Unpopular subject: loose skin

Rae_Nacoal
Rae_Nacoal Posts: 12 Member
in Motivation and Support
For people who have lost 100+ pounds did you workout while losing? Was it just diet? Did working out help with the skin.

I’m am currently down 131 lbs. I have a good bit of skin on my abdomen thighs and back. I’ve recently started working out and I’m wondering if this has help with the skin? Or anything else you’ve tried other than plastics that worked.

s.n. I’d take the lose skin over extra weight any day!

Replies

  • chris_in_cal
    chris_in_cal Posts: 2,518 Member
    I lost 80 lbs. ten years ago and had a tiny bit of loose skin on my abdomen. After regaining it and a bit more and ten years going by, I'm getting back down in weight again. I predict it is going to be much different this time. So, I am not there yet, but I hope to be having this issue in the next 15 or 20 lbs. :)

    Congrats.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    I worked out the entire time while closing 150 and still do 3 yrs into maintenance. I assume it may have helped with minimal loose skin, but honestly there’s no way to know the cause and effect for sure. It certainly helped me look better overall.
    Good for you got getting started now.
  • sweetbe44
    sweetbe44 Posts: 195 Member
    I’ve lost 100 lbs so far over the last 2 years. I don’t have much loose skin to speak of. I think strength training and the slower rate of loss may have helped me but genetics probably played a big role as well.
  • Katmary71
    Katmary71 Posts: 7,064 Member
    I lost 100lbs the last few years. The last 45 was this year, I started using an exercise bike in January then elliptical and weights in May. I have no clue if strength training helped at all. Loose skin wasn't noticeable until the last 20lbs. I've gained back 6lbs and it doesn't look any better. I'm hoping the advice that skin can bounce back up to 2 years after losing is true!
  • psychod787
    psychod787 Posts: 4,099 Member
    I have some. Tightened it some lifting. Will always have it. I could care less. It's just skin.
  • baconslave
    baconslave Posts: 7,018 Member
    Katmary71 wrote: »
    I lost 100lbs the last few years. The last 45 was this year, I started using an exercise bike in January then elliptical and weights in May. I have no clue if strength training helped at all. Loose skin wasn't noticeable until the last 20lbs. I've gained back 6lbs and it doesn't look any better. I'm hoping the advice that skin can bounce back up to 2 years after losing is true!

    In my experience, it is. I'm almost 4 years out from reaching goal, and I'm still seeing little improvements over time. This time it was the neck-wattle. Looking pretty good for a 40-year-old who lost 100lb. My abdomen is still improving slowly. It won't be perfect ever again for most people, but it will get better. Patience is required though and that sucks.


    Rae_Nacoal wrote: »
    For people who have lost 100+ pounds did you workout while losing? Was it just diet? Did working out help with the skin.

    I’m am currently down 131 lbs. I have a good bit of skin on my abdomen thighs and back. I’ve recently started working out and I’m wondering if this has help with the skin? Or anything else you’ve tried other than plastics that worked.

    s.n. I’d take the lose skin over extra weight any day!

    It depends on genetics and age as to how much improvement you see. But as I said above, I only lost 100, and the skin was BAD, and it will never be perfect, but I'm still seeing improvements 4 years out. I do strength training and cardio, but the thing that has improved the skin most is time.

    Like you said, I'll take the skin if it means I stay a healthy weight. I'm NOT going back there EVER again.
  • dhiammarath
    dhiammarath Posts: 834 Member
    I've lost 105lbs and so far have negligible loose skin. I'm a) lucky genetically and b) shaped like a noodle (generally one shape all over), so I got all over chunky (just a plumper noodle -- more ziti than angel hair) rather than parts of me getting most of the weight. I also lost it slowly (~started circa 2012), and have had years of maintaining in the middle, which might have given my skin time to adjust. I have another 15lbs or so, so I'll see what it is at the end!
  • aries68mc
    aries68mc Posts: 173 Member
    Mine's more flabby/squishy (LOL) than loose, ie it is not hanging. My workouts while losing was mainly walking. I did start using hand weights and then a couple of months ago, started using a Legmaster. So I am hoping with time and increasing work outs I can tone the flab. ;-)
  • CourierSixx
    CourierSixx Posts: 46 Member
    Genetics, age, how many times you have gained, lost and gained again all play a role in whether you will have loose skin or not.

    Strength training helps with toning up the muscles underneath the skin and that helps with the appearance of the loose skin. Most of the time, the loose skin is still there, but tone muscle helps make it look better. Also some people will have their loose skin tighten up over a year or more, some aren't so lucky.

    I lost 70lbs in my late 20s. I didn't have too much loose skin, except my arms and uppser thights but it wasn't that bad. Gained it all back and then some. Lost 40lbs and started to get really bad loose skin on my neck. Gained the 40lbs back and the loose skin remained. Have lost 20lbs and the wrinkly neck looks horrible. I hate it. I'm 43 and look 59.
  • Aerohead21
    Aerohead21 Posts: 333 Member
    To be honest - if you have loose skin you will not be able to shrink it. It will have to be surgically removed. I lost 100 lbs in my early 20s and was seriously depressed over all the excess skin I had because I wasn’t aware it wouldn’t shrink back. Be knowledgeable and be ok with it. Your health is far more important than your appearance as unsightly as it is.
  • sthurman
    sthurman Posts: 23 Member
    Loose skin is an unfortunate side effect of major weight loss. Some people have amazing elasticity and will have minimal skin issues, however many have loose skin after losing a great deal no matter how much they work out, eat clean etc.

    A lot of people don’t want to hear that surgery is the only option to correct it, but it is for those with a lot of loose skin. You can improve the appearance with muscle building. To me, areas like arms, legs and glutes seem to benefit really well from weight training. I’ve noticed that a good build on a bicep can help a saggy arm look less obvious.
    Things like “skin tightening wraps”, shakes, pills and creams will not improve your skin tone, they’re snake oil. It’s a down to the fibers sort of thing.
    Our skin is pretty darn resilient, but it isn’t magical. It has its limitations and when it’s been pushed to its limit like it does with obesity, it breaks down.

    No matter what choice a person takes to address(or not) the loose skin, it’s always important to remember that the journey to get there did a whole lot more than change our appearance for better or worse.
    We’re healthier people without the added weight, as long as we did it in a safe fashion of course.
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,324 Member
    Losing a lot of weight fast will cause loose skin. So.. lose slow. And a lot of people don't want to lose slow..they want the weight off..and loose skin is probable. So.. if you want a real chance.. moisturize a lot...lose slow and work out. Then..what happens..happens. You've done all you can.
  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
    Rae_Nacoal wrote: »
    For people who have lost 100+ pounds did you workout while losing? Was it just diet? Did working out help with the skin.

    I’m am currently down 131 lbs. I have a good bit of skin on my abdomen thighs and back. I’ve recently started working out and I’m wondering if this has help with the skin? Or anything else you’ve tried other than plastics that worked.

    s.n. I’d take the lose skin over extra weight any day!

    You should exercise for improved fitness first and if it helps a little with the skin consider that a bonus.

    There is no way that anyone could know if working out improved their skin situation because it is not a cure. If it does help it might not even be a double digit percentage amount of improvement. Good nutrition is also likely to help but is not considered a cure either.

    If you have decent quality of skin time will be the main factor but I would not expect it to fix just any amount.

    For the other people reading this at closer to the beginning of their weight loss I suggest taking reasonable precautions but do not worry about it now. Worrying about things in advance is not helpful. You won't know right now if you will have a problem or whether or not the problem will resolve itself in time.

    Reasonable precautions:
    Lotion
    Do not lose weight so fast you sacrifice proper nutrition
    Exercise as you are able
  • zaraizzy56
    zaraizzy56 Posts: 56 Member
    I've lost 123 lbs so far and have about 92 lbs still to go to reach my final goal.
    The only place that I have any baggy skin is my upper arms, but it's not to bad. Mostly it was done with walking, and eating in moderation.
    It's taking me a long time to get to where I'm at know, it is better to do it slowly. Less likely to have excess skin and to regain back what you've lost.

    I have had good and bad times but the good far out weigh the bad. 😃
  • gemiller87
    gemiller87 Posts: 135 Member
    I lost around 125lbs this year and at one point started seeing some loose skin show up on my mid abdomen. I really buckled down on core work and hydration as well as some collagen supplements and as of now I dont really have a whole lot of it anymore and suspect by the time I hit goal body fat I shouldn't have really any.

    I do have a few stretch marks that i've been working on lightening up by exfoliating with some aggression with sugar in the raw. They've really lightened up with that method (just some random method I seen a few times online).
  • neugebauer52
    neugebauer52 Posts: 1,120 Member
    edited December 2019
    By now I have lost just over 100 pounds - 48 kg and I have some lose skin. It is summer here and I look at elderly people in their summer outfits - loose skin abound. Looks like once we humans reach the 65 + zone we just shrink any which way. Seems to be the future expectations for most of us regardless if we lose weight or not.

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