Horrible stomach!

kirstenmccaulx wrote: »

MalcolmX1983 wrote: »

kirstenmccaulx wrote: »

No I have been weight lifting for almost 2 years now. I just meant to reach target before waiting to concentrate on toning and shape change with no further weight loss x

Surgery might be the only option, though sometimes it's just a letter of waiting for the skin to bounce back.
Just depends on you and your body really.

Good job on the fat loss:)


What routine are you doing in terms of lifting weights?
Do you work your core and abs?

I had been going a mix of sit ups, crunches. Kettle bell & Swiss ball exercises as well as using weights I think I need to concentrate on it specifically for a while. I've Also started running to get more body fat off xx

As a few posters mentioned above, you would benefit from following a set routine, like a 5x5 sorta thing.
Whilst working your core and abs every other other day.

Drinking a lot of water is good for the skin as well, maybe it'll help you with your elasticity.

Planks, side planks, leg raises, knee raises, hangin leg raises etc are excellent for your core and abs.

Start following routine and make sure you're logging numbers as well, either on a notepad or an app.

If after doing everything, the skin doesn't fix, then it might be time to consider other solutions like surgery etc.

Saggy/flabby skin has to do with skin elasticity, not muscle tone. Toning your muscles doesn't change your skin's elasticity. In fact it will do nothing, except give you something to do while you wait for your skin to respond.

However, that being said, are you sure it *is* loose skin only?

I would refer you to This article at Muscle For Life. I would particularly like to point out this section:

"While there are legit cases of excess skin after weight loss, what many people think is loose or excess skin is actually just excess body fat, which is soft and jiggly and easily mistaken as skin.

There’s an easy way to tell if you’re dealing with actual loose skin or too much body fat.

Pinch the area you’re concerned with and if you can grab more than a few millimeters of skin, there’s more fat in there to lose. (Calipers are useful for this type of testing as well as body fat percentage testing.)

Until you lose that fat, your skin has no reason to return to its former size and tautness. Remember that skin isn’t a curtain of passive, inert flesh–it’s a living organ that adapts to its internal and external environments. As long as the fat it’s attached to remains, it will sag."

So while those who claim working out will fix the issue, they are only half right if the issue is that you still have some loose, saggy fat to remove still. The workouts will help you shed the remaining fat, but only in so much as you follow CICO rules.

The workouts will however improve your muscles underneath the fat, which will help in the long run.

I hope this helps give you an accurate and informed explanation to your problem and possible solution.

randomtai wrote: »

kirstenmccaulx wrote: »

2 of my gym sessions each week usually involve strength training. That's why I have been able to make such an improvement on my legs and arms. Which I feel is now making my stomach look even more saggy

What routines are you doing? Your OP is kinda confusing when you say you are waiting to tone.

I think she means waiting to start a recomp.

You can plank all day, it's not going to make a difference if the excess is fat or skin. Diet fixes the fat, time may fix the skin.