Losing weight and gaining excess skin?

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blessedmommy2x
blessedmommy2x Posts: 110
in Health and Weight Loss
Okay so I have about 65 lbs to lose to get in a "normal" bmi rate... I keep worrying that I will lose the weight and end up having excess skin. Like some people lose the weight but their skin doesnt bounce back and instead hangs off them...
Is there anyway to avoid this from happening? I dont know that it will, but thats sort of one of my biggest fears.

Replies

  • susanswan
    susanswan Posts: 1,194 Member
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    Hi,
    My personal experience won't cheer you up but I lost my weight after 50. I think the younger you are the better off you will be. If you have stretch marks, they shrink back down but the elasticity is gone already. I've watched the Biggest Loser and some women look phenomenal at the final weigh in and some have flabby arms. Yes, it is disappointing, but. Flabby arms or fat arms? I'll take flabby. At least you can know that you are doing the best thing possible by getting a handle on your weight problem now so you'll be around for your little ones. Take up weight training and exercising. It doesn't have to be daunting. I love my Joyce Vedral videos for weight lifiting. I do mine with 3, 5, and 8 pound dumbbells and you can increase or decrease to suit you. She is my hero. She didnt' start working out until she was 39 and was a competition body builder. Now she is 60 years old and still cranks out the exercise videos. 4 years ago I went from 205 pounds down to 153. A size 16 down to a size 8. Years ago when I used to weigh that same weight I was a size 12! Doing her exercises transformed my pear shaped body into an hourglass! I had never had a body like that ever in my whole life! Google her and you can find her website. You can exercise at home when you get a few minutes to yourself. Much more time efficient than going to a gym and less intimidating, too! Good luck. Remember you are beautiful! Susan
  • goatstew
    goatstew Posts: 50
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    I've known friends who had this problem, especially when losing very large amounts of weight, like more than 100 pounds. It's like after I had babies, extra nasty skin. I've heard that working out and toning muscle while you lose helps with it, but I don't know if anything eliminates the problem. Sorry. You will be healthier, despite the extra skin. And, if it's really bad, you could save up for surgery to remove extra skin. Like a tummy tuck or whatever. I joke with my husband that when I'm all done having kids and losing weight, I'm going to Mexico for a tummy tuck because it's half price, ha ha ha.
  • RussianLynx
    RussianLynx Posts: 83
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    I think a lot of it has to do with how quickly you lose the weight. Losing 1 or 2 pounds per week I think is a slow enough rate that your skin will have time to become adjust without having any large flappy bits. I look at it as an added bonus for losing weight at a gradual pace ;o)

    A friend of mine dropped 120 pounds rapidly and had to have surgery to remove the excess.
  • susanswan
    susanswan Posts: 1,194 Member
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    My weight loss was averaged out at 1.1 pound/week. But I am older, too. Good luck!
  • raele
    raele Posts: 10
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    I agree with losing the weight slowly. If you lose it too fast, you will likely have excess skin. You have to lose at a gradual pace, not only to keep it off for good but to give your skin time to readjust - just as getting too big too fast will give you stretch marks and damage skin elasticity, getting small too fast can have the same negative affects. Stick to a healthy weight loss plan, use cardio to shed the pounds and add in strength training to keep your muscles in check and some toning to help with problem areas (inculding your skin). All of these will help keep your body working FOR itself and will help to eliminate any concerns with problem areas and excess skin!
  • DianaPowerUp
    DianaPowerUp Posts: 518 Member
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    But like Susan said, even if you lose weight slowly, if you are older, your skin is less elastic, and won't bounce back like if you were in your 20s. Losing a lb/wk at 25 may give you great results all the way around. Losing the same weight at 55 will leave you with excess skin, more than likely. Genetics plays a role in your skin elasticity too.
  • dave4d
    dave4d Posts: 1,155 Member
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    I've heard of some creams, or lotions that help with it too. I just can't remember what they are called.
  • Kkmama
    Kkmama Posts: 544 Member
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    So is there any hope for me? I am 43, have lost 15 lbs so far with another 50 to go. I am losing slowly, some weeks I have lost less than a pound and very seldomly lose maybe 1.5. I excercise everyday with EA Sports for the Wii.
    And like many women, I hope I am not alone, I have a droopy tummy. I am hoping by doing full body workouts and lots of cardio I can minimize the excess skin.

    Unforuntately I have been up and down the scale at this weight for the last 10+ years. The part that I am not looking forward to is the skin hanging from the inner thigh... yuck! And I want to spend time time on the beach this summer in a bathing suit!!!

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