suggestions for sagging skin after weight loss?
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DeguelloTex wrote: »
You do know that "tummy" means "stomach," right? And that "tummy" is one of your bolded words? You seem not to.Liftng4Lis wrote: »DeguelloTex wrote: »
You said "to fill in the area."Liftng4Lis wrote: »
What ab exercises? No one said anything about adding 55 pounds of muscle. Why would she want to add 55 pounds when she just lost it?DeguelloTex wrote: »
Those must be some hella ab exercises, even apart from expecting a woman to add 55+ pounds of muscle to fill in the other areas.Liftng4Lis wrote: »Lift heavy, to fill in the area and be patient.
It says mostly from my arms, legs and tummy. Lifting heavy will add muscle all over and reduce the appearance of lose/saggy skin.
Filling in the tummy would be abs, right? She should "lift heavy" to full in the loose skin on her tummy?
I get that you like to throw "lift heavy" into nearly every thread and that lifting heavy can have benefits and even that lifting heavy might, for some people in some circumstances, help with loose skin, but if it's physiologically impossible for a woman to lift heavy enough to fill in the volume left behind by 55 pounds of fat, the suggestion isn't all that helpful.
At least the "be patient" part made sense, though.
You obviously, for some reason have a stomach fettish going on. AGAIN, she said:
AGAIN, lifting will help the overall appearance of lose skin, by filling in the area with muscle. AGAIN, no one would expect her to fill in the area with 55 pounds and as a matter of fact YOU'RE the only one who suggested that.pdwhitlock wrote: »Hi! I've went from 250 to about 195 since the beginning of October. I feel great and I want to say I look better but everything is sagging. I know it takes time, but have any of you had any success with improving the process of firming your skin after losing this much weight? Mostly in my arms, legs, and tummy.
As for your statement that I like to "throw around" lift heavy, that would be because that is what works for me. In addition to my hours of bike riding and other activities, that help tighten up my body. Perhaps you should look into it as you have no basic knowledge in the area.
You say, "no one would expect her to fill in the area" and you also say "Lift heavy, to fill in the area." Which is it? If 55 pounds of fat are gone and muscle is denser than fat, how do you propose the area be filled in with muscle without adding it in very high volume?
Look, adding the amount of muscle OP is likely to be able to add isn't going to fill in the areas left behind by the fat she's losing. It just isn't. As I said before, lifting heavy has benefits. Filling the area left behind by 55 pounds of fat just isn't going to be one of them because there will simply be insufficient additional muscular volume to do so.
As others have said, moisture, time, and, perhaps, surgery are the likeliest candidates here.
I can't even get my head around the idea that you believe she's talking about filling up ALL of the area that 55lbs of fat left. You really think that the skin will not tighten up on its own as well?
I can only imagine what 55lbs of abs muscle would look like.0 -
beamer0821 wrote: »@pdwhitlock i have a similar weightloss 255 down to 200. the saggy skin mostly my upper inner thighs is embarrassing. and sagging under arms. when i was 200 in my 20s i had none of that. but 35 and 3 kids later and a decade at 255 here i am...
however if its any consolation i did notice slight improvement a few months after i reach a 50 lb loss. its all still there just an improvement. I've read a lot that saggy skin can be mistaken for still additional fat. especially at 200 lbs still I'm hoping losing additional weight which i need to do still will help and its not all *real* saggy skin but just fat still.
good luck!
That's a good point. When you are in the process of becoming fatter your fat cells and skin are being stretch which gives the effect of being tight.
When losing especially when you still have fat that needs to be lost the fat cells are not being held tightly any longer and jiggle which amplifies the loose skin effect.0 -
Oh FFS
Ok OP, the stuff that attaches skin to muscles (among other things) is called superficial fascia. It attaches through subcutaneous fat. It will stretch to accommodate this fat (and pregnancies) but then springs back. In loose skin it isn't springing back.
Building up muscle (through a lifting program) increases the volume of the muscle. The extra surface area gives new fascia a new place to cling to and the tightening of the muscles draws in the loosened facia which in turn picks up the skin. All this stuff takes time and the skin might not bounce all back. But that's it in a nutshell why lifting heavy things helps.
Oh, and because of it's density, if you somehow managed to put on 55lbs of muscle it would still be way smaller than 55lbs of fat. But it's unlikely 55lbs of any sort if weight gain is in your future!
Good luck!0 -
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This is all that is needed to be said.hsmith0930 wrote: »There really isn't a whole lot that can be done externally. Genetics and the amount of time you were heavier has way more to do with how your skin reacts to weight loss than anything else. I mean, hydrated skin always looks better than drier skin, so the lotion will help in that aspect, but no topical things will really get rid of it. Either time or surgery is the only real way to get rid of all the sagging, and sometimes even time won't do enough.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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Dry brushing does NOTHING to reduce loose skin.I highly suggest a dry skin brush. You should do a little research to understand how and why this works, and to find out how to do it correctly. I started dry skin brushing over 6 months ago for the health benefits, I had no idea it would minimize the appearance of cellulite and stretch marks, but it did. Also you may want to try a collagen supplement like NeoCell. Buy a really good one that is sourced from high quality animal collagen. After two/three weeks using the collagen I noticed that my skin looked a lot healthier and my joints ached less.
It's tissue and unless it's retracting, then surgery would be the next option.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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Liftng4Lis wrote: »
That wouldn't be the FIRST activity that came to MY mind...cough*Liftng4Lis wrote: »Lift heavy, to fill in the area and be patient.
How would somebody lift to fill in the area under their chin ? Chew more food ? LOL
Gotta get that protein somehow...0 -
From some dumb article:
The Problem Isn’t Always Loose or Excess Skin
While there are legit cases of excess skin after weight loss, what many people think is loose or excess skin is actually just excess subcutaneous (under the skin) fat. This fat is soft and jiggly and easily mistaken as skin. And in cases of major weight loss, as you get leaner, it can be quite stubborn.
Until you lose that fat, your skin has no reason to return to its former size and tautness. It’s not a swath of passive, inert flesh–it’s a living organ that adapts to its internal and external environments. As long as the fat its attached to remains, it will sag.
A big part of eliminating loose skin is building muscle.... and it goes on.....
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And you are young, so add some muscle, skin adapts, presto. WINNER0
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hsmith0930 wrote: »There really isn't a whole lot that can be done externally. Genetics and the amount of time you were heavier has way more to do with how your skin reacts to weight loss than anything else. I mean, hydrated skin always looks better than drier skin, so the lotion will help in that aspect, but no topical things will really get rid of it. Either time or surgery is the only real way to get rid of all the sagging, and sometimes even time won't do enough.
Wise words. I would only add that age can also affect how your skin reacts. The younger you are, the more likely you will see more tightening in time.
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It was suggested once, I think Weight Watchers meeting, that it can take up to a year for the skin to adjust to the weight loss. I think that was just a general time frame to let us know it would take time.0
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I've read that you can tell the difference between loose skin and fat by it's outer texture. Loose skin has that crepe paper look, fat does not. Is this correct?0
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Skin is only 2mm thick (avg) so the pinch test works anywhere. If you pinch and have more than 4mm, that's fat. And most living people have more than 4mm, so that's not a goal, its just what skin alone would be.
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Thanks everyone. I forgot to add to my OP that I do at least three days of lifting and cardio each week. It has aided significantly in my weight loss journey to this point. No need to put down others suggestions and no, I doubt I will put that much muscle on but it has helped. Thanks for the reply of the SO of the surgeon. It helps to know I won't have to endure surgery to get this stubborn skin off. I did read as well in an article somewhere to avoid significant sun exposure for the first year after weight loss so I guess no tanning up to show off my progress0
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I take essential fatty acids and it helps significantly with sagging skin. I use the efa"s they sell through Slimgenics. They are expensive, but others have said they tried other brands and have not had the results they have gotten with the Slimgenics brand.0
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DeguelloTex wrote: »
Those must be some hella ab exercises, even apart from expecting a woman to add 55+ pounds of muscle to fill in the other areas.Liftng4Lis wrote: »Lift heavy, to fill in the area and be patient.
Assumptions much?0 -
DeguelloTex wrote: »
You said "to fill in the area."Liftng4Lis wrote: »
What ab exercises? No one said anything about adding 55 pounds of muscle. Why would she want to add 55 pounds when she just lost it?DeguelloTex wrote: »
Those must be some hella ab exercises, even apart from expecting a woman to add 55+ pounds of muscle to fill in the other areas.Liftng4Lis wrote: »Lift heavy, to fill in the area and be patient.
It says mostly from my arms, legs and tummy. Lifting heavy will add muscle all over and reduce the appearance of lose/saggy skin.
Filling in the tummy would be abs, right? She should "lift heavy" to full in the loose skin on her tummy?
I get that you like to throw "lift heavy" into nearly every thread and that lifting heavy can have benefits and even that lifting heavy might, for some people in some circumstances, help with loose skin, but if it's physiologically impossible for a woman to lift heavy enough to fill in the volume left behind by 55 pounds of fat, the suggestion isn't all that helpful.
At least the "be patient" part made sense, though.
You are still make assumptions. You know how much of that 55 pounds lost is from loose skin? Also you know that OP lost 55 of all fat?0 -
DeguelloTex wrote: »
You do know that "tummy" means "stomach," right? And that "tummy" is one of your bolded words? You seem not to.Liftng4Lis wrote: »DeguelloTex wrote: »
You said "to fill in the area."Liftng4Lis wrote: »
What ab exercises? No one said anything about adding 55 pounds of muscle. Why would she want to add 55 pounds when she just lost it?DeguelloTex wrote: »
Those must be some hella ab exercises, even apart from expecting a woman to add 55+ pounds of muscle to fill in the other areas.Liftng4Lis wrote: »Lift heavy, to fill in the area and be patient.
It says mostly from my arms, legs and tummy. Lifting heavy will add muscle all over and reduce the appearance of lose/saggy skin.
Filling in the tummy would be abs, right? She should "lift heavy" to full in the loose skin on her tummy?
I get that you like to throw "lift heavy" into nearly every thread and that lifting heavy can have benefits and even that lifting heavy might, for some people in some circumstances, help with loose skin, but if it's physiologically impossible for a woman to lift heavy enough to fill in the volume left behind by 55 pounds of fat, the suggestion isn't all that helpful.
At least the "be patient" part made sense, though.
You obviously, for some reason have a stomach fettish going on. AGAIN, she said:
AGAIN, lifting will help the overall appearance of lose skin, by filling in the area with muscle. AGAIN, no one would expect her to fill in the area with 55 pounds and as a matter of fact YOU'RE the only one who suggested that.pdwhitlock wrote: »Hi! I've went from 250 to about 195 since the beginning of October. I feel great and I want to say I look better but everything is sagging. I know it takes time, but have any of you had any success with improving the process of firming your skin after losing this much weight? Mostly in my arms, legs, and tummy.
As for your statement that I like to "throw around" lift heavy, that would be because that is what works for me. In addition to my hours of bike riding and other activities, that help tighten up my body. Perhaps you should look into it as you have no basic knowledge in the area.
You say, "no one would expect her to fill in the area" and you also say "Lift heavy, to fill in the area." Which is it? If 55 pounds of fat are gone and muscle is denser than fat, how do you propose the area be filled in with muscle without adding it in very high volume?
Look, adding the amount of muscle OP is likely to be able to add isn't going to fill in the areas left behind by the fat she's losing. It just isn't. As I said before, lifting heavy has benefits. Filling the area left behind by 55 pounds of fat just isn't going to be one of them because there will simply be insufficient additional muscular volume to do so.
As others have said, moisture, time, and, perhaps, surgery are the likeliest candidates here.
When do you not assume you know things?
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It can take up to two years for skin to catch up with weight loss....after that the only thing is surgery0
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It can take up to two years for skin to catch up with weight loss....after that the only thing is surgery
Thank you all for the advise. I know it takes time, I just wasn't sure exactly how long. I guess I will just keep hydrating, moisturizing, lifting and losing slowly and hopefully my skin will follow. And some of you guys crack me up with the responses to a suggestion of heavy lifting. I lift, and I lose. Somehow no, I doubt that will make me gain my 55 lbs back in muscle but yes, when I began to lift, my skin looked much more firm then diet alone. Maybe it's that "superficial stuff" another poster suggested, because that makes sense!
Some suggested that the firming of skin depends on how long you were fat. That makes sense too. I was at my heaviest during pregnancy in 2013, I got to 277 lbs
scary I know. Child birth and nursing got me down to 250 over a year and when my child weaned, I began diet and exercise again and got down to this weight. and I say "again" because I started this in 2012 when I was 267 and had gotten down to 220 before getting pregnant. Put a damper on things but I was determined not to give up on getting to where I want to be. I hope those few years of being in the "obese" category didn't stretch out my skin for too long. 0
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