Loose Skin

I'm not sure how excess skin reacts with time (guess it depends on the amount too?), however I'd always personally encourage slow weight loss to avoid/minimise it at all costs.

You're young and your skin has not aged yet so in very good condition with good elasticity. It probably took you several years to reach that weight, and maybe you were always overweight, so in my eyes the most sensible way is to take several years to lose the weight: it doesn't matter if it takes you more than a year or two to shed the weight, as long as you keep it off - easier if its slower weight loss - and minimise the risk of saggy skin and stretch marks by doing it slowly. It will take a lot more time and effort to deal with excess saggy skin caused by quick weight loss later on.

I think taking a break is a good thing once in a while, so you gradually learn how to stabilise your weight and let your body adjust, then when ready, shed more weight and so on. You'll have a much better idea on how to eat in order to maintain your end weight. Also, something which people rarely mention is that psychologically people still feel "fat" a lot of the time - the mind has to adjust to being a slim person now after x years of feeling big. It will be must easier to keep the weight off if you have had time to take in all the changes that have taken place and appreciated how you see yourself now, and how others see you.

I would concentrate on eating healthier and eating more too to slow down the weight loss. I'd also try to motivate myself in order to keep doing exercise regularly.

good luck and congratulations on doing so well!
 
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thanks for the advice and sorry that i made it all jumbled up... i didnt know that this thing dont accept indents.. ima slow down iguess for this week i only lost a pound anyway lol... eating crap i aint supposed to be eatin.

I just feel that if I dont exercise period I will start to gain weight. I am surprised that I only lost 1 pound this week cause I train hard and yea I hate a little bit of stuff I aint supposed to eat (not no greasy oily items) and it worries me. I feel like I can't eat normally ever. Normal people can eat rice withought gaining weight. IF i eat rice for dinner 4 days a row I'm gonna gain weight n crap and it sucks........

Well I will stop feelin fat when I get all of this flab off, I'm goin to join a gym and power lift weights so I'm concered about the flab on my arms lol.
 
What to do about loose skin?

Hey guys, a quick question, I've just lost 97 lbs and I've been working out too I could type out the whole story, but I've already done that tonight, to sum it up, Im athletic now, about 210 lbs, 6 foot tall.

My question is when I stand up I look fine...I mean my chest juts out a little, but its not a big deal.

My concern is when I lay down in push up position or bend over my stomach and chest with tons of loose skin literally skin comes down like 1/2 a foot from my stomach, and Im only 16 my doctor said if I drank enough water on my diet I wouldnt have so much excess skin, but I do...anyone have any suggestions other than surgery?
 
hi Methodman, congrats on your weight loss. how long did it take?there are lots of posts/ threads on here about loose skin if you do a search.
you are only young, so give it time. apparently it can take a year or two for skin to shrink back as much as its going to. other things that i believe can help are weight training. i also believe eating lots of lean protein can help prevent muscle loss, especially if you are still trying to lose. other than that im not sure what else can be done apart from surgery. but saying that i bet you feel loads better and healthier.
i have lost 73 lbs and unfortunately have saggy skin also. doesnt look tres attractive, like a giant deflated balloon, but i feel so much better with loads more energy. slim
 
WOW! That is like loosing a whole 12 year old! That is super impressive. Loose skin is so tough. Of course I'm older, so I don't know if that plays a role. I've also had C-Sections, so my skin hangs differently. I have gained weight since, but at my lowest weight of 123, I had alot of extra skin, that made me feel extremely self-conscious.

Anyway, that is my prize if I get back down to my goal weight and stay there for a year- Surgery. When I loose weight the first place I loose it is in my breasts, so I have lots of extra skin there and on my belly, so I will get boobs and have the extra skin taken from my tummy (and the scars fixed). But first I have to loose it, then I have to keep it off.
 
Much loose skin after weightloss

Over the past year i have dropped from being 240 down to 170 and i have a lot of loose skin on my stomache that i cant seem to get rid of...was wondering what is the best way to get rid of this loose skin?
 

First of all - CONGRAT'S on losing sooooo much weight! My start weight is the same as yours - 240. I can't even picture myself at 170 because it has been so long! How long did it take you to lose this weight and what did you do to lose it?

I responded to your post because it made me wonder about myself down the road. I wish I had answers for you. I have read however that if you lose weight really fast you end up with lots of loose skin.

I also responded to say that your weight loss inspires me!

Many wishes from my heart to yours!
"Storm Girl"
 
Search around the site. I know I have seen this info posted..just can't remember exactly where. If my memory serves me right...it can take a year to two years to find out how much the skin will bounce back on its own.

I am worried about the same thing. i was 221.8 when I started and I plan to go to 140..I joined a gym and hope to tone as much as possible. However..I will live with the skin if it remains. Sure beats the health risk of being overweight.
 
I'm worried about the same thing! What I've read is that a person needs to keep the weight loss at a gradual rate, giving the skin time to catch up. Also, exercise is key.

I don't know if this is true, but hey, can't hurt right? I'm very paranoid about the "flappy skin" syndrome.
 
Well, I have the same problem :doh: I strated from 316 6 months ago and now got down to 231. I have a lot of loose skin :( I think only plastic surgery can help
 
This may sound stupid but what about that skin firming cream that people with wrinkles use? I assume the effects will only be temporary and may not tighten the skin as much as desired. I know it's a stupid idea but it's a thought.
 
I think the answer may be plastic surgery

Howdy. Congrats on the weight loss.

I'm worried about the same thing as I think a lot of people are. I did a lot of looking around on the net and I'm afraid I only found a couple of articles saying the skin would reduce of it's own accord. Both of those articles didn't seem that well informed either. The majority of articles say surgery is the only way to go.

Unfortunately I didn't keep any links to share but I was planning on doing something for my blog so I'll stop by and drop you a link when I get round to it.
 
i think the key is gradual slow weight loss. its gives the time for the skin to shrink with you . maybe you have lost weight too fast but ten again well done to you!! i have seen people that lost hundred or so pounds and have no saggy skin. im sure the answer is out there, but make sure you find it before you lose so much more weight.
 
i have lost 75+ pounds and my tummy looks like a large wrinkled deflated balloon, not particularly saggy yet. i lost 60 odd pounds in my 20`s without a problem. so im guessing my age is at least partly to blame. im not going to panic yet as i hear it can take a year or two to shrink back as much as its going to.
what does concern me a little is the skin on my face seems to be going a bit saggy and droopy :eek: . my o/h has commented on it and said you should stop losing as you are going from one extreme to another. considering im still at least a stone over my maximum healthy bmi and have plenty of fat spread around i know its not true. they say when you get a bit older you have to choose between your face and your figure and i guess thats true to an extent. slim
 
unfortunately the only way to get rid of loose skin is to have it removed, i had 6lbs of skin removed from my stomach and i tried everything to get rid of it, i could do with a body lift to be honest. the key to not getting loose skin or at least minimal is to aim to loose 2lbs a week, i know it doest sound much but it gives your skin time to shrink with you, if you loose weight too quick your skin hasn't the time to adjust so fasting I'm afraid would give you even more loose skin, like i said i have loads of loose skin and still need to loose about 100lbs, i will tackle it when 1) i can afford it! and 2) when i have lost all my weight.
I totally understand where your coming from, its so discouraging to loose a lot of weight and then end up with the skin, many times Ive thought i might as well put all my weight back on at least my skin looked better, keep with it, a good exercise for your stomach which i do and it works is to lay on your back, lift your feet one inch off the floor, then lift your head up to look at your feet, hold it for 30 seconds, rest for 30 seconds and repeat, it will give you some shape, also moving your legs in and out like scissors whist doing this is good for love handles, good luck and all the best xxx
 
Sprite said:
Of course skin can get tighter again -to a degree anyway -or else all mothers would be walking around with a huge sack of skin in front I think. (I know some people do get lots of stretch marks etc but nothing like it would be if the skin just stayed stretched.)

But I don't know what what degree you can eliminate ALL the excess really.
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i was walking around with a sack! lost 7 stone quickly and my stomach when i sat down touched my knees i was a uk size 10 (us 8) at this point, the key is slow weight loss so your body can adjust, maybe then it may ping back but i think a lot is generic, BTW bio oil is great for stretch marks and other scars:)
 
The "lose weight slowly" really supports this guys theory. When you lose weight slowly your are not losing as much Lean body mass as someone who is starving themselves and loses a lot very quickly. Thats his whole point, when you lose a lot of weight fast and don't maintain lean body mass (everything underneath the fat) then your skin will hang because your body is emaciated under all that skin. I think there is a lot of truth to his theory. But I think there are some extreme cases when surgery might be the only way. I also think people are quick to get surgery when they don't need it. Like those extreme makeover shows, it disgusts me how they use the quick fix of surgery to fix everything simply for ratings. They give these people plastic surgery that they don't need like nose jobs etc. But anyway, there is some truth to this info imo.
 
stuco said:
The "lose weight slowly" really supports this guys theory. When you lose weight slowly your are not losing as much Lean body mass as someone who is starving themselves and loses a lot very quickly. Thats his whole point, when you lose a lot of weight fast and don't maintain lean body mass (everything underneath the fat) then your skin will hang because your body is emaciated under all that skin. I think there is a lot of truth to his theory. But I think there are some extreme cases when surgery might be the only way. I also think people are quick to get surgery when they don't need it. Like those extreme makeover shows, it disgusts me how they use the quick fix of surgery to fix everything simply for ratings. They give these people plastic surgery that they don't need like nose jobs etc. But anyway, there is some truth to this info imo.
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i was recommended by my doctor to have a tummy tuck, i was half a stone under weight and getting obsessed with exercise, sometimes surgery is the only way to go, my skin was like a sheet i would not have gone down the surgery route if it wasn't necessary, my muscles where tight underneath but the skin had been over stretched like elastic you can only stretch it so may times and it looses its function. the extreme make over shows are more a vanity show, i hate them too but surgery if used for the correct reasons can make a world of difference:)
 
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