Weight Loss and Sagging Skin

I am a 26 yo female who over the last 6.5 years has lost about 70 pounds. I'm 5'2" My highest recorded weight (and what i actively started to lose from) was 216, my lowest weight in the last 6.5 years was 143, and I am currently 150 trying to get down to the 120s.

I've lost all my weight the good old fashioned way of diet and exercise. Like most people who have struggled with weight issues I have spent months at a time maintaining and other months gaining and losing. I am at the point in my life though where reaching my goal will be easier and i intend to keep working towards it.

I'm very happy with all the weight that I've lost and while being healthy and feel amazing is great I like the way my body looks as it shrinks....with the exception of sagging or "excess" skin.  Mine is mostly on my upper arms and stomach. As my stomach gets flatter it also gets saggier and sometimes this can be so frustrating psychologically, like as if all the weight loss in the world won't matter because my body will still look gross regardless. I want to keep losing weight but it's like a catch 22, for every pound i lose somewhere in the back of my head i am wondering how much more skin will sag. I was wondering if anyone else after their weight loss has this and any advice for dealing with it or tricks to minimizing it's appearance. I know you can have sagging skin surgically removed or fixed but i just don't see myself having that as an option.

Thanks!

I think it's different for everyone. The elasticity of the skin is partially genetic. I don't know if there's much you can do for it besides something like surgery. It's supposed to help if you're losing weight slowly and it seems like you are doing so. Sorry if I'm not much help. Are you also doing muscle toning? I'm not sure but maybe that may help a bit as you get smaller to keep your skin tighter? I'm unsure, sorry.

I know how you feel!!   I am down a bunch, and I have sooooo much skin!!  Not sure what to do but make the best of it for me either.  The beginning of shorts season was a big shock!!

Congrats on the loss, and hang in there!!

lol @ hang in there.. good word choice dude

anyhow.. this is something that I am very concerned about as I lose weight, as I know I couldn't go through surgery - I would never be able be able to afford it for a start.

So, I invested in a mini trampoline.. or a rebounder as some like to call it.  Jumping on it stimulates the lymphatic system because of the momentary weightlessness and following force of gravity, which it would appear, is a good idea if you want to tighten up your skin.

Here's some clippings from one of many websites with similar information:

Mini trampoline exercise strengthens each and every muscle, organ, tissue and cell in your entire body.  Simultaneously, every cell in your body gets exercise, from the top of your head to the tips of your toes. Every cell!!   Mini trampoline exercise strengthens your whole body inside and out, including cells in the liver, kidneys, bladder, heart and lungs.  Externally your skin will smooth, tighten and you will look more youthful.  If you rebound, lines and wrinkles will diminish;  you will get a natural face lift.  This is a guarantee.  

How does mini trampoline exercise strengthen cells?  At the peak of the bounce every cell in your body is suspended for a split second in a state of weightlessness.   At the bottom of the bounce, every cell in your body is receiving as much as two to four times normal gravitational force.  That is the same as weighing two to four times your normal weight.  You can demonstrate this effect by standing on your bathroom scale.  When rebounding your body weight increases due to the force of deceleration.  This force causes the cells to strengthen.  As every cell is stressed, each in turn develops more strength.

If you want to see the whole thing http://www.sundancerebounders.com/md.htm

This website does sell trampolines, but their prices are way high.. so if you do decide to get one, have a good look around for better prices - I got mine for £15 or $30 ish

I can't honestly tell you if it works as I haven't lost enough weight to get loose skin yet, but it is a good way to exercise anyway, and it's great fun =]

jellybeano, I have a mini and am interested in hearing what type of exercise you do on it.  Do you have tapes to follow or do you just bounce?  I have heard of people who modify the movements of a Leslie Sansome Walk Away The Pounds tape and have considered doing that....I would like to start using it again especially since reading the link you posted.  It would have some amazing benefits!  TIA

The amount of sagging skin one has is determined by a few different factors:  Genetics, age, and how long they were overweight and how quickly they lost the weight, among them.

Genetics, obviously, you can do nothing about.

Younger skin is more elastic, so the younger you are, the better your chances are of it "shrinking" over time.

If you used to be skinny, then gained weight, then lost it, your chances are better that the skin will shrink back.  People who were heavy for a long, long time, will have a harder time in this regard.  (Unfortunately, I fall into the latter category.)  Also, the parts of you that carried the most fat for the longest time will shrink slower than other areas.  If you lost a bunch of weight very quickly, then there will be more saggy skin than if you lost the weight slowly and steadily.

I have lost about 120 pounds over 2 years, so skin is an issue for me.  I am 34 years old, and was overweight pretty much my entire life.  I always carried most of my fat in my belly, and so that is the worst area for me right now.  My arms and thighs are looking much better than they did.

I can say from personal experience that the extra skin does recede, but it's a very slow process.  Skin shrinks much more slowly than the rest of you does. :)  A regular exercise routine that includes strength training has been the biggest positive factor for me.  Strength training especially helps because it creates muscle to "fill in" where the saggy skin is.  Hydration is another key factor - drink plenty of water and use body lotion.  It is my opinion that you don't even need to spend money on the expensive, "skin firming" lotions.  I found an awesome body lotion that was $20 for a gigantic container that makes my skin feel smooth and firm.  I also had good results with a $3.00 container of Suave.

Still, I know it can sometimes be disheartening to know you've lost so much weight but still look "pudgy."  In really extreme cases (like, the people who went from 400 pounds down to 150,) surgery is the only option to remove the skin.  But I think that given the age and weight loss level of the OP, things will be looking pretty good if you just give it time. :)

justlaura mentions using lotions.  Does this really help during the weight loss process? I was thinking of buying sephora's body butter but would just regular lotion or baby oil work?

Thanks.

They say it works during pregnancy so I don't see why it wouldn't work during weight loss.  I'm putting Eucerin cream on my belly.  I haven't lost enough to see if I have saggy skin though.  I  have stretch marks from gaining so fast.  (11 years ago)

From my personal experience, lotion helps a small bit, emphasis on the word "small."  There is no miracle lotion that will make your skin shrink and stretch marks vanish.  If you keep your skin well-hydrated, though, it will in turn be healthier and more easily retain its elasticity.  I tried cocoa butter for stretch marks but didn't notice much difference (plus I didn't care for the smell,) though I know cocoa butter does work for some people. 

I think for me, too, some of it is a mental thing.  I found a lotion with a scent that I love, and it makes my skin smooth and "glowing."  In that sense, it just feels good to wear it, and since in my mind I believe it makes my skin look good, then it gives me a little mental boost. :)

The main thing is that using a lotion that your skin and you both like is probably better than not using anything at all.  (And drink plenty of water.  Hydration comes from the inside, too.)

Thanks for the replies. Good point about drinking water, I hadn't thought of that.

My friend lost 100 lb in 3 months with no sagging skin. Granted, he's a multi-millionaire and had the luxury of paying for a nutritionalist and trainer, but his lack of saggy skin came from drinking plenty of water, eating plenty of fruits and veggies, and paying for $600-a week elasticity massages. He told me that would be cheaper in the long run than paying for surgery to remove all the excess skin in the end. I don't know if this is an option for everyone because of the price but I do know that his skin is taunt and firm all around... at a lower price and a less-invasive proceedure than reconstructive surgery.

But he also was 19 when he lost the weight. That might have been a factor?

Ah to be 19 and elastic still....I am 36 and have lost nearly 40 lbs over the last 4 months, and I definately see loose skin. I am reeeeally worried about this, like the OP, because I have about another 100 lbs to go. Right now I am just....looser...like a balloon with some of the air let out...what will I look like in another 40 lbs, 60 lbs, 100?? I am using some oil that my sister gave me for pregnant women, it's supposed to help with stretch marks and elasticity....but I am not very hopeful. Being smaller is great, but looking like the elephant man under your clothes would be demoralizing to say the least.

karefreeman At the moment I'm doing the Hacker Ladder exercises on it (the jogging and jumping parts anyway) so basically jogging and star jumps. I also like to just bounce on it for as long as I can cause it's plain good fun =]

Here's the link to the hacker ladders if you're interested http://www.fourmilab.ch/hackdiet/www/subsecti on1_2_5_0_5.html#SECTION0250500000000000000

Links at the top of the page take you back and forth between the pages, and links at the bottom of the page will tell you how to do the exercise lisited. 

It's a really simple program and only takes about 10 mins to do a day.

I also do the exercises that came with the instruction leaflet for my mini tramp which are:

toe stepping - just lifting the heel of each foot in a stepping type motion, but always keeping the top part of the foot in contact with the tramp. 

jogging for 1 minute bursts, 1 minute rests in between.

and seated bouncing - basically just sitting on the tramp and using your upper body to get a bounce going.. looks kinda silly but fun lol

I know that there are a load of videos you can get to use for mini tramps, but I haven't bothered to get one as yet.. maybe when my balance improves a bit!

Hi, just wanted to offer what a friend suggested to me. Fish oil. It's being promoted these days to help reduce heart disease, but my friend who lost 40lbs said that taking the recommended 1000mg per day really helped with the elasticity of her skin. I've been taking them daily along with my multivitamin. I have to take tham at night because my stomach gets upset with the multivitamin and taking the fish oil in the day, makes me taste fish all day long. Give it a try. They are relatively inexpensive. I even purchased a small bottle of 20 caps from the dollar store.

Best of luck to you and congratulations on your weight loss.

Vitamen E oil is really really good for stretch marks so is coco butter/shea butter but the really hard kind that you get at organic stores...

hi

hiding name and identity does not help much

this is my first attempt to write about myself and tell u my experience and research that i have gone through

since childhood i have been a very active sportsperson and had good muscles on me and my skin use to be very tight though some strech marks but was really good but i had complex of it not being good. today i have regrets of all of my thoughts i was so perfect..... i went into depression after stop playin and kept gaining weight was 187 lbs when i was 20 (gained 55lbs)i started to look abese heavy thighs and big tommy.. and big bust which i always hated and then one day i lost my love and went into depression again and lost about 60 lbs in 1 and half month i lost all my senses of smell eyesight dropped skin can no more sense even the water ie the touch no taste hear loud everything.......

i forgot to notice my loose skin and dd nto pay attention to it

after 2 yrs or so when i had some self control i decided to live again then strated the battle with the weight and skin.........................

trust me water is the key......................

water water and water

u have to admit now that u can not be wht u were

but yes u can look and feel attractive woithout cloths with lots off efforts

yes the difference is weight excercisses. being a women loosing weight is more of a problem because not only skin but ur breast also sags and looks like as if u have been breast feeding for years .... and may consider suggery as the last option

i have being doing research on this topic and takin help from many dietitions who are my frens back home..... the thing is skin is really a living tissue layer that covers  ur body and stores fat underneath for crises....it renews itself during the period of 1 yr if ur are in ur late 20s and this periods goes on increasing as u grow old..... a continous excercise and weight training and water intake can help u

do not concentrate on loosing weight its foolish ,concentrate on tonign up and tightiig ur muscles u have to build the muscle weight u can loose inches being on the same weight by replacing the fat layer with muscles........muscles which again need water and vitamins for survival

diet is another key

hang on to ur weight loss do not keep gainin and loosin this will cause more strech marks under ur skin and the collegen will breake and skin contraction will be more harder but again water is the key..... stess the word water.... one year of hard work can change ur body composition and trust ur skin

do not be in any depression or something, let ur brain be free and work normally and secrete harmones normally avoid any tensions and try to stay happy for atleast 1 yr ;)

this is the wonder to good health

and yes if ur are big busted u have to be carefull because women loose the weight first from their neck and then from breast so u might have to go for bench press and pull ups to develop supporting muscles and keep researching

keep taking multivitamins and consult a dietitian and join a gym .............. u r only 26 u can do wonders but have to put in effort and be patient trust me it really works but be regular and exercise with a lot of water intake....... ur tommy will start to tuck in by itself ,c the magic of the skin u will b amazed.....

give urself 1 yr and u will notice the difference that ur skin is holding ur skeleton though u may have some stretch marks left but dont worry u will be good enough to take ur cloths off confidently ......i m changing and its unbelievable i can not believe that how things work in nature the thing is u have to work with nature and not over do it..... and be in harmony.... i cant belive how food and water change u... i always was careless child busy playing my games and eating whatever but food and water and exercise these three words is what life is all about and if possible take some time out to do meditation good for ur brain to function well and for ur pituitary gland which controls the hormonal secretion... do keep updatin and all the best