Can you really get rid of loose skin?

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2

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  • aedreana
    aedreana Posts: 979 Member
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    I am 61 with loose skin on my butt because menopause took all the fat from my hips and *kitten* and shifted it around to my waist/midriff. My weight did not change; it redistributed. Now I have narrow straight hips and a flat butt that hangs in a multitude of wrinkles at the bottom where the saddlebags once were. Like wrinkled fabric. I am being 100% honest when I say that if I thought the butt wrinkles would fill out, I would be willing to weigh 200 or 250 pounds. ( I am 121 lbs. @ 5' 3 1/2.") Plastic surgery is my only hope but I am rock-bottom-poor, in desperate need of a rock-bottom. I totally disagree with anyone who thinks fat looks worse than loose skin.
  • TutuMom41
    TutuMom41 Posts: 278 Member
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    I am 61 with loose skin on my butt because menopause took all the fat from my hips and *kitten* and shifted it around to my waist/midriff. My weight did not change; it redistributed. Now I have narrow straight hips and a flat butt that hangs in a multitude of wrinkles at the bottom where the saddlebags once were. Like wrinkled fabric. I am being 100% honest when I say that if I thought the butt wrinkles would fill out, I would be willing to weigh 200 or 250 pounds. ( I am 121 lbs. @ 5' 3 1/2.") Plastic surgery is my only hope but I am rock-bottom-poor, in desperate need of a rock-bottom. I totally disagree with anyone who thinks fat looks worse than loose skin.

    There is no chance that I would regain weight to fill in my arms, and butt. I feel better. I am healthier and I look better. I can dress in a way that the loose skin is minimized but after a 200 lb loss I am all skin and bones
  • AvonBell
    AvonBell Posts: 107 Member
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    Step 1: Is it loose skin or remaining fat?

    A lot of people confuse the two. Skin is very thin and elastic.

    You would have to have lost a considerable amount of weight for loose skin to be a serious problem for an average person who truly lost the fat and kept it off for a few years. The truth is, for most people it's not a big deal.
  • CyberEd312
    CyberEd312 Posts: 3,536 Member
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    I lost 300 lbs. And had a circumferential body lift and had 17 lbs. Of skin removed and am still paying that surgery bill off... I had documented cases of skin infection and cellulitis that span over a couple years and it had gotten so bad when one of these bouts come on I had to drop what I was doing and go straight to the ER. I was told by my insurance it was cosmetic surgery and was not covered. OP regardless to whether you have loose skin or not it is more important to lose the weight and yet healthy rather than the alternative. ... You can always have something done later if the skin doesn't return to where you like it...... Best of Luck
  • HeidiCooksSupper
    HeidiCooksSupper Posts: 3,831 Member
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    I fully intend to wave my loose skin proudly as a badge of courage -- or enter dog shows as a sharpei.
  • esteffz23
    esteffz23 Posts: 9 Member
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    I have really loose skin in my stomach and wanted to see if it's possible for me to maybe have a flat stomach. I really need some proof some people say I can and others say no ! I just want to see how much can I do to thighthing a little bit at least! plz if you guys can post before and after pics that will be great !

    if you don't mind me asking, how did you lose the weight?


    I go to the gym 6 times a week and try to keep a healthy diet, it's hard and takes time but you see results fast. I started seeing results since the first month :) hope this helps
  • paulperryman
    paulperryman Posts: 839 Member
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    skin depending on how long it's been stretched for and how old you are may or may not ever rebound to the shape you are now, but it's really slow either way, i have pudgy skin around my waist but healthy body fat atm and some residule stretch marks below the belly button. in my case i was overweight to very overweight all my life and even more so the last 15yrs and at age 40 the chances of the elasticity still being there are much lower doesn't mean it wont eventually get there, just gonna take alot longer then it took to lose 34Kgs..


    Overall as someone else said, that's the least of your concerns, get rid of the weight so you can live then worry about looking good naked. just keep up with resistance training to tighten and tone, which will in turn drag the skin in a little bit at a time. nothing you can do short of surgery or maybe some fancy day spa technique to do it naturally as far as i can tell.
  • CrusaderSam
    CrusaderSam Posts: 180 Member
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    Yes--there are some suggestions if you want to lose a lot of weight and don't want to look like a deflated balloon.

    1) Lose weight slowly and don't regain before you lose again. That will help to ensure that you are actually losing more fat proportionally than lean tissue. Lose 20 and then maintain for a few months, then lose some more and then maintain for a few more months, etc. Going up and down a lot doesn't help your skin.

    2) Stay as well-nourished as you can while losing. While you will lose weight on a diet of Pop-Tarts (as long as you stay within your calorie goals), you may not like what you see when you are done. Every part of your lean tissue needs nourishment and depriving your skin of nourishment will not get you a visible vote of approval from what is really your body's largest organ (your skin).

    3) Losing some lean tissue is inevitable on every fat reduction plan. Use your maintenance periods to attempt to strengthen and build muscle.

    4) Make sure that it is actually lose skin that you are looking at and not really some body fat that needs to come off.

    5) Weight lifting (even if it is just body weight) is very helpful in curbing body fat and that will minimize "loose skin" (see point 4)

    6) Water, water, water. Staying well hydrated will help your skin to eliminate toxins that are produced by your metabolism (the skin is an organ of elimination). These toxins will build up in your skin, lymph channels and subcutaneous fat (and everyone is going to have some---even professional body builders) and make it look worse than it needs to. Some people say that Epsom salts baths help with the elimination of toxins from the skin and lymphatics. And, in any case, it can't hurt as most of us are deficient in magnesium and taking Epsom salts baths (Epsom salts are magnesium sulphate) will help restore magnesium levels and moisturize skin.

    You know its funny because
    1)Took me over a year to lose the weight
    2)Didn't eat any "junk" food
    3)Did that and then some
    4)I have been in to single digit body fat
    5)Yeah, hate to brag but I can bench 315 so most people say that I lift
    6)I am one of the dbags that would carry around the 1 gal jug of water at the gym.

    So I did everything you said and still got loose skin. So yeah you are misinformed. Not only that but its damn insulting to have people like you claim that I MUST have done something wrong to have ended up with extra skin. I hate when people like you try and be helpful but instead you are making them fell bad, like they did something wrong, when in fact they did nothing of the sort.
  • Elsie_Brownraisin
    Elsie_Brownraisin Posts: 786 Member
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    I fully intend to wave my loose skin proudly as a badge of courage -- or enter dog shows as a sharpei.

    :laugh:
  • scb515
    scb515 Posts: 133 Member
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    I fully intend to wave my loose skin proudly as a badge of courage -- or enter dog shows as a sharpei.

    Love your style. :D
  • thefitnessdiaries
    thefitnessdiaries Posts: 16
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    YES you can. I know a trainer/ fairly famous actor who has a perfect body and used to be VERY overweight. I couldnt believe it that he didnt have lypho, but he swore that he hadn't, and he isnt the only person who has been able to do it. Do some research before getting too discouraged. Just know that there is a method to it and you will have to train hard.
  • janatarnhem
    janatarnhem Posts: 669 Member
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    I fully intend to wave my loose skin proudly as a badge of courage -- or enter dog shows as a sharpei.


    Good for you! I'm gonna do the same! :love:
  • Fatandfifty3
    Fatandfifty3 Posts: 419 Member
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    I'm in the Genetics Camp... and the Slow Weight Loss Camp... and the Good Nutrition Camp and the Basic Good Luck Camp....
    I'm over 50 (55 i think), have been over weight most of my life, touching morbid obese in the last 2 years yet seem to have resilient skin (touch wood). There is going to be a certainly bagginess on the tummy (no ones going to try to bounce a 2p coin on there and get it back!). On the whole though it's not as bad as I thought it was going to be and I don't have chicken wings (touch wood).
    With 9lbs to lose i can't see you having baggy skin unless you have a medical condition. I'd say any 'roominess' you have will be down to muscle tone or rather the lack of it. Good Luck!
  • TutuMom41
    TutuMom41 Posts: 278 Member
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    I had that surgery too. I did have to fight with my insurgence company. My surgeon an orthopedic doctor, and my primary all helped. I know others who have had it covered. They did not cover the whole lower body lift only the tummy tuck. I had to pay an extra 7k for the Dr. to do the whole circumference. I am sorry you had to pay so much. Extra skin after a huge weight loss is a drag! I have kept my weight off for years.. I still have extra skin on my arms and some on my legs. There is no way I can get insurance to cover it. Some day maybe :)
    For those who are seeking insurance coverage you need to
    1. prove it is medically necessary (my skin hurt my back I had to get an orthopedist on board)
    2. document the problems the skin is causing. Pictures, dermatologist records...
    3. Try to see a surgeon who specializes in skin removal. (with all the WLS out there there has been an increasing in demand) Those surgeons know how to deal with your insurance company.

    I am only posting this so people know that this option could be available to them. It has to be a drastic loss I did have 25lbs of skin removed.
    Other people with a much smaller weight loss should lot have a lot of extra skin.
  • SanteMulberry
    SanteMulberry Posts: 3,202 Member
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    Yes--there are some suggestions if you want to lose a lot of weight and don't want to look like a deflated balloon.

    1) Lose weight slowly and don't regain before you lose again. That will help to ensure that you are actually losing more fat proportionally than lean tissue. Lose 20 and then maintain for a few months, then lose some more and then maintain for a few more months, etc. Going up and down a lot doesn't help your skin.

    2) Stay as well-nourished as you can while losing. While you will lose weight on a diet of Pop-Tarts (as long as you stay within your calorie goals), you may not like what you see when you are done. Every part of your lean tissue needs nourishment and depriving your skin of nourishment will not get you a visible vote of approval from what is really your body's largest organ (your skin).

    3) Losing some lean tissue is inevitable on every fat reduction plan. Use your maintenance periods to attempt to strengthen and build muscle.

    4) Make sure that it is actually lose skin that you are looking at and not really some body fat that needs to come off.

    5) Weight lifting (even if it is just body weight) is very helpful in curbing body fat and that will minimize "loose skin" (see point 4)

    6) Water, water, water. Staying well hydrated will help your skin to eliminate toxins that are produced by your metabolism (the skin is an organ of elimination). These toxins will build up in your skin, lymph channels and subcutaneous fat (and everyone is going to have some---even professional body builders) and make it look worse than it needs to. Some people say that Epsom salts baths help with the elimination of toxins from the skin and lymphatics. And, in any case, it can't hurt as most of us are deficient in magnesium and taking Epsom salts baths (Epsom salts are magnesium sulphate) will help restore magnesium levels and moisturize skin.

    You know its funny because
    1)Took me over a year to lose the weight
    2)Didn't eat any "junk" food
    3)Did that and then some
    4)I have been in to single digit body fat
    5)Yeah, hate to brag but I can bench 315 so most people say that I lift
    6)I am one of the dbags that would carry around the 1 gal jug of water at the gym.

    So I did everything you said and still got loose skin. So yeah you are misinformed. Not only that but its damn insulting to have people like you claim that I MUST have done something wrong to have ended up with extra skin. I hate when people like you try and be helpful but instead you are making them fell bad, like they did something wrong, when in fact they did nothing of the sort.

    Just a little hostile? What should I say that I'm sorry about? No offense was intended by me--that is just my experience and the experience of a number of others. I did not take offense at your tone but you should know that it was not one that belongs in a civilized discussion. I have already recognized that very large weight losses will produce excess skin no matter what. If you feel bad, it is not my doing--perhaps you are overly sensitive.
  • Junebuggyzy
    Junebuggyzy Posts: 345 Member
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    I applaud those of you that have had a drastic weight loss. How good that must feel! I started out smaller. 162 pounds, 5'1" on a good day. My skin reminds me of my grandmother's skin. Like crepe. Little wrinkles on my legs and arms. I am 61. I never had this kind of wrinkly skin before. 36 pounds in 5 months. That would be 22% of my body weight. I am sure that a good portion of that was muscle. Do you think I lost the weight too fast?

    My other question is, since I am older and my skin probably isn't all that resilient, do you think that weight lifting would fix this?
  • aedreana
    aedreana Posts: 979 Member
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    I am 61. After menopause, my weight redistributed. Although my weight didn't change, all the fat in my hips and butt shifted around to my waist and midriff (and I have never been pregnant). My hips lost all curve, became straight and narrow; my formerly shapely butt was now flat and hung in wrinkles at the bottom like wrinkled fabric. I went on a diet to lose some of the fat on my waist and midriff. I lost 27 pounds, down to 108 .That left my upper arms with deep corrugated wrinkles-- before losing weight they were only flabby, not wrinkled. And losing weight gave me puckery wrinkles on my midriff, waist and droopy belly, and light wrinkling right above my knees. My skin all over my body has become extremely thin. I don't believe for a split-second that exercise would rectify any of this loose skin. Plastic surgery is my only hope. I had regained 13 pounds, but I am presently dieting down to 112, only because that will be the optimum weight for plastic surgery. I will never look like anything but a freak of nature unless I can win $$$$$$ for plastic surgery, because of this wrinkled sagging *kitten*. Menopause DESTROYED my figure!
  • amandawillard3551
    amandawillard3551 Posts: 19
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    I'm 54 and have lost 20lbs in 45 days and don't have any loose skin. Pilates is great for getting the core muscles working and trimming the tummy, but it takes daily practice to slowly build those muscles.
  • Jessie24330
    Jessie24330 Posts: 224 Member
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    Lose 20 and then maintain for a few months, then lose some more and then maintain for a few more months, etc.

    Wondering if anyone else agrees with this? I have about 130 pounds, from my starting weight, to lose and I have thought about this. I was thinking that it might help if I lost 50 or 60 pounds and then maintained for three to five months so that my skin didn't have so much "catching up" to due when I get to my goal. In my mind it makes sense to me but I want to know what you all think. Of course, when my weight got lower I wouldn't lose so much between "maintaining sessions" and probably wouldn't have to take so long off either.
  • skinnymalinkyscot
    skinnymalinkyscot Posts: 174 Member
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    When I was 41yrs old (Im a female) I lost 5 stone over 10 months on 1200 calories of anything a day. Not an ounce of loose skin and the only exercise I did was walk to the shops and back, 20 mins each way , once a day. That was 14 years ago, ...I maintained for about 10 years but then got lazy and put weight back on which is why Im back here. On my previous diet I ate a normal breakfast, slimfast shake for lunch and a normal dinner.

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