Skin

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Until you've reached goal weight, or close to it, it's hard to assess. Most of us don't lose the outermost fat cells first, then the next layer. Instead, fat cells deplete anywhere in the fat mass.

So, fat areas may start out with firm-ish fat, and get progressively squishier or floppier as we lose weight until the fat cells are depleted enough that they stop conspiring with gravity to keep skin stretched out. Once that happens, the skin can start really shrinking . . . but it's slow.

Actual loose skin is thin wrinkles, like you can pinch up on a body part that's bony, like kneecap, elbow, or back of hand. Thicker wrinkles/folds/rolls still have some subcutaneous fat. Until you reach close to goal, you don't know how much remaining fat vs. loose skin you have.

How fast our true loose skin will shrink, and how much, is a function of age, genetics, and maybe some other general health factors. Any magic techniques or products that are supposed to help are pretty much pure woo.

For me, after I reached goal weight at age 60 (after losing about 1/3 of my bodyweight), my actual loose skin - the thin wrinkles - kept shrinking at least into my 2nd year of maintenance. The areas that were still a little flabby, or where I keep gaining and losing that last few pounds seasonally, extra skin is still hanging around.

Net result isn't bad, and I know I could get better results now via weight training to add muscle and further reduce fat at goal weight (a.k.a. recomposition) . . . but I'm lazy.