Clipers and stretchmarks...

sarantonio
sarantonio Posts: 880 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I recently got a pair of cheap-o skinfold calipers and set about the task of attacking various parts of my body. I also not-so-recently had a little boy who stretched my stomach above and beyond its natural capacity. Ok, well, I actually stretched it, when I ate for two, I ate for two hungry lumberjack's after a long day of logging. Anyways, I set about the task of measuring how many mm of fat are under my skin, when I realized that on my arms and legs, there is only so much. On my stomach, however, I'm pretty sure I could of kept pulling until my entire belly was in my hand (sorry for the nasty mental image... sorry again if you didn't have one but now you do) Is this because I store more fat there, or because my skin is damaged and easier to manipulate? Anyone else come across this?

Replies

  • sarantonio
    sarantonio Posts: 880 Member
    Oh, I see... I am the only one with an alien belly :cry:
  • Thedij
    Thedij Posts: 29 Member
    I'm a mother of 3 (ages 23, 18 & 13) and I had 3 stomaches. I'm pretty sure I should only have 1, and it's supposed to be underneath the skin. Thanks to myfitnesspal I'm down to 2 stomaches now (1 inside where it belongs and 1 outside).

    You are not the only one! The tricky part is to lose the weight and get your skin to stretch BACK, so it's not literally hanging down looking gross. I've been frustrated in the past with this as I was exercising at CURVES and still had this happen. I recently read that weight training might help snap the skin back where it belongs. I just hope my skin still has some elasticity in it and it will respond. I'm not sure if Pilates will help with this too. I'm really pressed for time to work out, but I know hard work and self discipline are likely the only keys to success, as seems to be the case in almost everything in life.
  • HJMAYES
    HJMAYES Posts: 72 Member
    Watch your food. Watch your exercise. Watch your stomach shrink back to normal. I'm not sure how old your little boy is, but it took nine months to pop that belly out to hold him, it's gonna take a little time to get it all back in. Your skin has some natural elasticity to it, let it do it's thang. ;)
  • sarantonio
    sarantonio Posts: 880 Member
    I'm a mother of 3 (ages 23, 18 & 13) and I had 3 stomaches. I'm pretty sure I should only have 1, and it's supposed to be underneath the skin. Thanks to myfitnesspal I'm down to 2 stomaches now (1 inside where it belongs and 1 outside).

    You are not the only one! The tricky part is to lose the weight and get your skin to stretch BACK, so it's not literally hanging down looking gross. I've been frustrated in the past with this as I was exercising at CURVES and still had this happen. I recently read that weight training might help snap the skin back where it belongs. I just hope my skin still has some elasticity in it and it will respond. I'm not sure if Pilates will help with this too. I'm really pressed for time to work out, but I know hard work and self discipline are likely the only keys to success, as seems to be the case in almost everything in life.

    Yeah, I know, mine is shrinking up really nice, just getting wrinkly (I have severe stretch marks) I was just curious as to how I am supposed to use skinfold calipers and get a fairly accurate reading with this mess... or if its even possible.
  • sarantonio
    sarantonio Posts: 880 Member
    My son will be 8 in May...LOL... guess I should have said HOW LONG ago, gained 75 lbs in pregnancy, and another 10-15 afterwards

    I'm 31 lbs from my pre-pregnancy weight now
  • petstorekitty
    petstorekitty Posts: 592 Member
    hydrating the skin helps with the elasticity. drinking lots of water and keeping it moisturized. It's not a total solution but it helps the way it looks.
    I didn't have and bebehs, but I used to be much larger and have skin issues.
  • RachyLovesRattys
    RachyLovesRattys Posts: 143 Member
    Hello there! you seem young so I definitely think after you continue working out, it will snap back into shape. Think of all those celebrities who manage to get back into their bodies after countless children. It's a lot of hard work, and way quicker than most of us can manage with busy schedules, but it DOES happen eventually. Not all of them are plastic surgery addicts thank God! This happens with everyone who was once a higher weight and now isn't. however when it comes to children and immediately dropping 6 pounds of baby boy off of you, it's just more noticeable (to you- not the rest of the world). Stay with weight training and exercising in whatever way you can (i'm sure you're going to be chasing him around the house soon- if you aren't already) and I can't stress enough the value of a really good lotion when it comes to allowing the skin to stretch back. Moisturized skin is elastic and will snap back eventually- dry unmanaged skin will take much longer to renew itself. You're definitely working towards your goals in the right way and I absolutely think you will start seeing lots of results soon. And even if you don't ever completely return back to your "pre-baby" stomach, just think about how each of those marks was the result of your body feeding, loving, and nourishing a beautiful child that will love you no matter what you look like. Consider them a badge of honor!
  • Mischievous_Rascal
    Mischievous_Rascal Posts: 1,791 Member
    Eating properly combined with resistance training and HIIT have worked for me - extreme calorie limitations (1200 cal diets) and cardio alone didn't.

    Unless you've been diagnosed as obese, it's usually not excess skin. Sorry, it's subcutaneous fat. I didn't like having to admit this, but once I did and changed my approach, it's been pretty awesome. I'm down to about 26% BF (down 90+ pounds lost over five years) and it's only been the last five pounds that has seen my "excess tummy skin" shrink. Build muscle and stay in a slight calorie deficit (ie - lose it slow and steady so it stays off) and your tummy will disappear too. Best of luck!
  • Nique85
    Nique85 Posts: 105 Member
    Hello there! No you are not the only one. I gained ummm 60lbs while pregnant with my daughter, and didn't get serious about my weight loss until this past October, and she is 17 months now. My stomach is very loose and, I have what they call "mothers apron". It has went down substantially since having her, however, I didn't really start to notice changes until I started weight training. Its SLOWLY getting smaller. I am confident that I will shrink down, to ALMOST nothing if I keep w tracking my food, working out, and strength training. I don't think it will completely disappear but I think I can get it to a more comfortable size. I'm still approx 22lbs from my pregnancy weight. I'm actually changing my workout routine next week to, add more strength training. I will update to let you all know how it goes.

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