Stomach shape is odd

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anfessal
anfessal Posts: 3 Member
edited August 2017 in Health and Weight Loss
Hey everyone. I'm new here. :smiley:

All my life I've been overweight, and so over the past year and a bit I've been slimming down. I'm 5ft 8 and don't know my current weight as I weigh in on monday, but last time I weighed myself I was 10 stone 4. Now here's the thing. My stomach isn't flat and I understand that I have more to lose but I'm concerned with it's shape.

There's the tiniest overhand around my bellybutton, but to the sides of it are flat. Plus my belly button sits too low down and sort of mildy frowns. When I grab onto the fat around my belly button and pull it up, my belly button is higher and there isn't this sort of small "U" shape. I'm just wondering whether as I lose weight my belly button will lift?

I only ask this as I have yet to come across someone with my belly in before and after pics. Most women I see have bellys that distend outward when overweight, yet mine just sinks. I'm wondering if it's due to my waist size as my frame seems small around the waist (37-24-37), so there's less area to distribute the fat around my waist and that's why the fat concentrates at the bottom.

Anyway, any women with this problem please step forward and tell me there is hope :dizzy:

if anyone needs a pic to imagine my belly type here: image_ovary_side.jpg

like that but my bellybutton is lower and frowns.

Replies

  • CTcutie
    CTcutie Posts: 649 Member
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    Welcome to MFP!
    I think your belly button would look higher if you continued to lose weight, but I have to say there is nothing wrong with your belly button or your stomach. I don't think it has anything to do with your waist size, though I could be wrong.
    I have a similar kind and it is slowly getting better, but I would need to lose a lot (probably within normal BMI range) to see the change I want.)
    I'm not so sure I will get to that (5'4", 178 now: 110-140 for normal BMI), so my expectations are realistic/ I'm not expecting to have a flat stomach.
  • CattOfTheGarage
    CattOfTheGarage Posts: 2,750 Member
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    This looks familiar to me. In my case it's loose skin due to having been pregnant, which means the fat under the skin doesn't cling tight to my belly, it sags downwards and makes my belly button look lower than it actually is. Have you been pregnant? I'm hoping it might tighten up once I lose more weight, but I'm not holding my breath, I'm trying to be OK with the idea that it may stay like that.
  • anfessal
    anfessal Posts: 3 Member
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    CattOfTheGarage wrote: »
    This looks familiar to me. In my case it's loose skin due to having been pregnant, which means the fat under the skin doesn't cling tight to my belly, it sags downwards and makes my belly button look lower than it actually is. Have you been pregnant? I'm hoping it might tighten up once I lose more weight, but I'm not holding my breath, I'm trying to be OK with the idea that it may stay like that.

    heya
    No I've never been pregnant, I'm only 20. My highest weight was 231 pounds, so I'm hoping since I lost the weight over time and was never obscenely big in the first place, that loose skin doesn't affect me too much.

    I do have a little bit of loose skin around the pooch, but not enough that it's causing the whole pooch to sag as when I grip my stomach pooch it's thick.

    I'm just hoping as the pooch goes my belly button will lift with it, which logically speaking has to happen, but I wouldn't be surprised if my body betrays me lol.
  • SafioraLinnea
    SafioraLinnea Posts: 628 Member
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    Your body shape isn't as unusual as you think! CTcutie above me has very similar stats. I am 165lbs and 5'3.5". My body is very similar to the picture, but with frowning belly button and way bigger breasts.

    Yes, everything is improving as I lose. I was at 227lbs 8 months ago so I've lost 60+ pounds at this point. My current goal is about 125-130 give or take but the number doesn't matter to me as much as how I feel and look as I get closer to goal.

    My expectations are not a perfectly flat stomach for my future. I don't need it or really want it. I don't really care if my stomach isn't perfect because I've been morbidly obese, pregnant, and had a csection. That's life.
  • texteach66
    texteach66 Posts: 92 Member
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    SafioraLinnea wrote: »
    Your body shape isn't as unusual as you think! CTcutie above me has very similar stats. I am 165lbs and 5'3.5". My body is very similar to the picture, but with frowning belly button and way bigger breasts.

    Yes, everything is improving as I lose. I was at 227lbs 8 months ago so I've lost 60+ pounds at this point. My current goal is about 125-130 give or take but the number doesn't matter to me as much as how I feel and look as I get closer to goal.

    My expectations are not a perfectly flat stomach for my future. I don't need it or really want it. I don't really care if my stomach isn't perfect because I've been morbidly obese, pregnant, and had a csection. That's life.

    Your current stats are almost exactly my current stats! I agree that this is not an unusual body shape - that's me, too.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    edited August 2017
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    I think you just have loose/floppy skin that is still lined with fat. It sounds like you still have 30/40 lbs to lose. That's way too early to get an idea of your eventual shape.
  • anfessal
    anfessal Posts: 3 Member
    edited August 2017
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    jemhh wrote: »
    I think you just have loose/floppy skin that is still lined with fat. It sounds like you still have 30/40 lbs to lose. That's way too early to get an idea of your eventual shape.

    I think if I lost 30-40 pounds I'd look dead lol :worried: but yeah I'm just going to keep losing fat and see what happens.
  • evilokc
    evilokc Posts: 260 Member
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    its probably going to change shapes two or three more times before you hit your goal. so don't fret too much. however we are all shaped a little different. its what makes us neat. there are small things you can do to modify your total body shape once you are at your goal but until then I wouldn't worry about it. keep on keeping on. you got this.
  • Nykkismommy21
    Nykkismommy21 Posts: 224 Member
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    If I looked it up correctly, you are about 144 lbs, at 5'8, you most certainly dont need to lose another 30 or 40 lbs. Are you doing any type of toning workouts for your tummy? Or are you just watching what you eat. From what I have read, losing weight makes us a smaller version of our current selves,but adding in strength training and toning exercises, reshapes our bodies.
  • StarvingAuthor
    StarvingAuthor Posts: 67 Member
    edited August 2017
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    I went from 160 to 115ish. My belly button frowned even at my lowest (104). A lot of exercise fixed it. (I never had a kid but I did have a belly ring reject out which caused mine + being overweight). I do not have much skin when pinching my stomach, my BF% is really low (exercise + diet). Hope this helps!

    Edit: Btw, I exercise A LOT. When I moderately exercise or go above 120lb it frowns again. I have to be very active for a normal belly button shape.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    Honestly, don't spend so much time analyzing your bb! I didn't Know a frowny bb was a "problem" until I read about it in MFP.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
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    In the bariatric surgery community excess skin is a fairly common side effect from significant weight loss. After about two years you will find out how much skin is going to tighten up.

    A cosmetic solution is spanx.

    There is also plastic surgery, the simplest being a panniculectomy. I looked in to it but the recovery time scared me off. The surface area that is affected is so much larger than stomach surgery even. Those who have had the surgery however are nearly universally happy with it. Your body, your choice.
  • noirelb
    noirelb Posts: 216 Member
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    Mine is like that and was like that even when iwas mid BMI and SUPER skinny because I'm a pear with a small waist. If you really want it to go, work your core A LOT. That's the one thing i never did
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    jemhh wrote: »
    I think you just have loose/floppy skin that is still lined with fat. It sounds like you still have 30/40 lbs to lose. That's way too early to get an idea of your eventual shape.

    @jemhh Get your conversions right :open_mouth::tongue: If OP lost 40lbs, she'd be 105 at 5'8"
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    Christine_72 wrote: »
    jemhh wrote: »
    I think you just have loose/floppy skin that is still lined with fat. It sounds like you still have 30/40 lbs to lose. That's way too early to get an idea of your eventual shape.

    @jemhh Get your conversions right :open_mouth::tongue: If OP lost 40lbs, she'd be 105 at 5'8"

    @Christine_72 :open_mouth:! Oops! I mistook a different post for the OP's. OP, ignore my post please :flushed:
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    jemhh wrote: »
    Christine_72 wrote: »
    jemhh wrote: »
    I think you just have loose/floppy skin that is still lined with fat. It sounds like you still have 30/40 lbs to lose. That's way too early to get an idea of your eventual shape.

    @jemhh Get your conversions right :open_mouth::tongue: If OP lost 40lbs, she'd be 105 at 5'8"

    @Christine_72 :open_mouth:! Oops! I mistook a different post for the OP's. OP, ignore my post please :flushed:

    Lol easy to do. I've done it plenty of times.

    Not to mention,trying to convert kgs (what i use) to pounds and stone and back again does my head in sometimes! I'm not going to even get started on the oz/gallons/miles kerfuffle..
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,483 Member
    edited August 2017
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    Christine_72 wrote: »
    jemhh wrote: »
    Christine_72 wrote: »
    jemhh wrote: »
    I think you just have loose/floppy skin that is still lined with fat. It sounds like you still have 30/40 lbs to lose. That's way too early to get an idea of your eventual shape.

    @jemhh Get your conversions right :open_mouth::tongue: If OP lost 40lbs, she'd be 105 at 5'8"

    @Christine_72 :open_mouth:! Oops! I mistook a different post for the OP's. OP, ignore my post please :flushed:

    Lol easy to do. I've done it plenty of times.

    Not to mention,trying to convert kgs (what i use) to pounds and stone and back again does my head in sometimes! I'm not going to even get started on the oz/gallons/miles kerfuffle..

    Ooh, how many oz are there in a mile.

    Cheers, h.
    Sorry, on my second glass of wine and developing a silly sense of humour- flippant.

    On a more serious note I do most of my MFP on my iPhone. I keep a conversion app open too for the conversion. h.
  • nowine4me
    nowine4me Posts: 3,985 Member
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    Not so odd - keep going.

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