Sagging Skin after Weight Loss

bub_snig · October 2012

sorry jumping on your topic- but i was wondering if anybody losing weight uses compression garments or anything else for loose tummy or thighs?

I use compression pants to train and exercise in as i feel they reduce the amount of time I have to cool down and potential injuries. Not sure how they do that but I haven't had too much of a problem with them. I don't think they are supposed to be used for helping loose tummy or thighs but They do suck everything in whilst training. I push myself pretty hard at the gym so thats what I use them for and swear by them for training purposes.

Bearly have to cool down and only stretch for half the amount of time... Never had an injury and stiffness after a workout.
Give them a try

flobeedoodle · October 2012

Walmart has great shapewear! You'd be surprised.... highly recommend so you can look/feel great while on the way!! I rarely leave home without it, lol!!
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Sweet-Nothings-Smoothing-Shapewear-Firm-Control-Unitard-Style-82556/14560110

This. These types of garments also make running way better for me. (I like the Wear-Your-Own-Bra torsette.)

GomesDavid · October 2012

Loose skin can cause irritations as the sagging flesh rubs on other parts of the body, and as folded layers of skin collect heat, dirt, sweat and toxins, not to mention the body's own weight.

If you mix the Vitamin E oil or cream with some Lavender Oil then it will also help lighten and even get rid of those pesky stretch marks!

melclare10 · October 2012

I've heard that some hospitals will do it for free to have skin for burn victims. That's just what I have heard. But worth looking into.

this IS NOT true.

Will210 · October 2012

From my limited understanding there are several factors including gentics, age, how long you have been overweight. I have been overweight off and on throughout my life and most of the weight has resided in my stomach. So I am expecting saggy skin when I reach my goal regardless of anything I do to prevent it including core exercises, lotion etc.

MSam1205 · October 2012

Bump

skinnybitchbarbie27 · October 2012

So here is my story. I have lost 92 pounds and I am seeing the skin. I have been strength training and cardio from day one and I can see muscle definition and I know my body is strong however with losing this much weight (with about 70 more to go) I know skin will be an issue. I thought (logically) that if I wore compression garments or shapers during exercise that it would surely help. Then I read a huge report how women who do this are actually exercising less because the shaper doesn't allow them to breathe as easily as we would without it so the exercise suffers. I stopped wearing it.

The next trick I read was just to say super hydrated (which isn't a problem for me) and use a nice repairing lotion 2x a day. I have been doing this for about 2 months now (using Skin so Soft skin repair from avon) and I can really tell a difference. As I strength train and do this routine it seems as if my arms are getting better and my stomach, well, we're working on it.

I asked my DR about surgery (I can't run, my skin kinda slaps around) and he said unless we can find a medical reason to take it off he would recommend waiting two years after my goal weight to look into surgery. He said skin can change up to two years after extreme weight loss and with my age (23) I may be surprised on how it can bounce back. He was also very happy to hear about the lotion routine.

Do I hate my skin? Yes, however Rome wasn't built in a day and I am hell-bent determined to try to tone up as much as I can before I go under the knife.

countrylifeny · October 2012

I have lost only 3 pounds in the 2 days i have been on here. I think it is great . But i am woried about sagging skin too. But at my age right now i am not going to worry about it. I have alot of weight to lose and i am doing this on my own..I am hope walking and some exercising will help with the sagging skin...good luck to you all..
:smooched:

Will210 · October 2012

Interesting about the waiting for two years. I guess it would prove you can maintain the weight loss as well before having an expensive surgery.

Stupid question but if you do lipo and suck out the fat cells - can fat regrow back in those places where the fat cells are no longer there or would it grow back unevenly?

cjgillespie · October 2012

I dont know if all forms of insurance cover this or not, but a close friend of mine had gastric bypass about 5 years ago and her insurance picked up the tab for a tummy tuck. In order for it to be covered, she had to lose at least 100 pounds and then keep it off for at least 2 years. She just had the tummy tuck last summer and got pregnant 1 month later (oops).

I dont know if this is only something they pay for after bypass surgery, or perhaps any significant weight loss. Her doctors agreed that it wasnt healthy to be carrying around all that extra weight and it was causing tons of back issues for her. Even post pregnancy now, she looks fantastic and her stomach looks SO much better than before the tummy tuck.

99cherrypie99 · October 2012

I lost 227 pounds and did everything "right". Exercise, lost weight slowly, moisturized, strength train, drank lots of water and I still had a TREMENDOUS amount of extra skin. It was removed earlier this year - over 7 pounds of skin. I documented the process - including before and after pics - in my blog - jenhudsonmosher.blogspot.com. The procedure cost $12,000 and my insurance paid a whopping $1,000.

vypeters · October 2012

I have good news and bad news.

First the bad news: Your sagging skin will be what it will be. It's determined by factors like genetics, how you carry your weight, how obese you are, how long you've been obese, how old you are and (oddly enough) how fair your skin is. None of these things are in your control. Nothing 'tightens' the skin.

Things that don't work: creams, lotions, potions, pills and the mythical 'losing weight slowly'

Thing that kinda appears to work: weights. Lifting has zero affect on the skin itself, what it does is fill out some of the skin with musle instead of fat. Result is that the skin is less loose because there's something healthy filling it out. However, this can only go so far when you've lost 150+ lbs (just over 180 in my case).

The only thing that actually works: Plastics.

I can't afford plastics. At 180.5 lbs lost I have:
-draping skin on my upper arms and my thighs
-baggy skin on my calves, butt, where my back boobs used to be and a little on my tummy (I never had a big gut).

My solution: Bermuda shorts and 3/4 sleeves. I even swim in board shorts.

Now the good news: I have my life back. It used to hurt to walk from the car to the store, now I go on 10-mile mountain hikes. More good news: The skin is no uglier than the fat was (trust me, the bulges don't look good) and at least now I look fabulous in clothes.

Seriously, my advice: the skin is going to be what it is. Get healthy. Do some lifting. See where you are and if you're in a position at some point to do plastics and the skin really bugs you, have it cut off.

Good luck.

Onaughmae · October 2012

I'm just wondering what everyone thinks about this subject. I have over 150 pounds to lose and I'm concerned about leftover skin. How much is the surgery to have it removed? Does anyone know? Also, how much recovery time would there be?

Really hope someone answers this. It's early to be asking, but I'm seriously wondering.

Well...I am sagging where no girl should sag

But...rather have loose saggy skin than fat filled skin any day! When I am done I will see what insurance will cover...and then I will deal with what it wont cover. Started saving my pennies!

Onaughmae · October 2012

sorry jumping on your topic- but i was wondering if anybody losing weight uses compression garments or anything else for loose tummy or thighs?

Spanx is my friend :happy:

italiankrystal26 · October 2012

I've been overweight my whole life unfortunately. I'm 27, have super fair skin and as for genetics, I'm not sure. I kinda got the weird ones out of my family. hahaha
I have about 60lbs I'd love to lose... But I worry about the whole "Sag" problem as well. I carry most of my weight in my belly...
Im kind of scared of doctors due to prior issues with a surgery. But yea. I hope it can bouce back, we shall see!

Goodluck everyone! Any and all tips are appreciated!

fibronut · October 2012

I, too, am worried about sag. I'm about 40 pounds down from the total of the 150+ I want (intend!!!) to lose. I know that my insurance will not cover skin removal as long as it is considered "cosmetic." However, I was told that if a medical reason was found to do it, ie., the skin rubbing against skin and chafing, leading to infection, etc., then it would be covered. I wouldn't doubt that a certain timeframe will have to have passed as well ... it makes sense.

So for me, I'm going to lose the weight and worry about the extra skin thing later, perhaps saving some money in the mean time if I can swing it. I'm dropping slowly and exercising, and hoping that works. Oh, and I had heard about the Prep H trick before, but that can only do so much. :happy:

Good luck to you all!

ellehcimyelhsa · October 2012

So here is my story. I have lost 92 pounds and I am seeing the skin. I have been strength training and cardio from day one and I can see muscle definition and I know my body is strong however with losing this much weight (with about 70 more to go) I know skin will be an issue. I thought (logically) that if I wore compression garments or shapers during exercise that it would surely help. Then I read a huge report how women who do this are actually exercising less because the shaper doesn't allow them to breathe as easily as we would without it so the exercise suffers. I stopped wearing it.

The next trick I read was just to say super hydrated (which isn't a problem for me) and use a nice repairing lotion 2x a day. I have been doing this for about 2 months now (using Skin so Soft skin repair from avon) and I can really tell a difference. As I strength train and do this routine it seems as if my arms are getting better and my stomach, well, we're working on it.

I asked my DR about surgery (I can't run, my skin kinda slaps around) and he said unless we can find a medical reason to take it off he would recommend waiting two years after my goal weight to look into surgery. He said skin can change up to two years after extreme weight loss and with my age (23) I may be surprised on how it can bounce back. He was also very happy to hear about the lotion routine.

Do I hate my skin? Yes, however Rome wasn't built in a day and I am hell-bent determined to try to tone up as much as I can before I go under the knife.

^THIS! Your skin can take much longer to repair itself, but it does repair itself. It might not be perfect, but I'd be willing to wait an extra year or so to save a couple grand and not have to recover from a surgery. My doctor has told me the same basic idea. I just had a baby and then lost 44 lbs!

DCHound · October 2012

Hi everyone. Compression garmets don't work when you're losing but in theory when you get to a very low BMI they can help somewhat - I had a friend try one after losing down to a very low BMI and it did make a difference. The burn victim/skin graft thing is an urban myth.

Sweetalker is absolutely right - for a lot of people, what we think of as excess skin is actually excess hanging fat covered by skin. Getting down to a very low BMI is really important. Lifting heavy weights is really important too. And there are plenty of other treatments that help, including a variety of vitamins, minerals and extracts, dry skin brushing, rebounding, and more. NASA scientists studied rebounding in particular and found that it *does* tighten skin--takes time, but it works.

Ladytinkerbel's Preparation H tip does work around eyes to some extent so I've heard but I don't think it would do anything for a saggy belly, arms, etc.

The good news, for most folks, is if they can get down to the very low BMI, a lot of that skin will tighten up on its own over time. Many folks report that the trouble areas didn't clear up til they lost the last 5-10 lbs. But there are steps you can take along the way to help your skin out.

I have a website (www.firmlooseskin.com) and a book (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B009MT4588/ref=nosim?tag=firlooski-20&linkCode=sb1&camp=212353&creative=380549) dedicated to the topic that I researched the heck out of. You can read the first few chapters of the book on Scribd (http://www.scribd.com/doc/109857643/Firm-Loose-Skin-Book-Preview).

Best of luck to you Chemalurgy on your weight loss journey! I've lost almost 200 lbs since 2008 and it's a marathon, not a sprint, but TOTALLY worth doing. Your life will change in ways you can't even imagine right now.

JennPrebs · October 2012

So here is my story. I have lost 92 pounds and I am seeing the skin. I have been strength training and cardio from day one and I can see muscle definition and I know my body is strong however with losing this much weight (with about 70 more to go) I know skin will be an issue. I thought (logically) that if I wore compression garments or shapers during exercise that it would surely help. Then I read a huge report how women who do this are actually exercising less because the shaper doesn't allow them to breathe as easily as we would without it so the exercise suffers. I stopped wearing it.

The next trick I read was just to say super hydrated (which isn't a problem for me) and use a nice repairing lotion 2x a day. I have been doing this for about 2 months now (using Skin so Soft skin repair from avon) and I can really tell a difference. As I strength train and do this routine it seems as if my arms are getting better and my stomach, well, we're working on it.

I asked my DR about surgery (I can't run, my skin kinda slaps around) and he said unless we can find a medical reason to take it off
he would recommend waiting two years after my goal weight to look into surgery. He said skin can change up to two years after extreme weight loss and with my age (23) I may be surprised on how it can bounce back. He was also very happy to hear about the lotion routine.

Do I hate my skin? Yes, however Rome wasn't built in a day and I am hell-bent determined to try to tone up as much as I can before I go under the knife.

Ty i needed to hear this

OnMyWay4 · October 2012

Speaking as someone who knows someone who went through dramatic weight loss (I went with her to her doctor appointments)....

That "extra skin" isn't really extra skin. It's stretched skin with fat underneath. More fat to lose. The "flap" is more common for those who lose weight with diet - and not as much with exercise.

The non-surgical answer? Exercise more. Skin is elastic; it is made to "snap" back into place and it will do so, if the fat underneath is worked away, whether that's through exercise or surgery.

I can prove this! If the above was not true, then every woman who ever went through a pregnancy would have to have surgery to "repair" her sagging belly after the baby was born. Nope - she just has to lose more weight.

So yes, you will lose the "inner" fat first, but don't panic - keep losing (through exercise!) and you'll work off that "extra skin" (really just flab underneath).

My friend did it, so can you!

I'm with you on this one. I've had 3 CSections and I had a HORRIBLE "flap" that is now almost completely gone. I was worried about excess skin but as I lost weight my skin seemed to follow. I'm still having trouble losing the last little bit above my scar but its a lot better from where I started.

Sagging Skin after Weight Loss

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