Extreme weight loss need excersise help

mpmartin92

I have lost 155 pounds in the last 13 months with a total goal of 200 pounds. I feel great and have done it with the help of myfitness pal and no diet, total life change and learing to eat right. At 100 pounds of weight loss began to lift wieghts and contiue with the cardio. I am currently running 3 miles once a week and working out 3 other days a week with legs/abs, chest/abs, and shoulders and arms/abs. My question is for the past 2 months I have really intensified my body building workout to try an tighten up my body and loose skin and help with the calorie burn my body does with the added muscle. Obviously through research I have learned that with the increase in wieght training my weight loss will slow, how true is this and does anyone have any suggestions. I went from losing 3 mpounds a week to nothing the past month.

With all the extra skin i have really intensifield my abdominal workouts but is this going to do any help at all.

AllanMisner

Congratulations on the success you've had to date. One thing to consider (as hard as it is to hear) is that the extra skin might not reset.

You may have to go to a plastic surgeon to have them work on that for you. I know that isn't what you wanted to hear, but sometimes the damage we did to ourselves doesn't undo itself.

Stripeness

CONGRATULATIONS! What a fantastic success you've had. I'm trying really hard to follow in your footsteps. Pretty sure I'll be in the same boat as you, since most of my weight is carried around my middle. Worse, when I had minor abdominal surgery some years ago, the skin never quite tightened back down the same.

That said, I also never hit a really low (meaning squarely within "normal" guidelines) bodyfat % after that either.

Ignoring the product/service pitch, I feel this page makes excellent points, and while not rejecting surgery altogether, suggests it be a last resort. I'm absolutely not recommending you buy anything (I haven't!), yet I enjoy reading it when needing a bit of hope:
http://www.burnthefat.com/loose_skin.html

steve_mfp

What Allan said. Skin has only so much 'snap back'. And depending on your age, how much weight you lost and how fast are all factors.

Get yourself bulked to where you wanna be and what you can maintain and then decide if you want/need surgery. It will be expensive...unless you wanna wing it with a steak knife and a stapler...just kidding!

WalkingAlong

When I added strength training my loss plateaued for several months but I was near goal then. Don't give up. Things will move again.

MoreBean13

It looks like you're very close to your goal.....how much more do you have to lose?

When we get close to healthy body weight, weight loss slows down, each pound becomes harder earned. And weight loss does often slow with increasing intensity of weight training. It can take a while to level out, my best guess is 6-8 weeks. But, if you're close to goal, it's about building the body you want at this point. Stick with it, and the weight training will pay out in dividends.


Abdominal workouts won't really pay off though- your better bet is spending your time on full body, compound lifts. Work on your abs as an afterthought when you have extra time, or if you find that abdominal weakness is causing problems- like you are collapsing your form on your squats. Ab workouts really don't pay off aesthetically unless you have really low body fat and you're grooming your abs to "pop". Otherwise, they might actually end up making your waist bigger.

mpmartin92

Thanks to everyone for all the info, that is the best thing about this site it that help is always out there.

I have thought about increasing my cardio back to my past goals, but I can really see the difference in my body that the weight training has done and I am really enjoying working with weights again.

Like was stated I obviously have done the damgage over the years to this chiseled body, haha, so i understand the skin only has so many places to go. I just want to make sure my time in the gym in productive. I have done all of this from starting with three wieght excersises and watching people in the gym on a daily basis to three days of weight training now with up to 10 excersises each day.

I just am not wanting to waist time with ab wk outs, i really dont feel a difference after doing them and I keep increasing them and the weight.

One of my goals has been to run a 5K and like i stated im over the 3 mile mark and really enjoying the running. A 10 k is now going to be my goal.

Again thank you for all the info hope to hear from you again

bloggymomx

What you're struggling with is my greatest fear. I've had two kids and KNOW I have a lot of extra skin...when I finally get to my goal I'm going to have the same issue. My sister also had that issue and she remedied that with plastic surgery, unfortunately. That's why I am saving up now for when I hit my goal and need a tummy tuck.

I would give it more time, though. Maybe it will snap back! I just know it won't for me because of genetics.

Greenrun99

Obviously through research I have learned that with the increase in wieght training my weight loss will slow, how true is this and does anyone have any suggestions. I went from losing 3 mpounds a week to nothing the past month.

With all the extra skin i have really intensifield my abdominal workouts but is this going to do any help at all.

Nice job on the loss.. unfortunately the skin issue I can't help you, I hear it slowly over time with strength training will go back, but no guarantee's I suppose except wait and see right.

As for increasing weight training slows weight loss..that is completely not true.. its still about the deficit you create from your TDEE, and increasing your weight training may increase your deficit but your starting to enter the zone where you can't just change a few items you eat and lose weight, you may need to start figuring out your TDEE and your deficit range to continue to lose weight.

This is happening because you have lost all that weight your body no longer needs all those calories, so cutting out soda or whatever your body has lost enough where it will eventually catch up to your deficit and then erase it.. so probably time to get a food scale, get a number of calories your eating now and then reassess those numbers and reduce calories.. that is what most of us have to do.

Oh and you can stop the ab workouts.. those are mostly useless if your doing full body lifts.