260 lbs and skin

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hisgirl86
hisgirl86 Posts: 142 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am 25 years old, getting started on this journey, and I'm so worried about loose skin as I lose weight. If I do strength training and good exersise as I lose, will my skin shrink with the loss? Or will I be left with skin hanging all around? I'd almost rather stay fat then have skin hanging from my body. I want to feel sexy for my husband, and right now we have a great sex life. But I cna't imagine feeling ok with sex with folds of skin hanging loose. This is my one and only major real concern with actually losing the weight. So If i take preventitive measures will I look normal? Adivce? WHat should I do?

Replies

  • smantha32
    smantha32 Posts: 6,990 Member
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    I think you're young enough that a lot of it should shrink back. My weight went up and down frequently in my 20's and I never had trouble with excess skin.
  • themommie
    themommie Posts: 5,011 Member
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    I think because of your age, if you do plenty of strength training and dont lose too quickly you should be fine. I am 48 and have lost 95 lbs in about 17 months and I have some lose skin but not bad and I notice it is getting better all the time. Go for it it is diffinately worth it and your sex life will get even better....:smile:
  • ccadroz93
    ccadroz93 Posts: 136 Member
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    If you lose the weight gradually over time your skin will be able to shrink with you. It also depends on your age and the amount of collagen you have. The older you are, the less elasticity your skin has so it doesn't shrink up.

    I will always have my little "apron", but I don't have the money to get it removed either. Alot of lotion and massage has helped to seperate the fat from the skin so it isn't as lumpy, but it's still there. :-( I'm still glad to have lost the weight though!!
  • cerrajean
    cerrajean Posts: 188 Member
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    I'm actually dealing with this right now, most notably on my upper arms and below the belly button. Noticing it on my thighs too. I'm only down 39lbs, and was going pretty slowly with it until a couple of week (maybe a month ago?) when I hit a plateau at 240. (started 274)

    Suddenly my body started changing, AND HOW!

    So, since I'm still relatively young, I've been making more of an effort to work my upper body and do more strength training in an attempt to build up some muscle.

    Looking like a grape was a big fear for me too, but I know that my boyfriend will love me either way, and he'll also love me a lot longer since I won't be dying 10-20 years before him since I'm a lot healthier now. I never had a problem feeling sexy before, and I still don't based on his regular declarations of how proud he is of me, and how good I'm looking.

    Bottom line for me- healthy is top priority.

    I hope your man is as awesome and supportive as mine. :) Best of luck!
  • Natihilator
    Natihilator Posts: 1,778 Member
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    I'm also 25, and starting at 250lbs. this is a big concern of mine. My skin has always been delicate, I have loads of stretchmarks almost everywhere, and my belly hangs a bit. Even though I'm young, I suspect I will also be unhappy with the loose skin I'll have, but I just decided to not stress about it now, and deal with it when the time comes, because there is no way of knowing for sure until then.

    I don't believe the hokey stuff like seaweed wraps or ice baths, so my preventative measures have been to do a decent amount of strength training, drinking a lot of water, using a loofah to exfoliate in the shower, and massaging raw cocoa butter into my skin once every few days. It's all I can do at this point so it has to be enough.
  • ashleymarlin
    ashleymarlin Posts: 9
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    Im 25 and have lost nearly 200 pounds and I have a serious excess skin problem. My arms my stomach and my legs are big problems!... The doctor says its probly about 15 kg of excess skin I need to get removed but I won't get the surgery until I get to my goal weight... Can't stand it because just like most women I jus want to feel good about myself when I look in the mirror but with so much skin hanging from my body it's not possible right now.. And being a single parent I don't know when I'll be able to afford to get it all removed...
  • hisgirl86
    hisgirl86 Posts: 142 Member
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    Thanks guys for your answers, and I'm glad that we can all support each other with the changes our bodies are/will be going through.
  • asherby85
    asherby85 Posts: 20
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    Im 25 and have lost nearly 200 pounds and I have a serious excess skin problem. My arms my stomach and my legs are big problems!... The doctor says its probly about 15 kg of excess skin I need to get removed but I won't get the surgery until I get to my goal weight... Can't stand it because just like most women I jus want to feel good about myself when I look in the mirror but with so much skin hanging from my body it's not possible right now.. And being a single parent I don't know when I'll be able to afford to get it all removed...

    If you can prove to insurance that is causing you issues then they will pay to have it removed. It's something to look into.

    To the Original Poster - I'm worried about the same thing. Actually had a little break down after I was reading a bunch of weight loss blogs and the girls had lost the same amount of weight that I'm looking to lose and they all had tummy tucks. My bf assured me that if I had a bunch of loose skin that we would find a way for me to get a tummy tuck which made me feel a little better, but it's still scary thinking that I'll have it and if I do that I'll have to have surgery for it.
  • hisgirl86
    hisgirl86 Posts: 142 Member
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    To the Original Poster - I'm worried about the same thing. Actually had a little break down after I was reading a bunch of weight loss blogs and the girls had lost the same amount of weight that I'm looking to lose and they all had tummy tucks. My bf assured me that if I had a bunch of loose skin that we would find a way for me to get a tummy tuck which made me feel a little better, but it's still scary thinking that I'll have it and if I do that I'll have to have surgery for it.


    I watched a couple of documentaries where people lost about 100 lbs, and they all had the loose skin. I thought I would be encouraged and motivated by watching them, but instead I got depressed. Sure i'd be healthier by losing the weight, but if i have skin hanging off of me and I can't afford a surgery (we are very poor barely making it by), then Ill look just as bad naked.

    I know I'm probably just focusing on it wrong, and I should be happy to get healthier. But it is truely depressing to think about the outcome.

    So i'm going to switch around my plans to lose only a pound a week, and up my strength training, I'm already doing good on water intake.

    I'm wondering about 30 day shred or P90X, if i did that would it help skin as well as muscle and weight loss?

    Is there anyone who has lost 100 pounds and their skin is normal? If so, how did you do it?
  • MochaMixAZ
    MochaMixAZ Posts: 844 Member
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    I'd suggest doing a search in the forum for "loose skin" - you will find a ton of information.

    In short, it just depends. On your age, skin elasticity, genes, etc.

    When I started, I was young with decent genes, but NO amount of exercise was going to make the amount of loose skin I had rebound. So I had lots of loose, flabby skin. After a lot of toning and trying to do it on my own, I had it surgically removed. Insurance said no way (and believe me, I know how to work THAT system - I'm a nurse with prior-auth experience) and I financed it.

    Good luck to you. My parting message: no matter what the loose skin post-loss, it's WORTH IT.
  • mamamc03
    mamamc03 Posts: 1,067 Member
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    My hubby has lost 100 lbs...and his extra skin seems to be shrinking & he's 30. I'm around 60lbs lost...but I am still @ 300lbs, so I have a LONG way to go. & I'm 27. You're husband loves you for you! He's finds you sexy now at your heaviest...he will find you sexy with loose skin too. You can always wear spanx in the bedroom!! :)
  • amyofftherecord
    amyofftherecord Posts: 64 Member
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    Last year I went from 288.4 to 150.8 and yes, there was some skin under my arms and my stomach was... squishy. It wasn't like rolls of skin hanging over my belt or anything, just wrinkly bits that puffed out. Eventually even that would have flattened down (unfortunately I regained a bit and now have to lose it again). Don't worry. Do it at a healthy rate and have a little patience. Even with the extra skin I still felt more attractive at 150 than 290. Good luck!
  • bjfmade
    bjfmade Posts: 543 Member
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    You will be much happier and sexier at a healthy weight than where you are at right now. Give your body a chance to change and bounce back. It is worth it.
  • sandiki
    sandiki Posts: 454
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    I have lost over 80 pounds and there are some areas I wish were with more elasticity..But I could not be happier! I found that when the weight came off too rapidly this caused a longer lasting undesired sag effect. Make sure it is shed slowly and this will allow for some recoil.. this and tone tone tone!
  • shelby623
    shelby623 Posts: 55 Member
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    I know someone who this happened to. She was overweight for about 6 years before she finally dropped about 150lbs in a one year span at age 27. She had excess skin around her arms, stomach and thighs. She did absolutely no cardio or strength training. She lost all the weight by eating only salads and fruits. Judging by her case, I think the length of time she was overweight and the way she lost the weight played a major role in her excess skin. Adding strength training can't hurt, and steady but slow weight loss helps too. This girl was losing 10+ lbs per month, I don't think her skin had enough time to shrink with her body.
  • Le_Joy
    Le_Joy Posts: 593 Member
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    Not to be discouraging, but you might have loose skin no matter what. I lost 90lbs when I was 20-21 and had tons of lose skin. Kept the weight off for over a year, did lots of strength training, had the top 4 of 6 pack abs, but you couldn't see the bottom ones because of loose skin. My arms and legs had less loose skin, but still much more than I wanted. Honestly though being smaller and having extra icky looking loose skin feels much better than being larger and having your skin filled out with fat. IMHO :happy:
  • MochaMixAZ
    MochaMixAZ Posts: 844 Member
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    Oh, and something else I wanted to add.

    Your mind may begin to play tricks on you. I actually had myself convinced for awhile to stay at my heaviest weight... because I was "worried" about the consequences of the loose skin. I talked myself into believing I looked better fatter and fuller than skinnier and baggier. It was a lie, but I didn't know it at the time.

    And once I DID commit and continue losing, even after I had the excess skin removed - my brain STILL has days when I see my old-self in the mirror and can't see the change.

    Just a word of caution and a heads up to prepare your mind, as well as your body, for the great work and rewards that are to come.
  • tenax
    tenax Posts: 97
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    great topic..and great thoughts. i've had some of these as well as i lost a fair bit of weight...then gained 40 lb of it back and some days i've convince myself i am happier that the loose skin is "filled out" then not. but, it is what it is and everyone is right. better to be healthy and able to do the things you want to do at your target weight.
  • Alisha_countrymama
    Alisha_countrymama Posts: 821 Member
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    I started at 340 and now at 238. I do have loose skin. I posted this same post when I first started. But I realized it don't matter. I didn't look good with my clothes off at 340 and even if I don't look good with them off when i get to my goal, at least I look good with them on! :)

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