Losing Weight
Try to achieve a low but healthy body fat percentage. In order to get a lean physique that shows off back dimples, aim for an athletic level of body fat. For women, that's around 14%-20% body fat. For men, shoot for 6%-13% body fat. This means eating a healthy diet and doing plenty of high-intensity cardio. While you don't have to be super slim to have visible back dimples, it does help. These dimples occur at a point where there is not a lot of muscle tissue between your skin and the underlying bone. If your natural dimples are not that deep, extra body fat could fill in that space and make them hard to see. There are several ways to calculate your body fat percentage, but the most common method is to use special calipers to measure skinfolds at several sites on your body. Ask your doctor, personal trainer, or a registered dietitian to measure your body fat.
Aim to lose 1-2 pounds a week. Losing too much weight too quickly can be both unhealthy and less effective in the long run. Plus, setting unrealistic weight loss goals for yourself can lead to frustration and disappointment. Shedding 1-2 pounds a week until you hit your desired weight is a healthy, effective, and attainable goal.
Cut down on calories. In order to lose weight, you need to burn more calories than you consume. For most people, this means cutting calories out of your diet. Keep track of what you eat each day, and aim for about 500 calories less than the recommended intake for your age, sex, and activity level. ChooseMyPlate.gov is a great resource for helping you figure out the right number of calories to eat every day to attain your goal. The recommended daily calorie intake for women between the ages of 19 and 51 is 1,800-2,400 calories. For men in the same age range, the recommended daily intake is 2,200-3,000 calories. Talk to your doctor or a registered dietitian to find out how many calories you can safely cut based on your age, activity level, and overall health.
Choose healthy foods. When you're trying to lose fat and build the kind of lean muscle that will show off your Venus dimples, it's important to choose the right foods. Good choices include: Lean proteins from healthy sources such as skinless chicken breast, eggs, fish, beans and other legumes, nuts, and seeds. Complex carbohydrates, like the kinds you find in whole grains and dark, leafy greens. Plenty of vegetables and fruits. Healthy fats from sources like fish, nuts, and olive oil.
Avoid junk food. This includes things like fried food, processed and pre-packaged foods, sugary and salty snacks, and sugary drinks. While it's okay to treat yourself in moderation, try to stick to eating healthy foods at least 75-80% of the time.
Eat 4-6 small meals per day. Eating several mini-meals instead of 2-3 big ones every day keeps your metabolism in better condition and reduces the temptation to overeat. Plan to have 4-6 small, healthy meals and a few light snacks at regular times each day. A “mini-meal” can range from 100 to 400 calories, and should contain a balance of different nutrients (e.g., lean protein, complex carbs, and healthy fats). Mini meals could include things like a light breakfast burrito, a bowl of oatmeal with fruit, a salad with chicken, or a bowl of condensed soup with added veggies.
Stay hydrated. In addition to being vital for your health, keeping your body hydrated can help you feel less hungry. Try to drink 8 ounces (about .25 liters) of water 8 times a day, or more if you are doing a lot of heavy exercise or feel extra thirsty.
Get plenty of exercise. In order to lose weight, you need to do moderately intense cardio for at least 30 minutes every day. If you're looking to get a truly athletic figure that will show off your back dimples to the best advantage, you may need to do more. Talk to a registered dietitian or personal trainer about how to achieve your goals in a healthy way. Good cardio activities include things like brisk walking, jogging, cycling, swimming, and sports like tennis and squash. An easy way to gauge the intensity of your exercise is to do the “talk test.” During moderate-intensity exercise, you should be breathing hard enough that you can talk, but not sing. During high-intensity exercise, saying more than a few words will be difficult.
Be prepared to lose fat at different rates in different parts of the body. Unfortunately, there is no way to target weight loss to a specific area of your body. If fat tends to accumulate on your back, hips, and butt, that may be one of the last places where you see a difference. If this happens to you, don't get discouraged—you will eventually see a difference if you keep losing weight overall.
Creating Muscle Definition in the Lower Back
Choose exercises that strengthen your lower back. Defining the muscles of the lower back can help the whole area look more structured and bring out features like back dimples. In order to do this, you can either hit the weights and machines or do simple exercises that use your own body weight. You will probably see the best results if you do strength training exercises a few times a week. However, let your back muscles rest by taking days off between training sessions. Shoot for 3 back-strengthening sessions per week, or ask a trainer for their recommendation. Core exercises, like planks, Russian twists, bicycles, and mountain climbers, will also help.
Try the Superman exercise to target your lower back. Lie on the floor face-down with your arms stretched out straight in front of you. Keep your legs straight out behind you with your feet together. Simultaneously lift your arms and legs toward the ceiling so that only your belly is touching the floor. Hold this position for 30 seconds before slowly returning to the starting position. Repeat 3-5 times.
Strengthen your lower back and glutes with 1-legged bridges. Start by lying flat on your back with your arms at your sides and bend your knees so that your feet are resting flat on the floor. Keep your feet about shoulder-width apart. From this position: Lift your hips and squeeze your glutes, keeping all your weight on your upper back and shoulders. Lift 1 leg straight up into the air, and carefully lower your hips toward the floor and raise them again 12-15 times before returning to the starting position. Repeat on the other side.
Do deadlifts to strengthen your whole back. To do a deadlift, use a weighted barbell. Stand with your hips shoulder-width apart and get into a low squat, then grasp the bar with an overhand grip. Keeping your spine straight and your thighs parallel to the floor, push your hips and butt out behind you. Slowly stand up straight, pushing up through your heels to lift the bar. Once you've completed the lift, slowly drop your torso and hips to return to starting position. If you are not used to lifting large amounts of weight, try this exercise with only the bar at first. Gradually increase the amount of weight you use. Do 3 sets of 12 reps.
Getting Cosmetic Surgery
Get targeted liposuction to create back dimples. If you don't naturally have back dimples at all, the only way to get them is with cosmetic surgery. This is accomplished by removing fat from the areas where you would like the dimples to appear. Traditionally, this is done with liposuction, in which a needle is inserted under the skin and a little bit of fat is suctioned out. The liposuction procedure used specifically to create back dimples may go by a variety names, including V-spot treatment, Dimples En V, or Barbie Back surgery. This type of liposuction is usually performed under local anesthesia. Possible risks of liposuction include numbness around the liposuction site, infection of the skin, bleeding, or fat embolism (a blood vessel blockage caused by a loose piece of fat).
Use deoxycholic acid injections as an alternative to liposuction. Deoxycholic acid (Kybella) can be injected under the skin to dissolve fat without damaging the surrounding tissues. Targeted injections can be used to simulate back dimples. Deoxycholic injections require less downtime and are less expensive than liposuction, but you may need several treatments to get the results you want. Common side effects of Kybella injections include swelling, bruising, pain, numbness, redness, and hardening of the tissue around the injection. Kybella is only FDA approved for treatment of fat below the chin. However, cosmetic practitioners may still legally use it for off-label uses, such as creating back dimples.
Be prepared for the cost. Cosmetic surgery to create back dimples can be extremely expensive. If you go the liposuction route, you could be looking at around US$6000. While a single treatment with Kybella costs less than liposuction, you may need multiple treatments. Because of this, Kybella can add up to about the same or even more than what you would pay for liposuction. Most insurance plans will not cover the costs of these types of procedures, so you will almost certainly have to pay the whole cost out of pocket.
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