those with loose skin, how do you feel about it vs fat??

salvationsdying
salvationsdying Posts: 205 Member
in Motivation and Support
A convo got started this evening between my fiance and I. He said he didn't understand why I want to lose the weight. He said that rather I'm heavy or thin I probably won't be happy with myself. He said because since I have got so much to lose ill probably end up with loose skin and ill be more unhappy then I am currently at 227. I have always had a fear about how ill deal with the skin. But I think that is on the bottom of my list of things to worry about. I knew from start id probably have it after a 120 pound loss and that while I won't be happy about it exactly, id still like to think ill take it over the issues that come with being heavy. Back pain, knee pain, outta breath, zero energy, possible health problems....yeah some loose skins no biggy next to those.



So anyways I was just wondering, how of those of you that did end up with some loose skin cope with it? Better or worse then the fat it used to hold?

Replies

  • Ftw37
    Ftw37 Posts: 386 Member
    I have some loose skin. The extra energy and mobility I have gained far outweigh any cosmetic issues.
  • jenswan70
    jenswan70 Posts: 40 Member
    I don't like how my skin looks, but I have a lot of energy. Since I didn't like the way I looked and always felt tired before I lost the weight, I definitely feel like it was worth it.
  • MammaMouse
    MammaMouse Posts: 52
    I haven't lost enough to have it yet, but I will. Being healthy will far outweigh extra skin. Even if the extra skin is a problem, there are surgeries to remove it... But I definitely think remaining unhappy because of "what ifs" is silly.
  • salvationsdying
    salvationsdying Posts: 205 Member
    I haven't lost enough to have it yet, but I will. Being healthy will far outweigh extra skin. Even if the extra skin is a problem, there are surgeries to remove it... But I definitely think remaining unhappy because of "what ifs" is silly.

    I fully intend to keep up, I've come to far to quit! And I feel much better already.


    I know there will be skin, but I just want to have energy!
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,219 Member
    I have loose skin. I also have stretch marks. I still love my thinner body more. The skin has slowly gotten better. My body feels better being lighter, where as the skin can be hidden by clothing.
  • garciabnm
    garciabnm Posts: 138
    dropping from over 3 bills to a healthy 175, I have loose skin. And at my age , I doubt it will ever return to normal. It doesn't bother me one bit. Sure I wish I could have tighter skin, but you know,just a reminder of what I looked like. Any time I feel like giving in, I just look in the mirror and be happy for my accomplishment. More energy, stronger, healthier. I'll take that any day of the week.
  • wheird
    wheird Posts: 7,963 Member
    You can always have it surgically removed.
  • sympha01
    sympha01 Posts: 942 Member
    You're young, and under 250 lbs. I think it's actually unlikely you'll have much loose skin, and if you do, it'll tighten up quickly after a year or so. Everyone's different, and sure you could be genetically predisposed to saggy skin, but really at your age everything usually heals and tightens up so quickly. Stay hydrated and apply moisturizer to your fat bits religiously and you'll be fine. :flowerforyou:

    I mean, he may have a point about body image and whether you'll feel better about yourself or not, there's certainly a grain of truth to that, though it has nothing to do with loose skin and everything to do with whether you've got unreasonable expectations about your appearance. BUT your health is also important. If you're in the 200s in your 20s, your weight issues are not likely to get better on their own as you get into your 30s and 40s (TRUST ME). That knee pain and back pain you're feeling now are only going to become more serious and debilitating. And as you age, you'll likely start feeling more serious health impacts of the weight like high blood pressure.

    If you're motivated to lose the weight, stick with it! You'll feel so great with more energy, more mobility, and less pain!!!
  • Madame_Goldbricker
    Madame_Goldbricker Posts: 1,625 Member
    I've not got any loose skin yet but I may or may not by the time I hit goal. I have stretch marks from having my kid though. I also have stretch marks from a growth spurt in my teens.

    End of the day like it's already been said clothes can cover up a multitude of sins. There aren't many instances I'll ever be wandering round naked in public that I can think of.
  • aedreana
    aedreana Posts: 979 Member
    I have loose skin because menopause redistributed my weight-- deleted all the fat from my hips/butt and pasted it onto my waist! My weight didn't change, but I then had to reevaluate my ideal weight, which had been 131 to 135 for 30 years. Since menopause gave me a flat/saggy/droopy/wrinkled butt in place of the full meaty butt that once was, I had nothing to lose by dieting down to 112 where I no longer had the new fat pad on my waist/midriff. Of course, now I have corrugated wrinkling of my upper arms, puckery wrinkling on my midriff and waist, and a saggy belly. I need plastic surgery to tighten the loose skin; however, I live in rock-bottom poverty. LOOSE SKIN LOOKS A THOUSAND MILLION TIMES WORSE THAN EXCESS FAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The ONE AND ONLY REASON that I choose not to gain 100 pounds or WHATEVER how much weight gain it would take to fill out the butt wrinkles, is that I am afraid I would end up with such heavy breasts that the weight would pull them downward-- and to have downward-pointing breasts would be EVEN WORSE than a wrinkled *kitten*!
  • psych101
    psych101 Posts: 1,842 Member
    I'd rather the little bit of loose skin I have than the fat I had.

    :flowerforyou:
  • SomeNights246
    SomeNights246 Posts: 807 Member
    You can always have it surgically removed.

    Not everyone can afford that lol

    But if you're paying, I'm game. ;)

    But on a serious note, that attitude of your fiance's made me go... yikes.

    He has a point about body image. If you're unhappy in your skin at 200 or so lbs, you probably will be at 120, too. Body image is often not tied to weight. It goes deeper than that - right to psychological and sociological reasons. However, the attitude about... not understanding why you want to lose weight is worrisome. There are more reasons to lose weight than appearance. Appearance may be one of them, and that's okay. But try health. Try being able to run longer and faster. Or being able to climb the stairs quicker (now that I'm in shape I run up them).

    Loose skin is a small price to pay. And this is coming from someone who has struggled with an eating disorder, and body dysmorphia. I have a lot of loose skin. Part of my recovery from the aforementioned has been learning to love it, too. I have had to learn to be happy int he skin (pun intended) I'm in. Being in shape has made me realize that the most important thing is not how I look, but how I feel. Both figuratively and literally.
  • airangel59
    airangel59 Posts: 1,887 Member
    Wear it proud :bigsmile:

    No just joking here laugh but seriously, I did worry about this as I obviously had a bunch to lose (BMI 44% to start, half that now), & carried the pounds for half my life (and yo yo'd them off & back on) and am over 50 :sad:

    I have some batwings and hate my upper inner thighs but seriously, that's all the sag I have right now. I do need to firm & tone and find time to hit the weights/dumbbells etc (and I should have been doing this since day one...hindsight ... :grumble: )

    Just remember if you are not as lucky and do end up with saggy skin (and can't afford surgery to remove it) it is a lot better to have the extra skin sagging than to have it filled up with fat. A lot healthier too.

    Good luck on your journey :drinker:

    PS My MD did say the skin should tighten up somewhat over time
  • NativesoriginalPatriots
    NativesoriginalPatriots Posts: 1
    Right on! I had a question about loose skin but I read your post and I agree!
  • aedreana
    aedreana Posts: 979 Member
    I should mention this point: one time, when I was in my late 30s, I very briefly weighed 200. I had never weighed anywhere near that much before, and have never weighed anywhere near that much since. And because I was young, I had no loose skin whatsoever from losing over 80 pounds down from 200. After menopause, weight redistributes, skin gets thin, skin loses elasticity, and butt hangs in folds like wrinkled fabric.
  • crikey_katie
    crikey_katie Posts: 136 Member
    I have lose skin, and to be perfectly honest I hate it. Some people don't understand why I refuse to wear a bikini, well that would be it. It's only on my stomach though. You may or may not have an issue with lose skin, it all depends on your body. I say being healthier and the way i look minus the belly skin far outweighs my insecurities. Best of luck.
  • sroderick21
    sroderick21 Posts: 4 Member
    I was Terrified to lose weight because of the skin issue.. (I cant afford surgery) but I decided to do it anyway.... I started at 328 and now Im down to 207... my skin is reacting very well because I drink all my water, exercise daily and eat right.... its amazing!!! its doing its thing and Im looking pretty good.... at this point I can honestly say that I am hopeful that it wont be too bad by the time Im done with my journey and I think its totally worth it!!!! :D
  • CrusaderSam
    CrusaderSam Posts: 180 Member
    I dont feel so bad about my lose skin. Just in all honesty who in the hell cares about how we feel other then ourselves. So I tend to worry more about what others think about it, well more specifically women I would want to be in a relationship with. I cant do much about how they feel, so I just try my best to not let it get to me if they have a problem with it.

    That being said I think the skin looks way better then the fat.
  • eslcity
    eslcity Posts: 323 Member
    At my age I have noticed that my skin doesn't bounce back they way it use to....... One way i can tell this is after I put a tight rubber band on my hand or arm and after I remove it ...i watch to see just how fast does your skin bounce back to normal... if it is quick.... then you shouldn't have a too big of a problem..... but if the mark is there for a very long time you may have more of an issue to address......
  • aedreana
    aedreana Posts: 979 Member
    Excellent suggestion! That is a really good idea!
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    I like my loose skin (and I have a bunch) much more than the extra fat I used to carry. No, obviously I'll never be 100% happy with how I look, but it's still by far the lesser of two evils.
  • Meerataila
    Meerataila Posts: 1,885 Member
    If you're in pain and worried about your health like you say you are, you need to let your husband know that no matter what your body issues end up being at a lower weight, it's still a good idea to attain a healthy weight.
  • salvationsdying
    salvationsdying Posts: 205 Member
    Being happy with my body is my last thought. I was more worried about my health, as I was starting to have some minor issues. And I didn't want them to become big ones later on. I was 271 and miserable. I'm only 5ft 3, that's a lot of weight on my little body. I honestly think he believes I'm only in this for the looks, as we never really discusted the reasons behind it this. I had wanted to do this before but for all the WRONG reasons.

    I know no matter what Ill never be content with my body, I haven't my entire 24 years, I've always been the fat girl. So body image wise I don't expect to get tons of confidence and things. But I'm sure some will come. Id rather loose skin I can keep semi contained over fat that juggles alll the time.


    So I'm catching lots of lotion and water should help my body start to snap back some?
  • Sedna_51
    Sedna_51 Posts: 277 Member
    From what I've picked up, yeah- lotion, water, and tending towards slower weight loss will tend to reduce skin sagging. And I've heard from folks on here that skin recovers slowly; it might take a few extra years for your skin to catch up with your weight change, but it should gradually improve. (Especially since you're young! :D)

    In my experience: I'm not thrilled by my loose skin- I know I'll have more as I continue to lose weight, and I'm not thrilled by that either. But I'd rather deal with the loose skin (which only has cosmetic consequences) than the extra weight I was and am carrying (which has cosmetic /and/ medical consequences).

    It can be so hard to sort out the complicated ways we inhabit our bodies. Best of luck to you.
  • DallasSusan
    DallasSusan Posts: 34 Member
    I'm postmenopausal. I'm not real happy about the loose skin on my belly and thighs. I'm really, really not happy to have lost my formerly nice breasts. Wow. My breasts were the first fat I lost. Now I look flat-chested. But I keep telling myself the health benefits will be worth it. Thanks to those who informed me that skin will firm up over time - but that'll it will take years, not months. Best of luck to every body.
  • KylieJordan16
    KylieJordan16 Posts: 36 Member
    Google "Kelly Flab to Fab" & check out her Facebook/Instagram (https://www.facebook.com/kelly.flab2fab). She is insane and SO inspiring. She lost over 100 pounds and has improved the look of her loose skin so much she is competing as a bodybuilder. She didn't let it stop her and you would never even tell she was ever over-weight.

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