Serena Williams is one-of-a-kind, and has tennis resume that’s impossible to replicate. But even if we may not achieve her accolades, there’s one thing she’s got that you can have too—a tight, firm midsection.
She recently shared her tummy-tightening success with RF skin treatments. Just like her, you can use this powerful therapy to restore your stomach firmness. This post will examine how the procedure works for the stomach, and how it can reverse sagging caused by pregnancy, hormones and other triggers.
Serena Williams’ Tummy-Tightening Journey With RF Treatment
Nevermind the fact that Mrs. Williams has shelves decked out with Grand Slam titles, Olympic medals and more—she’s ultimately human. She too has her insecurities, and was very open about feeling uncomfortable with her postpartum physique. After the birth of her second child, Adira, in August 2023, she revealed the challenges of caring for her kids while also caring for herself.
Remember, this is woman one of the greatest athletes of all-time, and had a killer bod to show. Naturally, pregnancy changes things, which in her case led to some sagging skin.
The Turning Point
Williams gave radio frequency (RF) skin tightening a try, to tone up the loose skin on her abdomen. She shared an Instagram video of her undergoing the procedure, allowing viewers to see a practitioner maneouver the RF device on her stomach.
The procedure worked beautifully, with Williams reporting that she saw significant improvements and growing confidence afterwards. She detailed her thoughts with the procedure in an Instagram post:
“The results have been amazing. I can see progress with my skin going back to normal and my confidence coming back.”
RF Skin Tightening Primer
Let’s give you a 101 on RF skin tightening. It’s a non-surgical procedure that uses electromagnetic waves to target loose and aging skin. The procedure helps reverse the appearance of ageing skin, giving patients a more youthful, vibrant look. It’s essentially like a face lift, minus the scalpel and bandages.
How RF Skin Tightening Works
RF skin tightening does its magic by heating up the deeper layers of skin with energy waves. That heat, which is highly targeted, stimulates the production of collagen and elastin, two proteins that give the skin its elasticity and strength. The heat essentially forces the body to regenerate these proteins as a healing mechanism.
Of course, with age—and changes like pregnancy—the production of these proteins shift, leading to looser skin. However, RF skin devices help promote the produce of new skin cells and two proteins mentioned above, so your skin regains its firmness.
Devices Used for RF Skin Tightening
There’s a wide range of RF devices used in clinical settings, including Thermi™, Exilis™, Profound RF™, Morpheus8™, Sylfirm™ and Thermage™. They all use heat in a similar way, but they vary in terms of power, targeting ability and efficacy.
RF Skin Tightening for Tummy Skin
Now let’s say you’re in the same boat (or the same court) as Serena. Your tummy has started to sag a little. Maybe it feels lumpy or it hangs in a way it didn’t a few years ago. Bummer, we know.
Rest assured that it’s normal. It could be due to:
- Weight fluctuations
- Ageing
- Hormonal changes
- Pregnancy (in younger women)
- Health conditions
Sometimes, its a combination of these factors. In Serena’s case, she had her second pregnancy at an older age (age 41 at the time), so there could have been a double whammy here—the extreme skin stretching from being pregnant, and hormonal shifts that happen in the 40s. We can’t say for sure, but we’ll say this again: it’s normal and if it happened to you, it is reversible.
RF Skin Tightening for the Tummy Specifically
Now RF tummy tightening is a very specific region and procedure, so its not necessarily the same as it would be for the neck or arms.
Saggy stomach skin tends to be very stubborn—we don’t need to remind you of that. The abdomen often stretches more than any other body part, so that can make it more lax than other trouble spots.
With that said, RF devices that offer deep heat penetration and body contouring will give you the best bang for your buck. A popular option is the Thermage™, which can often deliver deep heat targeting and collagen/elastin production with just one treatment.
Other options include:
- Profound RF™, which can provide dramatic reversal of skin laxity (which is common after pregnancy in minimal times. It can be combined with microneedling for enhanced effects.
- Exilis™, which allows practitioners to customize heat and energy settings, and also effective treatment with minimal discomfort.
Serena didn’t explicitly mention what RF device she used, but we know it worked based on what she shared as of late:z
The takeaway here is that you have options, and licensed practitioners will use the best RF skin tightening device for you. At PSSC, for example, we look at various factors ranging from your age, severity of skin sagging, and desired outcomes to choose the device that’ll tighten your tummy best.
Reminders on RF Tightening
A big lesson from Serena’s treatment that we want to conclude with is this: don’t do RF skin tightening at home. Serena had her procedure done under the watchful eye of a licensed professional—you should do the same as well.
At-home devices, as popular as they are, aren’t approved by Health Canada and tutorials to use them may not be reliable. That exposes users to a risk of burns and other injuries.
In a clinical setting, however, practitioners use Health Canada-approved machines. They closely monitor temperature and targeting settings, so that the energy they release heals the skin without harming it.
Another lesson to take away from her experience is being patient. It appears she had just one treatment, but based on her experience, the firmer midsection she sought took some time to appear. So if you plan on getting RF, don’t expect to see next day results as if this was an Amazon Prime delivery. It takes weeks and often a few treatments to induce the collagen and elastin response needed to see tighter skin. With that said, it’s a non-invasive way to see dramatic results in a relatively short time. That’s a win in our books.
Lastly, take some inspiration from Serena when it comes to self-love and self-care.
“Being ok to take time for myself is something I have always struggled with,” she says. As a mother of two kids, it’s understandable why she feels this way. But who says self-love and selflessness towards your kids, family and other avenues of your life, can’t co-exist?
With treatments like RF skin tightening, you can take a little time for yourself to heal and look your best, without forgetting your family and all the rest.
Looking to start your RF tummy tightening journey? Get in touch with us to get started!