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Worrying about excess skin

becca09

Hi,
So im 19 and was 262 pounds (18 stone 10 pounds) and my goal weight is approx 112 (8 stone). But being a UK size 8 is more important to me then being 8 stone is.
Since im planning to lose wayyy over 100 pounds im worrying about excess skin when i reach my goal weight/size.
When ever i talk to people about it they pinch the skin on my hand and say 'look, did you see how fast your skin snapped back? you will have no problems with loose skin' but the thing is my hands were not 262 pounds, websites say that if you have been big for a long time then your skin will not snap back and its not my hands im worrying about, its my tummy, bum, thighs and arms. ive been large since i hit puberty so its been about 6 years. I also read that exfoliating your body daily can help so ive been doing that but does anyone else know of any good ways to make sure excess skin doesnt happen?
im not at my goal weight yet, my ticker will show you how far i am from it but i would rather work at preventing saggy skin now rather then reaching my goal weight and then worrying about it.
x

Replies

tkcasta

I worry about the same thing. But being young is on your side. You'll also never know how your body is going to react untill you do it. It's not worth stressing about, it's more important that you get the weight off. In a worst case scenario situation there are options. I know most people don't talk about it, but its always in the back of my head if for some reason the skin on my stomach decides to sit on the floor. But if you are losing weight properly your body should have enough time to bounce back, it's not same as having surgery and losing an excess all at once.

I also use Palmers body butters...just to help things.

Schula03

Other than exercising, i think it just depends on you and your body. You really won't know for yourself until you get to your goal.

jamie31

Sorry hun. I have lost 131 lbs and have the problem with excess skin. I did all the stuff the doctors and nutritionists said to do : lose weight slowly, moisturize, exfoliate, take collagen and vitamin E. None of it has worked so far, now they say that it may get better in a year, so I guess I will just have to wait it out. I think it will mostly depend on genetics to be honest. Just lose the weight and worry about the skin later. But make sure you always keep your skin moisturized.

VJ150

Anyone who is overweight worries about excess skin. I think that is normal for us. The good thing for you is that you are young and your skin has not lost its elasticity. I learned dry brushing helps the skin to retain its elasticity by increasing the blood circulation. Continue doing the things you are and you will be okay.

Lisa0711

Losing weight slowly and moisturizing seems to have help me a lot. The only place I have any lose skin (to amount to anything) is my stomach.. but it appears to be slowly going away. That around my arms and legs went away when I started doing strength training. We'll have to wait and see what it all looks like as I lose the rest of this weight though...

My suggestion would be to try to lose weight slowly (no more than 2 pounds a week), moisturize, and most importantly incorporate strength training into your workouts if you don't already. That's about the most you can do, but like others said you're doing a great thing for yourself! Don't let the worries about excess skin ruin your hard work!

Nina74

Hi Becca:

When my brother was younger- 18/19 yrs old, he went from 350+ to 185-190 lbs. He exfoliated, did the cocoa butter stuff and while he had a little bit of jiggle, it's totally gone now! You have the great benefit of youth and elastic skin. I think if you've lost 55lbs and you don't see a huge problem, you're already in good shape!

SimonLondon

You are very lucky to be doing this so young. Your age really will help you much more than someone a lot older. You will need to do so slowly so you skin has a greater chance of falling back into place.

At your age I wouldn't worry as much as I would if you were my age

rcatr

I was larger through most of puberty and was 193 at my largest. I have a little excess skin on my tummy and yeah, it bugs me but the way I see it, it's a small price to pay for being healthier and smaller...ya know? It's a risk but I say focus on how great you'll feel when you're healthier rather than the very tiny risk you run of having excess skin.

kwaters7

hey check this article http://www.bodyfatguide.com/LooseSkin.htm . It might help ease your worries...

funkyspunky871

I'm so scared about loose skin too, and I've got more to lose than you! I'm only 15, so does that help with the 'young' thing? Lol. God, I hope so.

I think we're gonna be fine. Your skin is a living organ right? It should be able to adapt eventually.

Ryhenblue

The best rule is to wait two years after you reach your goal weight. Your skin will either tighten enough, so you're comfortable with how it looks and if not then you'll most likely need to look into surgery options.

LittleSpy

NO ONE can tell you what YOUR skin will do. Do everything you feel you need to do to prevent saggy skin (moisturize, hydrate, etc) and stop worrying about it because after that, there's nothing you can do.

I felt concerned about this at first but now I really don't care. Of course I'd love to have perfect skin at my goal weight but the reality is that's extremely unlikely. Now I'm just focused on how much more awesome I look and feel already -- How much more awesome am I going to feel in 50 more pounds? I'm going to feel so good I'm probably not going to give another thought to whether or not my skin is perfect.

After losing about 75 pounds, my skin looks okay. In the last 5-10 pounds I have seen it begin to sag just a little, but I think it still looks pretty darn good. And it certainly looks a heck of a lot better than it looked when it was filled out with fat!

I'm a few years older than you (25), but when I think about it, many women my age have children and have stretched skin from that. I'm getting married in a few weeks and we plan to have a child in the next 3-5 years, so my skin would've been stretched from that anyway. Maybe realizing all that is why it doesn't bother me anymore, I don't know, but I'm so over it. I'm doing what I can to prevent it, crossing my fingers for good genetics, but I'm expecting the worst (though I can already tell my skin is fairing better than many pictures I've seen).

mrsw510

I worry about that too. But you are yourng so I think as long as you lose the weight slowly it should be okay.

redbedhead

you will have excess skin. There will be some snap back because of your age, but if you have any stretch marks that means damaged skin and damaged skin does not snap back.

The only way to get rid of excess skin is plastic surgery.

chronosfire

I'm finding that Palmer's lotion that pregnant people use to get rid of stretch marks is really firming up my skin and helping it stay not saggy, so maybe that's worth a shot for you?

dwarfer22

Genetics is what it's all about. Some people are blessed w/ elasticity, some are not. Unfortunatley, if you are unlucky in that dept. all the creams, lotions, and balms in the world won't help you. The only good thing is that you are young so on the curve that is your particular elastic trend for your body, you are still higher than someone who is 40 and dropping the weight. Gravity takes a toll on us all.

Beyond that, instead of worrying about the loose skin you may have, think of all the good things you'll be gaining. For me (who lost 130+ lbs and can wave my underarms, and stomach w/o really trying) I think of the fact that i can be more phsically active, I am no longer pre-diabetic, don't have high blood pressure and cholesterol anymore. That to me is a victory and I will prudly bare my arms in a swimsuit if I can be active w/ my kids. It's all about perspective.

Good luck on your journey!

vhuber

Hit the gym and use weights and weight machines to build muscle, that way you have a bit of filler for that skin to attach to! Do it now and do NOT wait until later!! Also drink at least 80 oz of water per day!

HealthyChanges2010

I was larger through most of puberty and was 193 at my largest. I have a little excess skin on my tummy and yeah, it bugs me but the way I see it, it's a small price to pay for being healthier and smaller...ya know? It's a risk but I say focus on how great you'll feel when you're healthier rather than the very tiny risk you run of having excess skin.

I wish we could all remember this when we worry so much about our imperfections caused by (or rather seen more after losing) weight loss.
I'm so glad you posted this, I wish more ppl thought this way!!!!!

I too would rather be healthier, alive and have fun in life and actually be living my life than be, let's see what are the other choices again??

Oh yea. . .
Dead with no excess skin to fret over. lol
OR
Dead with skin filled with lots of fat on our bodies buried in an XXL sized casket! (like shown on Jamie Oliver's show)

I'll pick the excess skin and continue looking into insurance and self acceptance.

HealthyChanges2010

I'm finding that Palmer's lotion that pregnant people use to get rid of stretch marks is really firming up my skin and helping it stay not saggy, so maybe that's worth a shot for you?

I hear ppl bring up Palmers alot. I think when a person has 30-50lbs to drop vs. 100-200 lbs, Palmers might work differently.:laugh:

Not laughing at you simply laughing at the idea of it in general. NOTHING and I mean NOTHING in a bottle will remove excess skin, unless it's an empty bottle the doc is using to suck out excess fat (liposuction surgery).

We can put all the lotions we want on our bodies but loose skin after losing large amounts of weigh has nowhere to go. Check in with the MFP members here that have lost 150 lbs and up and you'll hear the truth. I so often hear ppl saying their excess skin is gone but they are the members that have never weighed more then 20lb over in their life. Those of us that have lost far larger amounts of weight or are in the process of can attest to there being much loose skin involved.

Making sure you're getting in plenty of liquids, keeping your weightlifting workouts going and definitely regular excercise helps alot. In the end we'll have achieved so much by gaining back our health, our lives and so much more.

Loose skin is a small price to pay if you ask me, but hey now, that doesn't mean I'm happy with mine!:grumble: .

My insurance will pay for much of my surgeries (my insurance will cover it for my health reasons) as I"ve lost over half of my body weight but that doesn't mean all the surgeries will be easy, from what I understand they are tough surgeries to go through. I wish to gawd I had never gotten heavy and done this to myself. It's a HUGE price to pay for that crap I used to eat, nothing I ever took a bite out of was ever worth it.

Ok, guess I needed to get something or other out of my system.:smokin: :noway:

tattereds

I think it's all about your own skin and body - noone else's experience is going to be exactly like yours unfortunately.

My experience:
I have been big since primary school, and last year dropped about 35kg (found some again recently unfortunately :ohwell: )... My body has always been, and continues to be pretty proportionate, and though I am finding that my skin never sagged necessarily, it did (and still to some extent still does, though I have filled in a bit again) look quite a bit "emptier" than it did before. Sort of like a balloon when it's been full of air for a while and then you let it down and it looks kind of... ripple-y...:embarassed: especially my upper arms, thighs and... well, have you seen the Adam Sandler movie 'Click'? Remember the scene where he is upset about having a 'tongue'? Yeah... It's true. It totally happens.

It can be embarrassing at times, like when I am wearing a cute sun dress or something and my arms are on full display, but for the most part I'm fine with it. I like to think that even if people do notice it, they are noticing that it is emptier - ie. I have lost weight. And losing weight is something I am never going to be embarrassed over!

Sorry to disappoint you. Hopefully your skin will fare better than mine has!:flowerforyou:

gailosborne

Hi, I have lost a lot of weight and am much older than you! I have gone from an english 20-22 to a 10-12.
I have found that during 6 months of maintaining my weight and working really hard in the gym that the places with loose skin are the least toned places. My arms and and legs are very toned and look fine - not perfect, but good, and I am enjoying wearing sleeveless tops for the first time in my life and will wear a bikini this summer (not a tiny one!!) My tummy is the worst and after discussion with my trainer, I am going to lose a bit more weight to add definition as well as working like crazy to tone my middle area.

I do the usual things lots of water, moisturising using skin firming cream and lots of toning exercises. I have also heard that the skin will renew itself somewhat over the next 18 months so that should also help. I agree that you should start doing toning work now if you haven't (muscles will give the skin a little lift and something to hang off.)

It is impossible to say how you will be affected, however I promise you that it won't be as bad as you think. You will be so delighted by the change in your shape and the way your body looks with clothes that you won't mind as much that it still isn't perfect without.

Best Wishes,
Gail x