Botox or Dysport injections, I always provide them with post-care instructions and review an informed consent document with them. Many of my patients are curious as to when they can begin exercising again after their appointment.

I like to stress the importance of discontinuing all forms of exercise the same day or even up to 24 hours after Botox injections. While it is certainly uncommon, exercising, laying down within 4 hours of your appointment, and manipulation of the injection site can all contribute to a shift in Botox to surrounding muscles.

This means that muscles OUTSIDE of the desired treatment zone can be affected. Working out prior to your appointment is just fine and should not impact your results. Your injector should review these instructions as well as an informed consent document during the consultation process or before you receive Botox. (Paul L. Leong, MD, FACS, Pittsburgh Facial Plastic Surgeon)